Freedom of speech makes it much easier to spot the idiots.
– Jay Lessig, quoted in the Wall Street Journal’s Best of the Web.
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As an ugly woman, I totally agree with everything that Brian is saying. However, Pynksparx, you are a bitchass and me and my posse are coming to kick your ass. I may be ugly as sin, hairy and around 200lbs, but at least I own my own corporation, have a cushy 6 figure job at another corporation, am rich, and YOU’RE NOT. – Brian’s Culture Blog (and Brian’s Education Blog come to that) is still non-functioning for new postings, but old postings can still be reached via the archives and can still receive comments. That, from “Tali”, concerning an August 23rd 2003 posting tactfully entitled Why expensive clothes rescue ugly men but not ugly women is the Culture Blog’s most recent comment. February 8th, 2005 | 4 comments - (Comments are closed)
 People love to demonize greedy bosses who don’t care for their workers. However, after going through this bout of downsizing my company, I know that my surviving employees are not unhappy about the change, because it was accompanied by a renewed sense of discipline and focus. Employees – or, at least, my employees – have understood and responded positively to their boss’ determination to succeed financially. A boss who tolerates low financial returns will not deliver the wherewithal to provide raises and job security. In retrospect, my biggest sin was not in laying people off during my bout of downsizing – despite the pain involved – but in not demanding enough of them or myself previously. In short, I should have been more greedy … I would have been more socially useful. – Friedrich Blowhard last Saturday, in the course of explaining why he has been obliged to stop blogging for a while February 7th, 2005 | 2 comments - (Comments are closed)
Funny that the same people to whom diversity is a holy word so often bemoan diversity of opinion as divisive. But in a democracy, politics are naturally divisive: you vote for this candidate and someone else votes for that one; you vote yes (or no) on a proposition and other citizens disagree. What’s not divisive? Saddam and his 99.96% of the vote. That’s how it went during the previous Iraqi election – an illustration of the Latin roots of the word fascism, which actually means a bunch of sticks all tied together in one big unhappy unified bunch, and not (despite what many assume) any variation from p.c. received-wisdom regarding gay rights, affirmative action, bilingual education, etc. This election was different because it was divisive, which means it was better. February 1st, 2005 | One comment - (Comments are closed)
By all means, wear pyjamas in the privacy of your own bedroom. Wear them round your own house, even. But I am frankly disturbed that the art of dressing oneself has transmogrified these days into a competition to see who looks most like they got their clothes out of a recycling bin. We don’t all have to look like the poor and starving in order to persuade others that we care. It’s a big lefty trend, and now is the time to reclaim the clothing-sphere as something capable of expressing more valuable ideas than, “I wouldn’t wear a Gucci suit if you paid me.” Improving your style isn’t about getting different writing on your t-shirt. It’s about conveying who you really are. You are not a sack of potatoes. – Alice Bachini last Sunday (good to see she still knows how to spell pyjamas) January 26th, 2005 | 32 comments - (Comments are closed)
For you to ask advice on the rules of love is no better than to ask advice on the rules of madness January 25th, 2005 | 2 comments - (Comments are closed)
“We’re reckless arrogant stupid dicks. And the Film Actors Guild are pussies. And Kim Jong Il is an asshole. Pussies don’t like dicks because pussies get fucked by dicks, but dicks also fuck assholes. Assholes who just wanna shit on everything. Pussies may think that they can deal with assholes their way, but the only thing that can fuck an asshole is a dick, with some balls. The problem with dicks is that sometimes they fuck too much, or fuck when it isn’t appropriate, and it takes a pussy to show ’em that. But sometimes pussies get so full of shit that they become assholes themselves. Because pussies are only an inch and a half away from assholes. I don’t know much in this crazy crazy world. But I do know that if you don’t let us fuck this asshole, we’re gonna have our dicks and our pussies all covered in shit” – said by a member of Team America in the movie of that name. Says Christopher Price, who posted this in a comment here this morning: “Its got one of the best explanations of US foreign policy that I’ve seen in a long time. Kind of like what Condaleezza Rice was saying yesterday, but more succinct.” January 19th, 2005 | 32 comments - (Comments are closed)
Down with Kim Jong-il. Let’s all rise to drive out the dictatorial regime. – written on a Kim Jong-il poster in a North Korean factory January 18th, 2005 | 23 comments - (Comments are closed)
Winner libertarianism is about how to make the world better, and how the world is, at least in some ways, actually getting better. Winner libertarianism explains how I can make my life a success. I am free. Yes, governments do bad things, as do others, but they can be confronted, resisted, criticised, and sometimes – quite often actually – defeated. – Brian Micklethwait (PDF) January 17th, 2005 | 10 comments - (Comments are closed)
We have said it before, but it bears repetition, that the coming EU referendum campaign will be the first internet campaign in our history and I remain convinced that the material on the net will have a decisive impact on the course of the campaign. – Richard North, already quoted and linked to by Patrick Crozier as a response to my gloomier posting here January 12th, 2005 | 70 comments - (Comments are closed)
Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, showing some political leadership in his “State of the State” address. January 7th, 2005 | 21 comments - (Comments are closed)
[T]here is not much future in being a gatekeeper when the walls are down. – the final words of this article by Jack Kelly about the travails of old school journalism January 4th, 2005 | 2 comments - (Comments are closed)
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