Random

-Hilarious video mocking the A&M whiners.

-"Debracketed" trailer (spoofing Departed).

-The boxing kangaroo is a badass.

Hilarious Obama Stuff and More...

-Here's the text to Obama's truly great speech. It was great. I loved it. I'm still waiting for platforms before he gets my vote or even casual endorsement.

-Here's the Onion's AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING mockery of it. Read both of them, seriously.

-Agreed. The Fed is too easy on Wall Street. Let them flounder for at least a bit. This goes back to my earlier rantings about "taxpayer interests" in these massive companies which allows them to exploit exploit exploit in the good times and get massive government bailouts at the end. If there is the golden parachute after every failure, what is the incentive to not take stupid risks? We must let these companies fail so they have STRONG INCENTIVES to run their ship correctly. We won't be regulated in the upswings, but we'd love your help if we fail...

-Flattered, but not sure UCLA wants the Sports Guy on its bandwagon. It's getting mighty heavy already.

-Even Volcker agrees. Shocker there. But he's right.

-Hilarious.

-Great little article on where true health care spending in this country comes from.

-Think about how your money is spent before patting yourself on the back for donating to charity. It can do MORE harm than good.

-Cheap labor in China is reducing burgalaries in the US? Interesting.

-What kind of Duke hater are you?

-The NIT is still looking for teams.

Random Stuff

-First off, my Bruins have the number one seed in the west and a fast-track (read: fairly easy bracket) to the Final Four. Yesssss. So satisfying. But I must admit, beating Cal, SC, and Stanford (no refs this time) was probably more satisfying for the sake of the wins than the seeding. Also, after the game, I was at Yang Chow (amazing Chinese restaurant) and the whole team showed up. Amazing. Josh Shipp signed my jersey. Great great great day.

-Second, the Lakers lost to the Rockets with Rafer Alston's career night. Ugh. Shutting down T-Mac should be enough to beat that team, with or without Pau.

-Bruce Bowen = Jesus. In his own words. So ridiculous. He hacks more than a slasher movie and deserves any condemnation he gets.

-Someone put a 2 dollar bill on Bear Sterns' front door. Amazing.

Weekend Links

-I'm not sure how I feel about this move to cut off access to anything polluting more than conventional oil. It effectively cuts off our largest potential oil reserve and forces moves into cleaner energies, but are those energies ready?

-This makes me like McCain a little bit more. Fight big pharma my boy.

-Do economists take the term rule of law for granted?

-I'm conflicted. It does encourage safe behavior and is money we might have given anyway, but should we pay people to make self-interested decisions? What if it could reduce overall cost of health care by incentivizing health?

-Do parents have the right to choose which defects their children have? In Britain, parents cannot pick faulty genes (of which deafness is an example).

-GDP per head > GDP as an indicator for growth?

-An article explaining the marriage behavior of black women. Really really worth a read. Markets in everything.

Tim Floyd wants the IU job

FLOYDGATE!

Tim Floyd calling Indiana's Athletic Director in the middle of the Pac-10 Tournament.

A little word association:

perfect

amazing

karmic

love it

trojans

hahahahahahahahaha

Will this year's meltdown for Tim Floyd happen even before the tournament?

Links 3/14/08

Short links today

-The King is overrated? I have to say I really really am starting to like DeShawn Stevenson. Guy's got some serious cajones.

-A hotel dedicated to philosophy in Amsterdam. I'm staying there eventually. Maybe in the Kant room? What would the Nietzsche room look like?

-My favorite Kobe article from Kobe Bean Bryant Blog Day.

-Client #9's prostitute is already doing photo shoots. Hustler is next. There's a sick voyeurism and curiosity of putting a face and a family to a girl that brought down a governor.

-How to pitch anything in two minutes.

The End of History

"What we may be witnessing is not just the end of the Cold War, or the passing of a particular period of post-war history, but the end of history as such: that is, the end point of mankind's ideological evolution and the universalization of Western as the final form of human government." (quoted from "The End of History?", 1989)

I had a discussion with Rick while I was in New York about Fukuyama's "The End of History" and it has stuck with me for a surprisingly long time. Fukuyama, a Hegelian, believes that the advent of Liberal democracy signals the end of history, the last ideological innovation and the final form of government. Hegel himself believed that although his dialectic (thesis + antithesis = synthesis) would constantly move up the ladder of reason as good ideas were filtered out, but Hegel (as well as most Hegelians: Marx, Fukuyama, etc.) believed in the end of history as well. At some point humanity would reach such a high level of comprehension and reason that innovation would not only stagnate in that area, it would eventually stop. Now debating this literal interpretation may be a little harsh, but it certainly represents the substance of all three of these Hegelians' arguments.

