Here's a graph that compares US investment into alternative energy research to the cost of the Iraq War.
If you think that a lot of our geopolitical problems are a result of reliance on oil from unstable regions and that our presence in Iraq isn't doing anything to burnish our image, then the graph may be a bit upsetting. Be prepared to scroll.
Originally found on Matthew Yglesias.
Brits? Yanks? Aussies? Canucks? Kiwis?
Just which national allegiance claims the title of the wittiest, the cleverest, the most cunning Paris expat community? Well, on December 1st, Ravenchase, with the help of several meetup.com groups, intends to determine just that. On that day, I'll be running an event for several different Paris Expat meetups, I've already got the Brits and Yanks on board, whether the Canucks, Aussies, and kiwis come out is yet to be seen, but it's hard to imagine that they could turn something like this down.
Ravenchase is offering this as a free event for the meetup groups as means to get our good name out in front of interesting, adventurous people. With just the Brits and the Yanks, I'm expecting at least 30 people, throw in the other nationalities and that could climb rapidly.
All in all, it's good news for Ravenchase Europe. It gives us some practice in creating larger events and, naturally, shows people how awesome we are. (Anyone other than myself notice how I've begun to refer to Ravenchase in the third person? I think it helps me separate the professional life from the private life which is, in general, a good thing to do.)
If you know any Anglophones in Paris, let them know, it should be a real hoot!
In the game, at least. Here is an interesting first-hand account from Clive Thompson, writing in Wired.
It was after pulling this maneuver a couple of dozen times that it suddenly hit me: I had, quite unconsciously, adopted the tactics of a suicide bomber -- or a kamikaze pilot.
It's not just that I'm willing to sacrifice my life to kill someone else. It's that I'm exploiting the psychology of asymmetrical warfare.
...
I, however, have a completely different psychology. I know I'm the underdog; I know I'm probably going to get killed anyway. I am never going to advance up the Halo 3 rankings, because in the political economy of Halo, I'm poor.
Specifically, I'm poor in time. The best players have dozens of free hours a week to hone their talents, and I don't have that luxury. This changes the relative meaning of death for the two of us. For me, dying will not penalize me in the way it penalizes them, because I have almost no chance of improving my state. I might as well take people down with me. Full article.
Or better yet, the Twoonie! Once again, a sad day falls upon American currency. I thought that these images from XE.com were illustrative. If you're familiar with the rate tables at XE, you know that there is something a bit off about the below table (click to enlarge):
What's that little blue question mark next to the rate in the USD/CAD cell? That's not normally there... Well, what happens when you hover over it? Let's see (again, click to enlarge):
Yikes, you know it's bad when XE, a favorite site of professional currency speculators the world over (not to mention Japanese housewives), goes to the trouble to tell you that, yes, you are reading it correctly, the US Dollar is worth less than its Canadian counterpart. Ouch... Just for historical perspective, eight years ago today, one US Dollar was worth about $1.46 Canadian. That's about what the Euro will get you in US Dollars today. Oh how the tables have turned.
It's gotten so bad that everyone's favorite French President has had to give the US Congress a lesson on fiscal responsibility! The shame! A financial lesson from France! What is the nation coming to? What's next, a France backing the US on matters of national defense? Apparently yes.
Sounds great! That's what we said and it was a great time. The countryside was really beautiful and we saw some amazing landscapes. Naturally, I spent plenty of time with my camera in hand and took plenty of pictures. Despite the grumblings of my travel mates, I think that the results merit the effort. The first set of pictures are mainly on a walk that we took near Villerville, where Esther's family has their house. We also went to Trouville and Deauville during this set. The following set finds us in Etretat, walking around its cliffs, in the city, and then, finally, in Honfleur.
Without further ado, the pictures!
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| Normandie avec Elise et Dan |
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| Normandie avec Elise et Dan, Pt. II |
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