While Americans choose their next president, let us consider a question more amenable to science: Which candidates supporters have a better sense of humor? In strict accordance with experimental protocol, we begin by asking you to rate, on a scale of 1 (not funny at all) to 9 (hilarious) the following three attempts at humor:A) Jake is about to chip onto the green at his local golf course when a long funeral procession passes by. He stops in midswing, doffs his cap, closes his eyes and bows in prayer. His playing companion is deeply impressed. Thats the most thoughtful and touching thing Ive ever seen, he says. Jake replies, Yeah, well, we were married 35 years.
B) I think there should be something in science called the reindeer effect. I dont know what it would be, but I think itd be good to hear someone say, Gentlemen, what we have here is a terrifying example of the reindeer effect.
C) If you saw two guys named Hambone and Flippy, which one would you think liked dolphins the most? Id say Flippy, wouldnt you? Youd be wrong, though. Its Hambone.
Those were some of the jokes rated by nearly 300 people in Boston in a recent study. (You can rate some of the others at TierneyLab, nytimes.com/tierneylab.) The researchers picked out a variety of jokes good, bad, conventional, absurdist to look for differences in reactions between self-described liberals and conservatives.
They expected conservatives to like traditional jokes, like the one about the golfing widower, that reinforce racial and gender stereotypes. And because liberals had previously been reported to be more flexible and open to new ideas, the researchers expected them to get a bigger laugh out of unconventional humor, like Jack Handeys Deep Thoughts about the reindeer effect and Hambone.
Indeed, the conservatives did rate the traditional golf and marriage jokes as significantly funnier than the liberals did. But they also gave higher ratings to the absurdist Deep Thoughts. In fact, they enjoyed all kinds of humor more.
I was surprised, said Dan Ariely, a psychologist at Duke University, who collaborated on the study with Elisabeth Malin, a student at Mount Holyoke College. Conservatives are supposed to be more rigid and less sophisticated, but they liked even the more complex humor. that reinforce racial and gender stereotypes It's actually funny that they expected Conservatives to conform to the stereotype.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
11/04/2008 19:59 ||
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(SomaliNet) Zimbabwean central bank said on Monday that Zimbabwe will soon introduce higher denomination banknotes, of up to one million Zimbabwean dollars, in a bid to ease the effects of hyperinflation.
That doesn't make a bit of sense ...
Zimbabwe trimmed 10 zeros off the currency on August 1, but it continues to lose value as inflation surges.
The Zim government put inflation at 230 million percent for July.
The Zimbabawe government put inflation at 230 million percent for July, the world's highest, although the Washington-based Cato Institute foundation estimates it now at 10,2 quadrillion percent.
Currently, the highest denomination banknote is Z$50,000, not enough to buy a loaf of bread, and the central bank plans to introduce Z$100,000, Z$500,000 and Z$1-million (about $8) banknotes in a bid to help consumers battling to make simple purchases.
"In the measures underway, the Reserve Bank plans to introduce a number of new, higher denominations; review the cash withdrawal limits, as well as commence aggressive campaigns for increased usage of alternative means of payment," the central bank said in a statement.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/04/2008 00:00 ||
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When inflation hits 10.2Quadrillion percent,
it's time to admit you have a problem.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) decided to submit final reports in 36 corruption cases, letting 56 graft suspects off the hook, as it failed to obtain sufficient evidence to convict them. Former forest and environment minister Tarikul Islam, former BNP lawmaker Shamsuzzoha Khan and ex-Jamaat lawmaker Gazi Nazrul Islam are among them.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/04/2008 00:00 ||
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Anti-US Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez predicted on Sunday the "black man" will win the US presidential race and offered to hold talks with him to improve ties between the superpower and one its biggest oil suppliers.
Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee who would be the first black US president if he wins Tuesday's election, said this year he would be open to dialogue with leaders like Chavez - a remark that was seized on by Republicans as naive. McCain, who trails Obama in polls, has labelled Chavez a dictator. Chavez, a socialist who has mocked President George W Bush has said there is an inevitable clash between US and Venezuelan interests, although he has at times offered to ease bilateral tensions.
