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Saturday, May 10, 2008
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Here's a look at the war on drugs from James Gibney (via The Atlantic). He writes:
You'd have to be sucking on a doobie as big as a submarine to think our current drug-control policies work: from 1982 to 2005, the Drug Enforcement Administration's budget increased roughly tenfold, the national arrest rate for drug offenses more than doubled (from 286 per 100,000 to 600 per 100,000) ... and a dangerous drug like cocaine became dramatically less expensive. Meanwhile, busts for the possession of marijuana, which also figured prominently in the San Diego State investigation, still account for the most drug arrests in this country.
The war on drugs not only wastes law-enforcement resources, it also corrodes our respect for the law in general. Using a relatively benign drug like marijuana should become a regulated pastime, indulged in by consenting adults, much like drinking alcohol or gambling. Drunk driving kills more than 17,000 people each year, and 3 percent of the U.S. population meets the criteria for "problem gamblers." But no one talks seriously about reviving the 18th Amendment or shuttering Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Why? Because Prohibition taught us that banning such activities creates a nation of lawbreakers and a popular culture that exalts criminality. Costly, dubious, and ineffective legal strictures just end up undermining the social compact they're intended to reinforce.
Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the link.
"2008 pres"
9:12:46 AM 
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The Nation Center for Atmospheric Research has a shiny new computer from IBM to help with climate analysis, according to DailyTech. From the article:
It's a well known fact that developing realistic models to simulate climate change scenarios is a challenge, arduous, and cerebral task that currently is done rather poorly. Many models feature glaring flaws, and most models lag behind true prediction, trying to be able to repeat previous weather patterns as proof of concept that there future predictions will hold true. And most have trouble even doing that. Half of the equation is coming up with a better understanding of the math and physics driving the problem. The other half of the equation to improve the struggling weather modeling community is allocating more computing resources. Weather models take massive amounts of number crunching to generate semi-accurate results. The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) is working to shore up the latter count with the addition of a massive new IBM supercomputer to its Boulder, CO research center. The center is arguably the nation's largest hotbed for climate and weather research. The new supercomputer, a Power 575 Hydro- Cluster, will not only allow it to improve its analysis, but also to conserve energy, thanks to an energy efficient design by IBM...
Part of the use of the cluster will center on climate change. Researchers hope to analyze effects that warming (or cooling) might have on the environment, such as future patterns of precipitation, droughts, changes in growing seasons, and warming's influence on hurricanes. The system will also analyze severe weather in the present. Researchers hope to use the system's power to develop more accurate weather forecasting models. These models will in turn help to forewarn citizens of impending severe weather. With tornado deaths in the U.S. jumping from 67 to 81 between 2006 and 2007, and with 75 U.S. tornado casualties already this year, these models can literally be life-saving...
One of the computer's first main tasks will be a heady and likely controversial one. The system will be tasked with developing climate simulations for use in the next meeting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the UN organization monitoring global warming and other climate change phenomena. The organization shared the Nobel Prize in 2007...
NCAR is under the administration of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR). The National Science Foundation (NSF) primarily sponsors the center's research. Other funding comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Department of Defense (DOD), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
"cc"
8:24:56 AM
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Juan Cole "The Iraqi military has warned civilians to leave the vast slum of Sadr City, apparently in preparation for a massive government assault on the Mahdi Army militia based there. Since slum dwellers notoriously lack the means to leave their slums, this call seems more likely to be for the sake of appearances than a realistic expectation. When thousands are massacred in the course of a military attack on a densely packed civilian area, the authorities will be able to say that they gave fair warning. Although the US demonizes the Mahdi Army, Many Sadr City residents view it as in part a charitable organization, and they also are often grateful for the security it provides. It is not as if the federal government is providing security."
"2008 pres"
7:48:59 AM
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Juan Cole: "On late Friday, the Lebanese army moved into some neighborhoods that had been taken during the day by the Hizbullah militia. Hizbullah routed Sunni militiamen loyal to Saad Hariri and set fire to the offices of al-Mustaqbal newspaper, his press outlet. (The Lebanese Army declined to intervene, the same mistake it made in 1975). Likewise, the Futur or Mustaqbal television station is off the air after employees fled for "security reasons." But the fighting hasn't just been between Sunni and Shiite."
Here's the play by play from a blogger on the ground in Beirut. Thanks to Talking Points Memo for the link.
Here's a roundup of opinion about Beirut from Andrew Sullivan who asks, "What the hell is going on in Beirut?"
normblog: "Today I'm celebrating the 60th anniversary of the foundation of the state of Israel, and I invite readers of normblog to join me in doing so. Here are six reasons, one for each decade, why Israel's existence is something worth celebrating."
Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the link.
"2008 pres"
7:47:55 AM
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David Sirota (via Politics West): "The issue of race makes a lot of folks uncomfortable - and that's especially true right now when the nation is closer than ever to electing the first black President of the United States. As my new newspaper column this week shows, many Serious People who dominate our political debate have reacted to this historic election and their own queasiness about race by exposing their prejudices. On one side, you have the ostriches - the political "thinkers" like Reihan Salam and Michael Lind who look at the Race Chasm and pretend it doesn't exist...On the other side you have the minstrel show producers - the media and politicians who are more than thrilled to exploit race and treat African Americans as less than human...Each side is expressing a form of bigotry."
"2008 pres"
7:47:18 AM
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Andrew Sullivan: "Let's fight the culture war again: Boomer-con [Charles] Krauthammer cannot wait for another election about the red-blue, Vietnam-era, divide"
Political Wire "A new American Research Group poll in West Virginia finds Sen. Hillary Clinton way ahead of Sen. Barack Obama, 66% to 23%."
"2008 pres"
7:45:57 AM
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© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/15/09; 2:24:37 PM.
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