Archive for November, 2010

DOUBLE STANDARDS on children and publicity. “Is that right, tucking those kids away from the rest of the society? Why not be out and proud?”

VICTOR DAVIS HANSON: The Age Of Adolescence. “Unfortunately, our parents are dead. So who cleans up the messes?”

RADLEY BALKO ON FACEBOOK: “One nice thing about being a libertarian is the opportunity to try new things. One day I’m part of a fringe ideology no one will ever take seriously. The next day I’m part of a billionaire family’s secret plot to take over the country. It’s all very exciting.” Heh.

JAMES TARANTO: Stuff White People Like: The departure of the only black senator prompts a revealingly clueless commentary. “More interesting is what he leaves out: that the difficulty blacks have in getting elected to statewide office is an unintended consequence of the Voting Rights Act. In the interest of increasing minority representation in the House and state legislatures, the act mandates the drawing of ‘majority minority’ districts. On its own terms, this has worked very well. The size of the Congressional Black Caucus relative to the House is within a few percentage points of the black proportion of the population. Seats in state legislatures and the House frequently are stepping stones to statewide office. But because black politicians need not cultivate a transracial appeal to win office in the first place, they are at a disadvantage when they consider a statewide run.”

CHANGE: Tiny house movement thrives amid real estate bust. “To save money or simplify their lives, a small but growing number of Americans are buying or building homes that could fit inside many people’s living rooms, according to entrepreneurs in the small house industry. . . . Shafer, author of ‘The Small House Book,’ built the 89-square-foot house himself a decade ago and lived in it full-time until his son was born last year. Inside a space the size of an ice cream truck, he has a kitchen with gas stove and sink, bathroom with shower, two-seater porch, bedroom loft and a ‘great room’ where he can work and entertain — as long as he doesn’t invite more than a couple guests.”

RECOMMENDED GIFTS for women.

UPDATE: Reader Katia Zeissler writes: “Seriously? These might be good gifts for cooks (who might be female or not), but for all women? I, personally, do like to cook, but because I am cooking daily for my family it is less a past time than a chore. I would therefore prefer something not chore-related but rather pleasure-related as a gift.” You know, a lot of people say that. But the gifts for dads are always tools and lawnmowers . . . .

NEW CANCER THERAPIES target cancers’ fuel lines. “Cancer cells, because of their rapid growth, have a voracious appetite for glucose, the main nutrient used to generate energy. And tumors often use glucose differently from healthy cells, an observation first made by a German biochemist in the 1920s. . . . Now, efforts are turning from diagnosis to treating the disease by disrupting the special metabolism of cancer cells to deprive them of energy.”