"We are not asking him to be a revolutionary, to be a socialist - no," Chavez said at a political rally. We just want the black man who is about to be the US president to have enough stature for the times the world is living through. "I send an overture to the black man, from us here, who are of Indigenous, black, Caribbean, South American race," he said. "I am ready to sit down and talk ... I hope we can, and I hope we can enter a new stage," he said later at another rally. Most Latin Americans would prefer Obama to win the White House over Republican rival John McCain, according to polls. They have felt largely neglected by the Bush administration as the region swung to the left. Chavez, who expelled the US ambassador in September, urged Obama to end the Cuban embargo, withdraw troops from Iraq and stop what he called US threats against Iran and Venezuela.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/04/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
See TOPIX > THE SHOCKING OBAMUNIST VISION FOR AMERICA; + US ELECTION WILL CHANGE GLOBAL POLICIES.
#5
wondering, will obama adopt a red beret and camo pants with matching shirt?
probably not right away.....so
bobo's first contribution, present Bo with an international sanctioned checkered scarf, and by 2nd term, BO will be in full camo gear with clusters in place to lead the obama brigades.
John McCain's presidential campaign filed a federal suit Monday against Virginia seeking to extend by 10 days the deadline for the state's acceptance of military members' federal absentee ballots.
The McCain suit seeks an injunction to extend the date by which federal write-in absentee ballots must be received to be counted. The current deadline is today, but the suit seeks to have the date changed to Nov. 14. "Because many counties in Virginia failed to mail absentee ballots in time to our men and women in uniform stationed overseas, service members are being disenfranchised because they are unable to return their ballots before the November 4 deadline," campaign spokeswoman Gail Gitcho said in a written statement about the suit, which is scheduled to be heard in Williams' courtroom at 1:30 p.m. today.
Chesapeake, Suffolk and Virginia Beach are among the localities cited in the lawsuit as those that mailed absentee ballots overseas in late September. The suit argues that service members didn't have enough time to cast their votes and return them stateside. Estimates range between federal agencies, but systemic impediments to overseas voting are seen as a hindrance that keeps service members stationed abroad from voting with the same success rate as the domestic population.
This is the second recent flap over federal absentee ballots; an earlier dispute was resolved last week when state election officials allowed about 100 ballots to be counted that otherwise would have been disqualified under state law.
Responding to the suit, Obama campaign spokesman Kevin Griffis said the Democratic presidential candidate "is strongly committed to protecting the rights of veterans and active-duty military. That is why our campaign sent a letter to every secretary of state earlier this fall urging them to do everything they can to ensure that the vote of active military and veterans are counted."
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/04/2008 09:08 ||
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Troll droppings, Aisle 3.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
11/04/2008 11:55 Comments ||
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#2
#2 Troll droppings, Aisle 3.
Recommend you bring an End Loader and 3 dump trucks.
#7
See what I mean about public education and the NEA.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
11/04/2008 12:22 Comments ||
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#8
A fine rant, Justice! And most persuasive. If I had not just come from voting for McCain, I would immediately run out the door to do so.
As for the hatred of Islam thing, we don't hate Islam. It is just that, like Jefferson, we have sworn eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.
#14
"stoking the flames of racist bigotry lying dormant in the hearts of millions of W.A.S.P.s, rednecks and bible thumpers"
Only a bigot would casually use terms like "W.A.S.P.s, rednecks and bible thumpers".
"Islam is indeed a religion that teaches peace, justice and tolerance."
I suppose tolerance would explain your use of terms like "W.A.S.P.s, rednecks and bible thumpers".
"they try to refuse people from voting because they don't have expensive picture ID's"
In Pennsylvania, a state photo ID costs $10 and is good for four years.
"freedom for the propogation of ALL religions-a concept that was almost destroyed by Bush"
Actually, Bush probably single-handedly prevented the destruction of many mosques immediately after 9/11.
"I'm soooooooooooooooooooooooooo happy."
Yes, reminds me of dancing Palestinians after 9/11, you delusional twit.
