09:00 – I see that Obama apparently ordered his minions to declare a surprising decline in unemployment to aid his campaign. Looking at the actual report makes it clear that these numbers have been massaged and spun to make Obama look good. In reality they are, as everyone expected, worse month-on-month and year-on-year. Of course, Obama is counting on the fact that the media won’t bother to look behind the headline number. The real number, the one that matters, is non-government, non-farm employment, which you’ll never see reported because it makes clear just how bad things are and that they’re getting worse with every report.
We’re working hard on a new batch of biology kits, but I’m afraid we’re going to run dry before the new batch is ready. We’re also down to about half a dozen chemistry kits, although we have another 15 of those that just need to be boxed up. Barbara is getting ready to head over to parents’ house, where the clean-up continues. They’re getting a bunch of stuff ready to be picked up Monday by Good Will. Once that’s finished they can start throwing a lot of stuff away, and then finally get started on cleaning the house itself. I’ll be working on more biology kit stuff.
11:45 – Not even close: The craziest things found in the refrigerator
They really need to visit our house. Compared to some of the stuff Barbara has stumbled on in our refrigerators, these folks are complete amateurs. Okay, I’ll grant you that the sheep’s brain would get an honorable mention here.
13:36 – This guy nails it: Obama did not ‘underperform’: we saw the real man
I almost sprayed Coke out my nose when I read the claim of Obama as an “intellectual giant”. Intellectual midget, more like. Although we’ve had some reasonably bright presidents, there’s been exactly one US president with a valid claim to that title: Tom Jefferson. None of the others have come remotely close.
re economic statistics (and I’m using that only in the sense of lies and damned lies), see Extreme Initial Claims Danger, especially the third chart and the comment following it.
Jack Welch sets the left on fire…
Unbelievable jobs numbers..these Chicago guys will do anything..can’t debate so change numbers
http://techcrunch.com/2012/10/05/twitter-gone-crazy-former-ge-ceo-jack-welch-inspires-web-wide-obama-conspiracy/
The thing I find unforgivable is that Dubya is allegedly smarter than me. Just another reason I am skeptical of IQ rankings.
RBT, your petty jealousy is showing. You’re just upset that Teh One has a Nobel Prize and you don’t. And his isn’t some cheesy science prize that no one can understand anyway. His prize is for Peace. You just can’t beat that. That is, you just can’t beat that, so don’t even try.
Hey, Clinton was moderately smart wasn’t he? He was a Rhodes Scholar.
Obama is an “intellectual giant” in the same sense that Mo was an intellectual giant compared to Larry and Curly.
±1 sigma (85 – 115) = normal
+1 to +2 sigma (115 – 130) = bright
+2 to +3 sigma (130 – 145) = gifted
+3 to +4 sigma (145 to 16o) = highly gifted (near genius)
+4 to +5 sigma (160 to 175) = exceptionally gifted (genius)
+5 to +6 sigma (175 to 190) = profoundly gifted (high genius)
190+ = someone whom ordinary geniuses consider scary smart
Sorry, Greg. There’s nothing that comes close to IQ for high correlation to intellectual ability. Not even remotely close. If it really bothers you, perhaps you should be retested. I had my IQ tested frequently from before I started elementary school until grad school, with ratio IQ tests in elementary school and deviation IQ tests thereafter. The results stayed remarkably consistent (within 0.25 sigma), but I haven’t had a formal test since I was in my early 20’s. I suspect if I had one done today I’d score lower. I’m not as quick as I used to be.
The other game that they play with employment numbers: people who have given up looking for work are no longer counted as unemployed. Granted, in this case, this numbers did not go up, but it is still a huge cheat. Not being able to find a job does not remove one from the set of unemployed people. If you include only those people “not in the labor force” who state that they do want a job, the unemployment rate is 11.6%.
You could include a lot more. Seems to me that anyone receiving government aid, who does not have a job, should be counted, even if they are not looking for work (i.e., the welfare queens). Likely there are other categories buried in the “not in the labor force” statistic that also ought to be included…
Obama as a great orator: This has always been transparent. Any time he is not reading a prepared speech, usually off of a teleprompter, he is hesitant. He’s just not that good at thinking spontaneously or articulating his ideas. That needn’t be a criticism – lots of people aren’t great speakers. It only becomes a criticism because of the way people have fallen all over themselves admiring his speaking ability. The debates simply reveal the truth of the matter.
I actually do think Obama is quite smart, in a bookish way. He has just come from a particular background, and in his presidency he has continued to surround himself with the same kind of ivory-tower progressives. As a group, they reinforce one another, and insulate him from the fact that his policies have not worked, and never will. They apparently believe that if they only keep bashing on reality with wads of (other people’s) money, someday they will wear reality down.
Obama is probably, like most presidents probably have been, in the range I defined as “bright”. At best, that puts him as maybe 1 in 44, or not quite 1 in 50, which is Mensa’s standard. Or perhaps I’m being unfair to him. He may be a bit brighter than that, but I’d be very surprised if he was in the top 1% in terms of IQ.
