Getting Ready For The Weekend

Does anyone have Friday Afternoon Fever, and why wasn't that a movie?

Charles Murray delivers a rousing defense of The Bell Curve, but why bother - that title is Pavlov's bell to progressives, who know they must respond with foaming denunciations.

I feel obliged to excerpt this:

I should begin by pointing out that the topic of the The Bell Curve was not race, but, as the book’s subtitle says, “Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life.” Our thesis was that over the last half of the 20th century, American society has become cognitively stratified. At the beginning of the penultimate chapter, Herrnstein and I summarized our message: Predicting the course of society is chancy, but certain tendencies seem strong enough to worry about:

An increasingly isolated cognitive elite.

A merging of the cognitive elite with the affluent.

A deteriorating quality of life for people at the bottom end of the cognitive distribution.

Unchecked, these trends will lead the U.S. toward something resembling a caste society, with the underclass mired ever more firmly at the bottom and the cognitive elite ever more firmly anchored at the top, restructuring the rules of society so that it becomes harder and harder for them to lose. [p. 509].

It is obvious that these conclusions have not been discredited in the twenty-two years since they were written. They may be more accurately described as prescient.

Eerily prescient.

Comments

[Jack is Back!]

"We hebben hem"

Abdelsalem caught including a bullet in his knee. Now he knows how I feel. Been better if it was located a little further up but at least the Belgians understand the value of HUMINT from him unlike Obama's drones.

[glasater]

My favorite Murray-ism is, 'if all the wealth of the world could be divided equitably amongst all its people..we would all be poor..

[glasater]

JIB,

I'm thinking our gov must have dug into the bowels of NSA and got intel to the French.

[Frau Steingehirn]

Thanks, Mr. Maguire.
The truth will out, but the progs have stuffed wax in their ears and called the book forever toxic.

Where's a conservative Ashkenazi to run for president?

[JM Hanes]

glasater:

I suspect one of the reasons Obama got so aggressive about going after leakers was to get back into the good graces of foreign intel services, who didn't trust him after his early revelations of classified info.

[JM Hanes]

I've got an anything-but-elections fever myself.

[Frau Steingehirn]

JiB - Goed nieuws!!!!!!

[Comanche Voter]

Poor Dumb Clucks.

[Jack is Back!]

glasater,

According to the Belgian press, it was an informant via phone call giving them the location where he was staying. If NSA was involved they aren't saying (of course) but the pressure is such on the existing Muzzie community that most just want the Politie out of the neighborhood so they can get on with their usual activities of drugs, prostitution and trafficking.

[Jack is Back!]

Holy Moly!

Middle Tennessee State is about to record the first #15 over #2 Michigan State upset in this year's tourament. 29 seconds to go and its 83-78 the Blue Raiders. Stay tuned.

[Frau Schwarz/weiss und luegt]

I read Salon's Sean Illing so you don't have to and found more "goed nieuws,"except it's good only if you believe him and the MSM:

Despite the hand-wringing among progressives, President Obama moved the country forward. His triumphs were slow-going and piecemeal, but that’s his way – and it worked. The unemployment rate is 4.9 percent; 13.7 million new jobs have been added over the last 69 months; more Americans have health insurance coverage than ever; same-sex marriage has been legalized; the American auto industry was rescued from oblivion; two liberal seats on the Supreme Court were protected; U.S.-Cuba relations have opened up; we have a peaceful nuclear deal with Iran; we’re gradually shifting away from our reliance on fossil fuels; and the country has enjoyed eight years of a dignified, scandal-free administration.

Solyndra, Ivanpah, Russian uranium deal, for starters, Sean. If you liked the last eight years, Hillary! has more lined up.

[lyle]

That sound you hear is millions of people tearing up their brackets, JiB. MState was a pretty common final four pick, seems to me.