#16
Now.. now... you know the virtue police in Saudi Arabia require that all tomatoes, banannas, goats and Pizza be approprately covered to prevent the Mightly Muslim Male(tm) from going on a sex rampage.
#17
Leave poor, dear Justice alone in his misery. Not only will he never be able to vote in an American election, but he just got back from the Most Beautiful Goat show, where they wouldn't let him in the stables.
#18
I don't hate Islam. But I do *know* Islam. First-hand, for decades. Its like knowing *you* justice - there is little worth paying attention to, and much that is worthy of derision.
#21
Hey, Justice is back. Now that the goat beauty contest season is over I guess they don't need their fluffer.
Here's an easy one for ya. When's the last time you got to vote in Sandland? For anything?
Gov. Sarah Palin violated no ethics laws when she fired her public safety commissioner, the state personnel board concluded in a report released Monday.
"There is no probable cause to believe that the governor, or any other state official, violated the Alaska Executive Ethics Act in connection with these matters," the report says.
"Gov. Palin is pleased that the independent investigator for the Personnel Board has concluded that she acted properly in the reassignment of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan," her attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said in a statement.
An earlier, separate investigation by the Legislature found that Palin had abused her office.
Monegan said he felt pressure from Palin, her husband and her staff to fire a state trooper who had gone through a nasty divorce from Palin's sister. Palin denied the claim, and said Monegan was fired last July because she wanted the department to head in a new direction.
Monegan told The Associated Press on Monday that he was "perplexed and disappointed" by the report. It was prepared by Timothy Petumenos, an independent investigator for the Alaska Personnel Board.
"It conflicts with the first investigation and then casts doubts on both of them. So, it doesn't really resolve anything," he said. "If it did, then I could walk away. It does seem to fly in the face if circumstantial evidence."
A separate legislative investigation recently concluded that Palin, the Republican vice presidential nominee, abused her office by allowing her husband and staffers to pressure Monegan to fire the trooper. However, it upheld the firing because Monegan was an at-will employee.
Alaska Personnel Board investigations are normally secret, but the three-member board decided to release this report, citing public interest in the matter given Palin's status as a candidate for national office. Election Day is Tuesday.
Palin had earlier waived her privacy rights, but others in her administration did not and Petumenos sought to keep the matter from playing out in the media.
Documents released Monday did not include transcripts of separate depositions given by Palin and her husband, Todd.
That deposition was the only one given by Sarah Palin. She was not subpoenaed to answer questions in the Legislature's investigation, though her husband, Todd, gave an affidavit in that probe.
Petumenos said that during her deposition given under oath, Sarah Palin denied Monegan's claim -- also given under oath -- that she had two conversations with him about the trooper.
"Both of those conversations were denied in their entirety by the governor," Petumenos said.
Palin initially said she would cooperate with the Legislature's probe. But after she became John McCain's running mate, she said the investigation had become too partisan and filed an ethics grievance against herself with the personnel board.
Telephone messages left with state Sens. Hollis French, who led the legislative investigation, and Sen. Kim Elton, chairman of the Legislative Council, were not immediately returned.
ISLAMABAD - Iran has agreed to provide furnace oil to Pakistan on deferred payments for three months to help Islamabad ensure an uninterrupted fuel supply for power generation and mitigate its economic woes, sources in the Water and Power Ministry here said. The decision came at a meeting between Pakistani and Iranian officials at the Iranian embassy in Islamabad.
According to officials of the ministry Pakistan wanted the oil import facility on deferred payments over two to three years because of its balance of payment crisis. But the Iranian side said an approval from the competent authority in Teheran was needed for any such extension. Pakistan also sought an Iranian grant in the shape of furnace oil for three months and was awaiting Teherans response.
I rather like this. Iran gets bled some more, and the Paks squander more resources. It's a win-win situation.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/04/2008 00:00 ||
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This sems great for the Packi's first no pay for three months, then no pay forever and Iran is stuck with less oil.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
11/04/2008 19:00 Comments ||
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#2
The Hugo Chavez method to riches. Order your DVD for $99 today.
