What the Capitalists can learn from Warren Buffett

• In that, we agreed with Andrew Carnegie, who said that huge fortunes that flow in large part from society should in large part be returned to society.
• Our kids are great. But I would argue that when your kids have all the advantages anyway, in terms of how they grow up and the opportunities they have for education, including what they learn at home - I would say it's neither right nor rational to be flooding them with money.
• In effect, they've had a gigantic headstart in a society that aspires to be a meritocracy. Dynastic mega-wealth would further tilt the playing field that we ought to be trying instead to level.
• And frankly, I have some small hopes that what I'm doing might encourage other very rich people thinking about philanthropy to decide they didn't necessarily have to set up their own foundations but could look around for the best of those that were up and running and available to handle their money.
• I still believe in the philosophy - FORTUNE quoted me saying this 20 years ago - that a very rich person should leave his kids enough to do anything but not enough to do nothing.
  FORTUNE Magazine: A conversation with Warren Buffett - Jun. 25, 2006

Flag-Burning roll call

Your senators that voted to amend the Constitution to limit free-speech:

YEAs ---66
Alexander (R-TN), Allard (R-CO), Allen (R-VA), Baucus (D-MT), Bayh (D-IN), Bond (R-MO), Brownback (R-KS), Bunning (R-KY), Burns (R-MT), Burr (R-NC), Chambliss (R-GA), Coburn (R-OK), Cochran (R-MS), Coleman (R-MN), Collins (R-ME), Cornyn (R-TX), Craig (R-ID), Crapo (R-ID), Dayton (D-MN), DeMint (R-SC), DeWine (R-OH), Dole (R-NC), Domenici (R-NM), Ensign (R-NV), Enzi (R-WY), Feinstein (D-CA), Frist (R-TN), Graham (R-SC), Grassley (R-IA), Gregg (R-NH), Hagel (R-NE), Hatch (R-UT), Hutchison (R-TX), Inhofe (R-OK), Isakson (R-GA), Johnson (D-SD), Kyl (R-AZ), Landrieu (D-LA), Lincoln (D-AR), Lott (R-MS), Lugar (R-IN), Martinez (R-FL), McCain (R-AZ), Menendez (D-NJ), Murkowski (R-AK), Nelson (D-FL), Nelson (D-NE), Reid (D-NV), Roberts (R-KS), Rockefeller (D-WV), Salazar (D-CO), Santorum (R-PA), Sessions (R-AL), Shelby (R-AL), Smith (R-OR), Snowe (R-ME), Specter (R-PA), Stabenow (D-MI), Stevens (R-AK), Sununu (R-NH), Talent (R-MO), Thomas (R-WY), Thune (R-SD), Vitter (R-LA), Voinovich (R-OH), Warner (R-VA).

Let them know how much you appreciate them wasting their time.

Sounds like Updike's as confused as I am

The End of Authorship - New York Times

Updike takes on the future of the book and, like me, he wants to gather all his books into the bombshelter for safekeeping.
I think it's incredibly difficult to speculate about the future of publishing and I have a hard time believing that we'll ever see the end of anything as beloved as the book, but if we look--things are changing already.

And if that flamethrowing fire truck shows up looking for me... you don't know where I am.

What we've learned from the news this week

Money is to Free Speech as Free Speech is to Aiding the Enemy

Has 'Lost' Book Author Been Found?

Has 'Lost' Book Author Been Found? - New York Times: "Laurence Shames, a writer known for such crime novels as 'The Naked Detective' and 'Welcome to Paradise,' would not confirm or deny yesterday a report in Daily Variety that he is also the author of 'Bad Twin,' a novel published under the name of Gary Troup, a character from ABC's hit drama series 'Lost.' 'Gary Troup wrote the book,' Mr. Shames said in a telephone interview from his home in Southern California. 'It is interesting how closely his prose style resembles mine. He sets a lot of the story in places I've been.' Mr. Shames, who has written eight novels, all set in the Florida Keys, also noted that the town where he lives 'bears a striking resemblance' to a little town called Luna in 'Bad Twin.' The real author of the book has been a source of speculation for weeks among fans of 'Lost,' which is set on a mysterious Pacific island where bad things keep happening. Mr. Shames said that he had never talked with anyone at Daily Variety but that the article about his 'outing' had sparked speculative e-mail messages comparing his style to Troup's. And just for the record, Mr. Shames calls 'Bad Twin' an 'excellent' book that 'everyone should read.' "

Safavian found guilty in lobbyist trial

Dirty, dirty people. And this is just one guy and one case. Much more to come, I'm sure.