In my philosophy courses, I argued vehemently against this sticking point for Hegel. I completely agree with the motion of history and the dialectic; the 20th century is a great example of this principle in motion. Liberal democracy vs. fascism. Liberal democracy refines itself as it emerges victories. Liberal democracy vs. communism. Same deal. Now liberal democracy is in a war of wills vs. Islamic theocracies. Who knows how this will turn out? I think that liberal democracy (and the accompanying capitalism) has a superior understanding of the human soul and the way that humanity works, but to declare an all-out victory this early would be nuts or to presume that the rational side always wins (barbarians anyone?). What if America goes the way of the Roman Empire, is this really a stretch? How much is this "victory" of reason contingent upon our superpower? What if China and India can't make it work? If we have less one billion (all of Western Europe + America) living under this triumphant system, does it really count as a win when most people live under tyranny or inequality?

Furthermore, the whole idea of the end of innovation here is insane. My whole point then (and now) was that we cannot stop developing reason because the human ingenuity constantly creates new problems to be solved. For instance, even if we reached the end of reason with the advent of modern democracy and the writing of the Federalist Papers/Wealth of Nations in the 18th century, not only will it take countless generations for this to fully play out (really, I don't ever think people will lose their fascination with anarchy, utopianism, or new ideas to try out and shake up the system), but we are inventing new conundrums by the day practically. Stem cell research, cloning, interstellar travel, meeting other forms of life eventually, etc. all will require reason and advances in thinking/philosophy to fully comprehend their implications and impact. In a universe of unlimited possibilities, how could we be so arrogant to decide that we will simply figure it all out, get it, and close the book.

Those of you (all three of you) who read this blog know that I am indeed a large fan of the liberal democracy and accompanying market economy. I think that it best fits our current conception of human nature, self-interest, and the spirit which guides men. It has been vastly improved over time and the way that we have structured our governments has become as close to perfect as we've ever had, but there's the rub. AS CLOSE TO PERFECT. Our electoral system still fucks up, still elects people without the popular vote, still does a bad (even horrible) job at protecting citizens from the whims of lobbyist money and their influence, still makes terrible foreign policy decisions despite over 100 years (going back the war with the Philippines in 1899) of experience watching them blow back right into our face. We are not perfect, period. And the idea that we ever will be in the way we govern ourselves is not only a joke, but its borderline dangerously arrogant. The idea that human ingenuity and markets can solve everything, from government to global warming to the ongoing trash/pollution problems, is haughty and extremely risky. And so far I'd hesitate to say that things are set up so well that they automatically fluctuate to the right spots and society allocates its resources perfectly.

I know that these are hard expectations to fill, but when one proclaims that we have reached the end of history, such a big claim must be vigorously defended. I guess the core of my arguments stems from my argument against the concept of utopia. Perfection is unattainable without controlling humanity to a frightening degree, which would not be perfection at all. Right now, yes, I don't see something challenging liberal democracy/market economy in the forseeable future, but to declare that nothing will is another story altogether. There is serious danger in getting comfortable, ceasing innovation, and stopping the search for new knowledge or better ideas. I don't think that the universe will ever stop changing or our understanding of it will ever be perfect, there's just too much to compute. I'm clearly in favor of dynamism and as great as the triumph over communism was, it's a joke to think of it as liberal democracy's last ideological enemy.

"To An Athlete Dying Young"

A beautiful poem...

A. E. Housman. 1859–

To An Athlete Dying Young

THE time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay,
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.

Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.

UCLA and the media

I'm not sure when UCLA became the favorite punching bag for the media or the scapegoat for all that is wrong with college basketball, but I must say that I was unimpressed by the media reaction to what certainly (when viewed in isolation) were some bad calls.

Yes, Collison probably didn't get fouled, he admitted as much. Josh Shipp, well who knows if that went over the backboard, but it's at least a debate. However, the reactions were completely unfair. I heard talk of "homecourt advantage" being the deciding factor (bullshit) or that UCLA doesn't deserve a number one seed as a result (more hogwash).

