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Irony Certification Agency
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA: Mr. Jeremy Frost, proprietor of the area's newly-formed Irony Certification Agency, wears blue overalls. "People expect someone in a nice suit," he says. "But I want them to see that irony is just a facilities problem. Like a leaky pipe."
Mr. Frost's business has been operating for eight months. In that time, he claims to have rendered services to some of the state's largest employers, including a tech giant and two major insurers. But he's unable to name names.
"People don't like to admit they had an irony guy in," he says. "They see the results. But they don't like to talk about it."
That's something Mr. Frost aims to change. "Getting that first meeting, convincing them I can help them, it's tough," he admits. "But once I'm in, I've never left a customer disappointed. I figure if I keep doing what I'm doing, people will eventually get comfortable enough to share their irony problems."
"Irony problems," according to Mr. Frost, occur when places or objects build up irony over time, and then trigger ironic situations. He explains: "Say there's a grocery store and they give me a call. I might find a guy to take in—Mike Slipper, for example, or Amanda Fall. I'll have them walk up and down the aisles. Now, if Mike Slipper slips, or Amanda falls, that's a pretty good sign we've got a source of irony somewhere nearby."
It's not always that simple. "I ask myself: what's the most ironic thing that could happen? Because even a little irony nearby can be enough to set something off, if it's potentially very ironic. One time an insurer had me visit this guy—he was a little accident-prone, and on a big, big policy. At first, everything checks out, but I'm just not comfortable with his car. It's more likely to lock with the keys inside when you're running late, the battery went flat when I tried to drive it to the store to buy batteries… nothing outside normal tolerances, but still, on the high side. Well, then I find out the guy has been writing letters to the paper saying we don't need seat-belt laws. I can't tell you the details of how that turned out, but let me just say that insurer saved a ton of money."
Once Mr. Frost identifies a source of irony, what does he do? "Well, bear in mind, I do Irony Certification, not Irony Disposal. If you've got a restaurant on Ebola Avenue, I can check the premises over and tell you whether you've got a problem, but I can't relocate your business."
This is particularly the case when the source of irony turns out to be a person. "It is awkward, yeah," he admits. "You have someone who's been a long-time model employee, she owns a dog named Buster, and suddenly you're telling her she can't work in the accounting department any more. It's not her fault. We still don't know how the build-up of irony happens. We just know it's there."
Mr. Frost is straightforward about the skepticism he receives on the job. "Everyone has an opinion about irony," he says, a touch wearily. "I do get people coming up to me, saying this isn't really ironic, or that other thing is. Sometimes, a guy comes up, and three words in, I can tell from his accent where we're going." He shrugs. "But it doesn't bother me. When you're an Irony Certification Officer working on an irony-laden site, people telling you you've got the definition of irony wrong is just part of the job."


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I didn't want to tell my coworkers that the reason I was falling asleep everywhere earlier this week was because I had been up all night playing Mass Effect: Citadel.
Not up all night playing video games – that happens all the time. No one thinks anything of it anymore. Playing Mass Effect, though, that's different. I didn't want to say anything because they just wouldn't understand.
I didn't plan on getting Citadel. When I finished the game, I moped a bit and was eventually distracted. I wouldn't say I was really done with Mass Effect but I was done with other people's (including Bioware's) Mass Effect. "Best seats in the house" is when headcannon takes over the rest just fades away.
I was finally, you know, "getting over it". I wasn't avoiding Mass Effect DLC to make a foolish nerdrage stand. At this point I'm mostly sad for Bioware because they came so close to making something perfect only to miss the bullseye at the worst possible time.
Rather I was avoiding DLC because I didn't want to pick at my post-Mass Effect scab.
How I broke
One day I typed "mass effect citadel" into a search field on Youtube. I swear I only watched a video for a second!
The first time.
The second video I watched a little longer. The third video I watched big chunks of.
Eventually I figured I might as well act before I spoil everything for myself. I ripped that scab right off and downloaded Citadel. And now I bleed all over this blog post.
Dear person who's never played Mass Effect
Some time back a guy "friend" was sitting in my living room and had the balls (or outright stupidity) to say "people were just mad at the Mass Effect ending was because it wasn't happy".
Hence the quotation marks around friend.
Over the years I've learned some restraint. So he didn't find himself skyrocketed from my balcony. But I never forgave the ignorance (he has never played Mass Effect, nor has ever even read anything about the game), the callousness (he knows how emotionally involved I am in the Mass Effect story) and the lack of understanding in that comment.
Yes, I'm that pissed off over a comment about a video game. Oh, and it gets better. I can rant for a long, long time.
I'm not going to hide that the lack of the possibility of a traditional happy ending does come up in conversation at times (there's even a mod!), but it's so much more complex than that. And going straight to "u mad at no happy ending bro" is an insult to any disappointed fan of the series.
You know, the default ending isn't even really sad.
The original ending went kind of like: you fight boring mobs, you fight boring mobs, you fight boring mobs, there's some conversation, there's some weird conversation, then some explosions set to music, then the end. And you're sitting there thinking "Okay… Soooo… Did I win?"
The Extended Cut was a little better. You can see that you did win (unless you refuse, in which case you help people 50 000 years from now win), but you're still in the dark about what winning means. And all the puzzle pieces you spent hours and hours finding and trying to fit together: clues about the Reapers, about Cerberus, about the Illusive Man, about other galaxy mysteries. You never get a snapshot of the finished puzzle. Actually, you never even get a finished puzzle. You sit there watching the credits with stray puzzle pieces in your hands, a blank stare on your face and a sick feeling in your stomach, saddened over never learning where these pieces go.
Next, on Life and Death
Shepard living and dying comes up a lot. Trolls (I figure) post "people are just mad that Shepard dies". Destroy players call out "My Shep didn't die!"
In my heart, neither is really true. Ok, so you see your Shepard disintegrating and end up with a plaque on your ship. That's not what death is. Maybe it's part of what death is, but it's not all death is. Death is the people who love you grieving and moving on without you. Death is someone else picking up your torch and continuing where you left off. That never happens, so, to me, it never felt like death.
As for living. Living! You get, what, a gasp and no plaque on your wall? That's not living! Living is carrying on with the injuries that don't heal, it's rebuilding, it's having a place in the world. A gasp and no plaque is nothing of that.
As far as I can tell, in the game, Shepard doesn't really live or die. The official story ends before that.
Of course, you can look at it from another angle (and this is one of the few not too bad things about the ending). Mass Effect forces you, the player, to build a certain relationship with your Shepard. Some people play Shepard as badass versions of themselves, some play Shepards in honour of real life people who've touched them, some people just want to blow shit up.
Me, I played Shepard as my imaginary BFF. Mass Effect came to me at a time in my life where I had been forced into a situation that I wasn't prepared or qualified (and, well, willing) to handle. Not of galaxy-saving-in-face-of-hopeless-odds proportions, but still. I found a lot of comfort and (imaginary) complicity in shooting things, shopping for weapons (and miniature ships) and mouthing off to idiots with Shepard as we coped with what life handed us.
Had I played Shepard as myself in a science fiction world, she (I? we?) would have died. When the game is over you leave the world. The world is still there but you're not because the game is over and you've moved onto another game, another pretend life. But Shepard was my imaginary friend and imaginary friends live with you a long time.
Magic Space Kid's Legacy
After a year, the icky feeling that stuck to me wasn't about crew reunions, wasn't about unfinished stories, wasn't about Shepards stuck in limbo (but know that I can get myself worked up over those things if I try hard enough!). What makes me block out the real Bioware ending, as a story and world lover who lets her imagination run wild, is, no matter what you do, Mass Effect's official post-ending legacy sucks.
What resonated with me about the Mass Effect world was how plausible it all was. I could totally picture the galaxy like that 150 years from now. But then, a couple hundred hours into playing around in this fairly realistic science fiction world, everything gets all new agey weird.
And after all is said and done, you're left with 4 options to work with:
1)This cycle ends so any kind of post-game imagining has to be about the world 50 000 years from now, which we know very little about and thus don't care.
2)You end up with an entire galaxy (universe?) of cyborgs, which is really not fun to build personal stories with.
3)You end up with a world that has a Reaper-god Shepard, which is also not fun to work with.
4)The tons of hours you spent doing diplomatic (and match making!) crap go to waste when you kill half the people you spent huge chucks of the game coercing.
