It's Friday afternoon. Only on a Friday afternoon would I be able to tolerate Hall & Oates.
"You're outta touch, I'm outta time..."
Some things probably deserve to be left in the '80s.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Internet FTW
As an addendum to last night, the Internet also won big. Largest period of news traffic ever. See the pic below:
Source: http://www.akamai.com/html/technology/nui/news/index.html
Source: http://www.akamai.com/html/technology/nui/news/index.html
Wow
Wow.
Whatever your politics are, you have to admit that last night, something pretty amazing happened. In the country which once enslaved blacks, counted them as 3/5 of a person, and not until 43 years ago were they fully guaranteed the right to vote, we have elected by a majority vote an African-American President.
It shouldn't be an issue. We shouldn't be marveling at our progress. But we have to, if only for a little while.
Whatever your politics are, you have to admit that last night, something pretty amazing happened. In the country which once enslaved blacks, counted them as 3/5 of a person, and not until 43 years ago were they fully guaranteed the right to vote, we have elected by a majority vote an African-American President.
It shouldn't be an issue. We shouldn't be marveling at our progress. But we have to, if only for a little while.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Improving the Electoral Process (Part 1)
As Americans -- in expected record-numbers -- flock to the polls today, I introduce the first installment of my one-part series on how to improve the American electoral process.
A few precursors: First, the voting process should be easy. It should not be a burden to actually vote. Second, voting should be accessible. It shouldn't matter where you live, it should be just as easy for you or for someone across town to vote. Third, you shouldn't feel hassled. Either because of the limited time before or after work, or because of fears of voter intimidation.
With that, I offer some simple suggestions that we could apply on a national scale, not just state-by-state:
* Mail-in voting: other states do this and they have record turnouts. And it solves all of the above three precursors.
* More polling places: we simply need to increase the bandwidth. Long lines are a great sign of voter enthusiasm, but it doesn't have to be that way.
* Change the date of the election: Many other civilized nations operate their elections over the span of a Saturday and Sunday. Or make it Tuesday/Wednesday for Americans. More time to vote encourages higher turnout.
* Make Election Day a national holiday: Perhaps the simplest solution of all is to make it a holiday. People will have much less to worry about and the reasons for not voting are almost eliminated.
If voting is so important that people fight wars to protect it, the least we can do is make sure everyone has an easy, fair, and simple means to vote.
A few precursors: First, the voting process should be easy. It should not be a burden to actually vote. Second, voting should be accessible. It shouldn't matter where you live, it should be just as easy for you or for someone across town to vote. Third, you shouldn't feel hassled. Either because of the limited time before or after work, or because of fears of voter intimidation.
With that, I offer some simple suggestions that we could apply on a national scale, not just state-by-state:
* Mail-in voting: other states do this and they have record turnouts. And it solves all of the above three precursors.
* More polling places: we simply need to increase the bandwidth. Long lines are a great sign of voter enthusiasm, but it doesn't have to be that way.
* Change the date of the election: Many other civilized nations operate their elections over the span of a Saturday and Sunday. Or make it Tuesday/Wednesday for Americans. More time to vote encourages higher turnout.
* Make Election Day a national holiday: Perhaps the simplest solution of all is to make it a holiday. People will have much less to worry about and the reasons for not voting are almost eliminated.
If voting is so important that people fight wars to protect it, the least we can do is make sure everyone has an easy, fair, and simple means to vote.
Vote
Today, exercise your right to vote.
Why? Because if you don't, you're letting others speak for you.
Why? Because if you don't, you're letting others speak for you.
Monday, November 3, 2008
With Apologies to Albert
I was reading some blogs, saw the picture on the right, and it hit me. 2 minutes in a photo editor and there you go.
I'd be surprised if the association hadn't already been made before.
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