Door to door Jesus salesmen came by today. They were the Mormon variety. I told them to get lost. Actually, I politely but firmly told them I wasn't interested. I thought about just saying "Fuck off." I'm not sure why I didn't.

Then they asked if there was anything they could do for me. What's wrong with these people? I told them not to come back and shut the door. One of them said something loud as I closed the door, but I didn't catch it. I assume he was trying to incite a response so they could engage me in some inane argument.

There's no point trying to argue with these jerks when you meet them. That's just an invitation for them to recite their nonsense.

More Moron-inspired fun:

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A Utah Senate committee has approved a bill that would hide the preparation of alcoholic drinks behind 10-foot-high walls in restaurants and make it illegal to appear drunk.

I just don't understand what compels these people to think and act like they do.

Apparently the latest fad in right wing slurs is socialist.

“Earlier this week, we heard the world’s best salesman of socialism address the nation,” Senator Jim DeMint, Republican of South Carolina, said on Friday, referring, naturally, to a certain socialist in chief.

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas decried the creation of “socialist republics” in the United States. “Lenin and Stalin would love this stuff,” Mr. Huckabee said, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference here over the weekend, a kind of Woodstock for young conservatives.

“Socialism is something new for us to hit Obama over the head with,” said Joshua Bolin of Augusta, Ga., who founded a Web site, “Reagan.org,” which he calls a conservative analog to the liberal MoveOn.org.

It would be nice if this provided an actual discussion of what socialism is and what a socialist social organization might mean for the US. I doubt it will happen though. I also doubt that we'll see much of the Democratic faithful embrace socialist at a label the way they've re-embraced liberal.

The truth is, liberal and socialist are not synonymous. In discussion with my liberal associates, there is little interest in nationalization, worker control of the means of production or any support of a truly socialist transformation of society. Most people seem to be more than content to find ways to find ways to patch the existing system. For example, observe the repeated calls for shoring up the "middle class" during our current economic crisis as opposed to a discussion the working class. One of these terms obscures social relations and those between workers and owners, while aligning the interests of some workers with those of owners and against other members of working class. The ruling class likes it when fight amongst ourselves. It keeps us occupied.

Resistance to socialism seems to be founded mostly on misconceptions of what socialism is and can be. Coupled with this is willingness to associate socialism with autocratic regimes that self-identify as socialist or communist. It's interesting that many people are willing to recognize that politicians and governments are more than capable of disingenuously embracing the terminology of democracy, for example, as an ideology to legitimize their claims to power. Why is it that they are unable to make this distinction between rhetoric and political reality when it comes to socialism? Fear?

The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. -Marx & Engels

Finally, I'm sure we'll eventually hear some on the right speak dismissively of class warfare if they haven't started this already. They never talk about class warfare when they're winning, when the capitalists are getting their way. It's not that there isn't an ongoing war or that class warfare is merely when workers air their grievances. It's just worth mentioning when they're making gains. But they're always at war with us. The operation of capitalism is, ultimately, always against the workers.

From the CPSUA mailing list:

Dear friends,

Communist Party National Chair, Sam Webb will be a featured guest on conservative host Glenn Beck’s show on Fox News tonight.

Beck has been running a series on the show called “Road to Socialism” which makes that claim that government programs for working people = big government = socialism. Did he make the same argument amount the corporate welfare and war spending that actually bloated the national debt? Didn’t think so.

Tune in at 5pm EST, Wednesday, March 5, 2009 March 4, 2009 and hear what Sam has to say.

Visit www.cpusa.org for updates.

This is probably the first (and last) time I'll ever claim something interesting might be happening on Glenn Beck's show. For the record: Glenn Beck is functionally retarded. Nevertheless, this might be worth watching.

I don't have cable so maybe I'll be able to find this online.

Update: The original announcement had the wrong date. Sam Webb is on tonight. Also, is anyone else a little disappointed that the Communist Party starts its emails with "Dear friends" instead of "Dear comrades?"