First of all, the Stanford game was not a case of homecourt advantage gone bad. The calls were so bad in the first half, and throughout the second up until that point, that people were booing the refs with a viciousness and ferocity I'd never, ever seen in all my years at Pauley. Stanford also blew a 12 point lead with under five minutes and then put in an all-time stinker in OT. Honestly, every game probably has a foul that questionable and the bad calls against UCLA all game helped. The better team won in OT.

Second of all, the Cal game was more of the same. UCLA's shot was not conclusively over the backboard, it's still being debated. The refs made a call. Period. Maybe it was wrong, but the foul call that preceded it should not be that controversial. At the end of games, sometimes players can get a little more physical. So what?

Finally, it's not like UCLA (lucky or not) has all the calls here. Remember Georgetown winning two big games on a questionable foul 80 feet from the basket and a goaltend? Remember Duke winning against UNC without sending Psycho T to the line once? How about the Washington State game where they were whistled for 7 fouls in a row to open, only to see their opponent whistled for the next 9? Honestly, this should not be that big of a deal and does NOT reflect upon UCLA as a team. Fuck the haters.

Inaugural Visit to New York, New York

New York, New York.

Such a loaded phrase. I recall watching "Silence of the Lambs" for the first time and having so many preconceptions, knowing so many plot details from endless pop culture references ("It puts the lotion on the skin," "Hello Clarisse"), and hearing it was one of the greatest movies ever so many times that it was nearly impossible for it to live up to the hype. I still loved the movie, but I felt a bit cheated and wished I'd been able to experience it all freshly. Now this analogy doesn't perfectly carry over to New York, but there was a certain deja vu about the whole visit from the familiar movies, TV shows, etc. that made my visit surreally impossible consider I'd never been there before.

First of all, flying Virgin America was the right call. Cheapest, great in-flight entertainment options, ability to order drinks through the monitor, and very attentive flight-attendants. I got in to NY on Friday night and it was super rainy, leaving me without the ability to check out the city as I rode in. Friday night was spent playing beer pong at Colombia, which was a lot of fun, followed by an inebriated taxi ride back to Brooklyn.

On Saturday, it was still rainy, so I spent the day going to the museums. I saw the Met, which I absolutely loved. The collection of Cezanne, Rembrandt, Matisse, Seurat, Monet, etc. was exactly what I wanted to see. Relative to the Louvre or the Museo Del Prado, which were impressive but too esoteric for me to really say I loved (I liked Musee de Orsay and Museo Reina Sofia much much more), the Met was a truly great experience. Also checked out the Jack Kerouac exhibit at the public library, which was also incredible. Saturday night, I went out New York style. We had a delicious dinner (although NY restaurants are way more cramped than LA) at Crispo (sitting next to Molly Shannon weirdly) and then went out to a bar and eventually Club 205. I really liked the scene in New York, although I think everything in New York is more expensive than LA (except cabs). The food throughout the weekend was incredible. New York pizza, Chinese, Italian, everything I ate was delicious.

Sunday was my day to walk around and enjoy the sun. It was finally beautiful weather (although 28 degrees in temperature) and I saw Times Square, Central Park, Ground Zero, the Statue of Liberty, Soho, and got to walk around a lot. I loved it. Sunday night was more laid back, spending the night in Columbia playing too much Smash Brothers (but in a good way). Although due to some questionable travel advice on the subway, I had to walk through Spanish Harlem with my luggage, which scared the bejeezus out of me. It wasn't as bad as it could have been or as my imaginary fears, but it was a stupid position to put myself into. On Monday, I went into our New York office (in the middle of Times Square right in front of where the bombing was last week) and saw a bunch of people I'd missed throughout the weekend.

Overall impressions: New York, despite being eerily familiar with the types of buildings and layout of the city from pop culture, must be experienced to be known. I certainly could not have anticipated just how sprawling, how large, or how intimidating the city really can be. There is so much to do and so much to see, I almost immediately understood how different it was from LA but how those two were the singular rivals for the greatest city in the union. It is literally teeming with culture and diversity, it was pretty incredible to behold. And, relative to LA, is much, much more concentrated. An apartment like mine would be completely unaffordable to almost anyone in NY. It was a great experience to not only see a bunch of my friends but to get to know a new city, which has become one of my favorite past times.

