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Author: Shawn

culture, miscellany, writing Posted onSeptember 19, 2008September 10, 2021

RIP DFW

It’s taken me a few days to write this post, partly because I’ve been busy (remarkable in itself, since I’m officially unemployed right now), and […] Read More

culture, miscellany Posted onSeptember 11, 2008September 10, 2021

The Republican Ticket

I’ve been off the grid for a couple weeks, backpacking with my brothers. We embarked a day or two after McCain announced his surprising (and […] Read More

politics Posted onAugust 3, 2008September 10, 2021

Why the Democrats will lose in ’08 – Part 2

In a word: compromise. Now, compromise is often a good thing. I’m all for bi-partisanship. I want a candidate and a president who’s truly willing […] Read More

miscellany Posted onJune 24, 2008September 10, 2021

Sean Hannity’s website

Don’t ask me why, but I was looking at Sean Hannity’s website today. OK, I was looking for a video clip of his recent interview […] Read More

miscellany Posted onJune 13, 2008September 10, 2021

David Byrne takes on the censor bar

politics Posted onJune 2, 2008September 10, 2021

Kristol is right

It’s not often I agree with Bill Kristol (like… never), but I can’t argue with his op-ed piece in today’s New York Times. Obama gave […] Read More

business, miscellany Posted onMay 10, 2008September 10, 2021

Here’s to the high price of gas…

…and not just because my recent investment in oil futures depends on the price continuing to rise. The sudden upsurge in the price of gas […] Read More

politics Posted onMay 5, 2008September 10, 2021

The Way the World Works

culture, miscellany Posted onMay 1, 2008September 10, 2021

5 Things I Love About The Library

My small town library was one of my absolute favorite places when I was a kid. I regularly borrowed to the full limit of what […] Read More

politics Posted onApril 27, 2008September 10, 2021

Hillama for President

“Hillary can’t win, and Obama can’t beat her.” This seems to be the bottom line in the endless slog toward choosing the Democrat who will […] Read More

culture, entertainment, miscellany Posted onApril 13, 2008September 10, 2021

Britney Bashing Bottoms Out

I can’t believe I’m writing about Britney Spears, but bear with me. One would hope that Britney bottomed out somewhere around the head-shaving or the […] Read More

politics Posted onApril 9, 2008September 10, 2021

Letter to the Editor, 1975

(to the editors at the New York Times) Dear Sir: An editorial in the Times, April 5, observes that “a decade of fierce polemics has […] Read More

politics Posted onApril 3, 2008September 10, 2021

Hillary, I hardly knew ye

I want to like, Hillary Clinton. I really do. She’s an accomplished and well-regarded senator, and she’s the only First Lady in my lifetime who […] Read More

politics Posted onMarch 21, 2008September 10, 2021

Black, White, Gray and J

I’ve just been reading some Jeff Jarvis’ recent posts about Senator Obama (like this one), and it’s a clear reminder that even a lot of […] Read More

politics Posted onMarch 18, 2008September 10, 2021

Dear CNN: The Medium is No Longer the Message

I didn’t see Obama’s landmark speech today, but I read the transcript. I admit I was moved by it, and although there was certainly a […] Read More

politics Posted onFebruary 16, 2008September 10, 2021

John Cleese’s Letter to America (Notice of Revocation of Independence)

“Dear Citizens of America, In view of your failure to elect a competent President and thus to govern yourselves, we hereby give notice of the […] Read More

business, culture, technology Posted onFebruary 13, 2008September 10, 2021

Dubai to blow another wad

The fantasy known as Dubai, home of the world’s only 7-star hotel, is planning to burn another billion or so on what will be the […] Read More

business, culture, miscellany Posted onJanuary 17, 2008September 10, 2021

The war of dependence

President Bush is touring the Middle East right now, and he has made sure to bluster about Iran’s fictional nuclear ambitions at every stop, but […] Read More

business, entertainment Posted onJanuary 14, 2008September 10, 2021

Thoughts on the Hollywood Writers’ Strike

Some kind of silly excuse for a Golden Globe Awards ceremony took place last night, with no speeches, performances or jokes – just winners announced […] Read More

culture, data visualization Posted onJanuary 4, 2008September 10, 2021

Pronouns used by the candidates in their post-caucus speeches

File this under “random.” I’m not sure what to make of this, but as I was listening to the speeches of the various candidates after […] Read More

