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Jeff Deist on the Accad and Koka Healthcare Podcast
Jeff Deist on the Accad and Koka Healthcare Podcast
The Accad and Koka Report, hosted by two MDs, focuses on free-market approaches to medicine and health.
Drs. Michel Accad and Anish Koka recently hosted Mises Institute president Jeff Deist for a no-holds barred look at how Congress, the medical establishment, and lobbyists work together to make healthcare anything but free. Watch the interview here.
Peter Klein and Nicolai Foss on Managers in Flat Business Structures
The online magazine Aeon currently features an outstanding article from our scholars Peter Klein and Nicolai Foss on the trend toward "bossless" business structures. Far from being redundant middlemen, they argue, good managers are needed more than ever even in firms that aspire to flat, decentralized, and democratic organization.
Klein and Foss challenge the idea that managers will become obsolete, replaced by self-directed and super connected knowledge workers:
This movement is gaining steam for a couple of reasons. First, the bossless-company model arguably captures some tendencies, however inaccurately. Second, it is very much part of the 21st-century Zeitgeist in its emphasis on personal development, resilience and fulfilment through empowering employees, and decentralised and democratic decision processes. There is also a strong moralistic and political undertone to the narrative; in Private Government (2017), the philosopher Elizabeth Anderson argues that firms are effectively totalitarian states, enjoying rights and privileges that would be unconstitutional for ordinary states to impose on their citizens. The historian Caitlin Rosenthal has argued that the factory system, hierarchy and managerial authority are partly derived from the slave system. What can be more morally defensible than getting rid of the remnants of slavery?
Unfortunately, the bossless-company narrative is dead wrong. It misunderstands the nature of management, which isn't going away, and it is based on questionable evidence. Given these fundamental defects, this narrative is potentially harmful to managers, students and policymakers.
Are the benefits of technology in assembling and organizing modern firms oversold?
While technological miracles such as the internet, cheap and reliable wireless communication, Moore's law, miniaturisation and information markets have induced sweeping changes in manufacturing, retail, transportation and communication, the laws of economics are still the laws of economics. And human nature hasn't changed. The basic problem of management and business – how to assemble, organise and motivate groups of people and resources to produce goods and services that consumers want – is still the same. Since the industrial revolution, entrepreneurs have been organising extremely complex activities in firms that are neither completely centralised nor completely flat. Imagine the complexity involved in operating a national railroad, a steel mill or an automobile assembly plant in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These were all 'knowledge-based activities' and were conducted in teams organised in various structures. Are things so different today?
Their conclusion:
In short, today's business landscape features exciting developments in information technology, networking and collaboration that have led to new forms of organisation, production and distribution. Far from making management obsolete, however, these changes make good management more important than ever. The shift from management as direction to management as making and enforcing the rules is slowly entering the management literature and the business-school curriculum. That's a paradigm shift worth embracing.
This is a must-read article for anyone interested in the very hot topic of business management in the 21st century.
March and Simon: Early Socialist Calculation Revisionists
It is now commonly recognized that the majority of the economics profession for about four decades held an erroneous view of the nature of the "socialist calculation debate." In particular, the nature of the arguments put forward by Mises and Hayek were misconstrued.
Revisionism took off in the mid 1980s with the work of Peter Murrell (e.g., here) and Don Lavoie (e.g., here). From a mainstream perspective, Murrell argued that the Austrians had developed sophisticated insights in property rights economics and the agency problem and had applied these insights to the problem of socialist calculation. Lavoie highlighted the distintive Austrian knowledge argument in the calculation debate, in particular emphasizing Hayek's contribution. A bit later, Salerno and others emphasized the distinctiveness of Mises' contribution. Thus, whereas Mises stressed the need for a distributed process of entrepreneurial judgment in the context of a private ownership economy characterized by uncertainty, Hayek put more of an emphasis on the impossibility under socialism of harnessing and processing massive amounts of knowledge, particularly under dynamic conditions.
Between the 2nd Wold War and these works, there are four decades in which the dominant opinion held that the Austrians had been thoroughly defeated by the formal demonstration, particularly in Oskar Lange's work, of the possibility of combining socialism and efficient allocation. A pertinent question is whether there were (non-Austrian) dissenters from this dominant view. To those well steeped in libertarian social theory, names such as Trygve Hoff and G. Warren Nutter come to mind. But apart from these, it would appear that it is not until the mid 1980s that the distinctiveness of the Austrian arguments in the calculation debate concerning knowledge becomes recognized.
However, an early contribution, unknown to most economists, that fully recognized the distinctiveness of the Austrian arguments, is the 1958 book Organizations by James G. March and Herbert A Simon, a book that many would regard as the seminal contribution to organizational theory and a milestone in the evolution of organizational theory (I have heard organization theory scholars remark that all org theory in the last five decades is just variations over March & Simon themes).
The discussion of the socialist calculation debate takes place in the final chapter, "Planning and Innovation in Organizations," the main purpose of which is to "… contrast the concept of rationality that has been employed in economics and statistics with a theory of rationality that takes account of the limits on the power, speed, and capacity of human cognitive faculties" (1958: 172) — in other words, bounded rationality.
This theme is taken through a number of variations, one of which is the theory of planning, understood as both "national planning and intrafirm planning" (p. 200). March and Simon (1958: 201) argue that even if motivational problems can be solved, there are still planning (coordination) problems remaining. They note, echoing Hayek (1945), that if one person or group of persons possessed "… all the relevant information connecting possible courses of action with the utilities resulting therefrom, he or they could discover which course of action was best for the organization" (p. 201). An alternative is to make use of the price mechanism, for example, through the Barone/Lange idea of consistent marginal cost pricing throughout the organization. March and Simon note a number of difficulties with this proposal, such as the requirement that externalities be absent. More seriously, perhaps, they note that it is not clear how to make a choice between the alternatives of central planning and pricing, since modern welfare economics, including the Lange/Barone proposal, does not give any positive reason for preferring the one to the other.
This is where the Austrian arguments in the socialist calculation debate enter the scene. These are placed under the heading "The principle of bounded rationality" (p. 203), and, accordingly, March and Simon note that the "… argument of von Mises and Hayek (we will use the latter's version) depends crucially on the limits of information available to humans and their abilities to use information in their computations." In other words, Hayek argues that "given realistic limits on human planning capacity" (italics removed) a decentralized system will work better than a centralized one.
Thus, March and Simon present a sympathetic reading of the Austrian — mainly Hayekian — positions in the socialist calculation debate. In the context of Organizations, March and Simon also criticize the "Robbinsian" characterization of decision-making in mainstream economics (to use Kirzner's terms) – that is, the given'ness of means and ends — and they stress that the understanding of behavior should be broadened to include the process of discovering choice alternatives. These two observations are related, for it is arguably exactly because March and Simon are critical of the conceptualization of behavior in mainstream theory that they are so appreciative of the Austrian positions in the calculation debate.
[Reprinted from Organization and Markets.]
The Austrian School at the European Parliament
Ryan McMaken on National Parks on the Lions of Liberty Podcast
On the Lions of Liberty podcast, Marc Clair and Ryan McMaken discuss the government shutdown and the need to decentralize the national parks:
Joe Salerno on "The Truth About F.A. Hayek"
Are There Libertarians in Slovakia?
Last summer, I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Jozef Martiniak at the 2018 Mises University. Dr. Martiniak came to Auburn all the way from Slovakia and he had many great stories to tell about his experience growing up in a Cold War era Czechoslovakia. My conversations with Dr. Martiniak not only revealed an interesting story from the perspective of someone who experienced socialism firsthand, but it also sparked my interest in the politics of Slovakia. He mentioned that there was a libertarian oriented party in Slovakia, and so in this article, I endeavor to examine the movement in Slovakia, analyzing its scope, significance, and authenticity.
The main vessel of Slovak libertarianism nowadays is the political party "Freedom and Solidarity" (SaS). Economist Richard Sulík founded the party in 2009, himself being the mastermind of the Slovakian flat tax. In February of that year, the 10,000 required signatures for the establishment of the party were collected. Sulík was elected chairman.
According to their website, the party claims to run on a platform free of the typical populist propaganda loaded with catchy slogans. It also claims to be run by experts from various different fields, rather than "ideologists".
The party is also centered around offering specific solutions in which the amount of money required to fund proposed programs is laid out, rather than putting out "unrealistic promises". It also asserts that the armed forces must have clearly defined objectives. This sort of reform effort in pursuit of creating a government that has clearly defined objectives puts too much trust in the state, something that is inherently very tough to reform.
Though SaS never explicitly claims to be anchored in the chief tenets of libertarianism, the non-aggression principle and property rights, it puts heavy emphasis on the free will and individualism. The party draws a connection between individual freedom and the individual's happiness. From this, the party asserts that it is against economic intervention.
The party emphasizes a more consequentialist argument regarding the effects of freedom on the collective population.
One interesting thing I learned through my conversations with Dr. Martiniak was that the "passion" that is present in many libertarians in America was not present in Slovakia. Rather the form of libertarianism in SaS is more so "contra the state" instead of a true moral, Rothbardian form.
SaS lists the promotion of "basic solidarity" as one of its keys tenets in Article II of its charter. This sort of concept is manifested in the "euro-realist" stance of the party. The party sees the European Union as an idea with great potential, but also one that demands significant reform as of now. The party also asserts however, that is seeks to curb the bureaucracy and regulations enforced by the EU. Its perception of the EU however, is one that is flawed. SaS believes that the EU should be kept for its promotion of the ideas of free trade and free movement of people, but in regards to this, a classic Bob Murphy argument comes into play.
In his article "But Wouldn't Warlords Take Over?", Murphy comes to the conclusion that if a society based on small government can be set up and maintained peacefully, these same peace seeking individuals should be able to live together peacefully without a government. In the same way, if member countries of the EU really want free trade and movement, why would there be the need for a political union such as the EU? Even if the EU were to be reformed, it would gradually centralize power over time due to its inherent nature to do so.
In an article published by The Telegraph, Louise Armitstead describes the sentiment of party founded Richard Sulík. Sulík is often criticized by others for being a nationalist, but Armitstead articulates that he is rather "the hero of all discontented Europeans". This certainly demonstrates the growing resentment in Europe for government. It underscores the borderless nature of freedom, its universal application. It is not something that remains contained within a single country, but spreads. It is not tied to nationalism.
In my humble opinion, the efforts of SaS do not effectively line up with libertarianism in the way that I see it. Sure, the party is pro-market, anti-centralization, pro-civil liberties, etc., but at the same time, due to the fact that it is not grounded in property rights and the NAP, its attempts become blurred. This is why it is so important that any attempt at libertarianism be grounded in these axioms, otherwise the message strays from being genuine. SaS embodies the more "pragmatic libertarianism" present in those such as Gary Johnson, rather than genuine Misesian or Rothbardian aesthetic.
Media Accuses Rand Paul of Hypocrisy for Visiting Canadian Hospital: Turns Out It's a Private Hospital
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul recently announced he was receiving hernia surgery as a result of being blindsided in an attack from his neighbor. While a senator undergoing common surgery is of questionable newsworthiness, one may expect that the reminder that the Senator is still suffering from the 2017 incident as cause for sympathy. Instead, major media outlets decided to try to use the news as an example of hypocrisy on the part of Paul due to the fact he is receiving treatment at a Canadian hospital.
As published in USA Today:
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, one of the fiercest political critics of socialized medicine, will travel to Canada later this month to get hernia surgery....