That said, I failed to own New York. I know how cocky that sounds, but on my travels through Europe my friend Jenna never even picked up a map or had a watch. I figured out the subways, I figured out how to get where we were going, and I had figured out every city we stayed in pretty well by the time we left. It's tough to do that in New York in 3 1/2 days, but it should have/could have been done. As a result of being passed from place to place and person to person in my weekend of couch-hopping, I never had to navigate the city myself (except that unfortunate experience in Harlem, but that gave me more confidence if anything) or move outside of my comfort zone. Things are a lot easier when you have a veteran of the city in your pocket all the time. But I really regret never gaining this independence (and packing too much) and these are things I would change big time the next time I go to New York. One bag, period, and much more self-reliance.

Would I want to live in New York? Tricky question. The answer is yes, but not indefinitely. While I did really enjoy myself, I really missed the open space of Los Angeles, having a car, the weather (God does NY weather suck), the beach, proximity to the family, etc. So I would love to live in NY for 6 months, go to school there for a few years, but not indefinitely. I couldn't settle down in NY. LA is my type of city.

Duplicity, Eternal Recurrence, and the Sunshine Test

At my job, we have a thing called the sunshine test that we are supposed to use to determine how we should be performing our tasks. If you were to complete the work in front of your grandmother (assuming she understood it all), how would you feel? The intended conclusion here is that you don't take shortcuts or perform unethically in your daily duties if you feel that all of your actions are transparent to one who's opinion of you really matters. It's a great ideal and a measuring stick I think back to during the drudgery of more menial tasks where cutting a corner would be easy, but would ultimately not be in the best interest of the client. It's hard to keep those incentives in-line in client-centered work, which is frustrating at times and dictated by demands of people who may or may not be completely unreasonable.

I have a dilemma with this whole approach because (until the forthcoming technocracy makes everything transparent) the sunshine relies on other peoples' consciences and not your own. I understand the point, but the hardcore existentialist in me resents an effort to shape action aside from internal values and ideals. Personally, I like Nietzsche's concept of eternal recurrence, which is essentially a spin on reincarnation where, instead of living your next life based on the karma from your current one, you must live the same life over and over and over again, in perpetuity. If you are to fulfill eternal recurrence, you will move forward and embrace the reliving of your current life because you lived without regret. It would not be painful to relive this life, because you'd live it the same way again anyway.

For the most part, I feel that I have lived my life the right way, but it's always challenging and impossible to say you have no regrets. Most of my regrets have not been in the way of major life decisions (i.e. I think I chose the right college, have applied my efforts in the right areas, and have no real regrets about taking my current job), but have been in my interpersonal life. Yeah, sure, everyone realizes they could have dated so and so, or made this move, etc., yet the real regrets in my life have been about words and interpersonal relationships rather than actions. I think everyone talks and everyone talks shit at one time or another, but it's something I've been straining hard against. That transparency, the aforementioned sunshine test, has been in the back of my mind when people ask me about people I know as human beings, job prospects, or in any capacity.

The precise actions which I have taken in the past that have been most troublesome, most hurtful, and most regrettable have not been romantic entanglements but small comments, slips, or information that I should not have divulged. Even if it was intended as a joke or never intended to get back to the person. I've relived some of those moments more times than I'd like to remember, pinpointing precisely where I should have shut up. That doesn't change what you said or what you should have said. I've started to attempt to reform this universal foible and have focused on being much kinder, especially when I don't have nice things to say. Why say anything at all? Goes back to the great philosopher Thumper from "Bambi." If I know someone who has embezzled or physically abused their girlfriend or something, I'd bring that up and let my friend now before advising or declining to advising their hiring, but mostly I'd say the right approach is live and let live. The new sunshine test - pretend whoever you are talking about is right their in the room with you, so if you have to say something mean, at least ensure that you can back it up or it is important enough to be justified/mentioned. Bringing up trivial skeletons in someone's close is unkind and unnecessary 99.999999% of the time.

I've been frustrated with this in other people recently, the duplicity of it all. I know we are all different people based on our circumstances, but I think that removing the two-faced nature of our personalities will lead to a lot less conflict, a lot less internal guilt and harm, and just generally a better relationship with other people. I don't want to be known (and I'm not for the record, but that's not enough) as a preacher's wife or a gossip and it'd be hypocritical for me to condemn others for character flaws I'm yet to master (maybe that guilt over my own failings has something to do with this), but I'm working towards that ideal. Life would be simpler if you knew where you stood with people, not where they stand with you and a big question mark when you are no longer around. Part of my journey will be to figure out how to walk this line, but I feel that keeping the sunshine talking shit test in mind will help me moving forward. At the same time, I must accept that human drama is inevitable and the source of much meaning as well as pain in our lives. It's a transaction cost for having relationships that mean something. While there may not be a shangri-la, a perfect place where all exist in harmony, I think that tweaking the way we speak, or at least thinking before we speak, about other people could improve a lot of people's lives, including my own.