Srsly. What the heck am I supposed to do with that?
My Headcannon
So. My kind-yet-feisty Shepard (for whom death really doesn't fit) is badly injured, never recovers and is forced into a Council position she hates. Her and Garrus pursue their bizarre cross-species relationship and adopt cute little krogan orphans. Garrus is a surprisingly good stay-at-home dad. Kaidan gets the Normandy, mostly as a Spectre vessel. Everyone else goes on with their usual occupations. My own characters are weaved in, but that's personal so you'll never find out.
I played Citadel as if it was happening after the ending.
At first I felt a little guilty and justified myself by saying that I spent 15$ on this DLC and can play it in any mindset I want.
As the DLC goes on, though, it almost feels like that's how you're supposed to play. If you replace every "we're at war" with "we were at war", it actually works really, really well. Some of the scenes – Vega's N7 tattoo, Garrus' ballroom dancing recital, fundraising for Salarian space cancer research – make a lot more sense if you think of them as happening after the war.
So yeah, it's after the war, we've moved all the gross bodies out of the Citadel, we're going around the Galaxy rebuilding and getting rid of whatever the Reapers left behind, the Normandy needs a tune up and Anderson (who survived being shot, because, really, I'm not too sure he got shot in the first place) is all "I'm not leaving Earth, go hang out at my place in the Citadel".
The timeline is after Shepard has recovered enough to help in the Galactic Clean Up Effort and before her being dumped against her will into Udina's dirty Council chair.
And then… It felt like when I was a kid. On the last day of the school year, we were given candy, we played games and teachers slacked off in enforcing the rules. Citadel was like that last day of school. The "rules" didn't matter, it was just celebrating, reminiscing and gorging myself with sweet, sweet candy.
I'd followed the blurbs from different Bioware employees who were involved in creating and marketing Mass Effect on the Bioware Blog. (You should check it out! Tends to be forcefully positive because of, you know, PR and stuff, but still very interesting.) Playing Citadel was like experiencing those blurbs. I kept imagining the writers sitting around a table tossing around their favorite jokes and game references and just laughing and laughing. I felt connected to the game like I always do, but I also felt connected to everyone who'd loved Mass Effect over the years.
By the way, the references to Multiplayer throughout the Strip were brilliant. I spent so much time listening to the pair discussing bad pugs! It was the first time I felt like Multiplayer was actually part of the story and not just a ploy to keep people playing the game longer.
Critique of Citadel?
Um. My first reaction to Shepard's new apartment was "Wow, that's a lot of wasted space." Tiny house fan knee jerk reaction, sorry. I would have liked a bit more customization available too (which is hilarious because normally I don't care about customizing anything – I've never even transmogged in WoW! Mass Effect is just special.), but I could understand how there's no point in adding tons of extra items that'll only be seen for a few hours.
I love how the plot dragged me through the archives. Perfect idea for a final DLC! I would have liked more lore, though, and lore that I didn't already know about. I would have loved to stumble across some ancient, ancient story. But I'm splititng hairs here. I loved the archives. I'd even pay for a DLC that consists of nothing but archival exploration. (In case you were wondering, the character that I've always related most to is Liara. She's like the video game me, only with a gentler voice and fancy biotic powers.)
And Legion. Why no Legion? Mordin and Thane got a nod (I cried like a baby during Mordin's!), but Legion… It's like he never even existed. (Ashley didn't get anything either, but since she's mentioned a lot during ME3, I was fine with it.) I even checked all the arcade scores for "Infiltrait0rN7" and nothing.
And now I'm hooked on the Arena
When I heard the combat simulation, I thought "Why would I want that when there's plenty of actual combat to go around?"
Then I tried it.
It's all the fun of Multiplayer without the stress of playing with strangers. I enjoyed all the mini games in Citadel (again, hilarious because I normally just ignore mini games) but the Arena, in all its simplicity, was so much fun.
When I reached the end, I let the tears flow at Shepard's "The best" line and thanked the game and its creators for giving me such a good run.
Then I hit "load" and ran back to the Arena.

subset: commoncrawl


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Perfect for hiding your whisky on a paleontology dig or if you just like reciting lines from Jurassic Park while tailgating, this porcelain flask is shaped like a single Velociraptor claw. Just remember to cork it before pretending to slice your friends' bellies open, or risk spilling booze instead of blood.
This flask is available for $55 from MattTV16's Etsy store.
Porcelain Velociraptor Claw Flask [Etsy via The Mary Sue]


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WIN Network: Detroit wants to connect you to the resources that you need. We've put together a list of local resources here in Detroit. If you know of a resource that is not listed here, or if you would like to submit a correction or update, please contact us.
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Whether you're already stocking up on new flowers to plant or you're just now dusting off the lawn mower, it's about time to start getting that yard in tip-top shape for the season. And if you're looking for some tips and tricks, we've got you covered — here are some seven hacks you can try in your yard this spring, whether you're gardening, grilling or getting some sun.
1. Nature's own table and chairs: Have some fallen trees in your backyard that you're looking to get rid of? If they're not too rotten, cut out some of the heftier parts of the trunk to make some rugged seating. If you're feeling really crafty, make a table, too. Treat the wood to smooth and seal it.
2. Poolside movie: Here's a fun one, even if you don't have a pool: run a rope or wire between two poles, trees, or something similar; throw up a white sheet and set up a projector and sound system. Voila — outdoor movie theater, right in your own backyard.
3. Wooden pallet flower shelf: Wooden pallets are cheap and a simple, and oh-so very hack-able. In this case, taking a smaller wooden pallet and mounting it on the wall provides a shelf perfect for dropping in some flowers and plants and growing them in a unique display.
4. Purpose for egg shells: After cracking that egg for breakfast, don't throw away the eggshells — save them for your garden, instead. Rinse the shells and crush them up, and then distribute them into the soil around your plants for a calcium boost to the soil, which plants — especially tomatoes — will love.
5. The easiest weed killer: If you have weeds growing in specific, limited areas — the cracks in the pavement, the spaces between path pavers — kill them off by pouring boiling water on them. Keep your kettle or container as close to the weeds as possible when pouring so you don't burn yourself or get the hot water on any nearby plants that you don't want to kill.
6. Protect your grilled fish — with added bonus flavor: Cooked fish is delicate, falling apart at the touch of a fork — which makes grilling fish difficult. You run the risk of the fish sticking to the grate and falling apart. Solve this by putting down a layer of lemon slices on the grill, and then cooking the fish on top of the lemon. You'll get protection from the grill and some delicious infused flavors.
7. Clean that grill — with an onion: Get the grill nice and hot first to burn off the bulk of the gunk, and then grab an onion to get the rest off. Cut it in half, stick it on a fork, and then scrub it, cut-side-down, on the grill grates. The onion will help loosen up and clean off that grit — without chemicals and waste!


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Achievements 2011: Department of Modern and Classical Language Studies
Recent research activity conducted by Department of Modern and Classical Language Studies faculty members includes two books, six journal articles or book chapters, and three research grants.
Brian Baer
Baer's book Other Russias: Homosexuality and the Crisis of Post-Soviet Identity (Palgrave-Macmillan, 2009) was one of only 20 books selected from the publisher's lists as a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2011.
Baer, Brian, ed. Contexts, Subtexts, Pretexts: Literary Translation in Eastern Europe and Russia. In the series Benjamins Translation Library (BLT 89). John Benjamins, 2011.
Baer, Brian and Minick, Theresa. Two federal government NSA STARTALK grants: a $125,000 grant to support the Chinese Teacher-Student Academy, a summer immersion program for Ohio high school students and teachers of Chinese; and $100,000 to support the Russian Student Academy, a summer immersion program for Ohio high school students of Russian.
Jessie Carduner
Carduner, Jessie. "Have You Paid Someone a Compliment Today?" In Pragmatics: Teaching natural conversation, edited by N. R. Houck and D. H. Tatsuki, eds., 61-78. Alexandria, VA: TESOL Inc., 2011.
Geoff Koby
Koby, Geoff and Shaklee, John. "Careers in Translation and Interpreting." Invited presentation. American Translators Association (ATA). November 2011. http://atanet.org/webinars/ataWebinar100_careers.php.
