Weakonomi¢s » weakend

Black Comedy

The Weakonomist — Sat, 19 May 2012 15:01:53 +0000

The Weakonomist is about as white as drywall. But I’ve said many times before that I was raised in a household and time where race really didn’t make much of a difference. No more than hair color or gender. It’s all indifference. There were people I didn’t like that happened to be of other races, but it was because of their individual actions. I can’t fathom having any true feelings about a population based on generalizations.

But not everyone was fortunate to grow up in such a world. Many people who didn’t are still very much around today. So it’s easy for me to forget about the struggles that many people have been through. Most notably, what African Americans went through in the decades (and centuries) before I was born.

I don’t care much for artistic expression of ideas. Art can depict all kinds of things but as someone that thinks like an economist I tend to prefer the concrete. The literal. That’s why I love stand-up comedy. It can approach issues of all kinds in a literal sense while still being artistic and entertaining.

This week I was introduced to a documentary about black comedy as told by the comedians themselves. In it they point out that many comedians address the issues of their time through comedy. One of my personal favorite comedians is Chris Rock. Without knowing the struggles of black people personally I can only assume Chris Rock’s bit on “Niggas Vs. Black People” (that is the official title, not my words) is somewhat representative of what the documentary is talking about. You can watch him here but I didn’t imbed the video because the jokes are not suitable for children (like children are reading this) nor entirely relevant to the point of this post.

I haven’t gotten a chance to watch the documentary myself but hope to soon. You can read a review of it here and watch the trailer below.

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The Queerest Thing Of All

The Weakonomist — Sat, 12 May 2012 14:49:09 +0000

There was a lot of gay stuff in the news this week. I’m glad the debate is happening, and we all know where we’ll be in 10-15 years. But we aren’t there yet. Before we get there more feelings will get hurt. I wish we didn’t have to do that but that will be the case. The primary fight is over religion.

Most folks that are anti-gay marriage or whatever are so on religious grounds. Christians are the best example but they aren’t alone. And that doesn’t mean all Christians are anti-gay. It means that some are. The Bible is certainly open to interpretation and they have interpreted it in that way. So why do they force their beliefs on others?

They don’t see it as forcing their beliefs on others. Or if they do, that is inconsequential. Their belief system puts God in front of all others. And God’s law is primary over constitutional law. Their interpretation of God’s law also means that it’s not enough to simply live that way, but to help other people live that way too. If they don’t do both, then they could be in trouble in God’s eyes.

Now I haven’t done this view perfectly, as it’s not my own. But I respect everyone’s right to choose. And if a majority chooses one way that is fine. There will always be a majority that suppresses a minority. One must have respect for the process though or our society will truly become fragile. Eventually, the minority will become the majority. The gay issue is something that is clearly changing in the United States. It’s clear the majority is only the majority in certain regions. I’m sure many people would prefer it happen now, myself included. But it takes time.

Before we leave I want to discuss three more things. First, the separation of church and state. People think this means the church shouldn’t be able to influence law. That is not the case. The law was written to keep the state out of church.

Second, what is really needed is an open debate from two sides of the aisle. Not some atheist arguing with a priest, but two religious scholars that have interpreted the Bible differently. We think the Bible is full of contradictions, but we see what we want to see. And cherry-picking scripture out of context does allow for someone to make that point. A well-informed discussion has not occurred on any large scale and it’s about time that two experts on the Bible come together and actually talk about what the Bible is really saying about homosexuality and any other contradictions or hypocrisy that might exist. This isn’t about changing minds, but people at least understanding both sides.

Consider this my formal request for Intelligence Squared to have such a debate.

Finally, Obama didn’t do anything profound this week with his statements on support of gay marriage or whatever he said. He always felt this way. To pretend otherwise just to win votes, as he did in 2008, is more despicable than someone who is proudly anti-gay. Misinformed or misled as they may be, at least they have a belief and stick to it.

Weakend: Rice Professor Is My Hero

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Weakend: Adam Yauch (MCA)

The Weakonomist — Sat, 05 May 2012 12:49:55 +0000

The Weakonomist likes music but hardly considers himself an aficionado. There aren’t many musical types or styles I don’t like. But there are a few groups or performers that I’m a huge fan of. OAR, Jack Johnson, Outkast, and The Lonely Island are just a few. Beastie Boys are among that list as well and this week the 3 member group lost one of its members: Adam Yauch aka MCA.

