A Large Regular

Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.

Have a new Quotes for Today up on my Substack. As I've mentioned doing this as a way to thank those who have Subscribed. If you are a Subscriber - you should have received an email. Thanks!

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

What fresh hell is this? Stayed at a big brand name hotel in Vermont the other night and was told there was no morning coffee. Was told the communal coffee stations would not be reopened until October. Bed and breakfasts from now on it is... Mike Rowe is the best... "If you must study for an exam, you will never really know the subject matter." - Nicholas Nassim Taleb... I too would like to publicly announce that I am launching a bid to buy the New York Mets. All the cool kids seem to be doing this so I thought I'd jump in too (with probably an equal chance at success)... Providence RI Mayor launches reparations process. "How much, what form, how long are all legitimate questions, but questions for another day. It's important to go step-by-step through this," said virtue signalling Mayor Elorza who just guaranteed Worcester remains the second largest city in New England by launching massive white flight from his city... In a surprise move Sesame Street announces a new progressive Muppet named Senor Gonorrhea to be introduced to warn children about the dangers of venereal disease... "The conscience is that part of the psyche which is soluble in alcohol." - William Ober... 

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Fascinating thread about the possible inspiration for Lord of the Rings

- Matt Taibbi - If it's not "Cancel Culture," what kind of culture is it?

- Interesting data. My take-away is that overall deaths are back to where they were pre-Wuhan Virus,

- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Lebanon: from Ponzi to Antifragility

- Robert DeNiro says the coronavirus decimated his finances. And just like that Rocky and Bullwinkle II and a Bad Grandpa sequel are green-lit.

- On this day in history

- Lying liars who lie.

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- The Segway, the most hyped product since the Macintosh, ceases production. Way back in 2005 I compared the Segway to Bush's nomination of Harriet Miers. Don't think I was far off.

- CCP China really could be in trouble between the protests in Hong Kong, the Wuhan Virus, the border skirmishes with India and a number of other issues. Western corporations would be wise to decouple soon before the bottom really falls out.

- Nassim Taleb - IQ is largely a pseudoscientific swindle.

- 30 (current) beers that changed America

- Businesses sue Seattle over "occupied" protest zone. Good! And if the plaintiffs win how is Seattle to pay the damages? Their modus operandi has been to raise taxes which in turn will force other businesses to flee the city. Seattle could also appeal to the Federal government for relief but good luck with that!

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Go woke go broke! ESPN ratings sink to 41-year history lows. Over the past 3-months I've watched the Jordan documentary and a few UFC fights and that's it. I won't shed a tear when the layoffs inevitably occur.

- For those who want to get into bird watching

- Nassim Taleb: The Mask Masquerade. Personally I wear a mask when in public as a common courtesy to others. But wearing a mask while alone in your car, on the beach, hiking, or golfing is just silly.

-  Stories and Data: Reflections on race, riots, and police. Highly recommended reading.

- A thread on heuristics (tips) to make good decisions from Shane Parrish

- Heh Heh (Via Instapundit)

Miscellaneus thoughts and observations.

Just saying but if Governor Andrew Cuomo's disastrous COVID-19 policy of putting infected patients into nursing homes did cost 10,000 lives - that's well over three times the number of people who died in the Twin Towers on September 11th...  Prediction - any Power Five Conference college that does not allow football in the Fall of 2020 will have a new University President by the Spring of 2021... "To bankrupt a fool, give him information." - Nassim Taleb (note to self - never play poker with Nassim)... Disney World to reopen in mid-July but among other conditions they will require patrons to wear face masks. Little kids being forced to wear masks in the Orlando heat of July and August? No fucking thank you! Someone should start a DisneyWorldMeltdowns Twitter feed now. That or you'll see everyone pretty much ignore the rule after a week of operation. My money is on the latter... "Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts." - Richard Feynman. When this is all over I think the phrase "experts say" will be equated with "bullcrap"... In other space news Virgin Orbit had an "anomaly" on Monday's attempted launch. I'd rather have a delay...

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations..

Watched the first ten minutes of the Aaron Hernandez documentary on Netflix then I turned it off because why should I waste my time on that piece of shit. Especially as it seemed that the documentary was somehow going to make excuses for Hernandez's behavior... "Page 3 of 2" would be a good name for a blog... "What's true isn't new and what's new isn't true" a phrase from a recent Eric Weinstein Portal podcast that really made me think... Maybe the best synopsis of the McGregor / Cerrone fight last night... What are the odds that the Astros Jose Altuve leads MLB in getting hit by a pitch next season. I'd like to bet on that... Tobacco Cologne would be a good name for a band or an actual joke product you could give to the smoker in your life... What ever happened to the Dreamers? Have the Democrats completely abandoned the Dream Act as an issue? Wasn't it an upmost priority just a little while ago?... "It is capitalism that pulled billions out of poverty. Not vapid virtue signaling." - Nassim Nicholas Taleb...

- Farnam Street's Recommended Reading 2019. I've read only one book on the list and have only one on my reading list. Time to check out some of these book recommendations.

- Ayn Rand on Why Philosophy Matters. Not a huge Rand fan but some excellent points to ponder in this essay.

- Eisenhower Matrix: Master Productivity and Eliminate Noise. One of the simplest yet most effective ways to organize your priorities.

- The Bed of Procrustes - 20 Aphorisms from Nassim Taleb

"In you prayers substitute 'protect us from evil' with 'protect us from those who improve things for a salary.'" - Nassim Nicholas Taleb

So true.

It also reminds one of Ronald Reagan's famous quote, "The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help."

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

So what disappointed more people - Season 8 of Game of Thrones or Robert Mueller's testifying before Congress?... Interesting - ESPN's market research shows that 74% of fans don't want to hear about politics on ESPN. That includes avid fans (85%), Republicans (84%), and Democrats (69%). The idea of Go Woke - Go Broke seems to have finally sunk in with upper management...  "To be completely cured of newspapers, spend a year reading the previous week's newspapers." - Nassim Taleb... This may be old news to many but I had no idea that Paul Simon is "the world's biggest prick" and song thief. Probably going to throw out my Graceland CD over this... Wailing Monkey Climbing Tree would be a good name for a heavy metal Barbara Streisand cover band... Democrats may seize upon the idea that President Trump may not be prosecuted for obstruction while in office which may be even more incentive for some to vote him out in 2020. But that logic also means that former President Obama can be prosecuted NOW that he's out of office if he was complicit in illegally spying on the Trump 2016 campaign. You can't have it both ways...

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Canada needs to fight back against unfair Chinese trade practices. China knows it can bully Canada but if Trudeau is ousted as PM due to the Quebec scandal and is replaced by a Conservative then China will either feel the pain economically of new Canadian tariffs or it will resolve it's trade war with the US hoping Canada will fall in line.

- I might be in the minority but this looks pretty cool to me. Granted I have a thing for blimps and I do not think this would work in congested city environments.

- Heh Heh

- How the brain fights off fears that return to haunt us

- Nassim Taleb: a definition of Antifragile and its implications.

- 43-years ago this week.

- The 25 most popular Ted Talks. I think I've only seen 3.