Safavian found guilty in lobbyist trial - Yahoo! News: "A jury found former Bush administration official David Safavian guilty Tuesday of covering up his dealings with Republican influence-peddler Jack Abramoff. "

Google to Launch Government Search Site

This is a great idea. I often think that the government benefits from our ignorance and now we have another tool to combat that.

Google to Launch Government Search Site: "Today the company plans to announce a new online product aimed at being a one-stop shop for searching federal government Web sites. The launch of Google U.S. Government Search, http://usgov.google.com , targets federal employees who often need to search across several government agencies."

Also...
"Users can customize the layout of their page to remain updated on government-related news from official and commercial sources, including the White House, Department of Defense, The Washington Post and CNN."

Could be a common stop for political junkies like me.

Daily Kos: The Libertarian Dem

Daily Kos: The Libertarian Dem: "The key here isn't universal liberty from government intrusion, but policies that maximize individual freedom, and who can protect those individual freedoms best from those who would infringe. "

I have long thought of myself as a Libertarian-leaning-Democrat, though at times it may have been the other way around (yes, Kos, I was one of those who "threw away" my votes in previous elections). I do, essentially, believe in a small government. In many ways I am also fiscally conservative. But I also believe that government should not go imposing itself where it does not belong. Let me explain.

We have a moral responsibility to the citizens of our country and this requires a progressive tax system. It also requires a social safety net. Our country is better off as a whole when as a whole we are doing better. The country does not succeed when the wealth is in the hands of a few. We do not succeed when we depend on too few. So, you might see this as a traditionally Democratic way of thinking. I do not disagree.

On many issues, though, I think the government has zero to no role whatsoever. Trade must regulated in some form, but I do not agree with the arbitrary imposition of tariffs. As we grow to become a more global society, we must move away from our protectionist stance. This could be seen as a Libertarian idea.

The two come together in the notion of social freedom. The government has no role in what we do to our bodies. From seatbelt laws to drug restrictions, the government oversteps its bounds, but where we really go wrong is when the social conservatives use the government to impose their agenda. This is one of the reasons the gay marriage debate gets me so riled up. The government is not here to impose some moral standard.

So, maybe there is a new Democratic Party emerging, but it is still not possible to win anything if the new Dems cannot get the party out of the hands of the widly varied, and paralysing, special interests.

Oh, embracing folks like Russ Feingold isn't going to get us anywhere either.

Ann Coulter: One Mean... Lady?

Ann Coulter Attacks 9/11 Widows , Conservative Author: 4 N.J. Wives Enjoyed Their Husbands' Deaths - CBS News: "Coulter writes in a new book, "Godless: The Church of Liberalism," that a group of New Jersey widows whose husbands perished in the World Trade Center act "as if the terrorist attacks happened only to them."

She also wrote, "I've never seen people enjoying their husbands' deaths so much." "

She has always annoyed me, primarily because she is simply so mean. She can't have a debate without being dismissive of any opposing arguments. She trades in inflammatory statements and rhetoric. Now, though, I think she's crossed a line. In fact, I think she's gone so overboard that she'll hurt the conservative cause. Nevermind how wrong she is.

