It's a regrettable fact that people who gravitate toward the morose are associated with a wretched underclass of people. Call them "downers", "goths", "emo kids", or what have you, these people spend an above average time thinking of death and loss. And what of it? Life is nearly entirely entwined with our relationship to loss. …
Category Archive: General
Apr 25 2011
New PPP poll on Civil War outcome is a doozy
In a poll released today, PPP revealed what southerners from former confederate states (Mississippi, North Carolina, and Georgia) think about the outcome of the Civil War. This is ugly. GA NC MS Glad North won 53% 48% 34% Wish South had won 23% 21% 27% Not sure 24% 31% 39% Looking at the crosstabs and …
Mar 11 2011
Clear gender bias in American Idol voting
If it seems like American Idol always turns into a sausage fest, it's probably because it really does. If you're a female singer, you have only slightly more than a 30% chance of reaching the top 2 under the current rules. I compiled data from Wikipedia on the gender makeup of remaining finalists on all …
Feb 21 2011
Notes on "Diary of a Very Bad Year"
I've just finished Diary of a Very Bad Year: Confessions of an Anonymous Hedge Fund Manager, which I highly recommend. It's a detailed and mostly accessible discussion of the financial crisis, the reasons it happened, and the fallout, as told by an anonymous hedge fund manager. Along the way, you pick up lots of information …
Nov 03 2010
Post election thoughts
There are many ways to view this election. Most of them aren't that bad.