Category Archives: Business

Saving Us From The Tyranny

…of choices:

America was built on the principle that a man could make choices about his own life. This has been a complete failure. You remember when pioneers set out by themselves into the untamed frontier? And you remember what happened to them? That’s right: They all died. Lacking a government to tell them how much soda to drink or salt to eat, they became too obese to run away from bears and mountain lions. It’s a sad chapter in our history, but luckily when people headed out west the next time, they brought lots and lots of government with them and founded California. And thanks to its huge amount of laws telling people what to do, that area has flourished (well, I haven’t read any news about California in a decade or so, but I assume it’s still doing pretty well).

Anyway, the principle we’ve learned is that man can’t survive if he has to make choices for himself. Think about it: From what to eat to what to wear to what to do, you basically do nothing but make choices about your life all day long. It’s annoying and tiresome, and none of us has read all the scientific studies to know what’s healthy to eat and how much exercise we need. We need smart people to limit this insane number of choices so we can know what to do. Thus we have politicians who hover above us (or, in Bloomberg’s case, below us) watching us lovingly and telling us what to do for our own benefit.

Or at least those are the forward-thinking ideas Bloomberg subscribes to. He’s a shrewd and cunning man — a regular Tyrion Lannister — and with his bans on trans-fats, salt, and large sodas, he’s taking away many confusing and wrong choices in order to make life easier and better for us all. Now, some people may say he should focus on job growth instead of individuals’ health, but Obama has been trying to add jobs for some time and hasn’t been able to, and if Obama can’t figure that out, obviously no one can. So Bloomberg is going to give up on complicated things that are out of his hands, like the economy, and instead focus on what he can control: you.

So does Bloomberg hate people eating sweets and other tasty foods? Obviously not. In fact, one of his first jobs was working inside a tree making cookies. And he’s been a longtime member of the Lollipop Guild. He just knows that without his direct control, you won’t be able to enjoy unhealthy foods in moderation, because, really, just look at how fat and stupid you all are. Actually, don’t look; it’s too depressing. Instead, keep your gaze on the health guru Bloomberg. Don’t you want a physique like his? He’s like a halfling warrior. See, Bloomberg embodies his own principles, as he’s not a wastefully large politician like New Jersey’s Chris Christie; instead, he’s fun-sized.

The mayor from Keebler. I always that that talk of Bloomberg on the ticket was insane, but to whatever degree anyone took it seriously, I hope that this ends it.

Related: “We have this ‘liberty’ business completely backward in this country.” The eternal words of the “liberal” fascist.

The Diet Debacle

“Two seemingly benign nutritional maxims are at the root of all dietary evil: A calorie is a calorie, and You are what you eat. Both ideas are now so entrenched in public consciousness that they have become virtually unassailable. As a result, the food industry, aided and abetted by ostensibly well-meaning scientists and politicians, has afflicted humankind with the plague of chronic metabolic disease, which threatens to bankrupt health care worldwide.”

We’ve had the green revolution. Now we need a new revolution in food tech that provides adequate healthy food for the world.

[Update a few minutes later]

Is this any way to lose weight?” Yes. I’ve been eating like this for a year and a half, and I’ve lost ten pounds (though that wasn’t the goal). Fat doesn’t make you fat. Carbs do.

[Early afternoon update]

A testimonial from Bruce Webster.

The 2012 Romney Campaign

isn’t the 2008 McCain campaign.

The 2012 Obama campaign seems to be run by Wile E. Axelrod, Sooper Genius. But wait! Wasn’t he involved in 2008, too?

I have never bought into the prevailing media myth, which is part of the media myth about Obama in general, that the 2008 campaign was brilliant, or even competent. Obama beat Hillary not because he had a great campaign, but because a lot of Dems were looking for an alternative to the “inevitable” Hillary, and they could avoid not being a sexist by not voting for her by being not a racist by voting for him (race trumps gender among Democrats). He won in the general, again not because there was anything good about his campaign, but because:

  • The media refused to properly vet him, being too busy going through dumpsters in Wasilla to dig into things in Chicago (or even just to bother to read Chicago newspapers)
  • Many found him charismatic (I never did)
  • He turned out the youth vote in record numbers (unlikely to repeat this year)
  • Everyone was tired of Republicans (the apathy expressed by the base still hadn’t recovered from 2006, because Bush was still president)
  • There was no conservative enthusiasm for McCain
  • McCain was an awful candidate
  • McCain (or his campaign staff) ran an awful campaign, insufficiently aggressive, and actively sabotaging his only real asset — Sarah Palin, and last but not least
  • Everyone was excited about the first black president, and proving that they weren’t racist

Few of those factors will apply this year. He’s no longer this inspirational charismatic cipher, but a failed president. They got voting for a black guy out of their system four years ago, and no longer feel a need to do it again to prove they’re not a racist (fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me). And in particular, the Romney campaign is going to take the gloves off (as they showed in the primaries). Not to mention that we’re heading into another downturn going into the election. I think that Obama’s toast.