I’ve seldom heard Obama speak. We didn’t, for example, watch the debate. But those times I have heard him speak, he struck me as a poor orator but one with a very good voice. Those obviously aren’t the same thing.
Obama’s preaching to his True Believers. He could show up half-drunk, slur the words, and veer away from the script on the teleprompter, and the True Believers would still have a tingle go up their legs at the sincerity and power behind his speech.
“he struck me as a poor orator”
I agree with this. He “gives good speech” to paraphrase Hillary (I think she’s the one who said that). There have been a lot of retreads in his speeches lately with the same topics from 2008. I don’t think he even writes much of his speeches. I believe he would do better in a debate if he did.
The next debate is “town hall” style. I wonder how Candy Crowley will filter incoming questions. Anybody here think CNN is in the tank for Obama? It will also include foreign policy which Obama can now say he has “four years” of experience. I think Romney could bury him after the embassy debacle. Giving good will speeches and apologies isn’t a foreign policy. But he does have Biden, selected as VP because of his great experience in foreign policy?
Today there were two more troops lost in Afganistan (Obama’s just war). I didn’t post about the last loses. The MSM doesn’t care. I wonder if Romney will hit him somehow in that area.
I made an amazing discovery. Did you know that mattresses and box springs have gotten taller over time? I’m not referring to the more expensive pillow top mattresses either. Either that or they shrink significantly over time. I was going to replace my mom’s old mattress with a newer one we happened to be storing in our basement that I thought was the same size. The newer box springs turned out to be an inch higher than the older one. The new mattress appears to be closer to two inches higher than the old one. That doesn’t count the significant sag in the old mattress due to age and lack of dryness. At least the old mattress is in a vinyl cover and my mom’s bed has clean and dry sheets.
Most of Coyne’s fanboys seem to be liberals who adore Obama.
Oh yeah, I think IQ is important, and I’d rather be smart than dumb. I just don’t place the same degree of importance on it that ou do. The boy I sat next to in Year 11 was much brighter than me, but that didn’t save him from going to jail for car theft. The only jails I’ve seen are museums. I could say more but I have already done so in the past.
The thing that bugs me is that Dubya is in the 115-130 range like me but is a complete dope and probably doesn’t even realise it. As a great man once said: “a man’s gotta know his limitations.”
The thing I find unforgivable is that Dubya is allegedly smarter than me.
The evidence is that he’s pretty smart. He’s just not glib in the way Obama and Clinton are. A coworker was appointed to a Texas state board that advised the government on policies and services for the mentally handicapped. He was put forward by a parent’s support group, and despite not being politically active or a donor, Dubya appointed him. He said that in meetings, Dubya ran them like a CEO – followed the agenda. had read and understood his briefing book, asked good questions, had a good grasp of the budget effects of recommendations from the board, and was very personable. He just hates talking public.
As for Obama, I figure he’s somewhat smart, above average. He’s good at reading a prepared speech. However, his policy decisions indicate that he’s probably not comfortable with science and math. He probably took the minimum of math and science in college, probably a semester or two of algebra or “business math”, along with “Rocks for Jocks” or “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”.
Here is your IQ test.
http://www.iqtest.dk/main.swf
Seems geometry oriented. I scored a 122 and regret those lost 40 minutes.
Why do Antec case fans and power supplies die after 3 years ? I love the Antec Sonata III case for its rolled steel edges and passable power supply. I have bought about 15 of them but am have replaced hlf of the power supplies and case fans (sitting here with a dieing case fan main bearing right now):
http://www.amazon.com/Antec-Sonata-III-500-Quiet/dp/B000QAVVAM/
I’ve bought a couple of the Antec Sonata IV cases but I do not like them as much as the III as the drive rails are totally different, have a big hole in the side, etc.
I once saw Dubya’s IQ estimate as being 125. I think a president should have to be 140+.
I’d like to try somebody dumb in there. It can’t come out any worse than with the so-called smarties. Most of the ‘dumb’ farmers around here are pretty damned rich. They know how not to run deficits.
Scientists nowadays skew strongly libertarian and liberal. You’ll find relatively few scientists who self-identify as conservative. That’s a relatively recent phenomenon, coincident with the rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party. It’s only to be expected, as the Republicans have become increasingly anti-science over the last few decades. Furthermore, considering that Coyne is an evolutionary biologist and that the Republicans deny evolution, one has to expect his readership to be against the Republicans.
Nobody with an IQ of 140 is going to accept being President. They’re TOO smart.
Dubya played the doofus like Reagan did. And Chuck is right, we need a rich farmer in charge. They not only know how the bread gets buttered, but they know how to make both bread and butter.
Right. Because Jimmeh Peanut was such a blatant success.
[snip] He could show up half-drunk, slur the words, and veer away from the script on the teleprompter, and the True Believers [snip]
The True Believers would claim he’s the second coming of Teddy Kennedy.
Almost. Swimmer Kennedy (aka Teddy the Hutt) had Kopechne in his car because he planned to have sex with her.
Obama would never do such a thing. Not with a woman. A pretty young Indonesian boy, on the other hand…
Dave B. says:
I made an amazing discovery. Did you know that mattresses and box springs have gotten taller over time? I’m not referring to the more expensive pillow top mattresses either. Either that or they shrink significantly over time.