He is scheduled to have the outpatient operation at the Shouldice Hernia Hospital in Thornhill, Ontario during the week of Jan. 21, according to documents from Paul's civil lawsuit against Boucher filed in Warren Circuit Court....
Paul, a Republican, often argues for private market solutions to American's health care woes.
In Canada, medical care is publicly funded and universally provided through the country's Provincial Ministry of Health, and everyone receives the same level of care.
Paul has called universal health care and nationalized options "slavery."
Of course, if the author had decided to do a two second internet search for "Shouldice Hernia Hospital," they would have found that it is one of few private hospitals that were grandfathered in prior to the government's takeover of Canadian healthcare.
Of course, the same media outlets that jumped to cry "hypocrisy" at Senator Paul are also guilty of ignoring the very real consequences of Canada's socialist healthcare system. For example, patients dying due to a lack of access to basic medical supplies such as hospital beds.
For more on the disaster of Canada's socialized healthcare system, check out this series by (Canadian author) Lee Friday:
1. The Myth They Used to Pass Canada's Universal Healthcare
2. Universal Health Care in Canada: A Colossal Government Failure
3. The Solution to Canada's Failed Universal Health Care System: Consumer and Physician Freedom
Discussion: Austrian Economics in America
This month's Liberty Matters forum is a discussion of the American economist Frank Fetter. Though he is neglected today, Fetter made vital contributions to Austrian economics and was a major force in spreading the ideas of the early Austrians in the United States (see here and here). In my contributions to the discussion, I explain why Fetter' work is important and how it can continue to provide fresh insights to contemporary economists. So far, the focus of the essays has been on key elements of economics, especially foundational concepts like price, market, equilibrium, capital, and rent. I'm joined in the conversation by Joseph Salerno, Peter Lewin, and Geoffrey Hodgson.
The first essays and responses in the discussion have now been published, and the forum will remain open for the rest of the month for short rejoinders by all the participants. I hope you'll take a few minutes to read through some of the contributions. Here is the abstract for the discussion:
Matthew McCaffrey, assistant professor of enterprise at the University of Manchester, explores the economic and political work of the "forgotten giant" of economics, the Indiana-born Frank Fetter. At the height of his career in the early 20th century, Fetter was one of the most respected, cited, and debated economists in the United States. He taught for over 40 years at prestigious universities, including Stanford, Cornell, and Princeton, and his research appeared in practically every major publication in economics and political science. Yet today he is virtually forgotten outside a small group of Austrian economists. In his opening essay, McCaffrey explores two aspects of his thought in particular: his contributions to theoretical economics and their relationship to Austrian ideas, and his political views as they relate to the philosophy of classical liberalism. He is joined in the discussion by Geoffrey M. Hodgson, Research Professor of Business Studies in the University of Hertfordshire, Peter Lewin is Clinical Professor in the Jindal School of Management, University of Texas, Dallas, and Joseph T. Salerno, professor of economics in the Finance and Graduate Economics Department in the Lubin School of Business of Pace University in New York.
Trump's "Gut Feeling"
Speaking to the Washington Post, President Trump said, "My gut tells me more sometimes, than anybody else's brain can ever tell me." This comment generated scoffs aplenty, as people imagine the receptacle of a daily intake of gallons of Diet Coke and multiple Big Macs somehow provides anything intelligent. However, this classic Trump quip has some merit after reading John Coates's The Hour Between Dog and Wolf: How Risk Taking Transforms Us, Body and Mind.
Part II of the book is titled "Gut Thinking," and the book's thesis is that our minds and bodies are connected in our actions. Coates focuses his story on treasury bond traders who successfully act by instinct gained from experience. He writes, "Thinking, one could say, is something we do only when we are no good at an activity."
"There are few phenomena in finance more remarkable, even mysterious," Coates writes, "than this close linkage between market and body."
The fact is, our bodies react to news and risks quicker than our brains do. Conscious thought is left in the dust when we react and especially when we take risks. Of course neoclassical economists would poo-poo the notion of our bodies reacting to threats and risks, after all, we're all rational beings, doing what's rational at all times. Yeah, right.
While the above is essentially Coates's contention, he later writes,
Lifting the hood of our brain does not reveal the netherworld of Kant's unsayable, nor the volcanic will of Nietzsche's superman, nor yet the hellish subterranean den of Freud's subconscious. It reveals something that is a lot closer to the inner workings of a BMW.
Not everyone's brain is of BMW quality, not to mention the various levels of body quality. Traders, Coates contends, must have IQs that are "high enough," but more important is "a hearty appetite for risk and a driving ambition." Also important is physical stamina. He points out that many traders are ex-athletes.
Certainly, the president, has the ambition and risk appetite. His gut feelings, as Coates describes gut feelings generally, "act powerfully," and "are not only real; they are essential to rational choice."
The author contends the gut "has its own 'brain.' The vagus nerve, the main nerve in the rest-and-digest nervous system, links the brain stem, voice box, lings, heart, pancreas and gut. In total, 80 percent of its fibers carry information back to the brain, mostly from the heart and gut."
As the book progresses, the focus turns to dopamine, testosterone, and cortisol. Dopamine modulates levels of motivation, how eagerly humans (or animals) want things. Dopamine drives humans to try new things and solve F.A. Hayek's knowledge problem. "The knowledge of the circumstances of which we must make use never exists in concentrated or integrated form," explained Hayek, "but solely as the dispersed bits of incomplete and frequently contradictory knowledge which all the separate individuals possess."
Trying new things involves taking risks and that's where testosterone comes in. Traders and entrepreneurs are driven by testosterone. Coates worries that testosterone lowering obesity, "may be dimming the gut feelings and entrepreneurial drive upon which our prosperity and happiness depend."
Winning trades increase testosterone while market crashes deplete the hormone, sometimes for years. Testosterone feedback, unfortunately, can lead to traders and entrepreneurs to believe themselves invincible. And thus, rallies turn into bubbles. Coates mentions ill-conceived takeovers and record-breaking skyscrapers, providing biological support to Mark Thornton's work on The Skyscraper Curse.
Cortisol is testosterone's opposite. As markets crash, cortisol is released "causing [the] body and brain to hunker down for a long term." Cortisol essentially immunizes the body against trauma, suppressing testosterone production, while being a powerful anti-inflammatory.
Cortisol levels rise with volatility. Coates speculates that this hormone forms "the physiological foundation of the derivatives market."
Cortisol and CRH (a chemical produced during stress) lead traders (and everyone else one can assume) to be vulnerable "to rumor and suspected conspiracy." Coates writes, "Each rumored catastrophe is now given as much credence, and has as much effect on markets, as hard economic data."
"Cortisol is the molecule of irrational pessimism," explains Coates. Older folks are especially susceptible because they stop producing testosterone and produce high levels of cortisol.
While professional traders and investors have high amounts of testosterone flowing through them, amateurs have "chronically raised cortisol levels." The constant anxiety forces them to bail out of what could be winning trades.
The November 30th edition of the Elliott Wave Financial Forecast cited examples of the financial press attempting to keep individual investor spirits high. This was before the December downdraft in stock prices. For example, "Ignore the Gloom," USA Today said.
Trump's gut has it right. The stock market is in trouble and he knows he needs to blame someone — Fed Chair Jerome Powell — early and often.
Still Fighting the Last War Against Socialism
Why does support for socialism persist?
The short answer may be simple human nature, our natural tendency toward dissatisfaction with the present and unease about the future. Even in the midst of almost unimaginable material comforts made possible only by markets and entrepreneurs—both derided by socialists—we cannot manage to conclusively defeat the tired but deadly old arguments for collective ownership of capital. We're so rich that socialists imagine the material wealth all around us will continue to organize itself magically, regardless of incentives.
It's a vexing problem, and not an academic one. Millions of young people across America and the West consider socialism a viable and even noble approach to organizing society, literally unaware of the piles of bodies various socialist governments produced in the 20th century. The fast-growing Democratic Socialists of America, led by media darlings Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, now enjoy cool kid status. Open socialist Bernie Sanders very nearly won the Democratic Party's 2016 nominee for president before being kneecapped by the Clinton machine. New York City mayor Bill de Blasio helpfully announces "there is plenty of money in this city, it's just in the wrong hands." He freely and enthusiastically champions confiscation and redistribution of wealth without injury to his political popularity.
Rand Paul and Thomas Massie are outliers on the Right. Ocasio-Cortez and de Blasio are not outliers on the Left.
How is this possible, even as markets and semi-capitalism lift millions out of poverty? Why does socialism keep cropping up, and why do many well-intentioned (and ill-intentioned) people keep falling for something so patently evil and unworkable? Why do some battles have to be fought over and over?
The Soviet Union collapsed and the Berlin War fell decades ago. The Eastern Bloc discovered western consumerism, and liked it. Bill Clinton declared the era of Big Government over, and Francis Fukuyama absurdly pronounced that Western ideology had forever won the day. Even China and Cuba eventually succumbed to pressure for greater economic freedoms, not because of any ideological shift but because it became impossible to hide the reality of capitalist wealth abroad.
Yet economic freedom and property rights are under assault today in the very Western nations that became rich because of them.
Today's socialists insist their model society would look like Sweden or Denmark; not the USSR or Nazi Germany or Venezuela. They merely want fairness and equality, free healthcare and schooling, an end to "hoarded" wealth, and so forth. And they don't always advocate for or even know the textbook definition of socialism, as professors Benjamin Powell and Robert Lawson learned by attending socialist conferences (see their new book Socialism Sucks: Two Economists Drink Their Way Through the Unfree World). In many cases young people think socialism simply means a happy world where people are taken care of.
Never mind the Scandinavian countries in question insist they are not socialist, never mind the atrocities of Stalin or Mao or Pol Pot, and never mind the overwhelming case made by Ludwig von Mises and others against central economic planning. Without private owners, without capital at risk, without prices, and especially without profit and loss signals, economies quickly become corrupted and serve only the political class. Nicolás Maduro feasts while poor Venezuelans eat dogs, but of course this isn't "real" socialism.
History and theory don't matter to socialists because they imagine society can be engineered. The old arguments and historical examples simply don't apply: even human nature is malleable, and whenever our stubborn tendencies don't comport with socialism's grand plans a "social construct" is to blame.
These most recent spasms of support for the deadly ideology of socialism remind us that progressives aren't kidding. They may not fully understand what socialism means, but they fully intend to bring it about. Single-payer health care, "free" education, wealth redistribution schemes, highly progressive income taxes, wealth taxes, gun bans, and radical curbs on fossil fuels are all on the immediate agenda. They will do this quickly if possible, incrementally if they have to (see, again, the 20th century). They will do it with or without popular support, using legislatures, courts and judges, supranational agencies,university indoctrination, friendly media, or whatever political, economic, or social tools it takes (including de-platforming and hate speech laws). This is not paranoia; all of this is openly discussed. And say what you will about progressivism, it does have a central if false ethos: egalitarianism.
Conservatives, by contrast, are not serious. They have no animating spirit. They don't much talk about liberty or property or markets or opportunity. They don't mean what they say about the Constitution, they won't do a thing to limit government, they won't touch entitlements or defense spending, they won't abolish the Department of Education or a single federal agency, they won't touch abortion laws, and they sure won't give up their own socialist impulses. Trumpism, though not conservative and thoroughly non-intellectual, drove a final stake through the barely beating heart of Right intellectualism, from the Weekly Standard to National Review. Conservatism today is incoherent, both ideologically and tactically incapable of countering the rising tide of socialism.
Generals always fight the last war, and politics is no different. We all tend to see the current political climate in terms of old and familiar divisions, long-faded alliances, and obsolete rhetoric. We all cling to the comfortable ideology and influences that help us make sense of a chaotic world. As one commenter recently put it, liberal Baby Boomers still think it's 1968 and conservative Baby Boomers still think it's 1985. Generation X and Millennials will exhibit the same blinders. It may be disheartening to keep fighting what should be a long-settled battle against socialism, but today we have no other choice.