Most people who are fans of the Beastie Boys like them for their rebellious streak that many youths go through. They were the perfect band for a group of teenage boys to blast while driving home from the last day of school. Party anthems and whatnot. My appreciate for them also goes towards the ability of three Jewish boys from New York to get into the rap game. Eminem was not the first. These guys came way before him.

Below are my favorite five tracks from the Beastie Boys. Put your bests in the comments. There are no wrong answers.

Intergalactic

Sabatoge

(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party)

So What Cha Want

Sure Shot

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Dear “Photographers”

The Weakonomist — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 15:11:36 +0000

We have an epidemic in this country and it’s genesis is the marginally affordable professional camera. From $500 to $2500 and more, every day secretaries and computer programmers with a Facebook account now feel that it is important to post hundreds of photos of their children because the picture looks kind of good.

I would blame the camera, but I don’t think that’s really full situation. Lots of different professional equipment has found its way into the hands of consumers. Just about anyone can start up a record company in their basement but few actually do. That’s because you still have to have some talent to make an album people will listen to.

Ahhh, people have to choose to listen to it. Now we’re getting somewhere.

I see the problem as three-fold. Camera technology has improved dramatically in the last decade. Combine that with software that more or less idiot-proofs your pictures and you have a motive.

Motive begets action. But how do you share your previously undiscovered “talents”? The only way to really force people to look at your pictures is through Facebook. Now we have a medium. All we need now are 10 of your friends who will like anything you take a picture of anyway.

Done!

Now we have a bunch a people out there starting “side businesses” where they take someone decent pictures for people who haven’t bought a camera for themselves yet.

In the business world we see this as a maturing industry running into a growing one. There is a growing demand for professional photos. Even this author is guilty of doing a photo shoot to celebrate his engagement. That’s the growing industry which usually sees lots of new entrants come in and compete with established pros. The maturing industry is the camera itself. Price is now more important than quality and only those with the most disposable income require all the features on a camera they don’t know how to use.

This can’t be stopped. It will take time for most “photographers” to figure out they’re actually not that good, but they will always think they were.

All I ask is that you please stop posting everything the Facebook. The first picture of your kid was enough.

Image: garryknight

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What The Dog Sees

The Weakonomist — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 14:09:12 +0000

One of the most unappreciated developments of the 21st century is the cheap video camera. Not only do we have them in cell phones and handheld devices, but niche products have also come on to the market. The GoPro came out a few years ago and as a product was targeted towards action sports folks as a tough and sometimes waterproof video camera for the masses. They are as cheap as $150.

What makes them so incredible is the price. Before, if you wanted to video yourself surfing you either had to buy or rent a camera that would cost ten grand. So now with such cheap cameras we get to see all kinds of cool stuff. Gizmodo has a collection of what they call the best GoPro videos to date. I don’t think they necessarily are the best, but you can search YouTube for lots of good ones. Two goods ones they did have are below, and they show a dog’s view of their world. The first includes swimming. The second includes a boxer so I couldn’t help myself.

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Micro Satellites

The Weakonomist — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 14:36:26 +0000

Sputnik weighed just under 200 lbs. The space shuttle orbiter alone weighs 240,000 lbs at liftoff. The space shuttle was very expensive and that’s part of the reason she was retired not too long ago. In the future manned flight will take a back seat to other types of exploration. It’s not over for man, but no one has the money any more to explore space the way we did before.

That’s where micro satellites come in. If you love space and astronomy, these is very exciting. In the not too distant future I can see being able to buy micro satellites for your kids and launching them in to space with a camera on them. We will always find a way to keep going into space.

via WSJ

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Dolphins Roll Deep

The Weakonomist — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 15:24:51 +0000

Dolphins are some of the most interesting creatures to humans. Next to our hominid cousins like chimps researchers have studied dolphins likely the most to learn more about humans. These animals are incredibly intelligent and if you’ve had the pleasure to see them in person they appear to thrive on attention and are a joy to observe.

Because they are studied so much we’ve learned a lot more about them than most other animals. And because they’re so cute whenever something interesting is learned it finds its way to the top of the news chain.

The latest observation of dolphins show they actually roll in gangs. Like many gangs, these groups get together to protect valuable assets. For many gangs that could be their drug distribution network. For dolphins, it’s the ladies.

When rival gang members run into each other, violnece does not always break out. Humans are capable of assessing a situation and deciding if aggression is the appropriate response. Many times it is not, and dolphins actually know this.