[_peter]

great news for us U.Va. fans if Mich St eliminated

[Threadkiller]

http://www.breitbart.com/video/2016/03/18/glenn-beck-failure-to-elect-ted-cruz-will-leave-us-will-blood-on-our-hands-see-more-at-httpwww-rightwingwatch-orgcontentglenn-beck-failure-elect-ted-cruz-will-leave-us-will-blood-our-handsst/

Mr Helper.

[_peter]

Put it in the books. MS loses

[JM Hanes]

JiB:

Sounds like Abdeslam will be extradited to France. Do you know if life-in-prison is an option there? I'm often amazed by the brevity of prison terms for some of the worst sorts of crimes in Europe.

[Neo]

I'm not a big reader, but I did read The Bell Curve back when it came out (mostly because when so many people hate something, it must be interesting).
I can't cite the page or pages but I do have a distinct memory of a passage in the book that cited that if there actually were scientific proof that some group or race (without naming the group or race) were more or less intelligent than another, the powers that be would suppress that information, to the detriment of all, because it would be politically unacceptable.

The great anti-science debate rages on.

[JM Hanes]

TK:

I have this lovely little dream, in which the previous thread suffices for electioneering.

[glasater]

JIB & JM Hanes,

I just wonder how much NSA 'knows' about us and if we will ever find out that information.

Better stop with that before the tinfoil hat comes out :-)

[Jack is Back!]

JMHanes,

There has been discussion of bringing back the guillotine but mostly in the satire press. They can always resurrect Devil's Island but I have a feeling its more one of the max security prisons near Paris. Le Santé is under renovation so it won't be there.

[lyle]

If you'll allow me:

Despite the hand-wringing among progressives, President Obama moved the country forward. His triumphs were slow-going and piecemeal, but that’s his way – and it worked. The unemployment rate is 4.9 percent [labor participation rate lowest in almost four decades]; 13.7 million new jobs have been added over the last 69 months [most of them part-time to avoid O-care mandates]; more Americans have health insurance coverage than ever[at much, MUCH higher cost than what was advertised; Medicaid expansion costs to soar]; same-sex marriage has been legalized [by judicial fiat not through the democratic process]; the American auto industry was rescued from oblivion [bondholders were stiffed to save pensions; exploding unfunded liabilities to come]; two liberal seats on the Supreme Court were protected[why are there liberal or conservative seats on what is supposed to be an impartial arbiter of interpreting the law?}; U.S.-Cuba relations have opened up[with nary a single concession from the commies on human rights]; we have a peaceful nuclear deal with Iran[delusional bullshit that's playing out in real time]; we’re gradually shifting away from our reliance on fossil fuels[no were not and won't be for several decades but I invite you to stop using them right now and forevermore]; and the country has enjoyed eight years of a dignified, scandal-free administration.[man, that must be some killer weed you're smoking or you're just another MFM hack; probably both]

[Miss Marple]

Lyle,

Thank you for putting your rebuttals within that paragraph.

It was very soothing to see, and also provides handy short answers to liberal claims.

[Jack is Back!]

The teacher asked Johnny why he decided to be different - again.

"Because I'm not a Hillary Clinton fan."

"Why aren't you a fan of Hillary Clinton?"

"Because I'm a Republican."

“Why are you a Republican?"

"Well, my Mom's a Republican and my Dad's a Republican, so I'm a Republican."

Annoyed, she asked, "If your mom was a moron and your dad was an
idiot, what would you be?"

"That would make me a Hillary Clinton fan.”

[henry]

I have beer... bring on a weekend of hoops. Duke getting knocked out tomorrow would be perfect.

[JM Hanes]

glasater:

I wager it "knows" a great deal more than it can sort through, but they'll figure it out eventually. They can no more resist the temptation than your local gossip queen can permanently satisfy her curiousity. Human beings are innate info hunter gatherers.

I'm afraid totalitarians won't have any monopoly on this kind of thing: China Wants to Make Minority Report a Reality

And for the person whose blast against folks objecting to the government's position on the San Bernardino cell phone was presumably aimed at me, here's a little additional food for thought: Feds wrong to warn about “warrant-proof” phones

[Porchlight]

I gotta remember that one, JiB. :)

[Buckeye]

JiB

Glad you are home, in a much better mood, and posting more!