Jennifer Larson
Larson, Jennifer. "Bilingual Inscriptions and Translation in the Ancient Mediterranean World." In Complicating the History of Western Translation: The ancient Mediterranean in perspective, edited by Siobhán McElduff and Enrica Sciarrino, 50-61. Manchester (UK) and Kinderhook (NY): St. Jerome, 2011.
Larson, Jennifer. "Green Scholars Initiative."
- Jennifer Larson was selected to participate in the Green Scholars Initiative, which loans ancient papyri and manuscripts from the Green Collection to institutions for the purpose of publication by teams of faculty mentors and undergraduate students. Kent State is one of twelve institutions nationally participating in the papyrus section of the project, supervised by distinguished experts from Oxford University. Four KSU Honors students will be working with Prof. Larson in AY 11-12 on this project.
Judy Wakabayashi
Wakabayashi, Judy. "Non-European Thinking on Secular Translation. Asian perspectives." In The Oxford Handbook of Translation Studies, edited by Kirsten Malmkjaer and Kevin Windle, 23–36. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011.
Wakabayashi, Judy. "Nihon ni okeru Toransureshon Sutadizu no ichizuke—Yori hiroi shiten kara." In Toransureshon Sutadizu, edited by Nana Sato-Rossberg, 271–289. Tokyo: Misuzu Shobo, 2011.
Wakabayashi, Judy. "The First Aboriginal Mediators: Interpreting and Interpreted." Across Languages and Cultures 12.1 (2011): 49–69.
Wakabayashi, Judy. "Fictional Representations of Author–Translator Relationships." Translation Studies 4.1 (2011): 87–102.
Richard Kelly Washbourne
Asturias, Miguel Angel. Legends of Guatemala. Translated by Richard Kelly Washbourne. Latin American Literary Review Press, 2011.
Washbourne, Richard Kelly. Translation Fellowship ($25,000) from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for 2010-11 to prepare a critical translation, Legends of Guatemala, from the Spanish of Miguel Angel Asturias.


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The Deal: Leather coats and $10 off $300 Orders + $1 Shipping at Overstock
The Lowdown: PETA notwithstanding, leather — particularly the rocker/biker look — is hot right now. And while there are lots and lots of fab faux leather options out there (which are also less expensive), there is something to be said for the look and feel (and durability) of real, honest-to-goodness leather. Fortunately, if nothing but the real thing will do, there are options that are stylish and affordable.
The key, of course, is to pick items that are versatile — meaning not overly trendy. "Um, biker jackets aren't trendy?" you say? Okay you have us there, but they're the kind of trend that, in a classic form (neutral color, no bedazzling or weird fringy stuff) comes back around from time to time, and still looks good even when they're NOT the central trend of the season. Perhaps we're just justifying — but we like biker jackets.
And a preemptive note: We know that among our readers, there are surely those who are philosophically against real leather, and we feel ya. Rest assured, we have in the past and will continue to feature lots of faux leather options for all fashionistas. Promise!
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Dallas Liposuction Specialty Clinic
This is the official site for Lift Body Center, Dallas area's premier institute for minimally invasive body contouring.
Our intent is to offer you an office that specializes in the most technologically advanced minimally invasive liposuction procedures offered in the world today. Liposuction is a focus of ours and that has allowed us to become "superspecialists" in this area. There are many types of liposuction offered these days and sometimes this can get quite confusing. We pride ourselves on offering many different types of technologies under one roof. The advantage of this is that it allows us to use the technology that is right for you rather than resorting to a one size fits all approach. It also allows us to mix technologies to optimize your results. For example, laser liposuction procedures (such as Smart Llipo™ or ProLipo™) and WaterLipo® can actually be combined for a hybrid procedure that will result in a better result in some cases. Most offices do not have the technological capability to do that the way we do. We also have technologies to augment your result after your procedure such as the Skin Tyte™ procedure that was recently featured on "The Doctors" show. Because we have the ability to do so many different kinds of liposuction and skin tightening procedures, we can give you an honest assessment of what we believe will get you the best possible outcome. Our aim is always to provide the safest, most effective procedure with the least amount of down time. That is our mission. It is a mission that we take very seriously.
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Today is Remembrance Sunday, the day where we should all take a few moments to say our silent thank you's to those family members, friends and comrades who have fought, and in many cases, died for Britain and for freedom. For me, there are a few people who I 'remember'. My Grandad, who passed away when I was 3. He was a driver in the RFA in WW2 and saw action in Africa and Italy. I don't remember him, but I have a picture of him on our wall, along with his medals.
Then there is Charlie Addington. He and his wife had 5 children at the outbreak of the first world war, and as such he was allowed to stay at home instead of joining the army. However, every 6 months or so, the call up papers came, and he went to the local courts to put his case forward – in late 1917 his wife, Alice, had just given birth to their 6th child, and was very ill, however the British Army had lost so many men on the Somme and at Passchedaele that his case was rejected and he was called up. On the 12th June 1918 Charlie was killed in action by shell fire, a week later, his wife Alice also died, leaving their 6 children, one of them my Grandfather, orphans.
Every British family has a similar story, every British person has similar silent thank you's they wish during those 2 minutes silence. That is what makes this day so special for so many people.
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young,
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted;
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years contemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;
As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.
Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)


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The full impact, if any, of last Tuesday's second, town-hall style, debate has yet to be fully felt in the polls, although both the seven-day Gallup poll and three-day Rasmussen tracking poll likely picked up some of the debate impact in yesterday's releases. Of course, yesterday's Gallup results, which show Romney up by 7%, 52%-45%, created a minor media sensation, with Democrats now charging bias, while Republicans suddenly deciding the polls were a pretty good barometer of where the race is at this moment. But you don't need to think that Gallup has somehow tipped the scales by, for instance, using a weighting procedure that under samples African-Americans, to still remain skeptical of the result. Instead, there are far less sinister reasons why I suggest not overreacting in either direction to this poll. As I've said before, it is the nature of random sampling that there is some uncertainty built into polling estimates. In Gallup's case that is plus or minus 2%. Second, it is also possible that a poll will be a statistical outlier, through the luck of the sampling draw. That is why I've said repeatedly not to rely on a single pollster if there are other, equally reliable poll results available. This morning, for example, Rasmussen's daily tracker has the race tied at 48% a piece. That poll, by the way, includes two days of post-second debate results. The RCP_election_2012_daily_composite poll sheet also indicates the race is very tight.
Of course, this virtual dead heat comes after almost a month-long period of stability in which Obama seemed to be leading this race by 2.5%-4%. It's worth considering what has changed to erase Obama's lead. As I suggested in my latest professor pundits taping with Bert Johnson, I think a chunk of Romney's new-found polling support comes from women voters who are taking a second look at his candidacy. It is evident from the first two presidential debates that both sides are wooing the women's vote. But I think it instructive to think how they are doing so. In an earlier post at the Economist's Democracy in America blog site I blamed the genesis of the "gender gap" dating back to the Reagan presidency on the fact that white men have left the Democratic Party, while women have largely stayed put. They do so not so much because of the Democratic Party's stance on so-called women's issues such as abortion rights, workplace discrimination or contraception availability, but because of that Party's stronger commitment to government programs intended to protect society's most vulnerable citizens: the old, very young and the sick. The key to Romney's polling climb, I think, has been partly his ability to convince at least a few more women voters to look at these issues in terms of the economic dimension. That is, how do increase deficits, slow job growth and a generally sluggish economic impact these more vulnerable citizens? It has also been a function of his ability, in a side-by-side comparison with the President, to come across as more moderate than what Obama's advertising had suggested. That is, at least some women – already willing to look elsewhere for economic reasons – now think that Romney is at least a plausible alternative candidate. To be sure, as this Pew poll indicates, Obama still leads among women, but his margin of support has eroded, and that is contributing to a tightening of the polls.
This poll, of course, was from before the second debate, and the mini-controversy over Romney's "binder full of women" comment, and his statement that he supported flexible work schedules so women could get home to make dinner for their kids. Both President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden immediately jumped on Romney's binder comments in their campaign speeches next day, and many women's advocates derided Romney's comment about women cooking dinner as sexist. But there's a potential problem with this strategy. If you were watching the focus group reactions on CNN during Romney's comments on these issues, as I was, you saw that women actually reacted more positively than did men! I suspect this is in part because many working women will tell you that workforce flexibility is actually very important to them, and for precisely the reasons Romney says – a desire to get home in time to be with family. (I make no judgment about what this suggests more generally about the division of labor in many households – that's a discussion for another day.)