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A political conservative turned liberal, lifelong Roman Catholic and world-class curmudgeon, Garry Wills has called President
In his latest book, "Why Priests? A Failed Tradition," the former seminarian turned historian goes after priests.
But hey, it's just history. Nothing personal.
"I have nothing against priests," Wills says at the start of the book, ticking off the names of mentors, most of them Jesuits. "In fact, I tried for a time to be one. ... It should be clear, then, that I respect, and am often fond of, the many priests in my life."
This piece first ran in Printers Row Journal, delivered to Printers Row members with the Sunday
Wills has written nearly 50 works exploring a wide range of historical figures, including James Madison,
"Popes don't pay attention to me because I'm not a priest, and I didn't teach in a Catholic institution," Wills said in his characteristic acerbic tone, in an interview. "If I had done either of those things I would be in trouble with the church. But they can just shrug me off."
In "Why Priests?" Wills asks why a dependence on the priesthood arose in a religious tradition that didn't need it and, in fact, succeeded wildly without it during the time of Peter and Paul.
For the reform-minded, Wills articulates a call for change. But he doesn't want any part of the reform effort. He is quite content doing his own thing, worshipping in what he deems a historically accurate way and writing and writing and writing. So, one might ask, how did he become such an icon among liberal Catholic intelligentsia? In other words, why Garry Wills?
"He's not a theologian, representing the official Catholic view. He expresses views Catholics are discussing," said the Rev. Ken Simpson, Wills' former pastor at
Sitting on the couch inside the Sheil Center one recent snowy afternoon, a cane within easy reach, Wills talked about the journey that led him to his most recent book.
"This has been gestating for a long time," he said.
Wills wasn't always fond of priests, describing his childhood priest in Adrian, Mich., as "an ogre, an Irish tyrant." But the ordained and aspiring Jesuit priests who ran his high school set a different example, introducing students to the classics, music, theater and debate. It was also in high school that Wills discovered "The Confessions of St. Augustine," an autobiography written in the fourth century that examines the saint's conversion to Christianity. It was the Jesuits and St. Augustine, not the ogre, who inspired Wills to pursue a path to the priesthood.
It didn't take long for Wills to grow incredulous of the rules that governed seminary life and the lengths administrators would go to to get around them. For example, when secular books were forbidden during the first two years, author
After more than five years, a pile of unpublished articles and a severe bout of depression, the prospect of celibacy finally drove Wills to drop out. While pursuing a doctorate in the classics from
While in graduate school, he also launched a career as a journalist, working alongside the late conservative columnist
In 1957, flight attendant Natalie Cavallo plopped down in the seat next to Wills to tell him he was too young to be reading "The Two Sources of Morality" by French philosopher Henri Bergson. Fresh out of seminary, he failed to get her number. But the journalist in him tracked her down. They married two years later, raising three children in Baltimore, where he worked at
But tenure had a price, he said. The administrative duties and academic politics took time away from his writing. After chairing a hiring committee and finding his preferred candidate rejected for political reasons, he cast off tenure and started another book. Northwestern honored him by restoring his tenure in 2005. He continued to teach for a few more years during retirement, but no longer does.
Ed Muir, a professor of Italian social and cultural history and the Renaissance at Northwestern, said he always has admired Wills' focus and uncommon courage.
"He cut a deal because of his fame," Muir said, adding that colleagues understood why. "The first thing to know about him is he's an amazing polymath. … We might envy him in the sense that he's got this freedom. But he established a real intellectual presence on campus."
Muir said Wills' political conversion and Catholic devotion, despite doubts, set Wills apart from much of humanity.
"He's unafraid of anything," Muir said. "Here's a man who started out as a conservative and switched because he'd seen something intellectually wrong with the Nixon administration. That's uncommon. You see that in his criticism of the (Catholic) hierarchy."
Wills' first book on the Catholic Church, launched by Buckley and published in 1964, analyzed and explained why papal encyclicals had no binding authority on American Catholics in the political sphere. He revealed his misgivings about the church in 1972 when he published "Bare Ruined Choirs: Doubt, Prophecy, and Radical Religion." But the world took more notice in 2000 when he published "Papal Sin: Structures of Deceit."
He followed that two years later with "Why I Am a Catholic" in answer to the many critics who pounced on his scathing critique of the papacy.
He ascribes to everything in the Apostles' Creed — the Trinity, resurrection and saints. He prays the rosary daily and attends Mass weekly. But he doesn't believe in papal supremacy — an idea introduced to him by St. Augustine. He rejects transubstantiation, the doctrine that consecrated bread and wine become the body and blood of Jesus. The Eucharist, he believes, is an opportunity for the body of Christ, or community, to gather at the table.
He also believes the only sacrament grounded in the gospel is baptism. The aforementioned Eucharist, confirmation, marriage, reconciliation and anointing of the sick commemorate milestones and the power of community but hold no sacramental value and don't require a priest, in his view. Holy Orders, one of the seven sacraments, shouldn't exist at all, he says.
With all of that in mind, whether he's still a Catholic depends on whom you ask and whether they're willing to answer.
Cardinal Francis George wouldn't comment directly; he would only say through his spokeswoman that "anyone who has abandoned the faith should not claim to be Catholic."
Wills knows the cardinal is referring to his support of abortion rights and rejection of papal supremacy and transubstantiation.
"At least he knows the right things to condemn," Wills said with a snigger.
Conservative author George Weigel also wouldn't go there.
"Garry Wills is a tragic figure: so much intelligence, so much learning, and so little understanding of the past 50 years of Catholic history," Weigel said. "Why Dr. Wills thinks turning Catholics into Unitarians is the path toward a more robust, Gospel-centered Christian future is beyond my imagining."
Weigel said his own new book, "Evangelical Catholicism: Deep Reform in the 21st-Century Church" "actually has something to do with the real-world Catholic future."
But not all self-proclaimed Catholics are necessarily equal. Some church pundits even talk about "Weigel Catholics" and "Wills Catholics."
Wills believes his latest book offers a solution for the real-world Catholic future. It took a while for Wills to question the need for priests — until now.
After analyzing Paul's Letter to the Hebrews, an anonymous text that the historian points out wasn't written by the Apostle Paul or to the Hebrews and got added to the canon later, Wills concludes that the priesthood is nothing but another invention by the church to seize and wield power over its parishioners.
Priests have since claimed a monopoly on the sacraments and spiritual graces, Wills says. But he also contends that monopoly has backfired. The recent priest shortage has created a so-called crisis that wouldn't exist if the church conceded that priests aren't necessary in the first place.
"Some think the clerical shortage will be solved by recruiting new people for the priesthood — married priests, women priests, gay priests," Wills said. "When we run out of everyone else, will we start ordaining child priests? Anything, to keep the sacrificing priesthood? What we really need are no priests."
Simpson, Wills' former pastor, hasn't read the book but doesn't take offense. He declined to answer whether Wills is a Catholic.
"Individuals have to reconcile where they are with what the church teaches," the priest said.
But Wills has surprised him and others by defending the church at unexpected moments. People tend to get caught up in present-day controversies and forget about the church's long tradition of overcoming challenges, Simpson said. Yet there's Wills, standing in the vestibule after Mass, to remind them.
"There's so much to being a Catholic," Simpson said. "Understanding what Catholicism is about, no one can know it all or embrace it all in a moment. You do it as a matter of faith. Some things you connect to one day more than any other. There's a richness in hanging in there. That's in the bones."
Manya Brachear has covered religion for the Chicago Tribune since June 2003.
Why Priests?
By Garry Wills, Viking, 302 pages, $27.95
Wills will speak at 6 p.m. Feb. 19, at Seminary Co-op Bookstore, 5751 S.