Was nurse Ratched hiding your iPad at the rehab joint?

[Texas Liberty Gal]

Caught about a minute with Hannity's interview with the lady who is running against McCain in the primary. In the little bit I heard she was talking about how the establishment (McCain) has done nothing to stop Obama - did anyone hear more of the interview?

[Threadkiller]

TK:

I have this lovely little dream, in which the previous thread suffices for electioneering.

👍

[lyle]

You're welcome, MM.

[Frau Mox Nix]

Glen Beck is *not* a natural born Mormon.

[Jack is Back!]

Buckeye,

Having my first adult beverage outside a glass of red wine the other night. Still taking it easy on that end since at night I do take an Oxy for the inevitable night knee pain. But none during the day.

I was lurking in Rehab but under a real cocktail of meds and my mind could absorb but wasn't geared up to respond or comment. Plus I am not a political junkie to the extent the threads have been a gourmet paradise for those who are (you all know who you are:)

But you never know what a Bulleit Rye Manhattan will do to you:)

[JeanD]

JMH, thank you for that link.

[lyle]

My bracket is surprisingly intact so far. Of course, this is the year I didn't put any money on it...

[Theo]

The Bell Curve is a really good book and, among other things, very well written.

99 out of 100 progs (or more) think that this book claims that blacks have a lower IQ than whites.

But this is not a claim of the book. This is an assumption supplied by the scientific research. The Bell Curve did no original research on this at all.

Now, one can argue that the reason that blacks have a lower IQ than whites is because the tests are biased or because IQ is an artificial concept that does not mean anything or because of slavery or Jim Crow or George W Bush dragging somebody behind his truck or whatever. Maybe those are good arguments.

But it is simply wrong to suggest that The Bell Curve is the source for a contention that white IQ is higher than black IQ. (And that Asian IQ is higer than either.) Those are FACTS. Maybe they are important facts and maybe they are irrelevant facts. But they are facts.

[JM Hanes]

TK:

Probably means this thread won't make it past page one, but thanks for supporting the intermezzo concept!

I gather that global warming is expected in New England sometime this weekend, but here in the Piedmont, it's cherry blossoms, spring camellias and magnolias of sundry sorts all around. Forsythia too, although not a favorite of mine. It's so great to sit here with open windows once again -- before the pollen coats everything yellow.

[narciso]

it really is the kiss of death,

http://hotair.com/archives/2016/03/18/its-happening-its-time-to-rally-behind-cruz-says-mitt-romney/

yes, murray did not regard the right side of the bell curve, as an unalloyed good, and credentialed idiocy proves why that is,

[Jack is Back!]

JMH,

Mrs. JiB's crocus and other bulbs are coming out and on Sunday afternoon we expect up to 4 inches of global warming. Usually, they get the last snow around St. Paddy's day. Late this year. Jimmyk will be nordic skiiing in Central Park according to the weatherman.

[narciso]

and he's followed this up, with his later work, Breaking Apart, where he saw the pathologies he noted earlier, had migrated to the white working class,

[narciso]

sjws in Perfidious Albion,

https://twitter.com/ezralevant/status/710582920986042369

[Theo]

Sean Trende (whose analysis I do not always agree with) says that its up to Kasich who wins the nomination. If Kasich stays in, Trump gets to 1237 and the nomination. If Kasich drops out (I think he means soon) then Trump falls short and the convention will pick.

I am not sure his crystal ball has it right, but I think unity should come soon. Maybe Cruz can promise Kasich to be Postmaster General (ooops, that is not a thing anymore) or some other cabinet job or even VP. But I do not expect that to happen soon.

Trende says that Kasich is being self defeating if he thinks he can win a contested convention. According to Trende, the only way a contested convention comes to pass is if Kasich drops out.