Like human gangs dolphins can switch sides and even team up. Dolphins so far are the only other animal other than humans capable of such judgment. Just so long as they don’t tat up or start wearing colors I think the dolphin on dolphin violence will be kept to a minimum.

Read: Bottlenose dolphins: ‘Gangs’ run society, scientists say (BBC)
Image: boegh

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Weakend: Bubble Soccer or Wall Trampoline?

The Weakonomist — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:09:43 +0000

I’m pretty sure I need to be doing both of these things this weekend.

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Weakend: Ten Things You Didn’t Know About St. Patrick’s Day & Ireland

The Weakonomist — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 15:26:53 +0000

It is a HUGE holiday in Ireland: It’s not like our Halloween. It’s a national holiday and cities like Dublin have week long festivals that I can only imagine are like Mardi Gras but with less boobs and jello shots, and more beer. It is not a legal holiday in the US except in Suffolk County, MA (that’s Boston).

Heritage: St Patrick’s Day wasn’t always a big holiday in Ireland. It blew out as a holiday in the US in the 20th century, as a celebration of Irish heritage. You can’t help but think Hallmark and the American retail industry played a part too.

Ancestry: About 1 in 9 Americans has Irish ancestry. Do you? 19 presidents claim such heritage and nine signers of the Declaration of Independence were Irish.

Lucky Clovers: Estimates vary, but about 1 in 10,000 clovers has 4 leaves.

Saintly?: St Patrick wasn’t Irish, was born to a family that owned slaves, and expressed no interest in Christianity.

Okay, Saintly: No interest until he was kidnapped and sent to Ireland. He turned to God, escaped back to Britain, became a priest, and went back to Ireland to convert the Irish; who were Celtic if memory serves this author.

Green: St. Patrick wore blue. Green comes from his use of the shamrock.

No snakes: St Patrick is credited with banishing snakes from Ireland. There are no snakes in Ireland, and there never were. Just spitballing here but snakes have a negative connotation in Christianity and it’s likely such lore developed to symbolically explain his impact on the Irish people.

All Saints Day: There are more Saints than you know of. St Patrick’s Day isn’t even the only saintly holiday in March. March 1st is St. David’s Day. It is a Welsh holiday and many Welsh people want it to be an official British bank holiday. It is an official national holiday in Wales.

Irish Accents: The official name of the type of English spoken in Ireland is Hiberno-English. “Irish” is a language. “Gaelic” refers to the Irish, Manx, and Scottish Gaelic languages. There are lots of dialects of English, including American English and English English which can further be broken down into regional dialects. Convergence of language is common, dialect conversion is less so.

Note: Weakonomics is wearing green today so don’t pinch it.

Image: velkr0

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Weakend: Kashi

The Weakonomist — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 16:45:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago I confessed to my addiction to cereal with you. It is not my only addiction.

Kashi and I first met in college when I was looking for a high protein cereal that was delicious and nutritious. The “Crunch” cereal from the Kashi line became my best friend. But it was so fibrous that after some time it was doing some interesting things to my intestines. So I scaled back and eventually found new cereals. My quest for high protein in cereal was also less important, as I’d found other sources.

For a long time Kashi only seemed to be a cereal brand, but then I saw some frozen blueberry waffles next to some Eggos. Not normally being a frozen waffle guy, I decided to give it a shot. They were quite tasty, but another addiction (sauces, in this case syrup) took a healthy food and turned it into a fattening one. I never looked back.

But then Kashi showed up in commercials, and they blitzed me with tons of new products. And now I have two new loves. Kashi chewy bars and Kashi cookies. Chocolate and I go hand in hand, but when I’m not careful we go mouth to gut. So when I want a chocolate fix these Kashi products do two things for me.

1) I have no self control. I could eat an entire package of Betty Crocker’s oatmeal chocolate chip cookies in one or two sittings. For one, they are awesome, for another, they’re cheap. Eating pricier foods helps control me. The Kashi foods are pricy (but do go on sale). Price does more to limit portion control for me than anything else ever will.

2) The chocolate is blended in with some of the healthiest ingredients available in prepackaged food. There is just enough there to satisfy a sweet tooth. Even though the cookies aren’t fantastic, the quality of ingredients make up for it. And anything with chocolate that gets softer when dunked in milk will satisfy a cookie craving.

Kashi continues to impress me with products that are perfectly matched to my kind of diet. This is not a paid endorsement, I am a legitimate fan. We live in a fast-paced, perpackaged world. And when I want something that’s convenient and won’t make me feel guilty for eating it, Kashi is a good place to go.

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