You are right: mattresses these days are much, much thicker. Since I have had to deal with buying new beds, I found this out. Not sure who is responsible for this, but the trend is to eliminate the box spring or “foundation” as the sleep stores call them, and make the mattresses thicker so you do not need the box spring any longer. The retail people are ecstatic about this, because they do not have to deliver 2 items anymore, just one big damned heavy bulky one.
I recently helped relatives with a new mattress, and it replaced an older box spring and mattress and still the sleeping surface is higher off the floor with only the mattress than with both of the older components in place.
It is difficult to find good mattresses these days. And the ones I have seen, all have what I call a ‘toadstool pad’ on one side, making it either difficult or impossible to use both sides, as only one side is now intended for sleeping. So much for flipping the mattress to make it wear more evenly.
Of course (as you are saying to yourselves about my affection for the European way), I became attached to the low profile European beds. No box spring; the mattresses lay directly on support slats that attach to the side rails, being no thicker than they used to be. And instead of having to climb up into bed, they are at a much lower level that is easier for me to get in and out of bed, although my relatives think otherwise. What is more, the mattresses were so incredibly comfortable. Beds for 2 people are actually made up of 2 separate mattresses, across which you put the bedding.
When I had to outfit Tiny House, I bought both bed and mattress from IKEA, getting the stuff that was as close as possible to what we had in Strausberg (which was also an IKEA bed). Mine is the MALM style. The other thing I do is sleep “on the sheets”. In the US, the habit is to put a sheet on the mattress, then another covering that, and you sleep “between the sheets”. There is no top sheet in much of Europe; they have ‘pocket sheets’ to encase comforters, and that is the top sheet. So much easier to make the bed in the morning. Shake the comforter straight, fluff the pillow, and in about 5 seconds, the bed is made. Wow. If you go to the German or Swedish site of IKEA and check the pictures, it will show what I mean.
My wife and I have a thick pillowtop mattress. it does still have a box spring. We have a standard height box spring, but they do make them shorter to still have things come out to normal height.
I am probably more intelligent than W, but I think he is far more qualified than I am to be President. It is very easy to say what the President ought to do. It is a far different thing to make decisions when whatever you choose, there’s going to be at least one editorial in every newspaper criticizing your decisions.
After decades of wars, cop work, and massive substance abuse, my IQ dropped from around 100 to about 73 or so now. I can barely string a damn sentence together and tie my shoes. Math? Don’t make me laff; I checked our bank balance just now and it had a minus sign in front of the number and that fucked me all up. Why do they do that?
Greece is swirling not so merrily down the drain, to be followed by the rest of the southern Med tier and then eventually the northern Euro tier and the UK and Ireland. Scandinavia and North America will hang on by our bloody fingernails for a while but eventually we will slip and fall headlong into the abyss of massive civil disorder, revolution and civil war again. The Great Default cometh, and with it, entirely new and unpredictable historical territory in a huge country with gigantic cities of 320 million or so people and at least half a billion firearms.
Cue in the widespread power brownouts and blackouts and there goes the grid, along with the three-day-inventory scheme of all the stores and food distribution. Cue in additionally some really bad weather, another terrorist attack or two, and the inability, as the Greek state is gonna find real soon now, to pay the army and police, and Game Over.
We are moved in pretty much now at our new (1830) house on Lake Champlain (northern end, Vermont side, about a half-hour from Quebec) and starting to batten down the hatches in our little 19th-C port village, just behind ye olde Towne Hall and ye olde Methodist church (formerly Congregational, i.e., descendant of Pilgrims, Puritans, et. al.) and behind us is the town park where our militia company will conduct its drills. Another mile or so up the road is the sportsmens’ club and firing ranges, and behind all this are several dozen square miles of dairy farms.
I have wireless set up pretty good here with Mrs. OFD’s Vista laptop and Win7 netbook, the Win7 desktop, the RHEL 6.2 desktop and the ancient Toshiba laptop in the basement at my reloading and gun-smithing bench running Ubuntu 12.04, believe it or not, on 1 GB of RAM. With the Unity thingy. Soon to try wireless streaming of movies and TV shows to our little media center down in the living room.
Saw my breath in the air this morning and right now I am looking out from my new and nicely roomy upstairs “office” at a big gorgeous tree in full red and orange foliage behind the woodworkers’ house and shop and the town hall. From the living room windows we can see the old pier sticking out into the Lake between two beautiful yellow aspen trees and the lonely old town police launch sitting in its berth. Overhead, thousands of Canadian geese every day heading south, ospreys grabbing fish outta the lake right in front of us, and we are told to look for both bald and golden eagles and various types of hawks now.
I gotta staht taking pics and post them somewhere…very interesting stuff around here…the town/city three miles up the hill behind us is sort of a ‘retro’ place, reminds me a lot of New England towns back in the 50s and 60s.
The situation in Greece is already more dire than the government is willing to admit. A Catholic Priest, Father Christiaan Kappes and his translator are missing. Basically some people wanted the 70,000 Euro inheritance his translator got. The people who wanted it were her relatives.