Inside the DSBPI

Somali pirates seize ninth vessel in 12 days - Times Online

2008-11-21T14:26:00.000-05:00

Somali pirates seize ninth vessel in 12 days - Times Online Decline in global powers, rise of renegades. Will be repeated on a micro level as well.

Force the Spring

2008-10-26T01:55:00.000-04:00

The more things "change" the more they stay the same. Worth reading Clinton's first Inaugural Address as a preview of Obama's speech.

Dog and Pony

2008-08-25T22:22:00.000-04:00

Andersen Cooper, covering the DNC, said something. In essence, he said: the convention is supposed to be a dog and pony show, but for some reason they are passing these resolutions and signing stuff. Where are the dogs and ponies?

Tactics Vs. Strategy

2008-08-12T11:29:00.000-04:00

The HRC campaign memos do not point to a failure in strategy as much as a catastrophe of execution. The defining battle with Obama, we don't think, was "change" versus "experience", but strategy versus tactics. HRC's strategy was just fine, but the campaign's tactical team was broken.

It is instructive that the critique on Obama was/is "all sizzle and no steak", but in the meat and potatoes of campaign execution he took the cake. (Is it lunch time here at the DSBPI?)

Saudi Capacity

2008-06-29T09:12:00.001-04:00

We will only learn how much excess Saudi oil supply exists if Israel attacks Iran and the house of Saud is called on to flood the oil market to keep prices from spiraling upwards. The Saudi's will heed this call, confirming their tacit approval of the military action and showing the world what peak oil might really look like.

Hillary's Rove Strategy

2008-05-06T10:33:00.000-04:00

Hillary's latest attack on economists is redolent of the Bush "gut/mind" dichotomy as expertly skewered by Colbert:

"Guys like us, we're not some brainiacs on the nerd patrol. We're not members of the factinista. We go straight from the gut. Right, sir? "

-and-

"I'm sorry, I've never been a fan of books. I don't trust them. They're all fact, no heart. I mean, they're elitist, telling us what is or isn't true or what did or didn't happen. Who's Britannica to tell me the Panama Canal was built in 1914? If I want to say it was built in 1941, that's my right as an American! I'm with the President. Let history decide what did or did not happen. "

Clinton Facing Narrower Path to Nomination - New York Times

2008-03-20T13:40:00.000-04:00

Clinton Facing Narrower Path to Nomination - New York Times: "“The superdelegates are not going to really decide until June,” Mr. Penn said. “He’s just going through a vetting and testing process that didn’t happen a year ago and is now happening. The whole vetting and testing process will make a big difference.”"

How many times did Penn poll test the phrase "vetting and testing?"

Big Brother and "Look at Me"

2008-02-14T11:21:00.000-05:00

The big fear about the future (from back when) was that we would suffer under a "big brother" government. No doubt, new technology has enabled this reality.

But either because of our already assumed lack of privacy or as an ironic "tweak" of the establishment's power of surveillance, we have become more willing than ever to reveal what was once private. The "Look at Me" generation has embraced public sharing of private communication on Facebook message boards, in broadcasting their lives in real time on http://www.qik.com/, telling the world what they are doing "right now" on Twitter, where they are on RadiusIM or what they look like on Flickr.

The Big Brother Society, notably, is one enabled not by an oppressive government, but by an exhibitionist populace.

HIllary's Gore Moment

2008-01-09T10:38:00.000-05:00

At the 2000 DNC convention Gore said:
"And I stand here tonight as my own man. And I want you to know me for who I truly am."

And last night in New Hampshire, Hillary said:
"Over the last week, I listened to you and, in the process, I found my own voice."

...Two politicians trying to escape the shadow of Bill.

Cry

2008-01-09T10:37:00.000-05:00

The Hillary Cry is the opposite of the Dean Scream. The scream made Dean look insane, the cry made Hillary look normal.

Carville Part Deux

2008-01-06T14:23:00.000-05:00

The sign on the wall of the Bill Clinton campaign "war room" in Little Rock had three short messages on it attributed to political strategist James Carville:

Change vs. more of the same.
The economy, stupid.
Don't forget health care.

Notable that Hillary, this time around, has lost on point one to both Obama and Edwards. Also notable is that, perhaps in an effort to revert to the above magic formula, Hillary is the first candidate to utilize the "R" word - recession - in last night's debate and across her NH stump speeches.