We shall see.

[Theo]

narciso --

Indeed he did. The data demonstrates that poverty is a function of bad decisions. The poverty rate among people who (a) graduate from high school and (b) do not have children until they are at least 20 and (c) do not have children outside of wedlock is infinitesimally small.

[Jack is Back!]

Theo,

Mucho gracias for all your prolific and thoughtful election input but unless you are like Middle Tennessee we don't need no bracket buster here.

[Free James D!]

I'm on a taxi heading through DC and we just passed 14th St and Ron Brown Ave.

I had no idea he had a street named for him. As I recall, he was a crook and a wretch who should have been in prison but instead was given the keys to the kingdom by Bill Clinton until he died in a suspicious plane crash. Am I remembering that right?

[Theo]

Free James --

Consistent with my recollection anyway.

[Jack is Back!]

Had an old friend and associate, Stu Tholan, who was on that plane that crashed in Croatia. What was suspicious? I am sure Stu's widow would like to know.

[narciso]

what point of the bell curve would you find this fellow,

http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2016/03/16/lawmaker-isis-should-allowed-recruit-colleges/81885932/

it's interesting in the greaney book I recommended earlier, they referred through fiction, some of those interesting issues like brennan's reliance on the Saudis, or vice versa, there's an incident with a nosy reporter ala hastings, who is dispatched somewhat they tried to take care of nick fury,

[Theo]

The progs also lie about what they did not like about the Bell Curve. It had nothing to do with race differences in IQ or theories about how much of IQ is inherited.

They hated it because the book pointed out that the DATA demonstrates that in America it is better (in terms of outomes under any number of measures) to be born poor, black and with a high IQ than to be born rich, white and with a low IQ.

They need to cater to people who believe that someone else is the reason for their lack of success and that unfair advantages are the only reason for the success of others.

The fact that these things are not true (or are not nearly as true as they believe) is simply a scientific fact that must be suppressed.

[clarice]

"Hey, we got ours," say the elite so let's tar and feather the messenger before people find out.

[Free James D!]

JiB @ 6:45

No idea. That's just what I recall from the time, but it could just have been because he was yet another Clinton crony who died an untimely death while there were questions of corruption swirling around him. That seemed to happen a lot, didn't it?

[clarice]

The French will be much rougher with him in extracting information, JMH. Do not doubt me on this.

[Miss Marple]

Jack,

The fact they left from the airport even though they have been warned not to. Weather and visibility was bad. One of the air traffic controllers was found murdered. Ron Brown has suspicious wounds which indicated he had been shot after the crash.

This is all from my memory of those years. If you want to find out about all of the stuff surrounding that crash, spend some time on Google. It is really pretty awful how much stuff didn't get reported in the press.

[narciso]

probably, they were the real tutors in the rough end of counterinsurgency, the ones who trained the juntas in south american, which squirrel, obama is now intent on opening the book on all knowledge of operations there,

[clarice]

My recollection, too, James D.

[narciso]

this was where krugman went he wanted to 'speak truth to power'

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/donald-trump-and-the-failure-of-the-us-media-a-1082401.html

there was a whole blog, david medienskritik, that illuminated their mindset,

[Marlene]

Good evening! I was just catching up on the news in Maine and read this headline in the Bangor Daily..."Swedes fear invasion of U.S. lobsters..."
Swedish officials asked the EU to list the North American lobster,referred to as the Maine lobster,as an invasive species. Huh.
I thought Sweden was dealing with another invasion and all they can worry about is our lobstahs?

[Buckeye]

JiB

Hadn't considered the possibility of the medication being a factor. Hope the knee heals up soon.

[narciso]

and of course, who can forget this bit from murray

NYT: What do you think of Sarah Palin? Charles Murray: I’m in love. Truly and deeply in love.

[Jack is Back!]