My point is that I'm not sure these comments, as viewed, were as damaging to Romney among women as Obama supporters hope. Of course, as I've said before, the impact of any debate is mediated in part by how the media chooses to interpret it. In this case, the media may decide the binder comment hurt Mitt with women voters, in which case it may actually do so. But it did not appear to hurt him among those women in the CNN focus group, for whatever that is worth. Indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if, despite Romney's characteristically awkward phrasing, the binder comment may play well with many women – at least those who heard it directly.
This is all a long way of saying that I do not believe the second debate will have nearly the same impact on the polls as did the first, in large part because I think the race has now reached the equilibrium point that the forecast models predicted all along. Of course, it remains possible that Mitt will lose some of his new-found gains among women voters. If so, I'm betting it won't be a huge drop in support.
But don't take my word for it. In case you missed the debates, here are the highlights so far (hat tip to Amy Yuen!)


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'Basketball Wives L.A.' star Jackie Christie spills all her marriage, love & life secrets!
We all know the Jackie Christie from Basketball Wives L.A. as the girl who doesn't get along with the other wives, but has an amazing relationship with her husband, retired NBA player Doug Christie. The two have renewed their vows this year for the 17th time, and we had to get all the details! We sat down with her to get all the dirt on the reality star's love life with her husband, her kids and of course, with the rest of the basketball wives.
Tell me about you renewing your vows.
We renew our vows every year; it brings everyone together, and we always have a theme. This year, our theme was equal rights. We wanted to bring awareness to the LGBT community. We get remarried every year, and we think everyone should be able to.
You've written six books. Tell us about Sexual Relations: A His and Hers Guide to Greater Intimacy.
Yes, I've been lucky to have written these books. [Sexual Relations] is about how to be intimate. One main part is communication, telling your man on a daily basis how you feel. It's about sexiness, celebrity tips … in a way, it's a handbook! I've always wanted to be a writer.
We see your daughter on the show. Will we be seeing more of her this season?
Yeah, my daughter recently moved out which you'll see. You never want your baby to go away! She's 19, really into fashion, already has two books out. She's actually producing a documentary show, which is coming out soon, too. She's so strong-willed.
How do you keep your romance alive with Doug after so many years?
Communication is really important. It's the foundation of our marriage. You can still have a separate life from one another, but long-term, you have to be able to tell your mate how you feel. We're lovers and best friends. Our main secret is communication. We have respect for ourselves, each other and each other's families. We get involved in each other's goals and are intertwined.
How has being on Basketball Wives L.A. changed your life and relationship with Doug?
Well, there's ups and downs to the show. It's entertainment and yes, it's real. They show us having a good time, sharing what's going on in real life. They show what the viewers want to see. I've become a more open person, and I don't judge others.
What's the worst part?
It's when the others decide to make me out as the bad guy!
What can we expect from this season?
I think the viewers will be pleasantly surprised! A lot is going to happen; you see who people really are and the levels people go to to hurt someone.
Many people look up to couples like you and Doug. Who's the celebrity couple you look up to?
It has to be Barack and Michelle Obama. You can tell they really love and respect each other's values. They appreciate one another.
You can catch Basketball Wives L.A. on VH1 at Mondays at 8 PM Eastern time.
More marriage content from YourTango:
- 4 Super Important Relationship Skills All Couples Must Learn Before Getting Married
- Why Do Men Get Married? [VIDEO]
- The Worrisome Reason Why So Many Married Couples Kiss Less Than Once A Week
Photo credit: Ash Gupta


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The United States needs to review its intelligence gathering to ensure it is collecting information because it needs it, an Obama administration official says.
Lisa Monaco, President Obama's assistant for homeland security, said in a statement late Thursday that the Review Group on Intelligence and Communications Technology has been established to make recommendations on how to go forward. Another board will review intelligence gathering for privacy and civil liberties issues.
"We want to ensure we are collecting information because we need it and not just because we can," Monaco said.
Documents leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden suggest the agency hacked into the phones of foreign leaders, including U.S. allies. Officials say foreign intelligence services are being warned that Snowden has documents detailing secret cooperation with the United States, officials said.
U.S. officials said Snowden left with tens of thousands of documents, some of which included sensitive material about programs against countries such as Iran, Russia and China, The Washington Post said. Some of the documents refer to operations that involve countries not publicly allied with the United States.
The notifications come as the Obama administration is trying to soothe allies after allegations that the NSA monitored communications of foreign leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is tasked with informing the other intelligence services, officials said.
ODNI declined the Post's request for comment.
Snowden took the documents from a top-secret network run by the Defense Intelligence Agency and used by intelligence units of the military branches, unnamed sources told the Post.
Snowden took 30,000 documents involving intelligence work of one of the services, the official said. He gained access through the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System for top-secret and-or sensitive compartmentalized information, sources said.
The material doesn't deal with NSA surveillance, but with standard intelligence about other countries' military capabilities, the officials say.
Livid European leaders warned of anti-U.S. penalties after a report said Washington eavesdropped on the phone conversations of some 35 allied world leaders.
German officials launched a legal investigation and said the escalating scandal could disrupt counter-terrorism collaboration between the United States and European Union.
Chancellor Angela Merkel -- who alleged a day earlier the NSA spied on her cellphone -- met with French President Francois Hollande about the diplomatic crisis a EU summit in Brussels.
Three days earlier, Hollande condemned alleged U.S. spying in France after documents leaked by Snowden indicated the NSA intercepted 70.3 million digital communications inside France from Dec. 10, 2012, to Jan. 8, 2013.
German Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger called for a halt to a European financial data-sharing program that targets suspected terrorists.
Other European officials attending the EU summit said efforts to create a major U.S.-EU trade deal could be damaged as well.
Many said they were shocked a potent ally they considered a friend could have tapped their personal communications -- an act The Washington Post said was long considered diplomatically off-limits.
"Spying among friends -- that just does not work," Merkel told reporters in Brussels.
"The United States and Europe face common challenges," she said, "[but] trust has to be restored."
U.S. intelligence agencies are "out of control," European Parliament President Martin Schulz said.
British Prime Minister David Cameron, whose NSA counterpart agency is also accused of spying on allies, had no public comment about the U.S. spying reports.
The flurry of activity was fueled by a report published online Thursday by The Guardian. The British newspaper published what it said was a 2006 memo indicating a U.S. official provided the NSA with 200 phone numbers tied to 35 world leaders.
The memo, sourced to Snowden, said U.S. government employees were encouraged to mine their contact books for the business and personal landline, fax and cellphone numbers of "foreign political or military leaders" and pass on the details to the NSA.
President Barack Obama assured Merkel "the United States is not and will not monitor the chancellor's communications," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in Washington Thursday.
Russia has granted Snowden temporary asylum. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday he does not expect the affair to affect the relationship between the United States and Russia, RIA Novosti reported.


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Where are the Knights of the Round Table? Are there none left?
My title might confuse you, but when I tried to make a better descriptive one, It was just too long.
My question is are there no charismatic, principled, honest presidential candidates available any more, or did we really never have them in the first place? That is not saying that some of the candidates don't have some of the qualities but no one seems to be standing out.
Would JFK have passed the "vetting" by press now? I really liked and still do admire President Reagan. Was he real or am I just forgetting major character flaws?
Are there any viable candidates or does the news media vetting, the ability to slander without penalty and the anonymity of the internet make the worthwhile ones stay in the background?
Would you subject your family to the scrutiny, and more?
If you say no, are we as a result, letting those influences dictate the quality, availability of our political candidates?
The deregulation of the media conglomerations started it. The Citizens United Ruling was the nail in the coffin.