subset: commoncrawl


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A quarter-century ago, the groves of academe became a battlefield.Several books, notably Allan Bloom's 1987 best-seller, "The Closing of the American Mind," charged that the American university had been hijacked by left-wing radicals who had jettisoned the pursuit of knowledge for social causes. Student activists rebelled against a curriculum filled with works by "dead white males." Stories circulated of professors and students penalized for dissenting from politically correct dogma on race, ethnicity and gender.
Amid these battles, a group called the National Association of Scholars was formed as a bastion of traditional scholarship. Earlier this month, the group marked its 25th anniversary at a conference in New York City. Its cause remains as relevant as ever — though it should be careful to avoid promoting a "political correctness" of its own.
At the New York conference, many speakers deplored the continued and one-sided politicization of the academy. All too often, they said, Western civilization is attacked as uniquely oppressive, even though it has brought unprecedented freedoms to the very groups the left champions, particularly women; self-criticism, a strength of Western culture, turns to destructive self-loathing.
Peter Berkowitz, a political scientist from Stanford's Hoover Institution, asserted that ideas from the past are seen as "hopelessly tainted by being racist, sexist" or otherwise bigoted. There is, he said, "a loss of a sense that two sides of a debate need to be presented — except when conservative ideas are being advanced." Thus, when Harvey Mansfield, a professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and a noted conservative, invited guest speakers, the school always insisted on having a speaker for the other side — a requirement not imposed on other faculty members, Berkowitz said.
This bleak picture is no exaggeration. Last week, several new skirmishes in the campus culture wars were chronicled in an excellent column by Tobin Harshaw for Bloomberg.com. Harshaw's targets include a striking recent example of academic West-bashing: the claim by Columbia University Middle Eastern studies professor Joseph Massad that Western efforts to combat the persecution of gays and lesbians in Muslim countries are "culturally imperialist" and that Arab gay activists who take a pro-Western position are victims of "false consciousness."
The National Association of Scholars has done valuable work over these past years, issuing reports that document the decline of the study of Western culture in America's universities, the proliferation of classes that advance a political agenda, and the climate of political and intellectual conformity. Unfortunately, the group's potential is limited by its own politics.
At the conference, a rightward slant was unmistakable — in the selection of speakers (nearly all of them white, male and right of center) and in casual comments based on the correct assumption that the audience was overwhelmingly conservative. When one panelist, the Manhattan Institute's Sol Stern, suggested that the lack of national curriculum standards contributed to political indoctrination in schools at the K-12 level, he admitted that this was "problematic to say at a mostly conservative gathering."
The association's mission statement speaks of fostering "intellectual freedom," high standards of excellence and "reasoned scholarship and civil debate." Many men and women across the political spectrum subscribe to these goals.
Another group with an academic mission, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (which had a presenter at the New York conference), has consistently lived up to its proclaimed political neutrality: It champions free speech on campus regardless of politics and collaborates both with conservative groups and with the liberal American Civil Liberties Union.
That's the proper model for combating left-wing indoctrination and intolerance. A good birthday wish for the National Association of Scholars would be to find a similar balance.
Schools: Columbia University


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kstowell necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 512 diseños de 93 diseñadores freelance.
UPDATE 02-23-2009: Here are some important details.
FONT STYLE: Here are a few sites that have logos with fonts we like. The word codejock should be prominent with the phrase software solutsion in smaller text underneath.
FONT COLOR: solid black or blue / gray making code and jock a different color.
ICON COLOR: blue / gray (2 colors), blue / gray / orange (3 colors), blue / orange / green (3 colors), blue / gray / orange / green (4 colors).
ICON STYLE: needs to be something that expresses Innovation, Technology, Software, Commitment, Customer Service. The logo might be used on a black background so please submit BLACK and WHITE backgrounds so please submit your design with both styles.
Here is an overview of how I am rating this contest. If you work gets 3 or less stars it means your work is not what we are looking for.
1 Star - Wrong direction missing the mark.
2 Star - Has some elements we like.
3 Star - Getting closer, may need revisions or a different take on your design.
4 Star - Your design is being considered.
5 Star - You made the final cut!
NOTE: Please read my comments at the bottom of this page. General ideas, comments or new direction will also be mentioned below and specific comments will be added to each designers page.
Codejock Software Solutions
We are looking to redesign the logo for our website codejock.com to help rebrand our company and product line. We are a software components provider, creating custom user interface tools that developers can use in their applications.
The purpose of this contest is to create a logo that people will easily recognize and remember. We want our logo to convey that we are a well established and professional software company, who is a leader in our field. The logo will be used for business cards, brochures, letterheads, and most important our website.
I will be running another contest for web page design as soon as the logo contest is finished and a winner has been selected. The web page design will be based around the winning logo from this contest.
The logo should be easy to remember, and should have a theme that expresses Innovation, Technology, Software, Commitment, Customer Service. Our current logo which is a gear placed next to our company name. You can download our current logo from this [ link ].
We are moving to a Web 2.0 type platform soon, so please read the brief before submitting your entry. I am looking forward to your designs, and good luck to everyone.
- Web 2.0 style, but has to be usable in black and white formats.
- We would like to see a unique icon that represents what we do. Gears are ok, but please be original.
- A layered PSD file is preferred, but will also accept AI.
- Font(s) or font name should be included
- Recognizable icon, does not have to be a gear
- NO Red, brown or yellow colors
- NO Clipart, must be original
- NO Recycled logos
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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During a tour up the Mekong River, we noticed some awesome low tech no name restaurant located on the river banks, often constructed from rusty tin plates. bamboo and cardboards - leftovers once containing Panasonic TV sets or refrigerators. The vegetables served were cultivated and grew in the sand just a few meters from where it was prepared, and the chicken running between our feet were the same they served us a few minutes later. The lavatory was a ditch in the sand some 20 meters away, well within sight from the other guests. There is no such thing as privacy in a place like this - but the food was excellent, and the surroundings and view was stunning.
Because the Mekong River is flooded so often, the river banks change, and the locations of these restaurants change from year to year. Location on Google Maps is a "best guess".
Asia is the biggest continent on Earth, a darling little gem floating around in space.Hm, what is Asia? Who's in on it?China and India are safe bets for Asian nations. Korea, Japan, Thailand, you're fine.Europe? No. Europe would sort of be on the "Asian continent" if not for those pesky Ural mountains dividing things up in the middle, and then also the whole lineage of kings and wealth and nations and the EU and all that "give me my respect" stuff.Russia would probably be happiest as its own continent, so for now we'll leave it in "Eurasia" and just hope the natural gas supplies keep flowing.Pakistan and Afghanistan are dang close to Asia, but politically they show up in "Middle East" news stories an awful lot. Verdict: Eurasia.I guess we'll actually have to consider everything from Turkey on eastward to be "Eurasian", although the moniker seems overlappitory of the territory.The Asian economy is now officially raging like a wild furnace of lava that consumes everything in its path. Japan has had the largest individual economy in Asia for decades, but it is forecast that both India and China will outstrip Japan within twenty years.China is the largest holder of United States debt and is positioned to become the world's next superpower, provided that Godzilla doesn't return and decide to stomp everybody back into the Shang Dynasty.Text by Steve Smith.