Here's what I got today:

I also bought JSA #24

I don't normally read JSA, though I picked up the previous issue since it was a Faces of Evil issue. I like the Black Adam character I guess. Actually, I'm finding the whole Marvel Family to be interesting right now, but I especially like Black Adam. How can you argue with a guy that rips people in half in front of an audience to make a point?¹ This issue continues the story from #23. Maybe I'll get the other issues from this JSA run. I hear they're good.

I haven't had a chance to read any of them yet. I hope they're all good, though I'm guessing Trinity will really suck.²

There was an alternate cover for Superman: New World of Krypton #1. The local store wanted $25 for it. That seemed like a little much to me.

End Notes:
1. I quit reading comics for a long time, so I'm still catching up on some stuff. I'm reading 52 now which may explain my interest in Black Adam.
2. I hope I'm wrong about that. I hope I'm wrong every week.

The more man puts into God, the less he retains in himself. -Karl Marx¹

I've never hid the fact that I think religion is poison. So, here's some good news:

America is a less Christian nation than it was 20 years ago, and Christianity is not losing out to other religions, but primarily to a rejection of religion altogether, a survey published Monday found. (CNN)

The USA Today article on the study notes an 11% decrease in those self-report as Christian and 15% self-reporting as None.

Don't blame secularism for driving up the percentage of Americans who say they have no religion, says Barry Kosmin, co-researcher for the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS).

"These people aren't secularized. They're not thinking about religion and rejecting it; they're not thinking about it at all," Kosmin says.

A closer look at the "Nones" — people who said "None" when asked their religious identity — shows that this group (now 15% of Americans, up from 8% in 1990) opts out of traditional religious rites of passage. (USA Today)

Of course, a lack of interest in religion doesn't necessarily mean people have replaced faith with a more rational worldview. But, a disinterest in religion and presumably in religiously founded claims on social and political issues can only be good news. One of the best steps this country, and humanity as a whole, can take is to remove religious nonsense from our political discourse.²

Unfortunately the number identifying as evangelical, unarguably the worst type of Christian, is also on the rise, as is association with mega-churches (CNN). So, while there may be fewer Christians, they're apparently becoming more annoying. Great.

There's no reason to think these results will be stable. This stuff changes over time at both the individual and population levels. Hopefully faithlessness will only increase here and elsewhere. It's obvious that the Middle East, for example, desperately needs an anti-religious revolution.³ Hopefully people will continue to realize we don't have to put with religious dogma or be forced to accept their views.

I forgot to talk about last week's comics. Some of these didn't leave an impression. So, here's a brief recap:¹

Batman: Cacophony #3: Not a bad ending, I guess. I'm not sure Batman made the right choice in the end or what he expect the outcome might be. Sometimes I think the best solution really would be to just kill off the Joker for good. Why not? I get the whole idea that Joker needs Batman, but does Batman really need the Joker?

Black Lightning: Year One #5: I'll probably have to re-read this whole series to give an honest opinion of it. I like Black Lightning though. I wasn't overly excited to see the inclusion of Talia in the series. I'm not fan, though I don't dislike her as much as I hate Damian.

Gotham Gazette: Batman Dead #1: One week later, I can't recall what happened in this issue. That's probably not a good sign. I bought because it's part of the Battle for the Cowl arc. Other than that, I guess I give it a meh. I don't recall hating it.

Secret Six #7: I just started reading Secret Six. I picked up 1-3 and 5-6 cheap. I didn't get issue #4 until last week. Coincidentally, #7 came out that week. I can't find anything bad to say about this series. Initially I thought I would dislike Catman and Ragdoll. Turns out, the whole cast is enjoyable. Junior, the villain, has been pretty good too. Reading this caused me to get earlier Secret Six minis and Villains United. All in all, good stuff.

Solomon Grundy: Meh. I'm not buying any more of this. I think I finished reading it.

