Author Archives: Harry Katz
Let astrology help you find the perfect dog
This article purports to help you select a pet dog based upon your Zodiac sign. It’s unbelievably stupid. I mean, nowhere in the article do they even mention the dog’s Zodiac sign and how that might influence compatibility with its … Continue reading
Book Review: The Post-American World
The Post-American WorldBy Fareed ZakariaW. W. Norton & Co., New York, 2008 Despite its apocalyptic-sounding title, Fareed Zakaria’s latest book, The Post-American World, is actually quite optimistic. Zakaria is editor of Newsweek International, and former managing editor of Foreign Affairs. … Continue reading
What Makes People Vote Republican?
An intresting essay over at The Edge by Jonathan Haidt about the moral considerations that differentiate Democrats from Republicans. This is a long essay but well worth the read. Here are a few exerpts that make some of Haidt’s key … Continue reading
Ambient awareness
Very interesting artilcle on the effects of social networking by Clive Thompson in the Sept. 7, 2008 Sunday New York Times Magazine. The article describes how services like Twitter and Facebook facilitate "ambient awareness" about a large group of people … Continue reading
Barack Obama’s Acceptance Speech
A brilliantly crafted and superbly delivered oration delivered in Denver tonight. Transcript here.
George Carlin (1937-2008)
Lots of tributes pouring in for comedian George Carlin who died on Sunday, June 22 at the age of 71. Carlin was one of the first comedians I ever heard about as a kid, along with Bill Cosby and Cheech … Continue reading
Fareed Zakaria
Fareed Zakaria, editor of Newsweek International, and former editor of Foreign Affairs, spoke this evening at Seattle’s Town Hall about his new book The Post-American World. He spoke for about 35 minutes and then took questions from the audience. Here’s … Continue reading
Book Review: The Bookseller of Kabul
The Bookseller of KabulBy Ǻsne SeierstadLittle, Brown and Company, New York, 2003 The Bookseller of Kabul is a “stranger in a strange land” book. The stranger, Ǻsne Seierstad, is a blond, female, Norwegian journalist. The strange land is Kabul during … Continue reading
The Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb, options trader cum philosopher, defines a Black Swan as an extremely improbable event that has huge impact. Think 9/11 or the current subprime lending crisis. The title comes from the fact that black swans – the birds … Continue reading
Jeffrey Sachs
This evening we attended a lecture by Professor Jeffrey Sachs sponsored by the Seattle World Affairs Council. Sachs gained fame in the early nineties advising the newly elected governments of Eastern Europe how to transform their economies from communism to … Continue reading
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