When you have media companies owning multiple networks, newspapers and tabloids, the truth can be whatever they want it to be and label it as "for entertainment purposes only"-- Posted by Evil Monkey on Thu, Mar 29, 2012, at 3:32 PM
We also seem to be on a mission lately to DUMB DOWN the office.-- Posted by Palindrome on Thu, Mar 29, 2012, at 5:09 PM
Maybe not charismatic, but Ron Paul is the most principled, honest candidate I've seen in a good while. So much so that he seems like an "oddball" by comparison.-- Posted by quietmike on Thu, Mar 29, 2012, at 7:09 PM
Charisma is needed to win over the vote, unless the "system" is behind them, in which case, they are probably NOT who we hoped.-- Posted by stevemills on Thu, Mar 29, 2012, at 8:48 PM
During the Clinton administration, those who were beginning to question his character due to the Lewinski scandal were told time and again by his avid supporters that character doesn't matter. They shouted in unison, "It's the economy stupid." Well, to quote a certain pastor..."The chickens have come home to roost." Unfortunately, the character of Presidential hopefuls is no longer an issue...unless of course, the candidate is a conservative. Liberals are given a free pass by the media.-- Posted by Tim Lokey on Thu, Mar 29, 2012, at 11:26 PM
"Liberals are given a free pass by the media."
How so?-- Posted by Evil Monkey on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 3:00 AM
I think that media is bias and slams the politicians that they don't like. Everyone has skeletons in their closets. And everyone knows that when you do run for office, then your life is closely watched. That is a good thing and a bad thing for us voters.
A good thing, as in the presidential hopeful is a sex offender, has claimed bankruptcy multiple times, has been a flip-flopper on various subjects.
A bad thing, as in the repeated coverage over and over again of simple mistakes they may have made in their lives. I don't care that someone cheated on their wife. I don't care that someone may not be a christian. I don't care that someone said a curse word. None of these have anything to do with doing a job correctly. If it did, then there would be plenty more of unemployed people in the US.
There are no honest people in politics. It simply cannot happen. There are too many hands in the politician's pockets for them to actually vote or speak from their own mouths. They say and vote what they are being paid to.-- Posted by -Beth- on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 4:29 AM
That is why we do not need to elect a "politician".
I have to disagree with not being concerned about someone cheating on their spouse. It shows some character flaws that need to be evaluated. If they cheat on someone they have promised to be faithful to, what makes the Nation any different?
A one-time slip .... human, but a prolonged affair is something different.
EM, I like to think I vote for the candidate, but admittedly, I lean more Conservative and therefore identify with more Republicans on the National level. Locally it is all about the person.
I say this to preface my main point and that it I too think the Conservative is analyzed and criticized much more, more aggressively and for longer than a Liberal. A case in point is Mr. Obama's slip with the "live mike".
If any conservative did that, it would be top news for weeks. Now, the Republicans are trying to get some mileage from that, but I rarely hear it on radio news coverage.
Granted, Mr. Obama benefited from the Supreme Court deliberations and testimony drawing attention away, but .....
Since I brought it up, his statement is understandable and reality, but the fact that he asked if any mikes were live makes his intentions seem questionable.-- Posted by stevemills on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 8:44 AM
That is why we do not need to elect a "politician".
This I can agree with.
And according the conservatives, Obama isn't a politician, he is a community organizer. hehe.
Apparently, Obama must be really lucky to have all of these things happening around him that take the spotlight off him.
Well, when he said it, did he cackle like a mad man and rub his hands together too? If he didn't then I guess his intentions weren't too bad.
I try to vote for the right person nationally and locally. I hate this idea of parties, the two party system stinks it really doesn't allow for getting the best men and women into office.
For example:
Oklahoma City Mayor (R) Mick Cornett is one of the most progressive thinkers and really thought ahead and they were recession proof. Why? Because he surrounded himself with smart people who were both liberal and conservative and they were the best in their fields.
This is a man I would be happy with and support. He didn't do it for the party, he did it for the people.-- Posted by Evil Monkey on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 10:30 AM
As a sitting senator, Mr. Obama was in office for only 166 days before beginning his presidential campaign. During this time, he only voted on 3 key pieces of legislation. Just exactly how did the news media vett this man? They didn't. Unless of course you count the MSNBC news anchor who said he felt "tingles" run up and down his legs when Obama entered a room. I'm still waiting for someone to point out just exactly what it was that qualified this man to be President. As a president, he has been an abysmal failure.-- Posted by Tim Lokey on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 12:54 PM
"As a president, he has been an abysmal failure."
Think maybe, he was setup to fail. Ironically, he ignores the rhetoric and does what needs to be done without Congress. Additionally, seems the experts tend to disagree with your assessment.-- Posted by Evil Monkey on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 3:33 PM
Ironically, he ignores the rhetoric and does what needs to be done without Congress.
-- Posted by Evil Monkey on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 3:33 PM
Well that certainly answers the questions about the knights of the round table!LOL
I guess adding $5 Trillion to our nation debt needed to be done!
The knights, in this case are mostly, Democrats anyway but I am sure they can sit in their circle and point the finger of blame at the next guy. Rhetoric indeed!
JFK was probably the last president to sincerely want to set things right. We all know what happened to him.
The best hope we have is that the citizens awaken and quit asking "what can my country do for me?" but instead "what can I do for my country?"
I don't expect any knights in shining armour to be able to correct this mess. At least until we see the one seated on a white horse carrying a double edged sword.-- Posted by Liveforlight on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 3:54 PM
....are we as a result, letting those influences dictate the quality, availability of our political candidates?
----Steve Mills------
I believe this is probably exactly what is happening. Almost all media is now under the control of just 6 companies. ALL one needs to do is take a look at those six entities and see what they are involved in and promote to see why the media is so obviously skewed.
Very little negative reporting is inflicted upon those who have similar views. In the last election their was very little known about Mr. Obama. There is still very little known about him and there is not likely to be much more disclosed about him in this election cycle either.
Obama had some very powerful advantages working for him in the last election. The media, his race, he was not a Rebulican, and his ideas seemed fresh, new and offered hope.
This time there is only his own record to overcome. That should be a monumental task because the country is more divided than it has ever been in my life time, the debt he has created in three yrs has exceed the debt Bush created in 8 yrs., Muslim/terrorist sympathizers now control countries that were our allies, an opportunity to support the people of Iran trying to overthrow their oppressive hostile regime was squandered, numerous lawsuits by states opposing a socialist takeover of healthcare, intentional sales of guns to illegal alliens, I could go on, but the point is the media will never bring this things to light and vet the mans performance as they should. These things are the only measure there is of the man since he has all of his records sealed. (So much for transparencie)
Yes, Steve we are letting those influences dictate the quality and availabiity of political candidates.
There are those who would have this president dictate policy to our congress and country. This type of president is commonly known as a dictator.-- Posted by Liveforlight on Fri, Mar 30, 2012, at 9:38 PM
We could do without the knights of the realm if we had a decent wizard and a sword that could pick out wise and virtuous leaders.-- Posted by quantumcat on Sun, Apr 1, 2012, at 10:09 PM
When it all gets down to where the tire meets the road, we can all be pretty good at casting blame. I do it myself sometimes...even though I know better. Truth is (in my humble opinion) that we, ourselves are to blame for the current state of politics. Voter apathy has led us down the path we are currently on. When the average person can name the twelve finalists on American Idol, yet don't know or care who their congressional representative is, our nation's future survival and prosperity will sadly be dependent upon those who refuse to vote rather than those who do.-- Posted by Tim Lokey on Sun, Apr 1, 2012, at 10:19 PM
No doubt that apathy is rampant. But why?
No doubt that we are to blame. But how do we stop the trend?
If we know the very best candidate, are we doing them a favor to encourage them or are we tearing up their lives with the "vetting" process that follows?-- Posted by stevemills on Mon, Apr 2, 2012, at 6:13 AM
People in this country used to get very excited by elections. They actually cared about elected officials who put the best interest of our country first. Out of apparent selfish and self-centered motives, people are asking them selves "what can my government do for me" and therefore vote for the candidate who promises them that they can not only have their cake, but eat it as well.
I'm not 100% certain of how we stop the trend Steve, but maybe we could start by vetting the candidate ourselves, instead of listening to and believing everything coming out of the mouths of talking heads in the media. It really doesn't take that much effort to check a candidates voting record or fact check their track record as a public servant. A potential voter could then select a candidate who's record indicates that they have similar values. Voting straight down party lines also indicates that a person would step into the voting booth and vote for Charles Manson himself as long as he had the little D or R at the end of his name.
I'll readily admit that I'm a pretty regular viewer of FOX NEWS. The main stream media lost me a long time ago. However at FOX, they are sometimes way over the top with their conservative bias. So I try to fact check newsworthy items on my own and form my own opinion.-- Posted by Tim Lokey on Tue, Apr 3, 2012, at 1:18 AM
A problem with the system, is that people are finding out that their votes do not count. When the voting comes down to the president, for an example, the "little" people's votes do not count. They are simply considered as a suggestion of who should be president.