"Consistency"

2008-01-06T12:11:00.000-05:00

Why is consistency made to be the highest value in a future president?

Quoteth:
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself."
-Walt Whitman

Death of The Two Party Duopoly

2007-12-15T19:05:00.000-05:00

Obama and Huckabee leading in the polls is manifest proof that the the end of the two-party duopoly is nigh. If this is what the current system produces then we will see a third way reveal itself.

Sources: B-52 Mistakenly Carried Nukes - washingtonpost.com

2007-09-05T12:10:00.000-04:00

Sources: B-52 Mistakenly Carried Nukes - washingtonpost.com

This was not a mistake. This was a message to Iran

The 10th Derivative Trade

2007-06-12T12:17:00.000-04:00

So, Dean Foods today lowered numbers because the raw price of milk is up 66% this year or so. Why? Because the dairy herd is low. Why? Because farmers are sending more cows to slaughter than for milk. Why? Because the price of corn is too high and it is too expensive to feed live cows. Why? Because more corn is being used for ethanol and the price of corn has skyrocketed. So, who is a huge consumer of milk? Starbucks.

So if you would have read the Green Issue of Vanity Fair last year and shorted Starbucks you would have been smart. All that’s left is the 10th derivative trade.

The Noise of Entertainmentization

2007-05-06T17:14:00.000-04:00

The generation who grew up with MTV is seeing the increased entertainmentization of news and information. The recent presidential debates, with 30-second or 60-second answer periods, set against a blazing backdrop of stylized American flags, is made to feel more like Price is Right than a serious discussion of leadership. Cable channels like CNBC cover what should be boring financial statistics with the heart pounding excitement of March Madness. It’s as if the Tivo and YouTube phenomenon – whereby we can watch what we want when we want – has caused purveyors of content to channel vaudeville or P.T. Barnum in seeking a scintilla of our attention. Instead of capturing our interest, though, this tragic quest for our love makes filtering the worthwhile from the “noise” too tiresome a task, causing us to just consider it all “noise.” We tune out – as they used say when there were such things as tuners – and visit a candidate’s website to watch a video of his recent speech, or go to askaninja.com for some laughs. Back to the primary source.

Who let the NYT write this caption?

2006-12-26T02:12:00.000-05:00

The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia: "2006: The Year in Pictures:
Whether it was the deteriorating situation in Iraq, or the bubbling cauldron in the Middle East, it was a year of big changes. "

This sounds like a high school yearbook.

Meraki Networks

2006-12-01T11:05:00.000-05:00

Check out Meraki Networks , basically enables anyone to become a wifi service provider. Revolutionary.

Do You Want America to Win?

2006-10-31T15:59:00.000-05:00

DSBPI notes the new conservative talk show line on Iraq: "Do you want America to win?" The question is asked to opponents of the administration. The question, obviously, creates a false choice and also assumes as fact that America has not already lost.

Slowtrack.com

2006-10-31T11:29:00.000-05:00

Slowtrack is a great resource for you model train folks out there! (Uh, and it is owned by the dsbpi).

Gore Can Raise $

2006-10-25T14:51:00.000-04:00

A sentence at the very end of a Seattle Times article caught our eye: "The fundraiser at the Washington Athletic Club raised nearly $600,000, setting a record for a Seattle event by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee."

Gore was the main draw. He can raise money. This is a data point to note.

Opponent Is Put on the Spot Over Remarks About Clinton - New York Times

2006-10-24T10:45:00.000-04:00

The comments made by Hillary opponent John Spencer about plastic surgery and lesbianism were not off the cuff mistakes. These are 2008 shots across the bow. The early framing of Hillary by the right as a narcissistic lesbian. Prepare. NYT: Opponent Is Put on the Spot Over Remarks About Clinton - New York Times

Luggage

2006-08-10T11:51:00.000-04:00

Eventually all carry-on and checked luggage will be banned from commercial airlines. Items will need to be shipped seperately or not at all.

Must Watch Video

2006-06-28T19:40:00.000-04:00

An 18 minute speech on creativity in education:

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Jag Vs. Tauras

2006-06-09T15:28:00.000-04:00

This sad photo is from today's NYT.