Superman: World of New Krypton #1: Pretty much begins to establish Superman's place on New Krypton. In this case, it's as a member of Zod's military guild. Apparently Supes has some issues with the idea of the assigned guilds within Kryptonian society, though he ultimately falls in line...for now? That discomfort could, potentially, make for an interesting story line or a powerfully silly one. Has Superman ever questioned the status quo on Earth?

Trinity #40: Continues to suck. This tarot inspired mystical bullshit around Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman is lame.

Yeah, so the "reviews" were lame too. Maybe I'll do better this week.

Oh, I didn't pick up any variant titles issues either. Talk about a rip off...

What I'm looking forward to: Action, Battle for the Cowl and Green Lantern.

Trinity will suck, but I hope not.

This week may be make or break for REBELS. Issue #1 didn't do much for me.

I'm not sure why I'm posting these pull lists. I guess comic book day guarantees at least one post a week. Since no one actually reads any of this, it doesn't matter what I write.

Other geekness:

1. I haven't seen Watchmen yet. Maybe this week.

2. Rumor has it Fox may cancel Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. I sincerely hope not. I've enjoyed every episode this season (and last) and always look forward to the next. Honestly, I'd be surprised if they cancelled SCC this close to the release of the new Terminator movie. They better not.

3. I bought and watched a copy of the new Wonder Woman animated movie. It does not disappoint. This is the best of the DC animated movie I've seen (Superman: Doomsday & Justice League: The New Frontier). I haven't watched the Batman one yet. The anime art style doesn't appeal to me. The Wonder Woman bonus disk even comes with some preview stuff for the upcoming Green Lantern animated movie. Though to be honest, it looks like Hal Jordan may have something wrong very with his head and neck in the previews.

Here's some comedy gold: UFO Files: Ancient Aliens

This kind of program is always entertaining even if it is unintentionally so. What amazes about people that believe this stuff is that they're willing to take the miraculous events found in ancient texts possible while at the same time denying the known as real. For example, they'll believe that various Biblical references indicate the presence of aliens while being baffled that someone could build a pyramid. Visitors from space bequeathing civilization are more plausible than Egyptians finding the cardinal directions. Apparently it escapes these people that fiction and fictional embellishments to histories are as old as storytelling.

Another odd facet of these beliefs is the notion that entire disciplines of scientists, in this case archaeologists, are engaged in a massive coverup of facts that would rewrite all of human (pre)history. Believe me, nothing would bring more delight to an archaeologist, or scientists of any stripe, than overturning an existing paradigm and replacing it with something novel. Such a feat would secure anyone's legacy beyond narrow disciplinary definitions.

Silly.

But definitely entertaining.

[Thanks to mango for the video link.]

Why isn't Washington talking about single payer healthcare? Why isn't an option?

Here's where you can join up to help: Single Payer Action

Here's two good segments from Democracy Now! about single payer healthcare:

1. Burn Your Health Insurance Bill Day: New Group Advocates Direct Action to Demand Single-Payer System


2. Dr. Quentin Young, Longtime Obama Confidante and Physician to MLK, Criticizes Admin’s Rejection of Single-Payer Healthcare

The US needs single payer.

[Note: I signed up. I even used my real name. You can too.]

"Under these circumstances, it's hard to understand how derivative traders at AIG warranted any bonuses, much less $165 million in extra pay. I mean, how do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?"

[From Obama tries to stop AIG bonuses: 'How do they justify this outrage?' - CNN.com]

Criminals acting like criminals. Imagine that.

Maybe it's time to start nationalizing companies that receive taxpayer funds. Why should we accept all of the risks in these bailouts and forego the benefits?

I finally got around to seeing Watchmen last night. I'd heard the movie was long, but I didn't realize how long. Two hours and 45 minutes. It's a good thing they didn't try to fill out some of the missing pieces of that movie. It would have been six hours long. I read somewhere that the director's cut DVD will be even longer, with over an hour of extra footage. I'm not sure if that's with or without the Black Freighter stuff woven into the movie. Frankly, I'm too lazy to look it up.

