Economic Emasculation

Well, fellow Americans, take notice: as of this morning, Mar. 15, 2008, our economy is no longer the biggest in the world, a position we have consistently held since the end of WWII. That distinction now belongs to the EU. I don't see this in many headlines, and there doesn't seem to be much discussion of it. Perhaps it's just too hard on the national pysche to deal with this---we Americans do always like to think we've got the biggest dicks.

Strangely, I actually feel that this is a good thing, at least for now. The low dollar (and high euro) is causing many European companies to consider opening new factories in working cities across America. Considering that we have been off-sourcing manufacturing for decades now, and our economy is over 75% services at this point, I think this could be a blessing in disguise. A nation that can't make anything is doomed to failure (see the rise and fall of the Roman Empire for more details...)

Congressional Science Injection

The US Congress got a badly-needed shot of rationality today as Democrat Bill Foster won the special election to replace retired speaker of the house Dennis Hastert. Leaving aside the fact that winning an election in a heavily Republican district bodes well for the fall, the thing that excites me most is Foster's 25-year record as a particle physicist and proponent of scientific research. In a legislative body full of dogmatic thinking and bully pulpits, even a single scientific and rationally-based member can go a long way. I didn't think Foster would win. The Repubs sunk a ton of cash into this race, and even got John McMaverick to campaign for Foster's opponent. The fact that the nerdy rational thinker pulled it out, in the district of the birthplace of Ronald Reagan, no less, is perhaps another sign that we're turning a corner on these long years of critical ignorance.

Wii Fit for US!

I've been waiting patiently for the US release of Wii Fit, which looks like a lot of fun. It's been out in Japan since December but doesn't come out in the US until May. Why the delay? Well, apparently so that Nintendo can make a bigger board. No comment necessary.

Eclipse

During the break between classes tonight I had the chance to glance up and see the lunar eclipse. Perfect night for it---clear sky, great visibility. It was weird to watch the perfect arc move across the full moon. It was beautiful in a peaceful sort of way, and lots of others were out there watching it too. My earlier class had ended a little early so I had a good half hour to get into it. A well-needed injection of natural phenomena into my otherwise crammed Wednesday.

Then, I went into my Chinese history class, and the instructor mentioned how eclipses were bad omens for the ancient dynasties---they could signal distress or even the eminent collapse---one had actually happened right before the fall of the northern Song. Hmmm... considering there's been a Bush or Clinton on every ticket since the year I was born, might we be seeing the end of a dynasty here in our own land? (Well, of course, until the next dynasty eventually takes charge... History does have that nagging way of repeating itself...)

McCain Mashup

Wow, this has got to be one of the funniest little vids I've seen in forever. The fact that John McCain is looking like the front runner signals a Republican party in tatters. But we can certainly laugh along the way: