As a follow up to this post, the one of the study’s researchers published this commentary today. Among his conclusions: Liberals place a high value on individual autonomy and decision-making. Individuals are expected to internalize the norms of their culture and do the right thing on a case-by-case basis after thinking about it. This strategy can be highly successful but can also be costly in the time required for information […]
I wonder sometimes if Hillary Clinton’s campaign actually thinks about what it’s doing before it does it. A beautiful new example of this was reported today — a new ad, ostensibly targeting Obama, which according to ABC News, goes like this: “It’s 3:00am and your children are asleep,” a voice over says in the ad entitled “Children”. “There’s a phone in the White House, and it’s ringing. Something is happening […]
A fascinating article in last week’s Economist reported on a study by researchers at Binghamton University. They gave volunteers beepers to two groups thought to represent “conservative” and “liberal” camps, and every two hours asked the volunteers what they were doing and how they felt about it. (Unfortunately, like many university studies, they relied on a group that may not be reflective of the whole population — namely, teenagers. But […]
Meanwhile in France, Le President de la Republique, Nicolas Sarkozy, continues his post-Carla Bruni meltdown. The latest … during a trip to an agricultural exposition in Paris, Mr. Sarkozy had a few, um, unkind words to say to a man whose hand he tried to shake who was, to put it mildly, obviously not a Sarkozy supporter (bad translation mine): Man: “Don’t touch me” Sarkozy: “Piss off” Man: “You make […]
I was able to watch the debate tonight live, and both candidates performed well, and both came across as informed and competent. But since competence is Ms. Clinton’s keystone, a confidence tie means the edge in this one goes to Obama on that score. Add to that a couple of ridiculous, almost sophomoric moments from Ms. Clinton — the first one her unbelievable plaint about supposedly always being asked the […]
This time it’s the usually left-wing press engaging in a conspiracy against poor Hillary: “The media does not like the Clintons for whatever reason,” Rendell, a Clinton supporter, said in an interview with The Fix. “Maybe some of it’s [the Clintons’] fault, but the media does not like the Clintons.” Rendell insisted that the “media has relished this fall with glee that I have never seen in any other candidate […]
Than did Andrew Sullivan of the Atlantic in this post today. With Hillary Clinton stressing her experience and her constant refrain of being “ready on day one,” he asks what we’ve learned about Ms. Clinton’s abilities during this campaign: Clinton is a terrible manager of people. Coming into a campaign she had been planning for, what, two decades, she was so not ready on Day One, or even Day 300. […]
Ten straight victories for Barack Obama, including a 58% to 41% shellacking in Wisconsin, have left me feeling, well, almost sorry for Hillary Clinton. Unlike Big Bloated Bill, who I always thought lucked into the 1992 Presidency with weak competition in the Democratic primary (quick, name two other candidates — extra credit for those of you who came up with our own current AG Jerry Brown; the others were equally […]
I wonder if France’s relatively new President, Nicolas Sarkozy, isn’t a little bit out of control. He married the model-singer Carla Bruni a very short time after his divorce from his wife Cecilia (click on the links to check out the uncomfortable resemblance). Ms. Bruni’s reputation isn’t exactly, ah, pure: She’s posed for numerous nude photos, and she dated Mick Jagger (forgivable) and Donald Trump (eeewwwww, gross). Still, she’s attractive, […]
According to a story on Physorg.com, researchers at the University of Copenhagen have concluded that all blue-eyed people on the planet are descended from a single ancestor who lived six to ten thousand years ago. The ancestor was the first to have a genetic mutation that reduces the amount of melanin in the iris of the eye: “Originally, we all had brown eyes”, said Professor Eiberg from the Department […]