Posted by: ed ||
11/04/2008 20:19 Comments ||
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BAGHDAD - Iraqi lawmakers decided on Monday that six local council seats would be reserved for minorities, only half the number proposed by the United Nations. Out of 150 MPs present in parliament, 106 voted in favour of a resolution to give three seats to Iraqs Christians and three to other religious minorities, according to an official parliamentary statement.
Christians will have one seat reserved in Baghdad, as well as the northern province of Nineveh and the southern province of Basra, out of the total 440 seats up for grabs in provincial elections scheduled for early next year. Around 800,000 Christians lived in Iraq at the time of the US-led invasion in 2003, but the number has since shrunk by around a third as members fled the country, according to Christian leaders.
One seat will also be reserved for Yazidis, a non-Muslim Kurdish community of around 300,000, in Nineveh, which will have a total of 37 seats. Sabeans, a community of around 60,000, whose religion is a mixture of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Persian traditions, are guaranteed one seat in Baghdad out of a total of 57, the source said. The Shabak, a 60,000-strong community whose religion is a fusion of Christianity and Islam, have also been granted one seat in Nineveh.
The new quota will be implemented only for the provincial election expected at the end of January 2009, parliament said. The next quota will have to take into account a census yet to be taken or scheduled.
Mondays vote came after Iraqi Christians complained bitterly that controversial legislation passed in September that will govern the provincial elections excluded guarantees of representation for minority groups. The law sparked street protests staged by minority groups and strong criticism from the United Nations, which last month proposed 12 seats in all for Christians and other communities.
Mondays resolution failed to satisfy Christian politicians. This an outrageous insult to our community and we reject it. We hope that this will not be implemented, fumed MP Unadem Kana, one of only two Christians in parliament. We can get one or two seats without relying on the favours of others, Kana said, adding that Christians had been caught in the crossfire between the Shabak and the Arabs, and the Kurds and Yazidis.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had also called on the electoral commission to ensure that the rights of minority communities were protected under the law.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/04/2008 00:00 ||
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The Arava Power Company (APC) announced Monday an agreement to utilize kibbutz land in the Arava and the Negev for solar fields generating at least 500 MW, and eventually one gigawatt (GW) or more - a move which could potentially revolutionize Israel's energy market and put the country solidly on the path of electricity from renewable sources.
In addition to the basic environmental value of so much solar energy, it could also potentially make the new coal-burning plant being planned for Ashkelon redundant.
The APC management declared at a press conference in Tel Aviv that they had lined up two out of three of the requirements for large-scale production of solar energy - land and investors. All that is left is for the Public Utilities Authority (PUA) to approve a feed-in tariff (FIT) of at least NIS 1.80 per kilowatt hour for medium sized plants of up to five MW, they said. Such a tariff is currently in the works. Coffee cup warning
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I guess Israel will become the darling of the Greens
THIRTY US states were mired in recession in September, and 19 others are at risk of falling into recession in the coming months, a survey by ratings agency Moody's Investors Service said.
Moody's defined recession for the study as a decline in a state's gross domestic product (GDP) on average over a six-month period, compared with the prior six-month period.
According to the March-September study, 27 states were already in recession in August.
States with shrunken GDPs were concentrated in the eastern half of the United States - the Midwest, the southeast and the northeast - and the West (California, the largest state economy; Oregon; and Hawaii).
At-risk states were located in the centre of the country and in the northeast, including New York state.
Moody's said the only state that showed growth was Alaska, whose economy is dominated by the oil and gas industry.
While not one of the 50 states, Moody's survey included the US capital Washington, also called the District of Columbia, where the heavily government-dependent economy also grew during the period.
#1
States with shrunken GDPs were concentrated in the eastern half of the United States - the Midwest, the southeast and the northeast - and the West (California, the largest state economy; Oregon; and Hawaii).
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Anti-US Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez predicted on Sunday the "black man" will win the US presidential race and offered to hold talks with him to improve ties between the superpower and one its biggest oil suppliers. 