JamesD,

The problem was that being an AF version of the 737 they didn't have a black box or a voice recorder. It was inclement weather, IIRC 400 feet visibility landing in a mountain bowl forming the sea. Air Force accident investigation report is public, from my experience as an air force crew member/radar navigator, I saw nothing there except an inexperienced crew for that particular landing and weather making some IFR mistakes in hindsight (if they were still alive). No idea who Brown was or what his role was outside leading a commercial mission which he asked us to attend.

Since then most American companies on that mission have earned work in Croatia so I have no idea what is so suspicious about that particular accident. But I am sure there is a class of internet warriors and sleuths that have their theories.

[Thomas Collins]

Friday Night Fever? Wouldn't be the same. Here's the real thing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxFzm34hAyY

[narciso]

they didn't like falling down, which argued for welfare reform, or the bell curve, or breaking apart, which argued about govt's stultifying effects at the social and economic level,

[narciso]

for the longest time, algeria has been the last domino, I even did a post about it, three years ago,

https://in.news.yahoo.com/algeria-gas-plant-hit-rocket-172845497.html

since then they retired the architect of their counter terro strategy,

[Porchlight]

I always thought that plane crash was hinky and I was a Clinton voter when it happened.

Also never forget this little gem from Ron Brown's funeral:

[Porchlight]

Sorry for that big white space where Bill Clinton's heart was supposed to be.

[narciso]

the background to be found here,

http://www.weeklystandard.com/a-dangerous-combination/article/2000700

yes, the razorback borgia, is an exceedingly dishonorable lout,

[Threadkiller]

Didn't Cashill do a series of stories on Ron Brown?

[Porchlight]

I think a whole book, TK.

[JeanD]

LOL, Porch at 7:20!

[narciso]

you would search in vain to see this story in any outlet,

http://www.judicialwatch.org/document-archive/jw-v-state-hillary-bb-nsa-iad-00646/

[narciso]

I only read the times, when needs must, in that era, it was required for certain courses, my fishwrap was already getting stale, but that was the era when the journal's editorial page, and the spectator, and the telegraph, were the samizdat,

[narciso]

I was curious about something,

http://www.gallup.com/poll/153308/Romney-Santorum-Tie-Gingrich-Voters-Second-Choice.aspx

[narciso]

to show how much space, murray occupies in the noggin of the left,

http://afflictor.com/tag/charles-murray/

[Jack is Back!]

I stand by my knowledge, education and experience flying AF inventory. Nothing there no matter how much a guy like Cashill (is he a former crew member?) or others look at it. If you read the AF accident report and understand aviation procedure under extreme IFR in a absolute new landing environment you will see there was nothing but human error by both Dubrovnik ATC and those fatal pilots.

Sorry, but I do not see conspiracies everywhere.

[narciso]

honestly either boyd or raylon would beat the carp out of williamson,

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/03/18/rick-manning-national-reviews-vile-cover-story-attack-on-working-class-americans-is-morally-reprehensible/

[maryd]

Thanks, JiB. Appreciate your insight. I will ignore the hysteria from now on.

[narciso]

well now that the damage is done,

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2016/03/18/exstaff-benghazi-staffer-retracts-claim-special-committe-is-biased-toward-clinton-n2135530?

mostly likely mike rogers planted him on the staff,
right before he left,

[DrJ]

Isn't this a shame (ars)?

A Florida jury today ordered Gawker Media to pay $115 million for publishing a sex tape showing Terry Bollea, also known as Hulk Hogan, having sex with his friend's wife.

The stunning sum, which may have punitive damages added to it, is a life-threatening event for the New York-based network of news and gossip sites. Gawker media was one of the first successful, large digital-only news companies. The final sum is even more than the $100 million Bollea was seeking. Bollea also sued Gawker founder Nick Denton and former editor Albert Daulerio, and the jury found those two men personally liable as well.

[JM Hanes]

Speaking of fevers and Fridays and movies....