For a sample of the substance of her new book, here are her words:

The thesis of "Godless" is: Liberalism IS a religion. The liberal religion
has its own cosmology, its own explanation for why we are here, its own gods,
its own clergy. The basic tenet of liberalism is that nature is god and men are
monkeys. (Except not as pure-hearted as actual monkeys, who don't pollute, make
nukes or believe in God.)
[...]
Even the left's pretend-adoration of "free speech" (meaning: treason and pornography) must give way to speech that is
contrary to the tenets of the church of liberalism on the sacred grounds of a
government school.
[...]
Liberals believe in Darwinism as a matter of faith, despite the fact that,
at this point, the only thing that can be said for certain about Darwinism is
that it would take less time for (1) a single-celled organism to evolve into a
human being through mutation and natural selection than for (2) Darwinists to
admit they have no proof of (1).

What a nice lady, huh? Reasoned? No.

Googling my friends: Rachel Barkow

Funny what you turn up when you want to see what your friends are up to.

Below is an article from the Wall Street Journal that includes an interview with an old high-school chum and NYU professor, Rachel Barkow. I said in this post that I thought something was fishy with the general reaction to the raid on Jefferson's House office. Seems she thinks they're reaching a bit.

Q&A: Balance of Powers May 26, 2006 8:33 a.m.
The FBI's weekend search of the House office of a Louisiana Democrat as part of a bribery probe has prompted outcries from legislators who said the raid overstepped constitutional boundaries. William Jefferson, the congressman under FBI scrutiny, pledged to stay in the job, as representatives drafted a resolution
frowning on the raid.
Rachel Barkow, who studies separation of powers as an associate professor at NYU School of Law, spoke with WSJ.com's Matt Phillips about the underlying constitutional issues.
What is this congressional outcry all about?
Congressmen complain that the search by the FBI -- a part of the government's executive branch, which is overseen by the president -- oversteps the executive branch's traditional role. The legislators cite the speech and debate clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 6). The idea behind that clause is that what legislators do as part of their official duties as members of Congress -- such as voting and making speeches from the floor -- is protected from interference from other branches.
It's also possible, Ms. Barkow says, that congressional leaders might be relying on an argument that stems from structure set up in the Constitution, which separates the three branches, executive, legislative and judicial, so that they don't interfere with each others' functions.
The Constitution has a pretty common-sense structure, she says. "What we don't
protect [legislators] from … is the commission of crimes. They're subjected to
the criminal process just like everyone else."
What do you make of the arguments from members of Congress?
"They're reading [the speech and debate clause] very broadly, more broadly than I think is even remotely justifiable," she says. There have been other cases where members of Congress have been subjected to criminal process for things that take place outside of their legislative duties; Ms. Barkow says she doesn't see any reason why a search warrant couldn't be executed on a congressional office.
What about the argument that this FBI raid represents an extension of the power of the executive branch?
The FBI is an arm of the executive branch. But the warrant was approved through the courts, part of the judiciary branch. "It's not unilateral executive action. It was done with approval of the judiciary in so far as they had to get a warrant," Ms.
Barkow says.
According to news reports, this is the first time this has happened in the 219-year history of the Congress. Why is that?
"I think that just because it hasn't happened before doesn't, by that fact, make it unlawful in this case," Ms. Barkow says. There have been instances where different branches have come to loggerheads over separation of powers and criminal investigations.
But Ms. Barkow says it is more common for representatives of the different branches to work things out politically, through a sort of truce, rather than through the courts. More recently some cases have been resolved by the courts, both in the Nixon era and during the Clinton administration.
Ms. Barkow says it seems these issues have been moving more toward the courts for resolution. "I think even the branches of government have become more litigious than they were in the past." But the No. 1 reason this doesn't come up very often, she says, is that representatives actually are complying with the criminal laws.
What's the next step in this conflict?
On Thursday afternoon, Rep. Jefferson filed a motion asking U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan -- the judge who issued the warrant authorizing the search -- to order the FBI to return all of the documents taken from his office. Ms. Barkow also expects Rep. Jefferson to file a challenge to the evidence gathered from the search. "He can just challenge it in the course of his own criminal prosecution."

She's smart.

Al-Zarqawi Killed: Victory?