Sunshine, indeed.

Super-sized links 3/11/08

This is a lot of links (I used nary a computer all weekend and loved it) and I still need to write a post about NY. But there's some good ones here. Wild weekend for my Bruins as well...

-It's Kobe Bryant blog day. This guy has a seriously creepy man crush on him, but this is a really thorough article on Bryant's greatness.

-Sinbad vs. Hilary Clinton. Yes, that Sinbad. And he's right.

-I will now think about why I have traffic every time I'm stuck on the 101 and curse this article. One person is all it takes people to create a huge traffic jam.

-Freakanomics has declared it a recession, but the Fed keeps trying to jumpstart the economy. This is going to be interesting to see how it plays out.

-UCLA, dominating the Pac-10 honors.

-Free is the future of business. Eh, I'm kind of in disagreement on this one.

-This is badass. A bar owner has built an anti-drug dealer robot. So hilarious.

-Visiting the 22 countries "happier" than the US. According to surveys of course.

-This answers most of my problems with aid donations. I'm definitely that guy who asks where the money is going when people ask me to donate to Africa. But, bottom line, running a charity like a business is better for everybody, especially recipients.

-More Kobe love. He's half-man, half-amazing.

-The connection between arts + smarts. It's real.

-A Darwinian case for altruism.

-Implications for ubiquitous surveillance. Interesting bit about the level of power relative to information equality.

-Microcredit is not enough according to Suroweicki. Small loans need to be supplemented by real businesses causing real growth.

Links 3/5/08

-Creating and entrapping terrorists to cause fear? Interesting. Sure, dismiss it because it's Rolling Stone, but when Schneier is also down, it's unfortunately legit.

-Dear Zogby, you stink. Amazing.

-Macbeth and the moral universe. I'm always down for Shakespeare.

-Benny the Bull on Jerry Springer. Very funny.

-4 UCLA freshmen (the entire recruiting class) next year on the USA Junior Select Team, which is a 10 man roster. 40%! Damn I'm stoked for next season and this season is still amazing...

Car accident... near miss

So ridiculous. As I'm driving to work this woman, should I say space cadet, veers into my lane and gets about 2 feet from entering my driver side. I honk and scream and swerve into the other lane, narrowly avoiding an accident. As she corrects her course and moves forward a bit (btw she had not used her turn indicator), I notice that she veers again (probably checking her Blackberry or her cell phone). Her license plate: LOOKNOHANDS (picture of hand). I theorize she is driving with her knees or mentally damaged.

My coworker summed it up perfectly: "Look no hands, try no brain."

Dorm Life and webisode recommendations

My boy Woogene recommended www.dorm-life.com for its hilarious webisodes, and I must admit they are amazing. His homie does the camera work, so check it out.

Also, if you aren't into Clark and Michael, starring Michael Cera from Arrested Development and Superbad, get into it. Seriously.

Links 3/4/08

-Top 10 sports press conference meltdowns. Awesome.

-Who lost in BluRay vs HD-DVD? Everybody.

-Kobe > LeBron

"He Got Game" Review

Always interested in Spike Lee's work, although I consistently recognize it's imperfection, I watched "He Got Game" with Denzel Washington, Ray Allen (I know right), Rosario Dawson, John Turturro, and a cast of NBA/college all-stars and coaches.

This movie could have been a million stories of anyone who grew up in the ghetto, was pushed too hard by his father, affected by those around him in prison, and ultimately became a star athlete as the only real means out of the struggle. As a result though, every single person in his life tried to get theirs, through him, except his sister. His girlfriend was getting paid to introduce him to an agent, his coach was handing him stacks of hundred dollar bills, his adoptive father tried to get a deal for him that resulted in a new car, his friends constantly asked him for money, and ultimately his father asked him to choose his college to get him out of prison. Although the premise of the movie, Denzel killing his wife on accident and getting a chance to cut his jail sentence in half in exchange for swaying his son's choice to the governor's college of choice, is clearly ridiculous, as I explained to my roommate, "It's Spike Lee." I have the same problem when people call Wes Anderson dry, I simply ask, "What the fuck did you expect?"