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MORAGA — Moraga School District officials are once again turning to residents to help fund the district's three elementary schools and middle school following the defeat of a parcel tax last year.
The district governing board will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday to discuss a new tax that would appear on the Nov. 5 ballot.
If approved, residents will be asked to vote on the $192 per-parcel tax officials say would continue funding of math, science, music and art curriculums and maintain manageable class sizes, among other benefits. The tax would sunset in six years and includes an exemption for low-income seniors.
Last year, school officials proposed a $225 parcel tax arguing that an existing parcel tax would no longer cover expenses in 2013. That tax did not have a sunset date.
Despite garnering 64.97 percent voter support, the ballot measure failed to reach the two-thirds majority required for passage.
Property owners already pay a $325 parcel tax which generates $1.8 million annually to fund the schools. They also pay more than $300 in parcel taxes to the Acalanes Union High School District.
The meeting will be held in the Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School library, 1010 Camino Pablo.


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A man charged with murdering a beloved former school teacher from Stroud Township is slated for trial today on separate charges of burglary, receiving stolen property and theft.
A man charged with murdering a beloved former school teacher from Stroud Township is slated for trial today on separate charges of burglary, receiving stolen property and theft.
Stroud Area Regional Police said Rico Herbert, 32, was shown on video entering through the unlocked back door of Kay's Tavern in Stroudsburg after everyone had left on the morning of Aug. 3, 2011.
Police said Herbert, identified as a regular customer, was shown taking what later amounted to $1,500 from a lock box after finding the key to the box.
The front desk clerk at the Pocono Inne Town in Stroudsburg, where Herbert was staying at the time, said Herbert had been having trouble paying for his room until paying $481.04 in cash for the week that morning, according to police.
Herbert is also awaiting trial in the February 2012 murder of retired school teacher Joseph DeVivo, 87. The District Attorney's Office is seeking the death penalty against him if he's convicted in that case.
Just hours after DeVivo and his 2012 Chevy Malibu were reported missing from his Stroud Township home Feb. 25, 2012, Herbert was found with DeVivo's car, wallet and credit cards in North Carolina, thanks to cellphone tracking.
Police said Herbert ran from the car and was apprehended and charged with obstructing a missing-person investigation.
In custody also on separate cases, Herbert two months later told police where to find DeVivo's body, near a creek by a log cabin in South Carolina. Police said they found DeVivo's deteriorated body wearing the T-shirt and boxer shorts he had gone to bed in the night he was abducted, and a rag stuffed into his mouth.
Herbert told police he and another man called "T.J." entered DeVivo's home the night of Feb. 23. He said he saw T.J. walk toward the sleeping DeVivo's bedroom and heard him say he was going to "take care of" DeVivo.
Herbert said he awaited T.J. outside and later saw T.J. drive DeVivo's car out of the garage, but no sign of DeVivo in the car.
He said T.J. then gave him the car in exchange for drugs while another car came to the scene and drove T.J. away. Herbert said he then drove the car to a family gathering in South Carolina, opened the trunk and discovered DeVivo's body inside, after which he drove and dumped the body where he later told police it was.
Police have charged only Herbert in this case. He remains in Monroe County Correctional Facility without bail. No trial date has yet been set in the DeVivo case.


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Japanese panel urges greater military role
TOKYO (AP) — Citing threats from China and North Korea, a government-appointed panel is urging Japan to reinterpret its pacifist constitution to allow the use of military force to defend other countries.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe formally received the panel's report Thursday and vowed to seek ways to allow the military to do more for the country's own defense and for international peace.
"We must study if the current interpretation of the constitution is sufficient in order to protect the people and their peaceful lives," Abe said.
But he also sought to assuage concerns both at home and in neighboring countries that he is returning Japan to its militarist past.
"There is a misunderstanding that Japan will return to a country that wages war, but that will never happen," he said. "Japan sticks to its pacifist pledge it has kept since the end of the war."
The report sets the stage for Abe's push to allow the military to play a greater role in international security.
Japan currently maintains a military only for its own defense, and has previously interpreted the war-renouncing Article 9 of its post-World War II constitution as meaning it cannot engage in what is known as collective self-defense.
If approved, the change could allow Japan to come to the defense of the United States or other countries, even if Japan itself is not under attack. Japan has gradually loosened the restrictions of Article 9 over the years to allow overseas deployments of troops in limited circumstances, but never to use their weapons to fight for others.
"Collective self-defense probably goes even further than all the other reinterpretations that Article 9 has seen thus far, so it would be a huge step," said Chris Winkler, a constitutional expert at the German Institute for Japanese Studies in Tokyo.
Abe said no country can defend itself alone. Under the current interpretation of the constitution, he said, Japanese troops could not use force to rescue Japanese citizens fleeing on an American ship from a conflict zone if the U.S. vessel came under attack.
"This is the reality. Are we just going to look the other way? Just think, they could be your children, and grandchildren," Abe said.
Abe, however, said Japan will never send troops overseas to wage war.
The proposal faces doubts within Abe's ruling coalition and he will have to build a consensus to win Cabinet approval. Surveys show public opinion is mixed. Opponents say it would undermine the war-renouncing clause of the constitution.
"Currently, the bottom line is whether Japan comes under foreign attack," said Kyouji Yanagisawa, a security expert under former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. "What serves as the brake on an abuse of the right to self-defense when Japan is not under direct attack?"
The report said a deteriorating regional security environment, namely threats from China and North Korea, makes Japan's ban on collective self-defense inadequate.
Yosuke Isozaki, Abe's national security adviser, said the change is needed because of rising tensions in east Asia and pressures on U.S. military spending.
"Japan will become a country that can make more international contributions by deepening its relations with the U.S. and expanding our ties with countries other than America," he said.
The United States backs Abe's push for a larger military role, as it wants Japan to bear a greater burden of its own defense.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said Japan has demonstrated for more than 60 years a commitment to peace, democracy and global security. She said the U.S. welcomes the debate inside Japan on what the nation's constitution permits, and the decision on whether to allow the right of collective self-defense would be up to its government and people.
"We are confident that Japan will continue their tradition of respect for peace as they have this discussion," she told reporters.
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying criticized the Abe administration for taking "negative actions" that raised concerns about Japan's true motives.
"We urge Japan to respect the legitimate and reasonable security concerns of countries in the region, adhere to the path of peaceful development, earnestly face up to and reflect on history, and play a constructive role in the regional peace and stability," Hua told a daily news briefing Thursday.
The report recommended allowing collective self-defense or making other legal changes so that Japan can fight back for America when U.S. warships come under attack while in or near Japan, shoot down a missile heading to the U.S., or participate in minesweeping in distant sea lanes traveled by commercial Japanese vessels.
Experts say many of the scenarios are unlikely because they assume the outbreak of a full-scale war, but collective self-defense could come into play in U.N. peacekeeping operations.
"In that sense, it's an important step forward, but we are not talking about fighting a major war," said Narushige Michishita, a defense expert at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo.
Associated Press writers Ken Moritsugu in Tokyo, Christopher Bodeen in Beijing and Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report.


