January 2011
5 posts
Brett Kelly: 2010 in Review, Goals for 2011 →
One of the more frank posts about goals for 2011, including this great little wrap-up:
Miscellaneous – Other goals for this year in no particular order: lose some weight, stop being so self-deprecating, delight the shit out of my kids as frequently as possible, give my saintly wife the tenth anniversary she so richly deserves, attend at least one conference and address a group of strangers at...
December 2010
27 posts
Patton Oswald: Wake Up, Geek Culture. Time to Die →
Absolutely fantastic. For all of you nerds, geeks or outliers, go read!
On Usernames and Sabbatical →
Adam King on why he uses the username Sabbatical:
I keep it to remind myself that I need to stop and breathe. The practice of sabbatical — of “sabbath”, pause, reflection, and rest — is vital to personal health, and I’m all too quick to abandon it, if I let myself. It’s a constant call to maintain balance.
NYT: Teacher Rankings, Once Internal, Are Now... →
The wrong way to judge a teacher’s effectiveness:
The rankings are based on an algorithm that few other than statisticians can understand, and on tests that the state has said were too narrow and predictable. Most teachers’ scores fall somewhere in a wide range, with perfection statistically impossible. And the system has also suffered from the everyday problems inherent in managing busy...
Blue Dot Group: Barbour, Citizens Council and Race →
My thoughts on Gov. Barbour’s comments about the Citizens Council.
“But if you’re like me, and are willing to add a bit of friction to your...”
– From Tumblr to WordPress: The Missing Guide — Ian P. Hines
And I’ve found the little extra friction actually increases the quality of what I’m posting.
Blue Dot Group: Triangulation and Mississippi... →
A piece from my firm’s blog about where most leading Mississippi Democrats fit on the political scale.
The Unquiet American: Roger Cohen on Richard... →
A truly wonderful piece on a truly brilliant diplomat.
On Marriage, Civil Unions and France
The New York Times has a fascinating — and admittedly disturbing — article about the popularity of civil unions over marriage in France:
In 2000, just one year after the passage of the law, more than 75 percent of civil unions were signed between heterosexual couples. That trend has only strengthened since then: of the 173,045 civil unions signed in 2009, 95 percent were between heterosexual...
NYT: WikiLeaks Founder Assange Ordered Free on... →
It sounds like the judge in Britain has been watching too many White Collar episodes.
According to the bail conditions set by the lower court, Mr. Assange must spend every night at the mansion, Ellingham Hall, a 10-bedroom Georgian home on a 650-acre estate owned by Vaughan Smith, the wealthy founder of the Frontline journalists’ club in London.
The conditions include a curfew, daily...
Linking to My Consulting Firm's Blog
I’ve decided to post most of my politically related links from my firm’s blog over at Blue Dot Group.
But since they generally spark good conversations on Facebook and Twitter from my personal blog, I figured I’d lump them all into one post from day to day. And it there are only a few, I might even just double post over here.
This is all kind of trial-and-error as I figure...
Being Different
Each night the wife and I read a Bible lesson to our children. Tonight’s lesson was about how God made us all different but loves us just the same.
In discussing the lessons, the kiddos went through people are different — our Uncle Ricky, who is in a wheelchair because of a stroke; sister, who is a girl; brother, who is a boy; daddy, who has no hair on the very top of his head.
Then we...
Patrick Rhone: Different →
We are all different.
(via Instapaper)
Seth's Blog: Where's your platform? →
There’s no rigid line between a job and art. Instead, there’s an opportunity. Both you and your boss get to decide if your job is a platform or just a set of tasks.
Aaron Sorkin: In Her Defense, I'm Sure the Moose... →
That was the first moose ever murdered for political gain.
Aaron Sorkin brings the funny — and the bite.
From Tumblr to WordPress: The Missing Guide — Ian... →
This is brilliant! I suspect Ian is about to be a very popular man.
Patrick Rhone: An Open Letter to Tumblr →
Pretty much what he said. Especially this:
…it may be too little too late for me.
Audible App for iPhone →
It’s been a while since I used the Audible app on my iPhone, but I’m quite pleased with it. I remember being disappointed when it first launched. Now, I have no complaints.
Audible remains one of my favorite services. I’ve been a member since 2004. It’s one of the best subscriptions I have.
(Note: Based on some of the reviews, it might be best to do a clean install if...
Meet Bo Greenwell →
This makes me happy to see. I loved Mike Greenwell growing up. He dominated my baseball card collection. (Don’t ask me why. I’ve always been a huge Boston fan.) It will be fun to watch his sons’ careers.
Reeder App for Mac Draft 3 →
In the two days since Reeder for Mac launched, the developers released two updates. Exciting to see the additions, especially a keyboard shortcut for the sharing menu.
NPR Updates iPad App (iTunes link) →
Ask, and you will receive. The new NPR iPad app update includes background audio streaming.
Paul Krugman: Freezing Out Hope
Paul Krugman is in rare form today. He spares no one, especially President Obama.
There’s this on the federal pay freeze:
The truth is that America’s long-run deficit problem has nothing at all to do with overpaid federal workers. For one thing, those workers aren’t overpaid. Federal salaries are, on average, somewhat less than those of private-sector workers with equivalent...
Wiki Diplomacy and Secrecy
Professor Paul W. Schroeder writes in the New York Times:
The leaks will probably not cause war or even a serious crisis, but they will badly damage America’s diplomatic machinery, processes and reputation.
None of this means that diplomatic correspondence and negotiations should remain secret forever. But except in special instances, confidential communications ought to be released only...
NYT: An American Puts Sudan’s Cause in the... →
This is a fascinating read about John Prendergast, who is working for human rights causes in Africa:
At 47, he has devoted all of his adult life to Africa, especially the Horn and Congo, formerly known as Zaire. He’s been jailed in southern Sudan. He’s had militiamen’s assault rifles jammed into his stomach in Congo. While we sat in the Juba restaurant in October, he was fighting off a rare...
How I Use Them: MacBook, iPhone and iPad
The more the iPad becomes a part of my workflow, the more a distinct pattern of use-cases for my MacBook, iPhone and iPad have emerged.
iPad: Reading (books, RSS, news, everything), blogging (links), initial research on projects and first drafts of long-form compositions.
iPhone: In addition to the obvious mobile aspects, this is my main email device. It’s also my go-to device for...
Lindsey Nobles On Finding Her Voice →
I enjoy reading Lindsey. I found her after reading Michael Hyatt’s blog. She is one of the most honest bloggers out there — not in that she tells the truth but in that she writes from her heart.
Most days my words come easily. I know precisely what I want to say and how to say it.
But sometimes my mind and my heart make things more difficult.
Seth Goden: Who Owns Wikipedia →
I would bet that any charity or cause that gets involvement from its supporters (and I believe that volunteer support is worth more than cash) outperforms equally well-funded organizations that don’t have as deep a connection.