Month: January 2015

The conservative grifter problem

by

by Doctor Science

Kevin Drum at Mother Jones discusses something I’ve been wondering about for a while: the number of conservative American political grifters. Drum asks,

why is this problem so much bigger on the right than on the left? I won’t be happy with answers that simply assume liberals are innately better people. Even if they are, they aren’t that much better. It’s got to be something institutional, or something inherent in the nature of American conservatism. But what?

I think there are two factors at play:

  • “Demand side”: Conservatives are more elderly, more fearful, and more loyal than liberals, which makes them naturally more vulnerable to scams, especially affinity scams.
  • “Supply side”: Conservatives believe very strongly in capitalism and in making money, so conservative political operatives are much more likely than liberals to feel they deserve to make a lot of money for their political work. They expect to do well by doing (conservative political) good.

Read more

The Saudi succession system isn’t really strange, but that doesn’t mean it’s functional

by

by Doctor Science Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo thinks Saudi succession is a strange, strange system (via slacktivist). As a reader of Marshall Hodgson’s The Venture of Islam, I don’t find it strange at all: the Saudi system is based on the usual Islamic succession principles, which are intended to focus on fairness and … Read more

LDS and LGBT and the possibility of change

by

by liberal japonicus This, from Mother Jones: In a groundbreaking news conference on Tuesday, the Mormon Church officially announced its support for some LGBT rights, on the condition that the same legal protections are extended to all religious groups. But in doing so, the church also made clear their endorsement did not reverse the church's opposition … Read more

Does Hollywood export American racism?

by

by Doctor Science The e-magazine Atlanta Black Star recently ran an article on 8 of the Worst Countries For Black People to Travel: Germany (the formerly East parts, specifically), Russia, Greece, Spain, Italy, Thailand, China, and South Korea. About anti-black racism in the Asian countries, one (anonymous) person said: My own experience is that the … Read more

“The Legend of Korra” and what boys are taught about toxic relationships

by

by Doctor Science

When The Legend of Korra ended last month in a burst of sparkly rainbows, I decided I’d try watching it again. I watched the first season as it aired, but it didn’t really grab me so I lost interest. So, being a completist by nature, I went back and picked up with Season 2. I just finished episode 2.04 “Civil Wars: Part 2”, and I’m giving up. I am not happy that I just saw Korra, Our Heroine, torture someone for information (and it works!), but the last straw has been the relationship between Bolin and Eska.

TRIGGER WARNING: some discussion of abusive relationships, more may arise in comments.

Read more

Where was Obama? Really?

by

by Ugh Is it just me or is the whole "the U.S. didn't send a sufficiently high level official/Obama himself to march in Paris – outrage!" thing ridiculous?  I'd dismiss it as mindless partisan blather, but then the White House starts saying it should have done so.  Perhaps they're of the mind "meh, there's no … Read more

It’s not about the danger or difficulty of police work, it’s about Respecting My Authority

by

by Doctor Science In almost every speech or article about police behavior, there’s a reference to the “difficult and dangerous job” police do, and how they deserve our respect for it. How dangerous is policing, really? Does society usually have more respect for people who do dangerous jobs in general, and dangerous but necessary jobs … Read more