Thank You Anthony Downs

I read an Economic Theory of Democracy while still an undergrad. It might be a good idea for the Republican Leadership to read it now. It looks like Senator Specter's move caught most people unawares, though in hindsight it seems the obvious thing. Perhaps the moniker "middle of the road" will regain respectability.

Another chat with Galen

This conversation covers Galen's redirecting his efforts to writing the paper that is his main course obligation.

2nd Meeting with Galen

Below is the chat from last Thursday. Last week's posts plus this chat mark a cusp in the work. Now Galen has to begin a synthesis so he can produce his paper. Let's see if the approach rises to occasion and if his postings and our conversation this coming week change as a consequence.

Back to writing my book

After going on a hiatus for a couple of months, mostly because of work related obligations, I've been back to writing my book for the last week or so. There is now a version of Chapter 6,
Guessing and Verification, posted on the book site. If you get a chance to read it, I'd appreciate getting your opinion of it.

First Session with Galen

Galen Rafferty is a student in our Professional MBA Program here. He is also a staff member for the CIC, which is how I got to know him. He is almost ready to graduate but needed one more course. So he and I agreed that I would mentor him through an independent study course that focuses on a work related interest but that is suitable for his program of study. Galen has a blog to record his current thinking and he will be producing a paper for this course. My role is more as a cheer leader and outside ear than as an expert in Galen's project - I'm not, though I've got some relevant experience from work so I can chime in now and then based on that.

We've decided to do live sessions in ooVoo so the sessions can be recorded and I can then use those for my work. I don't think we've yet nailed it as to how to hold these online sessions, but this sort of mentoring I'd expect to become a more regular part of people's professional development. So I want to showcase it here. The content might be of interest in its own right. I'm showing it for the style of interaction. Enjoy!

Reductio ad Absurdum

Yesterday I caught the tail end of The President's Analyst on TCM. I couldn't stop laughing. Totally ridiculous, it was perfect. Spies everywhere, the Phone Company runs the country, the cool James Coburn totally bereft, it feels like everything is upside down. And with the ridiculousness, there is a serious point.

Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line
The Men come and shoot you down
Steven Stills

The last few weeks, it's been hard to read the newspaper. On the particulars one story differed from another. But on the main theme, dysfunction and decrepitude, they were all the same. I couldn't take it. So I stopped reading. This morning, I had a different reaction. Look at this piece on the North Korean satellite launch followed by this piece on how North Korea is pressing for political advantage from the test nonetheless. Or read this this piece about Larry Summers working for a Hedge Fund after he left Harvard, "earning" about $5.2M over two year for the effort, just one day a week, yet being meticulous about paying Social Security for the maid. Add to that it's already April yet it snowed last night - ridiculous.

Keep laughing. We'll get through this.