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Beer and wine glasses in hand, Chamber of Commerce members toasted 16 businesses for their growth during tough economic times at a reception Monday at Southern Appalachian Brewery on Locust Street in Hendersonville.
"Some of these numbers are just staggering," said Joe Guy, a patent agent at Perkins Law Firm who chaired the "Growth Awards" selection process. "And it's covering more sectors of the economy than we've previously seen. This is the first time we've had people in the brewery and winery industry, for instance."
Four businesses — Horizon Heating and Air Conditioning, Saint Paul Mountain Vineyards, McChristian Dental and Service Dental — received "Rising Star" awards for growing their businesses over the past three years, despite post-recessionary times.
Twelve other businesses were honored with the Chamber's third annual "Growth Awards," for expanding their bottom lines through "quality management, inventiveness, hard work and courage," Chamber President Bob Williford said.
They were:
◆ Mountain Tek Technical Rescue Equipment: Established in 1995, the company sells search and rescue equipment to emergency service organizations across the United States. Over the past year, Mountain Tek has been renovating a new building in anticipation of growing its revenue by about 15 percent this year.
◆ United Federal Credit Union:
Two-time recipient UFCU currently employes six people, having increased its labor force each of the past three years. The membership-based financial services organization has increased its loans by 43 percent, its gross deposits by 29 percent and its total members by 18 percent.
◆ Hampton Inn Hendersonville: Founded in 1986, the motel employs 22 people full time and four part-timers at its Sugarloaf Road
◆ New Dimensions in Pavement Markings: Specializing in pavement markings, sign installation, seal coating and repairs, New Dimensions lives by the twin goals of "quality workmanship and customer service," said Nicola Barksdale, a First Citizens Bank vice president and co-presenter. The company has tripled its revenue over the past three years and now employs 20 people.
◆ Laborde Eye Group: The ophthalmology group, led by Dr. Robert Laborde, specializes in macular degeneration and retina repair. Last year, the group — which also has offices in Spruce Pine, Asheville and Burnsville — increased its revenue by 33 percent after growing it 20 percent the previous year.
◆ Advantage Printing: Founded in 1981, the printing company on Brevard Road in Arden has steadily increased its staff, employing 16 full-time workers and one part-timer. The company has grown its business about 20 percent over the past two years. Allison Montcastle accepted the award for the company.
◆ 1898 Waverly Inn: The bed-andbreakfast on North Main Street in Hendersonville has seen strong growth thanks to the area's increase in tourism. "The hospitality industry should benefit greatly from the wineries, the breweries and all of that," Guy said. The inn employs four full-timers and 10 part-timers.
◆ All-States Medical Supply: The medical supply company recently won a competitive bidding contract from Medicare, making it one of only 23 suppliers nationwide for the country's 6 million diabetics. As a result, President Marcus Suess expect to double his work force to about 80 over the next few months.
◆ Lulu's Consignment Boutique: Located on Hendersonville Road in Fletcher, Lulu's has seen double-digit growth, and "the ladies tell me they've had considerable success," Guy said. Since 2006, the shop has grown the number of employees to its current level of five full-time workers and 17 part-timers. Owners Angie and Garret Heidenreich accepted the award.
◆ Hoyle Office Solutions: A locally run business since 1945, the Arden design center and showroom provides office furniture, space planning and office supplies. The company has grown its employee numbers by 33 percent over the past year, with a corresponding jump in revenue of 10 percent. Kathy Hoyle accepted the award.
◆ Blue Ridge Lighting Supply: The Chamber's only three-time growth awards winner, the woman-owned company's goal is to provide quality lighting at an affordable price, Barksdale said. President Amy Morgan and her staff have increased their revenue by 60 percent over the past few years.
In a surprise move, Williford handed out an unannounced "Rising Star" award to co-owners Andy and Kelly Cubbin of Southern Appalachian Brewery. The Cubbins purchased the business in 2006 and ran a production-only operation in Fletcher until April 2011, when they moved the brewery and opened the tasting room in the Historic Seventh Avenue District.
Reach Axtell at 828-694-7860 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
Chamber honors 16 growing businesses
Beer and wine glasses in hand, Chamber of Commerce members toasted 16 businesses for their growth during tough economic times at a reception Monday at Southern Appalachian Brewery on Locust Street in Hendersonville.


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The magician shows a handsome lacquered cabinet on all sides. It rotates back and forth on the table, as it is set on a lazy-susan, easily swiveling from one side to the other. The the magician opens the door in the front of the box and shows it around again. Clearly the box is empty.
Yet, despite such convincing displays, after the magician closes the front door, opens a door on top and waves his hand, a massive quantity of articles are produced.
This attractive, sturdily-made mirror box is finished in glossy colors and trimmed with brass hardware. The rotating base makes the trick easier than ever to perform. Comes complete and ready to work.


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The Winter Olympics are fast approaching. The anticipation and excitement are growing. The spectators, such as this Arctic ground squirrel, are ready to appreciate the spectacular scenery, but it is important to understand the different events properly in order to fully enjoy them. Read on to learn about the natural stars of the Winter Olympics.
Ski and snowboard cross are fast-paced, adrenaline-fuelled races over difficult sculpted terrain. These reindeer make it look like a piece of cake. Reindeer are highly sociable, and can form regional herds of 50,000 to 500,000 individuals!
Skeleton is an individual sport in which the competitor flies down a track of ice at speeds of up to 225 kilometres per hour! It looks as though this polar bear is in the correct position, but he won't get very far without his sled.
Slopestyle skiing or snowboarding is a creative competition that involves lots of tricks and flips. The professionals could take some tips from this majestic humpback whale.
Alpine skiing is a thrilling test of speed, with the fastest down the hill taking the crown. This muskox is an unlikely looking speed demon, able to reach speeds of up to 60 kilometres per hour!
Cross-country skiing is a test of endurance over a long and challenging course. These macaroni penguins have a perfect technique.
Figure skating requires a high level of artistic flair, as well as impeccable balance and a deep bond with your skating partner, nicely demonstrated by these wandering albatrosses. These huge birds can live for over 50 years, and mate for life.
Bobsleigh requires a team of four highly athletic and able individuals. Look no further than these agile Adélie penguins that are able dive to depths of 175 metres for food.
We hope you are looking forward to appreciating the wild, natural beauty and the sporting achievements of the Winter Olympics.
Phoebe Shaw Stewart, ARKive Text Author


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Often, before people can decide to leave no trace in the backcountry, they must feel a personal connection to the land; they need a reason to care. Caring can take many forms: a love of beauty, an enjoyment of wild plants and animals, an interest in learning about the natural world, a feeling of oneness with nature, a desire for fun and leisure, the excitement of discovery, or even a need to be challenged. All these examples help illustrate how we are a part of the web of life that surrounds us.
An understanding of how the natural world functionsand our ability to change this worldraises many considerations about Leave No Trace. Before teaching Leave No Trace, leaders are encouraged to help people make a personal connection with the natural world. Simultaneously, as the individual nurtures this connection, a commitment to protecting the natural world also takes shape. This section helps set the stage for promoting Leave No Trace and reminds us that humans are part of the natural world.
Get acquainted with the seven principles of Leave No Trace. It's essential to feel comfortable and knowledgeable before getting started. Begin by thoroughly reading this section before proceeding with the activities. Then, review the appropriate information before conducting a specific activity.
The Seven Principles of Leave No Trace
Teaching Leave No Trace
|The Boy Scouts of America


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HP Redundant Power Supply 575 Watt
Part Number(s)
Spare Part# 406393-001
Manufacturer Part# 366982-501
Model# PS-3601-1C-ROHS
For the Proliant DL380 G4 Server
Overview:Information technology professionals rely on HP quality to ensure maximum productivity. As the power of applications processors memory adapters and storage devices increases high-end computer users are seeking ways to optimize their system performance. HP provides leading solutions adding new levels of performance availability flexibility and management.


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Leaders of Turkey, Greece air grievances at tense conference
By ELENA BECATOROS, Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The leaders of Greece and Turkey publicly aired their grievances Thursday in a tense news conference as a two-day visit to Athens by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan got off to a rocky start.
The Greek government had expressed hopes the visit, the first to Greece by a Turkish president in 65 years, would help improve often frosty relations between the two neighbors. The NATO allies are divided by a series of decades-old issues, including territorial disputes in the Aegean Sea, and have come to the brink of war three times since the early 1970s.
But from the outset, discussions focused on disagreements.
On the eve of his visit, Erdogan rattled his Greek hosts by saying in an interview with Greece's Skai television that the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne should be "updated." The treaty delineated modern Turkey's borders and set provisions for the status of the Muslim minority in Greece and the Greek minority in Turkey, among other issues.
In a visibly testy first meeting with Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, the two engaged in a thinly-veiled verbal spat over the treaty and the Muslim minority, which Erdogan is to visit Friday.
"This happened in Lausanne, that happened in Lausanne. I get that, but let's now quickly do what is necessary," Erdogan told Pavlopoulos. "Many things have changed in 94 years. If we review these, I believe that all the sides will agree that so many things have to (change.)"
The spat continued during Erdogan's appearance at an unusually candid joint news conference with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
The two listed a series of grievances their countries have with each other, including religious and minority rights, the divided island of Cyprus and the case of ten Turkish servicemen who have applied for asylum in Greece following a Turkish government crackdown after a failed coup last year.
"It is very important to strengthen our channels of communication, and this can only happen on the basis of mutual respect," Tsipras said.
The prime minister said the two also discussed tension in the Aegean, where Greece complains Turkish fighter jets frequently violate its airspace.
"The increasing violations of Greek airspace in the Aegean and particularly the simulated dogfights in the Aegean pose a threat to our relations, and particularly a threat to our pilots," Tsipras said.
For his part, Erdogan insisted once more that the Lausanne treaty needed to be reviewed, but stressed his country had no territorial claims on its smaller neighbor.
On the topic of the Muslim minority in Greece — which the country recognizes only as a religious minority, while Turkey has long pressed for better rights — Tsipras said his government agreed that improvements must be made in their quality of life.
"But issues that concern reforms involving Greek citizens are not an issue of negotiation between countries," he said.
Tsipras noted it was unclear exactly what Erdogan was seeking with his call for an update to the 1923 treaty.
"The truth is I am a little confused about what he is putting on the table," he said.
Greeks have been aghast at Erdogan's comments in the past over possibly revising the Lausanne treaty, considering the move could harbor territorial claims. His bringing up the issue on the eve of and during his visit to Athens was not a move welcomed by his hosts.
Erdogan and Tsipras also sparred over the issue of Cyprus, divided since a 1974 Turkish invasion into a Turkish-occupied north and an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south. Another round of internationally-brokered peace talks to reunify the island failed earlier this year.
"Who left the table? Southern Cyprus did… We want the issue to reach a fair and lasting solution but that is not southern Cyprus' concern," Erdogan said.
Tsipras retorted: "My dear friend, Mr. President, we must not forget that this issue remains unresolved because 43 years ago there was an illegal invasion and occupation of the northern part of Cyprus."
Erdogan also raised the issue of Athens having no official mosque, to which Tsipras responded by saying Greece had restored several mosques around Greece, including a centuries-old mosque in central Athens.
The refugee crisis appeared to be the only issue the two sides did not disagree on, with both noting they had shared a significant burden of the migration flows into the European Union. More than a million people crossed from Turkey through Greece at the height of the crisis.
Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, Derek Gatopoulos and Nicholas Paphitis in Athens contributed.


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Love, love, love my CloudVentures
Best Trail experience ever. Super grip, nice support and it looks stunn8ng!
Delivery in 2-4 working days and extended 30 days return period
The advanced On membrane is 100% water- and windproof and physical, not chemically coated, meaning it does not wash out over time. This allows it to be highly stretchable, lighter overall and far more breathable compared to most other waterproof shoes on the market.
The Grip-Rubber profile of the Cloudventure performs in the most demanding conditions. Its sole is micro-engineered with four distinct levels of grip, so you're always in control.
The patented CloudTec® sole has 11 individual pods that stretch back upon impact to offset the forces of downhill running. We call it horizontal cushioning, and it comes on top of our standard vertical cushioning.
Every aspect of the Cloudventure has been engineered with the ultimate trail running shoes in mind – right down to the toe-caps. Fused with rubber and engineered mesh, it provides protection for the toes while still remaining lightweight and flexible.
Runners looking for a lightweight trail shoe with full cushioning protection
Reach places others can't
6 mm | 0.23 in
240 g I 8.5 oz (US W 7)
Best Trail experience ever. Super grip, nice support and it looks stunn8ng!
This is probably one of the best trail/running shoe I have ever brought. It is so comfortable and the traction on trails is amazing. I have nothing but good things to say. If you want a great running shoe that is waterproof for trails then this is the one for you.
It really helps to promote mid sole strike, (I am usually a heel strike) but found it way easier to run with these and I love the cushioning.
I run a various range of difficult trails daily.
I am really looking forward to all seasons with this shoe.
349 flights of stairs (according to Fitbit) is what it takes to get to the top of Montana Machupiccha in Peru. Three of us wore the waterproof trail Clouds with no regrets. The shoes were the perfect shoe for adventure and city travel. The shoes also went to the jungle with not a blister or a problem. We love our waterprooof Clouds but wished there were more colors to choose from so the mother, daughter, dad squad did not have to match.


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Friday, January 6, 2012
Albanian Muzik 2012
Albanian (gjuha shqipe, pronounced [ˈɟuha ˈʃcipɛ], or shqip Albanian pronunciation: [ʃcip]) is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people,[1] primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an autochthonous (native) Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece. Albanian is also spoken in centuries-old Albanian colonies in southern Greece, southern Italy,[2] Sicily, and Ukraine.[3] Additionally, speakers of Albanian can be found elsewhere throughout the latter two countries resulting from a modern diaspora, originating from the Balkans, that also includes Scandinavia, Switzerland, Germany, United Kingdom, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, Singapore, Brazil, Canada and the United States. Muzik Shqip


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The Research In Motion® (RIM®) Developer Relations team recently hosted a BBM™ Hackathon event in NYC. Developers were invited to apply for a chance to participate in the event, getting one-on-one time with BlackBerry® platform experts and network with other developers while working on integrating social elements into apps using the BlackBerry® Messenger (BBM) APIs.
Attendees told us that they found the direct contact with our social platform experts to be invaluable – and we liked hearing that so much that we've decided to host more of these hackathon events across the globe in the coming weeks.


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Finally, the NBA might actually have 30 active head coaches soon. Or soonish. Or maybe not soon at all.But at least we're progressing.The 76ers – the last team to hire a head coach – have taken another step, though they're still moving at a snail's pace.
More than a week after a report the 76ers favored Spurs assistant Brett Brown, they've advanced with him.Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports:
Adrian Wojnarowski ✔ @WojYahooNBA
Philadelphia has offered its head coaching job to Spurs assistant Brett Brown and the sides are discussing contract, league sources tell Y!
At this rate, Philadelphia will hire Brown in another week or two, but now, I'd be surprised if a deal is not reached.
Brown has never been an NBA head coach before (though he held the top job in the Australian National Basketball League), and although he's in line to become the Spurs' lead assistant now that Mike Budenholzer has left for the Hawks, this would be a difficult chance to pass up for Brown. It's tough to see terms of the contract outweighing the potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
At this point, Gregg Popovich must be working hard to revamp a coaching staff that has consistently been among the NBA's best.
Link: Report: 76ers offer head-coaching job to Brett Brown | ProBasketballTalk
Did you ever notice, when you put the 2 words ' The' and ' IRS ' together it spells 'Theirs...'? Tis the season............
Marc Stein: Word in coaching circles is some Brett Brown associates urging him not to take Philly job in part because Year 1 is guaranteed 60+ losses. To pass on Philly, Brett Brown must be sure he can get another head coach gig. Of course, hot as Pop disciples are these days, he likely can. But let's see. Let's see if Sixers put enough on table to get Brett Brown to leave Spurs. Michael Curry for a year remains Philly fallback. Twitter @ESPNSteinLine
Did you ever notice, when you put the 2 words ' The' and ' IRS ' together it spells 'Theirs...'? Tis the season............
I really hope he doesn't leave the Spurs!
Brett Brown being urged not to take Sixers head coaching job
The Philadelphia 76ers took a long, convoluted route to finding the man they wanted to replace former head coach Doug Collins. The man they selected might not take the job however, as ESPNs Marc Stein reports that San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown is being urged to pass on the Sixers offer.
Turning down a head coaching job would be a big decision for an assistant that wasnt even the top guy on his own staff that honor goes to new Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer but it could pay off for him in the long run.
The Sixers arent expected to be competitive in their first season under new general manager Sam Hinkie and are widely considered the favorites for a top pick in next years loaded NBA Draft. If Brown endures a sixty-loss season, the first-year head coach would be starting his stateside career in quite the hole and without much to add to his resume if hes canned for a higher-profile coach next season. That could Brown in the company of a guy like Mike Dunlap, who coached an already bad Charlotte Bobcats team to a 21-61 record last season before being replaced after just one year on the job. Kevin ONeill, Sam Vincent, Quinn Buckner, Jeff Bower, Johnny McCarthy, John Wetzel, Leonard Hamilton and fellow candidate Michael Curry were also canned after their first season as an NBA head coach and none of them have been able to get another head job since.
If the Sixers arent going to give Brown enough money and job security to prove that they want him for the long haul and not just as a cheap bandaid while they rebuild their roster it likely isnt going to be worth his time when considering he should have more opportunities next summer. Because, if Philadelphia decides they dont want to commit to a long-term deal with Brown this season, whats stopping the Australian native from waiting and applying for the job next summer when the teams prospects are better and hes got a year of top experience under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio?
Its an interesting spot for both sides: the Sixers dont necessarily want to win this year and likely arent interested in committing too much to a head coach that they want to lose in his first season. But, if they really think a guy like Brown is their coach of the future, theyll have to open their pocketbooks to make sure the risk of starting off really bad doesnt scare him away.
Report: Report: Brett Brown being urged not to take Sixers head coaching job | ProBasketballTalk
Did you ever notice, when you put the 2 words ' The' and ' IRS ' together it spells 'Theirs...'? Tis the season............
The only thing that could stop him from taking this job would be if they try to do it on the cheap and sign him for less than market value.
Since you can't fix stupid, at least you should be able to prosecute it!
BOS did it with their new coach. Gave him 6 years(?), if memory serves.
If you're going to commit to a rebuilding project, you need to commit to the coach to survive the lean years.
Marc Stein: Heard some fresh rumbles on NBA coaching grapevine today suggesting San Antonio IS bracing for Brett Brown to ultimately take Philly job Twitter @ESPNSteinLine
Did you ever notice, when you put the 2 words ' The' and ' IRS ' together it spells 'Theirs...'? Tis the season............
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text: Shop for Men's Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz Mexican League Fan Gear at lids.ca! Browse a great selection of athletic & dress Mexican League clothing for men & guys. Choose from men's apparel styles to Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz sportswear for guys. Mexican League sportswear makes a great gift for any sports fan, so pick up sports fan gear at Lids to rep your Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz team pride.


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Quirky Vintage Camera Inspired Décor
As a photographer who has been a part of the transition from film into the digital age I have a deep sense of nostalgia for analog. Vintage cameras have joined the ranks of typewriters in their charming depiction of a simpler time when self-expression had a much more tactile sensibility. While I would never choose to go back (convenience wins out) these quirky pieces are a fun way to incorporate this aesthetic into your décor.
1. The print "28 Camera Drawings" by Christine Berrie is full of colorful illustrations of vintage cameras and pays special attention to the details that make them unique. The print is available through Jen Beckman's project 20×200 for $50.
2. The "Polaroid Cameras" prints from HeyHarriet come in a set of four. They would look great framed as a series or styled simply on a clothesline as they are presented here. They are available on Etsy for only $18.
3. The "Vintage Camera Photo Album" is a fitting format for the illustration. It holds thirty-six 4×6 photos (it might encourage you to actually have a few printed up) and is available at Anthropologie for $10.
4. The "Camera Pencil Sharpener" is a creative take on an office staple. It's available at Paper Source for $14.
5. The graphic images on "Camera Coasters" by Kiki are silkscreened in fused glass and are available at buyolympia.com as a set of four for $60.


