Wednesday Links

Dear James, Daniel and Emily,

Here are some links for ya:

A Mathematical model of the results of a Zombie attack

I think it is so cool and geeky that some people actually took the time to sit down and figure this out. I cannot even attempt to verify the math, but it's pretty cool that they tried to sit down and figure it all out.

Youth Sports Parents blog

I have linked to this site before but the top 2 articles caught my eye. The point about Yang winning a sport he didn't start playing until he was 19 is a good one. And the note about moderation is key as well I think. I was talking to some parents yesterday, whose son plays soccer with James, and the Dad coaches soccer. And they were talking about how they put their son in a soccer skills camp this summer. And yes that will mean he may be better than James this year, I tend to think James will get more long term playing multiple sports: soccer, baseball, and basketball, maybe football. My point is I don't see the need for him to join a travelling team yet, and the certainly doesn't need to be focusing on just 1 sport just yet.

Glenn Greenwald takes a long time to get to an important point

The point is that what we are witnessing with the Health care debate: the PR campaign from the Right, the passivity of the Blue Dogs, the seeming lack of resolve from the White House all stem from the biggest issue behind all of this: money. The big money is controlling this debate (and quite possibly the White House). And the people who really need this change, are not hearing that, they are instead hearing stuff like: "it's communism, socialist, what have you". There was an aside on Mad Men the other night when one of the guys was complaining that there was no sense in earning a certain amount of money because they would be taxed 69%. Oh for the good old days when people thought that was too much!

Just once I want Obama to answer the question that's always posed: how are you going to pay for it? With this response: "I'm going to pay for it by taxing the richest 1% of the country's population, people who can afford it, just a couple of percentage points more then they pay now." But he will never say that and we will never witness a response like that so long as that 1% controls our government. And to anyone who thinks that isn't the case, that the government isn't under the control of the richest people and the biggest corporations I give you this debate as a counter example. It is sickening and gut wrenching to watch and admit. But when the seemingly most progressive candidate in 30 years gets elected, and gets a filibuster proof majority in the Senate along with a vast majority in the House, and together they cannot pass legislation that the majority of this country wants, I submit that it is because those people in power are under the sway of rich individuals and corporations that have made it clear they do not want that legislation passed.