Various bits and pieces

[unixronin]

• Drug decriminalization success story in Portugal, via Scientific American and via Salon.
• The dark side of Dubai — the paradise in the desert, built on debt by slave labor.  Anyone can come, one way or another, but not just anyone can leave.  It’s been the perfect resort for some of the more repellent social classes; but now it’s drying up and blowing away on the wind.
• A rebuttal from a Dubai journalist airs some of the UK’s dirty laundry, before declaring that “out of respect for Britain” he’s not going to.  Wait, I thought you just did...?
• “America the Illiterate”
• Human rights abuses unimportant to “useful idiots”
• “The ship is sinking: Quick, add water”
• Modernized energy systems less secure; critical infrastructure at risk?
• IBM Fellow Carl Anderson says the end of the Moore’s Law era is at hand
• On the lighter side, fire eating:  Indian woman earns Guinness world record by eating 51 Naga Jolokia peppers.  She said she wasn’t feeling well, having eaten 60 at a local event earlier in the day...

(Some links via 7leaguebootdisk, some from elsewhere)

Comments

Re: well, this grimmed up my day quite nicely

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

Abso-friggin'-lutely. Promoting kids who aren't ready not only sets them up to fail, it sets them up to think that's OK when they're adults, and then we get the Peter Principle in full action. "I know X is incompetent, but he's due for a promotion." That's how we got Bob "Because It's Bob Dole's Turn" Dole running for President. Completely fucking incompetent and all the charisma of a brick, but it was His Turn.