As for voting for congress, senators, and even mayors, people no longer pay attention because they know that it is the same old story with every politician. They tell you that they are going to do something as soon as they are in office. Then, once elected, they turn into the exact same person you just voted out of office.
I am one, that does not look at what party someone is in. I think most people are getting tired of the separation of the parties and the problems that they cause when a bill is trying to go through the government. If there was someone who did not take anyone's side and was honest about what needs to be done - then that would be the knight. But unfortunately, politicians like that have died out just as the knights have done.-- Posted by PrpleHze on Tue, Apr 3, 2012, at 11:32 AM
"No doubt that apathy is rampant. But why"
I imagine that it is a result of many factors, but the most important one is that we have been conditioned to be apathetic. How we relate to external authority follows us from our childhood into adulthood. We are introduced to submission at a very young age, and never escape the Panopticon that entraps our minds.
To be blunt, we are not expected to exercise our right to shape our government in any way, but that path which has already been chosen. We are kept ignorant and insecure, squabbling over irrelevancies, while our birthright (a self-governing society) has been embezzled from us while we were sleeping. We have no meaningful choices. We are trained to live entirely within a political spectrum that consists of a nurturing mother/strict father dichotomy of implementation, wherein either choice leads to the same end result. We sense that we have been slighted, but we do not know who to blame (even though we do look hard, and most everyone will assign blame to someone--typically someone unlike themselves).
"No doubt that we are to blame. But how do we stop the trend?"
I do not know that it can be stopped. I do not even know if it should be. It may be the case that people need an ever larger imposed internal framework to ensure a more and more cohesive society. I would like to think not, but I certainly do not know. It has never actually been done before, save some very short periods of relative liberty.
If it is to be reversed, it would have to begin with the next generation. It is too late for us adults. We are not talking about learning a civics lesson; to have the ability to self-govern people need both knowledge and understanding. We are unfortunately lacking the most basic of tools to begin, that is unless self-interest, ignorance, and intolerance are the prerequisites.-- Posted by memyselfi on Wed, Apr 11, 2012, at 1:21 AM
memyself makes some very good points here. I will expound on how the trend can be stopped. This will be quite lengthy.
What we are lacking is the responsibility of the individual.
Knights conjour a vision of a noble character committed to an honorable cause for which he is willing to fight and die. The round table represents equaility among a group of knights all possessing the same characteristics. A Knight is a strong individual with a firm commitment and defined responsibility.
What has happened is that we have become dependent on our government. What will stop the trend is to regain our independence. This is not an easy task but it has been done before and lead to great prosperity and freedom. There is a document that expresses what is, and has to be done. Here is a copy of the text;
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
This document preceeded the Constitution and supplied the noble cause for which the "Knights" were willing to lay down their lives. This enabled the Constitution to be written and adopted.
The idea that "all men were created equal" is noble and true. The statement that we are "endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights" is also.
With these two statements we see the foundation for all of our laws. Without a belief in the "created" and "Creator" the entire thing comes unravelled. The true foundation of liberty is found here and without it the underpinning of our Castle is undone and the whole thing will collapse. It is just a matter of time.
The idea of being created equal tends to elevate us in our own self-centered minds. We don't seem to grasp that we ALL also have the flaws that are common to all human beings. These flaws are carried through from the individual to the collective government when the foundation is removed upon which the flaws are able to stand.
Even Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration, held slaves, denying his fellow man their liberty which was endowed by God. The price for that injustice was terrible and need not have even occurred if they had built on the foundation to which they had committed their lives. That, in itself, is a perfect example of the flaws of human controll of what has endowed by God.
The idea of being committed to God is repulsive to some, but the fact remains that we ALL have faith in what we believe to be true. If we remove "created" and "creator", then with what do we replace them?-- Posted by Liveforlight on Wed, Apr 11, 2012, at 9:17 AM
Liveforlight, I agree that we are all too dependent upon our government and its extensions. The question that I have is how that dependency came about. It seems to me as though we need to understand how and why we are at this point before we can even think about regaining our independence (even on an individual level). You see, our dependency did not develop in a vacuum.
I also like the Declaration, but I view it somewhat differently than you appear to. I don't guess that should be surprising though, given our respective world-views.-- Posted by memyselfi on Sat, Apr 14, 2012, at 12:23 AM
I believe that dependency came about because of selfishnes and greed. These are two moral flaws that all humans have, albeit to varying degrees.
Those who have power, money, and authority, lack the level of concern for their fellow man that God said we should have. Throughout history we see times when this was reset. Usually, through extreme tyranny, tragedy, or catastrophic events. As Jefferson put it, "The tree of liberty must be freshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants".
People, myself included, do not like to be wrong. If our error is pointed out, we will often try to find a scapegoat. The lawyer and legislator is quick to find that scapegoat for us. They can use "The Law" to argue your case and even secure monetary payments to you, for your error.
God has placed in us each a genuine concern for our fellow man and commanded us to love each other as ourself.
Enter the Socialist!! He exploits this natural tendency to his advantage by passing laws that appear to acheive exactly that. What really happens is that his selfishness and the selfishness of the beneficiaries begin to work together to plunder those who are working and producing. Those being plundered feel the injustice of it what is occuring and begin to withdraw, Jesus said "due to excessive lawlessness the love of many will wax cold".
Now we have three goups of people, the "haves", the "have-nots", and the legislator. So long as the burden to support the have-nots is not burdensome to the haves, the legislator is given free reign to legislate and we have apathy.
Of course, our selfishness, and greed is still at work. So, the have-nots want more, the haves want to give less. The legislator promises both what they want. In order to acheive that, he has to borrow money from somewhere (national debt). This is the tipping point where responsibility should catch up with dependency. However, at this point, no one is being held responsible for their actions so the process continues.
The "have-nots" have been getting benefits for so long he now feels entitled to them and works to obtain more. The "haves" have been paying so much that they begin to search out ways to hide their wealth to retain more for themselves. The legislator works to maintain his high position by contiuing to promise both what they want. Thus the debt continues to mount and enevitable balloon stretches to the bursting point.
The legislator uses all the power at his disposal to try to meet all three demands. This includeds the alteration of the thought processes of both haves and have-nots.
So,now we have sort of a Chinese finger cuff. The one side pulling against the other with Legislator/government acting as the cuff. This produces resentment by all parties. Our self-made disasterous ballon sets waiting to explode. God is not in the picture here. He is always present to pick up the pieces after it all blows up.
What is the solution? Simple. Love God with all your heart, and Love your neighbor as yourself.
The haves, out of Love, will give opportunity and wealth to the have-nots because he wants to please God, loves them, and wants them to be as prosperous as he is.
We have serious moral decline and morality can not be legislated. Unfortunately, it is the nature of man to reject that which he cannot control. So he says, "I know, but what can I do about it?" when the answer was given long ago.-- Posted by Liveforlight on Sat, Apr 14, 2012, at 8:37 AM
I just listened to a speaker from the YMCA who had a horrific childhood. He survived and pulled himself up to be a productive member of society. He also adopted two teenagers who had been abused sexually for 16 years! It took 3 years of extreme patience and support but he now feels these two will be able to stay out of prison and function.
I say all this to share his solution to the downward spiral of society and many youth. He said it is time for each individual to step up and find a way to help make a young person's life better. He is not talking about buying a ipod or giving them $100.
He is saying that we need to do something to show the young folks that we care about them, who they are, what they do, whether or not they succeed in life. I can not get anywhere close to doing his presentation justice. It was very moving and thought provoking.-- Posted by stevemills on Sat, Apr 14, 2012, at 3:37 PM
I couldn't agree more Steve. I wouldn't just limit that to our young though.
If each individual would seek to better the life of another individual, then we would all be better off.
I think there is a fear of being an independent individual in todays society. Because with that, comes individual responsibility. Which is something we should also embrace.-- Posted by Liveforlight on Sun, Apr 15, 2012, at 8:50 AM
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The Daily IKN email digest, get all daily posts sent to you next day (& no ads)
Tungurahua lighting up
It's painless and it brings on many changes
A little list of suicides in the last week:
- William Broeksmit, ex- MD, Deutsche Bank asset managment, aged 58.
- Karl Slym, MD, Tata Motors, aged 51
- Gabriel Magee, leader of Fixed Income/Rates tech team JP Morgan London, aged 39 (who in time-honoured style jumped 500 feet from his own 33rd floor office building window to his death).
- Tim Dickenson, director of communications and human resources, Swiss Re London.
- Mike Dueker, chief economist at Russell Investments Seattle, aged 50.
The London Underground Jubilee Line Ticket Barrier sings Song 2 by Blur
When they ask you why the internets exist, show them this:
Alexis Sanchez
A peach of a goal for Barcelona today:
The Friday OT: Manfred Mann's Earth Band; California
Because it's been in my head for about three months, for some reason. It's a personal Proustian memory of darker days, but a great track nevertheless. Perhaps there's some subconcious cleansing going on.
El Salvador and Costa Rica hold elections
Chart of the day is...
Breaking news: The Economist predicts the end of the party in Venezuela and Argentina
Tocqueville dumping Gold Resource Corp (GORO)
Veris Gold (VG.to)
Gold news: Taking a guess on the headline...
...the Bloomie will use to explain today's move in gold, using (of course) the world-famous IKN Bloomberg Gold Headline Generator:
Because I forgot to include the "on market wankery" option, basically.
Chart of the day is...
...the five major regional trading currencies versus the US Dollar, three month timespan:
In order of weakness versus the Greenback, your offerings are:
- The Brazilian Real (BRL)
- The Chilean Peso (CLP)
- The Colombian Peso (COP)
- The Peruvian Nuevo Sol (PEN)
- The Mexican Peso (MXN)
Of the five, the Colombian Peso's recent drop has been grabbing headlines but the real fun one for me in the Chilean Peso, because its weakness is studiously ignored by all those who hold up that country's economy as their grand model. The same people who rail against the nasty uppity lefty countries for being primary export addicts, but ignore the fact that copper accounts for over half of everything Chile exports. Ah, bless 'em.
Checking in on that Sulliden (SUE.to) Rorschach test
It's an easy one, too: If your broker advises you to buy Sulliden (SUE.to) today on the back of this news...
TORONTO, Sept. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ - Sulliden Gold Corporation Ltd. ("Sulliden", or the "Company") (SUE.TO) (SUE.TO) (SDDDF) announces that Peru's Ministry of Energy and Mines ("MINEM") has approved the Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") for the Shahuindo gold and silver project in northern Peru. The approval of the EIA is the key milestone in the advancement of the project towards the construction phase. Continues here
Sooooooo...how have things been since then?
Oh goody, time for the return of Owly! What say you, Owly?
Yeah, thought you'd say that. Still, as soon as SUE.to wraps up its financing package things will be different and we can be almost quite definitely nearly absolutely certain(ish) that they're not having any issues with raising the cash for Shahuindo. Right, Justin?
Harvard University does mining in LatAm (and does it well)
The gold/silver ratio and Jackie Wilson
Music, maestro
And the junior NR of the day is...
... one noticed by twitterpal @goldfinder12 (h/t) from US OTC company Strategic Rare Earth Metals. It goes like this:
HENDERSON, Nev., Jan. 29, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Strategic Rare Earth Metals, Inc. (OTC Markets:SREH) announced today that the Company is actively pursuing a J/V with a Medical Marijuana Company.
Bill Schaefer, President of Strategic Rare Earth Metals, Inc., stated, I am very pleased and excited about the opportunities that lay ahead for the Company.continues here
And no, we are not making this up. On this groundbreaking news the company is up 75%....to just over 0.2c per share.
Mere coincidence, of course
On December 28th 2013, IKN wrote this:
Bad news for Dynacor Gold (DNG.to)
As from January 1st 2014, the Peruvian authorities are cracking down on the illegally mined ores coming into Nazca and Chala. IKN predicts a margin squeeze at DNG as from 1q14.
Today, we have this from the company:
And the reason? Well, go take a look at the NR for yourself.Dynacor Temporarily Suspends Ore Purchases for its Huanca Gold and Silver Ore Processing Plant
Just sayin'.
A travel photo
Spotted in a major shopping mall in Lima last week:
So any guesses on the next big bought deal to be announced?
Dalradian (DNA.to), Lydian (LYD.to), True Gold (TGM.v), bought deals
If you think the recent share price action in these three stocks is coincidental and totally unrelated...
...the best suggestion that can be offered is that you stay away from the juniors forever.
Castrovirreyna shuts down its mine
Can't get a fill
A good Kid Dynamite post on trading and confirmation bias
It's right here and this is the central message...
"..if "I could give new traders a single piece of advice, it would be: "try to figure out what the guy on the other side of the trade is thinking." If you're bullish and you know the bear thesis, it should either help you change your mind because you realize that you're wrong, or give you confidence that the other side is wrong. Either way, hearing someone voice sentiments on the other side of a trade shouldn't make you mad. If you are the guy on the message boards typing "GO AWAY SHORTY" every time someone mentions that your thesis may not be based in reality, you need help, fast.
Those pleasant Tahoe Resources guys (TAHO) (THO.to)
How is it that when community leaders are wrongfully targeted in the aftermath of violence connected with Tahoe Resources' Escobal mine they spend months in jail, while the company's former head of security who faces criminal charges for his alleged role in the violence last April is first given house arrest and then allowed to avoid prison by arguing that he is sick?
That's what happened last week.
Former head of security Alberto Rotondo has been under house arrest since May 2013, when he was linked to an April shooting that left six injured outside Tahoe Resources' mine in southeastern Guatemala. On January 22, he was declared in contempt of court for failure to attend a hearing. As a result, the substitute measures that allowed him to be under house arrest were lifted and an arrest warrant issued. But instead of going to jail, on January 23, he called in sick and went to the hospital instead where he remains under arrest.
In sharp contrast to the leniency shown Rotondo, when the Guatemalan government responded to last April's violence by declaring a state of siege in the municipality of San Rafael Las Flores in May, five community members were immediately jailed. Two were released on bail after a couple of months and three others spent six miserable months in prison. Finally, they were released without charge given lack of evidence that they had done anything wrong.
The Bloomberg News Gold Market Headline Generator
Mason Hill Advisors bought some silver stocks in 4q13
- We knew that Mason Hill had been adding to MAG because of the 10% rule in Canada and the ensuing disclosure there, but it's still good to note that Mason Hill moved its holdings up by about 1.4m shares, to 7,651,671, in the second half of 2013. That's 12.73% of shares out, by the way.
- Meanwhile, Mason Hill first took a big slug of Fortuna Silver (FVI.to) (FSM) back in 2012 and ended that year holding 7,932,400 shares. That saw a little adding in 4q13 (averaging down a bit, I'd boldly assume) and now they have 8,203,612 shares, or 6.51% of the company.
Ahhhh, home
Sing it, Frank:
Chart of the day is...
...gold, hourlies:
The IKN Weekly, out now
IKN246 has just been sent to subscribers. A sun-bleached episode, with added sea bream and mayonnaise. Bully for you.


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Q Da Kid Gets Put On The Spot: Interview & Freestyle On DTF Radio
Q Da Kid on DTF Radio with J-Medina and DJ Jack Da Ripper.
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Me and 2 (possibly 3) other players are looking for a DM for a 4e campaign of anything. We're leaving our current DM because he was...well, bad. We're not sure where we'd be playing, either in the Canton or Sterling Heights areas right now, maybe in the Ferndale/Oak Park area soon. If you're interested, send me an email.
Hey - I alternately run and/or play in both a Paizo Pathfinder campaign and a Castles & Crusades campaign. Our group is looking for a new GM to take over for a while while I take a break. Would you be interested in running a Pathfinder game for 5 players?


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Nina B - I'm My Own Fan [A Millie Remix]
Off the Miss Rap Supreme mixtape hosted by Sgt Reggie Hawkins. Directed by Puma remembermeninab.com
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I found the following post in my Drafts folder; it appears I never finished writing the post before I became inactive with blogging for over 5 years. At the outset, I want to make two points regarding this post so that it is put into the proper context.
First, I am posting this now solely to clear out the backlog of articles that were left in various stages of completion before I became almost completely inactive for several years on the blogosphere. I am not posting this article now as part of some attempt to pressure Craig into debating me right now; in fact, I'm in no rush to debate him, having been "out of the loop" for quite a while.