Interestingly, Jesus, the name of the basketball player played by Ray Allen, is supposed to be a savior (the name is too obvious for words) but he, like all other mortals, is not perfect himself. He has admirably raised his kid sister (even she is caught up in the hype of being the sister of the greatest pro prospect of his generation), but the movie never even delves into how he is supposedly financing their apartment and life together without a job. Perhaps it was better not to explain where this money comes from. Jesus is a good kid who has prevailed after watching his father kill his mother on accident and endured torturous one on one games with his father that ultimately made him great, but also made him hate his father. He really cares about getting an education more than the instant payday, which is admirable considering his economic circumstances, and does a good job of resisting the goods and impure focuses of those around him. It is him and his sister versus the world, and he's doing pretty well for himself.

While watching this movie, I kept thinking that it was like a Greek tragedy, almost predictable how it would end. Although it ultimately did not end in tragedy, it expectedly ended in a 1 on 1 rematch between father and son that made more and more sense as the backstory of their lives unfolded during the course of the film. The non-linear story telling worked well I thought. But instead of a Greek tragedy, it was almost an allegory or a morality play. The colleges were hilariously named (Tech U and Big State) and the characters were exaggerative caricatures expressing a serious flaw and representing different pools of impure interests. The agents, the coaches, the friends were all very specific people but very general at the same time. It was like they represented the people in the life of anyone in Jesus's position, this story is the story of all inner-city athletes.

Sure, Spike Lee tends to oversimplify to get at the root of a problem and he also tends to have hyperboles as characters, but he is a wonderful filmmaker. Each of his films is a love letter to the city it is shot in, immaculately textured with iconic shots of the area. The cinematography, the editing, the rhythm, the Spike Lee textbook barrage of speakers juxtaposed and skillfully woven into one speech from a million mouths; he is an incredible director. The score, combined with the Public Enemy soundtrack, was also wonderful. Although he is flawed, biased, and certainly vulnerable to attack, Spike Lee always brings out some sort of metaphysical truth from the situations and seems to be able to tap into the collective unconscious of a culture (not just blacks, has anyone seen "25th Hour"). His movies are indicative, albeit exaggerated, films about the collective experience of a people. He may be many things, but he is one of the most powerful and talented directors in the game. We should never underestimate how rare it is for a director to have the ability to make us feel, to make us empathize, and understand some truth from an experience, especially one that feels alien to the world we personally know.

Baseball Boogie

Go Dodgers! Go Dodgers! It's your birthday... go go go...

Links 3/3/08

First off, I have to give a big shout out to Mr. Torn-Tendon-But-I'm-Going-OFF-For-52-Anyway, Kobe Bryant. Sick game. Sick game. Dallas needed that win, it would have been signature win for them in the Jason Kidd era. Too bad. KOBE KOBE KOBE. If he seriously doesn't get MVP after the joke of a Steve Nash 2x MVP, the MVP voting has officially become entirely political and a waste of our time... like the Oscars before Scorcese won. Also, I have never seen Kobe so happy as he was in the post-game interview. His smile was infectious.
-Kobe praise. More Kobe praise. Love it.

Also, UCLA beat Arizona. I hate Arizona. HATE Arizona. Always makes me happy to see them lose (especially if its 6 out of 7 baby!). No tourney for them! I definitely left my GMAT class to watch the end of the game (oops hahaha).

-Gen Y: not as selfish as we think? But seriously, all this babying and pampering and banning dodgeball and the like is not good for our kids either. We need adversity and competition and challenges to grow, so insulating our children from any failures does not make well-adjusted young men or women.

-The Onion: ripping on religion. Awesome.

-Marginal Revolution: anti-Rawlsian. Haven't digested this one yet.

-The world's first metaphysical poll on Democratic contenders. Huh?

-True or not, I want this job. I'd even do it for Jerry Bruckheimer.

-List of all deadline deals in the NBA going way back. Awesome.

-I have to admit, I kind of hate Vince Carter too.

-Drinking + writing = genius.

-Americans and ethno-nationalism, a great perspective.

-China's internet firewall will be selectively dismantled for foreigners at the Olympics. Genius.