I can't help but be disappointed by Watchmen. Sure, there are significant parts faithful to the original text. Plenty of little things bugged me, but the ending just killed it for me. So here's some brief, day-after thoughts (and spoilers) after the break...

For those keeping score, here's what I bought this week. Nothing to say about them right now. I haven't even read everything from last week.

Richardson said the criminal justice system is "inherently defective" in its use of the death penalty, noting that four death-row inmates in New Mexico have been exonerated in the past 10 years.

"Regardless of my personal opinion about the death penalty, I do not have confidence in the criminal justice system as it currently operates to be the final arbiter when it comes to who lives and who dies for their crime," Richardson said in a statement Wednesday.

"If the State is going to undertake this awesome responsibility, the system to impose this ultimate penalty must be perfect and can never be wrong."

The bill replaces the death penalty with life without the possibility of parole

[From New Mexico governor repeals death penalty in state - CNN.com]

I'm glad Richardson didn't veto this bill. He made the correct choice. The bolded text above sums up my thoughts on a key methodological issue of the death penalty. One incorrect execution invalidates the system. While it is also a travesty if one person is locked up for any duration for a crime they didn't commit, at least a living person's can be cleared and compensated in the face of exculpatory evidence. Correction is impossible if the State has executed the person.

Whether the execution as punishment is defensible from an ethical stand point or if execution is an effective deterrent is another question entirely. Never mind the issue of whether certain groups of people actually receive fair trials within the justice system.

Just got this via email:

Out of the crisis: Building a new era of justice and peace

a speech by Sam Webb, National Chair of the Communist Party

LIVE streaming video
Saturday, March 21
9:30 am Eastern

This Saturday, March 21, Sam Webb, the national chairperson of the Communist Party USA, will deliver a speech titled, “Out of the crisis: Building a new era of justice and peace.” The speech will be streamed live via the web on the website www.cpusa.org

The speech is the opening address to the organization’s National Committee, which includes leading communists from around the country.

For press inquiries email communications@cpusa.org or call 646-437-5338

(Please forward widely)

Looks like the stream will be on the front page of their site.

Tell your friends.

Joking about the president’s lack of bowling skills, Leno quipped, “I imagine the bowling alley [in the White House] has just been just burned and closed down.”

“No, no. I have been practicing,” the president said. “I bowled a 129.”

“It's like — it was like Special Olympics, or something,” he joked.
[From CNN Political Ticker - Obama makes late-night gaffe]

I hope we can focus on this outrage instead of our ongoing financial crisis.

Dead Milkmen - Takin' Retards to the Zoo

I probably won't post again until next week, after I'm finished with this conference. Of course, I have to attend another about two weeks after that. I'm sure that won't eat up any of my time.

Here are some pre-conference observations in no particular order:

• Conference clothes are lame, but fashion rules are even lamer.
• Overpriced conference hotels suck, not to mention food and alcohol expenses.
• "Networking" sucks, but becomes increasingly tolerable as blood alcohol level increases.
• Your research is not as exciting or as interesting as you think it is. More people should remember that.
• Warning: There is a variable threshold for blood alcohol level where interesting and exciting become irritating and boring. Chances are you'll find it. Buying drinks for your audience may delay this qualitative change, however.
• Smaller poster sizes from previous years sort of sucks. They're cheaper to make, but limit your content.
• Statistical methods for qualitative data suck, especially compared to quantitative methods.
• Using complex, obscure statistical methods when something simpler is available doesn't make you cool.
• Not testing to ensure your data meets test assumptions of your analyses is lame.
• Non-normally distributed data suck, but not as much as missing observations.
• Outliers suck, but then again outliers can be very interesting and informative.
• Non-parametric statistics are useful, even if people seem to forget about them.
• R kicks ass.

Oh. Blogging sucks too.

And editing.

That is all.