politics Posted onNovember 7, 2007September 10, 2021

Terrorism alert level: Spicy, with some yogurt sauce

A couple of years ago, I worked on a project that had me flying to LA on a weekly basis. I flew Southwest Airlines, and […] Read More

culture, people Posted onNovember 7, 2007September 10, 2021

Quote of the day

It really bugs me… They say, ‘Oh, David Beckham – he’s not very clever.’ Yeah. They don’t say, ‘Stephen Hawking – shit at football.’ – […] Read More

politics Posted onNovember 6, 2007September 10, 2021

An open letter to the class of 1987

As I mentioned recently, I attended my 20-year high school reunion last month, and I enjoyed myself. I haven’t been very good about keeping in […] Read More

politics Posted onOctober 23, 2007September 10, 2021

Why the Democrats will lose in ’08 – Part 1

The Republican party is a shambles, and a Democrat will win the presidency in 2008. So say the pundits. In fact, they don’t even say […] Read More

culture, politics Posted onSeptember 21, 2007September 10, 2021

Era of backwards

Doesn’t it seem a bit strange that the places in this country most likely to be attacked by terrorists – New York, San Francisco, Los […] Read More

politics Posted onMay 31, 2007September 10, 2021

Design Observer joins the de facto Gore campaign

William Drenttel posted his support for a Gore ticket at Design Observer today. I like Al Gore. I think he’d make a great president. I […] Read More

miscellany Posted onOctober 5, 2006September 10, 2021

my california taxes at work

Today, I took my car to the nearest Shell station to get it smog checked – a bi-yearly(?) ritual for drivers in California. The friendly […] Read More

culture, miscellany Posted onFebruary 14, 2006September 10, 2021

fuck

Did that get your attention? That’s the name of the movie I saw last night, as part of the San Francisco Independent Film Festival. It’s […] Read More

religion Posted onMay 31, 2005September 9, 2021

the skeptic’s annotated bible

Today I discovered the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible, a website that strives to address the following catch-22: …faith tells [believers] they should read the Bible, but […] Read More

culture Posted onMay 24, 2005September 9, 2021

black white gray

On Anca’s blog tonight, I came across this H.L. Mencken quote… Moral certainty is always a sign of cultural inferiority. The more uncivilized the man, […] Read More

culture, miscellany Posted onNovember 20, 2004September 9, 2021

life of pi and runaway horses

“There are always those who take it upon themselves to defend God, as if Ultimate Reality, as if the sustaining frame of existence, were something […] Read More

culture, miscellany Posted onOctober 30, 2004September 9, 2021

scariest halloween costumes for 2004

Just in time for Halloween, the scariest costumes for 2004. So wrong it hurts. Thanks Rebecca! Ralph Nader Put the fear of God in John […] Read More

culture, data visualization, design, mobile Posted onOctober 12, 2004September 9, 2021

red vs. blue – wherever you are

A group calling themselves gravity monkey has gone mobile with FundRace‘s geo-coded FEC data. They’ve created a Java app called red | blue (pronounced “red […] Read More

culture, politics Posted onOctober 8, 2004September 9, 2021

one way to profit from the war in Iraq…

Someone named Taylor Donahue, vice president of production at Timely Studios, wrote this memo to his boss. It’s pretty funny, but not nearly as funny […] Read More

activism, politics Posted onSeptember 29, 2004September 9, 2021

conscious investing

Remember when you were a kid and you’d overhear grownups talking about insurance and taxes, IRAs, mortgages and interest rates? Remember thinking to yourself, do […] Read More

culture Posted onSeptember 22, 2004September 9, 2021

recent reads

I’ve been re-reading bits of Mishima’s Sea of Fertility tetralogy: book 1 – Spring Snow book 2 – Runaway Horses book 3 – The Temple […] Read More

politics Posted onSeptember 14, 2004September 9, 2021

operation “sharks with laser beams”…

I’m intrigued by the names the U.S. attaches to its military operations (most recently “Enduring Freedom” nee “Infinite Justice”). I just discovered several good lists […] Read More

Uncategorized Posted onSeptember 14, 2004September 9, 2021

burned out on cool

A friend (who shall remain nameless) has lately become too cool to be tolerated… Dave Eggers wrote a pretty eloquent rant on the notion of […] Read More

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