Now I'll give it to you that this is a victory of some sort. I have to say that I take some vindictive pleasure in knowing that he is dead. But like with the capture of Saddam Hussein, we can't say that it will make us any safer. At the least, I hope it manages to demoralize the terrorists. Or else he becomes a martyr.
The Democrats would be smart to allow the Administration and our troops this victory and save the poo-pooing for further down the road.

Insurgent Leader Al-Zarqawi Killed in Iraq: "BAGHDAD, June 8 --Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the mastermind behind hundreds of bombings, kidnappings and beheadings in Iraq, was killed Wednesday evening by an airstrike northwest of Baghdad, U.S. and Iraqi officials said Thursday."

'Da Vinci Code' plot is similar to earlier work - Yahoo! News

'Vanity Fair': 'Da Vinci Code' plot is similar to earlier work - Yahoo! News

Oh, this ought to be good. But where was this story three years ago when the damn book first came out.

I look forward to hearing more.

Senate rejects amendment on gay marriage

Sorry, Wayne.

Senate rejects amendment on gay marriage - Yahoo! News: "Most bitter to the amendments' authors was the loss of support in their own GOP caucus. Two Republicans changed their votes from yes in 2004 to no this time: Judd Gregg of New Hampshire and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska did not vote Wednesday because he was traveling with Bush.
All told, seven Republicans voted to kill the amendment. The five others were Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Susan Collins of Maine, John McCain of Arizona, Olympia Snowe of Maine and John Sununu of New Hampshire."

Oh, and good cover Chuck.

Reactions to the Best Fiction Survey

Reactions to the Best Fiction Survey - New York Times

Now I didn't have many problems with the list, but I understand some of the complaints about methodology. But click the link to see what some of the litbloggers I read daily (The Millions, Conversational Reading, Metaxu Cafe) think about the whole deal.

P.S.: I picked up my copy of Underworld and the Rabbit novels this weekend at a library used book sale. Good reading to come.

Updike and the sympathetic terrorist

Updike makes "Terrorist" lovable in new novel - Yahoo! News: ""This book is being shopped around, but I've not heard of any serious nibbles,' he said. In movies 'you expect to be able to identify good and bad characters, and yet my interest is 'What is good and what is bad?'' "

Well, this ought to really piss off some people. I wonder what the right will make of this. I wonder if it's any good.

Meta-Metafiction/Television: Lost and The Third Policeman

LA Weekly: "When he finished school, O'Nolan [given name of the obsucure, Lost-referenced novel The Third Policeman author Flann O'Brien] began work on what would become his best-known novel, At Swim-Two-Birds. Sheridan recalls the author telling him the plot he intended to apply to the narrative: An author writing a book about a series of characters who were themselves authoring books about the author. "

Pentagon: Geneva what?

Army Manual to Skip Geneva Detainee Rule - Los Angeles Times: "The Pentagon has decided to omit from new detainee policies a key tenet of the Geneva Convention that explicitly bans 'humiliating and degrading treatment,' according to knowledgeable military officials, a step that would mark a further, potentially permanent, shift away from strict adherence to international human rights standards."

Now, I won't disagree that the world has changed since 9/11. I will even admit that we have to fight this new war in new ways. But can't we just say that we're going to abide by the rules of the game? If we are the best, most powerful and most moral nation, how can we ignore the Geneva Convention?

I'm beginning to think that these people are turning this into a different country than the one I love.

Gay Marriage Ban: Fondling the Base

Senate to Tackle Gay Marriage Ban

President Bush and congressional Republicans are aiming the political spotlight
this week on efforts to ban gay marriage, with events at both ends of
Pennsylvania Avenue _ all for a constitutional amendment with scant chance of
passage but wide appeal among social conservatives.

Besides being abhorrently wrong, we should also see this move as nothing more than a feeble attempt be bring back the base. After the immigration and the republican ennui with the Iraq way, the Rove team is looking for away to get some people back on his side by reaching again to a wedge issue. All I can say----Thanks, jerk.