I was thinking about movies that I've watched time & again, and about what exactly makes the difference between movies that you can sit through over and over, and those you wouldn't, even if you enjoyed them the first time around. Several of mine are probably not on anybody's "best of" lists, and it occurred to me to wonder what movies other folks have really, really liked, but that have not necessarily received huge amounts of attention. They're the ones, where you wait for the familiar/fav lines....

Here are three that I can still watch any time (Princess Bride being a given, of course):
The 13th Warrior with Antonio Banderas, adapted from a Michael Crichton novel
Man on Fire with Denzel Washington, (very) violent, gritty and poignant
Kingdom of Heaven, Orlando Bloom in a 12th century crusade

[narciso]

couldn't happen to a nicer nazgul like denton, occasionally they have committed random acts of journalism, but usually it's a sarlaac pit of depravity,

[narciso]

I found it was ok, but didn't live up the novel,
Man on Fire, was also loosely based on a novel by AJ Quinnell, that had a significantly different plot, and

[narciso]

actually the second was quite faithful to the book,
just the setting changed,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_on_Fire_(novel)

[Jack is Back!]

JMH,

Love Kingdom of Heaven. A pleasure in the past was reading about the Crusades and the movie captures it very realistically I believe. But for a guy in a lot of adventure and fantasy movies isn't Orlando Bloom mistakenly named?

[iqvoice]

JM Hanes:

Die Hard, Back to the Future, and The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 edition with Robert Donat)

[Jack is Back!]

They may be from Texas but Iggy's Lumberjacks are going to go into the 2nd half leading West (by God) Virginia by 3. Another #14 v. #3 cliffhanger. Best march madness I can remember. Maybe CH can correct me but anyone can win this damn thing. Of course we are not to the cardiac arrest stage yet.

[Porchlight]

JMH,

I am partial to Immortal Beloved with Gary Oldman as Beethoven. One of the rare films that starts out just okay and gets better and better as it goes along.

I have watched Dazed and Confused more times than I can count. A near-perfect movie.

I consider A Christmas Story to be an actually perfect movie, if such were possible.

A friend of mine coined a term for when you come across one of "those" movies on TV and no matter how many times you've seen it, you still have to jump in and watch to the end. She calls it being Shawshanked.

[Porchlight]

The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 edition with Robert Donat)

Wow, I love Donat - especially The 39 Steps. I didn't know about this one. Thanks iqvoice.

[narciso]

the Journal did a piece about the popularity of shawshank, among it's gifts, it makes tim robbins seem sympathetic, a remarkable piece of acting,

[narciso]

I never really got into the christmas story, a kind of heresy I'll admit,

[Porchlight]

And hurrah! It's streaming on Amazon Prime video!
http://www.amazon.com/Count-Monte-Cristo-Robert-Donat/dp/B00DM8R5VY/ref=sr_1_2?s=instant-video&ie=UTF8&qid=1458346941&sr=1-2&keywords=count+of+monte+cristo

[clarice]

Cinema Paradiso.
Black Orpheus.
Blazing Saddles
A Christmas Story

[JeanD]

Shawshank Redemption, A Christmas Story, The Green Mile, Field of Dreams, The Godfather

[Porchlight]

Oh, I forgot The Right Stuff.

[JeanD]

Oh, I forgot The Ten Commandments which is a must watch every year.

[JeanD]

Also Cool Hand Luke

[DrJ]

My Fair Lady.

[Threadkiller]

Joe Kidd, Mr Majestyk, The Outlaw Josey Wales

[Threadkiller]

Blues Brothers

[Jack is Back!]

narc,

Christmas Story relates more to those brought up in the 1950's midwest. Maybe why you have a hard time relating. Jean Shephard is not for everyone.

Sorry but I am a romantic when it comes to movies: Casablanca, Lost Suitcase, Dr. Zhivago, Sayanora, etc.

Now you know why Mrs. JiB loves me when it comes to movies:)

[Threadkiller]

Despite Chris Tucker(the performance is good, the screaming not so much) I can't shut the tv off if The Fifth Element comes on.

[boris]

Blade Runner
Overboard
The Commitments