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Words containing arvafacies
Found 1 words containing arvafacies. Browse our Scrabble Word Finder, Words With Friends cheat dictionary, and WordHub word solver to find words that contain arvafacies. Or use our Unscramble word solver to find your best possible play! Related: Words that end in arvafacies
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text: ACSP-2531N Biased Coaxial Schottky Detector with Internal Resistor or Pad Data Sheet Revision Date: 12/22/2015 The most important thing we build is trust DESCRIPTION: This family of padded input detectors allows for higher input power read and better VSWR than pure biased schottky units. They come in a variety of package styles. Module versions for microstrip or stripline applications are also available. SPECIFICATIONS: Parameter Specification Unit of Measure Frequency Range (min) 0.005 – 0.05 GHz Sensitivity (min) 750 mV/mW Flatness vs. Frequency (max) 0.10 ±dB Typical VSWR 2.0:1 ratio Nominal Video Capacitance 1000 pF OUTLINE DRAWING: SMA MALE (INPUT) FEATURES: SMA FEMALE (OUTPUT) 0.312 • Contains hermetically sealed modules, internal RF matching, DC return, and RF bypass capacitor • The video port is protected from static or transient charges • Input impedance matching • Models may be chosen for broadband RF performance of for optimized narrow bands 1.32±.02 STANDARD CASE STYLE C3 (Optional Case Styles – C8, C15) Revised Date: 12/22/2015 (732) 460-0212 www.cobham.com/CSCS 1 ACSP-2531N Biased Coaxial Schottky Detector with Internal Resistor or Pad NOTES: ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS*: Maximum input power: +20 dBm MIL-E-5400, MIL-STD-202, MIL-E-16400 Sensitivity is measured into an open circuit load (>10 k ohm). Operating Temp: -55°C to +125°C VSWR is measured at or below -20 dBm input power level. Humidity: MIL-STD-202F, M103, Cond B Standard bias is 100 uA. Video capacitance is used for RF bypass. This value can be changed if required for video response time. Contact the factory for more information. Storage Temp: -65°C to +150°C Shock: MIL-STD-202F, M213, Cond B Altitude: MIL-STD-202F, M105, Cond B Vibration: MIL-STD-202F, M204, Cond B Thermal Shock: MIL-STD-202F, M107, Cond A This part number is also available with a zero bias schottky diode. * Compliant by design, verification optional Due to higher impedance, the zero bias schottky will exhibit less sensitive TSS (typically a 3 dB reduction) The temperature performance of the zero bias schottky is poor when operating at low input power levels. SCREENING: Internal Visual per MIL-STD-883, Method 2017 Temperature Cycle: -65°C to +100°C, 10 cycles OPTIONAL HIGH-REL SCREENING (Ref MIL-PRF-38534): Stabilization Bake per MIL-STD-883, Method 1008 Temperature Cycle per MIL-STD-883, Method 1010 Constant Acceleration per MIL-STD-883, Method 2001 Burn-in per MIL-STD-883, Method 1015 Leak Test per MIL-STD-883, Method 1014 External Visual per MIL-STD-883, Method 2009 PART NUMBER ORDERING INFORMATION: Add desired polarity suffix: "N" for Negative, "P" for Positive (Ex: ACSP-2531N) Add "Z" for zero biased schottky option (Ex: ACSP-2531NZ) Add desired case style suffix: "C3" (Ex: ACSP-2531NZC3) Add "R" suffix: Reverse Connector Configuration (Ex: ACSP-2531NZC3R) (SMA Female Input/SMA Male Output) ISO 9001:2008 and AS9100 certified For further information please contact: Aeroflex Control Components, DBA Cobham Signal & Control Solutions (CSCS) reserves the right to make changes to any products and services herein at any time without notice. Consult CSCS or an authorized sales representative to verify that the information in this data sheet is current before using this product. CSCS does not assume any responsibility or liability arising out of the application or use of any product or service described herein, except as expressly agreed to in writing by CSCS; nor does the purchase, lease, or use of a product or service from CSCS convey a license under any patent rights, copyrights, trademark rights, or any other of the intellectual rights of CSCS or of third parties. Cobham Signal & Control Solutions 40 Industrial Way East Eatontown , NJ 07724 [USA] Phone: (732) 460-0212 Fax: (732) 460-0214 [email protected] Copyright 2015, Cobham Signal & Control Solutions. All rights reserved. Revised Date: 12/22/2015 (732) 460-0212 www.cobham.com/CSCS 2


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It's the thing that interferes with a student's daily schedule and plans. It's the thing that teachers give to benefit their students with the knowledge they need. It's also the foundation for having performing better on exams. That thing is called homework.
It's the thing that interferes with a student's daily schedule and plans. It's the thing that teachers give to benefit their students with the knowledge they need. It's also the foundation for having performing better on exams. That thing is called homework.
Lately, homework has become more to the point where it is a hassle rather than a tool for school. Many of the brightest students agree that homework is vital to understand a course, but when there is so much, it can pose more harm than good.
As I'm writing this newspaper article now, I and other AP students are stressing over which homework assignment we should do. For example, should one study for an upcoming AP History test or start the classroom discussion on Cane Toads for Earth Science? Well, in this case neither because the stack of AP English homework is lying in a pile on the kitchen table.
This is one example where too much homework is not beneficial. It is when one teacher assigns so much homework that a student cannot work on other assignments that need to be done unless he or she undergoes sleep deprivation. Even the students who are known as the organized overachievers would tell you that they are known for always doing their homework, but that would mean having to sacrifice time in another class.
This idea is best exemplified when you find students reading "The Great Gatsby" in a history class. Most of the time, it's not that a student chooses not to do an assignment; the problem is the student genuinely doesn't have enough time to do the massive workload.
According to the American Psychological Association, researchers have said that the average high school student can only withstand 10 minutes multiplied by their grade of homework. So an 11th grader should only be given 110 minutes of homework a night.
Unfortunately, this isn't always the case. When a student exceeds the amount of recommended minutes doing homework, he or she begins to get less sleep and do more poorly in classes they have neglected in order to accommodate for another class. Honestly, I have nothing against homework, but when it becomes to the point where I can even have 15 minutes to study for AP U.S. History, that's when it has crossed the line. This is also including time just to eat and having to sacrifice watching television for months.
It has been proven that AP students in China, Japan and Canada have higher test scores than the U.S. while at the same time having less homework. Thus, precedents must be set to determine the difference between a lot of homework and a little because "too much of something is not always a good thing."


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One of my more recent (Nov. 22, 2011) postings on DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) highlighted their entrepreneurial focus and the person encouraging that focus, agency director Regina Dugan. Given that she's held the position for roughly 2.5 years, I was surprised to see that she has left to joint Google. From the Mar.13, 2012 news item on physorg.com,
Google on Monday [March 12, 2012] confirmed that Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency chief Regina Dugan is taking a yet-to-be-revealed role at the Internet powerhouse.
Dugan's Wikipedia entry has already been updated,
Regina E. Dugan was the 19th Director of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). She was appointed to that position on July 20, 2009. In March 2012, she left her position to take an executive role at Google. She was the first female director of DARPA.
Much of her working career (1996-2012) seems to have been spent at DARPA. I don't think I'm going to draw too many conclusions from this move but I am intrigued especially in light of an essay about a departing Google employee, James Whitaker. From Whitaker's March 13, 2012 posting on his JW on Tech blog,
The Google I was passionate about was a technology company that empowered its employees to innovate. The Google I left was an advertising company with a single corporate-mandated focus.
Technically I suppose Google has always been an advertising company, but for the better part of the last three years, it didn't feel like one. Google was an ad company only in the sense that a good TV show is an ad company: having great content attracts advertisers.
He lays out the situation here,
It turns out that there was one place where the Google innovation machine faltered and that one place mattered a lot: competing with Facebook. Informal efforts produced a couple of antisocial dogs in Wave and Buzz. Orkut never caught on outside Brazil. Like the proverbial hare confident enough in its lead to risk a brief nap, Google awoke from its social dreaming to find its front runner status in ads threatened.
Google could still put ads in front of more people than Facebook, but Facebook knows so much more about those people. Advertisers and publishers cherish this kind of personal information, so much so that they are willing to put the Facebook brand before their own. Exhibit A: www.facebook.com/nike, a company with the power and clout of Nike putting their own brand after Facebook's? No company has ever done that for Google and Google took it personally.
Larry Page himself assumed command to right this wrong. Social became state-owned, a corporate mandate called Google+. It was an ominous name invoking the feeling that Google alone wasn't enough. Search had to be social. Android had to be social. You Tube, once joyous in their independence, had to be … well, you get the point. [emphasis mine] Even worse was that innovation had to be social. Ideas that failed to put Google+ at the center of the universe were a distraction.
That point about YouTube really strikes home as I've become quite dismayed with the advertising on the videos. The consequence is that I'm starting to search for clips on Vimeo first as it doesn't have intrusive advertising.
Getting back to Whitaker, he notes this about Google and advertising,
The old Google made a fortune on ads because they had good content. It was like TV used to be: make the best show and you get the most ad revenue from commercials. The new Google seems more focused on the commercials themselves.
It's interesting to contrast Whitaker's take on the situation, which suggests that the company has lost its entrepreneurial spirit as it focuses on advertising, with the company's latest hire, Regina Dugan who seems to have introduced entrepreneurship into DARPA's activities.
As for the military connection (DARPA is US Dept. of Defense agency), I remain mindful that the military and the intelligence communities have an interest in gathering data but would need something more substantive than a hiring decision to draw any conclusions.
For anyone who's interested in these types of queries, I would suggest reading a 2007 posting, Facebook, the CIA, and You on the Brainsturbator blog, for a careful unpacking of the connections (extremely tenuous) between Facebook and the CIA (US Central Intelligence Agency). The blog owner and essayist, Jordan Boland, doesn't dismiss the surveillance concern; he's simply pointing out that it's difficult to make an unequivocal claim while displaying a number of intriguing connections between agencies and organizations.