Second, I want to emphasize I am not calling into question Craig's integrity. First, I apparently was unable to locate my reply, if any, to a student's proposal for me to debate Craig at Harvard in 1999. Second, I was invited to debate Craig on Lee Strobel's television show, "Faith Under Fire," but I objected to the venue. Third, I have made no effort at all since 2005 to follow-up with Craig about debating.
What follows is the text I found in my Drafts folder from late 2005/early 2006.
On Christian philosopher Victor Reppert's blog, there was a recent discussion about Craig's willingness to debate me (and Doug Krueger):
- In October 1999, I was contacted by a student at Harvard University about my interest in debating Craig on the resurrection at Harvard in April 2000, after he turned down Bob Price as an opponent. I don't seem to have my reply in my email archives, but I may have passed on that opportunity at the time.
- In January 2000, Jim Lippard confronted Craig about his inconsistency regarding the qualifications of his debate opponents, namely, the fact that he claims to have a PhD-only policy, but he had just debated Ron Barrier, who does not even have an undergraduate degree. Craig told Lippard, "The debate with Barrier was set up without my prior approval, and I just assumed he had a doctorate. I had a debate scheduled this spring with Doug Kruger, but it fell through. Does Jeff want to debate me?" Ron Barrier told Jim Lippard: "I was approached by Campus Crusadefor Christ to participate in a debate. They submitted several names and I told them I would debate whomever they chose as names and/or titles do not impress me. I was never asked to submit anything other than a bio and in my bio I list no academic qualifications."
- I was contacted in March or April of 2000 by a student at UCLA about the possibility of representing atheism in a debate at UCLA on May 2nd, 2000. I stated that I was interested in debating Craig, but I was told that I was unacceptabe because I have neither a Ph.D. nor a teaching position.
- The Atheist Alliance, International in October 2000 tried to arrange a debate between William Lane Craig and either Jeff Lowder or Dan Barker. According to Ed Buckner, who was the organizer for the event that never happened, "Wm Lane Craig turned me down flat for the AAI debate, without even knowing who his opponent might be--doesn't want to "help us make our atheist event better" and is "only interested in fairly 'evangelical' settings" for his debates.
- I contacted Craig in September 2000 about a debate. When I asked him if he was open to the possibility, he said, "Wow! I guess so." I then contacted Anthony Battaglia at the Council for Secular Humanism, who attempted to organize a debate for the Campus Freethought Alliance between Craig and I. I think this was in 2000 or 2001, but I could be wrong about the date. I believe they had attempted to arrange a debate at Yale University. Initially, I was told by Erika Hedberg in October 2000 that "Word on the street is that Craig has finally agreed to a debate with you," but apparently Craig's position on this later changed.
- In April 2001, I was contacted by Ronald Tacelli at Boston College. Hewrote, "Bill Craig has expressed interest in debating Mr Lowder here at BC. Could you please forward this to Mr Lowder or at least send me his e-mail address. I'd like to schedule the debate for Fall (mid-September)of 2002 or maybe Spring of 2003 (mid-April)." I don't remember why that proposal never went anywhere.
- In September 2001, I am told second-hand, by two different trusted sources, that Craig is telling one freethinker (perhaps others as well?) that I am a "sad case," that I am a young man with a lot of intelligence and energy, but I am wasting it on the wrong fight. "The only reason" I have any influence is because of my "computer savvy with the internet." (Internet Infidels) He said that "since skeptics are generally unscholarly, I have become a big fish in a small pond" (my source's words, not Craig's), and I am "taken much more seriously than warranted." If Iwere to convert to Christianity, I would "never be allowed to join the rank of 'true scholars.'"
- In September 2005, James Lazarus, the producer of the Infidel Guy radio show, attempted to organize a radio show with Craig and I. He declined on the grounds that he didn't care for the venue and instead proposed we meet on "Faith Under Fire." I declined. I think it's a bit hypocritical for Craig to refuse to appear on the Infidel Guy's radio show because of its ties to the Secular Web, but then request that I appear on "Faith under Fire" which has ties to Craig. I then proposed that Craig and I do a formal, oral debate on a college campus somewhere. Craig responded by saying that he has nothing going on at the moment in terms of invitations to speak/debate at any colleges, but that whenever he does, he's going to suggest me.
In March 2005, I asked Victor Reppert about Craig's refusal to debate me. Victor's reply:
"I'm a little puzzled by Craig's policy on this, since it seems that a case-by-case assessment is more significant than applying a general rule. For example, a Ph.d in some non-philosophical discipline could be a complete patsy for Craig, while a philosophically capable Ph.D student might do well against him. I heard a tape of a debate between Craig and 80+ year old Robert Dietz that was a travesty. I suppose he has to limit his debates somehow. He once told me, of the debate with Dietz, that it was a good opportunity for the Gospel. That's OK if there was an honest process that put Dietz in the atheist's position (I would told that he was all they could get), but the whole thing ends up looking staged, and I don't think that helps anybody in the long run, and doesn't really help the Gospel."
"The only debate of yours that I have seen is the one with Fernandes. Maybe it's the only one much of anyone has seen. Going by that one, I think you would be an excellent debate opponent for WLC."
"The Ph.D requirement is understandable, but don't you get poor debaters up there with Ph.Ds who know nothing about the debate situation? Anyway, we can look at your debate with Fernandes and assess you as a debater. Although some people are weak debaters because they lack the background knowledge."
"I think there is an inherent problem that an atheist faces in debates, and that is that he or she is invariably doing the negative job. The atheist has to talk about what he is tearing down, the theist has to talk about whathe/she does believe. This opens up the possibility that the atheist debater will come across rude, sarcastic and negative."And then in a separate email:
"Jeff: No reference to you in the final point; in fact I think your debate is the best I've seen in that area. My comment was general; I have noticed a lot of students get put off by Jesseph and Parsons.
"And yes, I am personally disappointed that there has never been a Craig-Lowder debate. I do not think your background knowledge would be weak; I am trying to understand the Ph.D. rule that Craig has. There is no committee I have in mind; I just was thinking about how Bill and company would go about selecting debate opponents. After a bad debater debated against Bill, he called me (as I had asked him to) and told me that even though the opposing debater was bad this was nonetheless a good opportunity for the presentation of the gospel. The comment made me cringe a little."
"Also Bill has a weakness as a debater in relying way too much on his personal experience-the detailed description he gives in the debate with Parsons wasted a lot of time he could have used explaining why arguments from religious experience support theism.
"Do you think Bill is afraid of debating you? I heard about a debate between WLC and Shelby Spong--Does Spong have a doctorate?"


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Pretty straight foward really.
1. a fine cord of flax, cotton, or other fibrous material spun out to considerable length, esp. when composed of two or more filaments twisted together.
2. twisted filaments or fibers of any kind used for sewing.
3. one of the lengths of yarn forming the warp or weft of a woven fabric.
4. a filament or fiber of glass or other ductile substance.
5. Ropemaking. a. any of a number of fibers twisted into a yarn.
b. a yarn, esp. as enumerated in describing small stuff.
6. something having the fineness or slenderness of a filament, as a thin continuous stream of liquid, a fine line of color, or a thin seam of ore: a thread of smoke.
7. the helical ridge of a screw.
8. that which runs through the whole course of something, connecting successive parts: I lost the thread of the story.
9. something conceived as being spun or continuously drawn out, as the course of life fabled to be spun, measured, and cut by the Fates.
10. Computers. a series of newsgroup messages dealing with the same subject.
11. threads, Slang. clothes.
–verb (used with object)
12. to pass the end of a thread through the eye of (a needle).
13. to fix (beads, pearls, etc.) upon a thread that is passed through; string.
14. to pass continuously through the whole course of (something); pervade: A joyous quality threaded the whole symphony.
15. to make one's way through (a narrow passage, forest, crowd, etc.).
16. to make (one's way) thus: He threaded his way through the crowd.
17. to form a thread on or in (a bolt, hole, etc.).
18. to place and arrange thread, yarn, etc., in position on (a sewing machine, loom, textile machine, etc.).
–verb (used without object)
19. to thread one's way, as through a passage or between obstacles: They threaded carefully along the narrow pass.
20. to move in a threadlike course; wind or twine.
21. Cookery. (of boiling syrup) to form a fine thread when poured from a spoon.
Aint it wonderful
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