Friday Something Something and Open Thread
Yo La Tengo [06] Sudden Organ
![Yo La Tengo [06] Sudden Organ](https://i0.wp.com/i.ytimg.com/vi/0uxfaCz3Enc/0.jpg?resize=720%2C388&ssl=1)
Music is like beer.
Some people want Coors in the yellow can.
Some people want JW Lees Harvest Ale aged in Calvados.
Picking a beer somewhere in the middle is fraught with peril. There’s always someone who is an even bigger beer snob who will point out that 1993 called… FROM A LAND LINE and there’s always someone who will ask “why don’t you just play Gene Simmons doing God of Thunder and call it good?”
Both have points, I suppose.
Consider this an open thread.
A proposal for economic stimulus:
Convert the US to the metric system.
I mean, come on, short term increase in construction, capital equipment, and education spending + long term efficiency gains from easier trade and from not having to keep two sets of ****ing wrenches (and other tools/machinery) around to deal with American versus foreign made parts. I say win-win!Report
long term efficiency gains from easier trade
This. Cato interns are sometimes shocked when I say we’d obviously be better off if we used the metric system. Then I point out that U.S. Customary Measurement functions as a tariff.Report
Everybody would be better off if we were on the metric system.Report
I’d suggest that Obama not adopt this as part of his platform until after the election.Report
What? Just think of the wingnut response!
“Unelected bureaucrats determining what units you measure your height in”
“We’re not giving an inch on Standard units!”
“Obama implementing socialist world government through metric system!”
“Keep your hands off my yardstick!”
This stuff basically writes itselfReport
I need to put together a post titled “Stuff Libertarians Should Like, but Don’t.”
The metric system will probably be #1 on the list.Report
Yeah, pretty much. Adoption of the metric system could be coupled with looser immigration restrictions since it would be much easier for immigrants to integrate into American society with the same measurement system used worldwide.
Unfortunately, despite being a really good idea, I don’t think it’ll ever happen until America loses global military hegemony. Luckily we seem to be squandering our natural advantages left and right (pun intended) over the past decade, so that may happen sooner than we might expect!Report
I think this might be the first time I’ve ever seen anyone claim that the US military is responsible for Imperial measurements still existing.
PS there’s plenty of aerospace stuff done by US defense companies for the US government that uses the metric system.Report
I hear that both Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola are conspiring to sell product using the Metric System.
This is why I purchase RC.Report
I didn’t mean it as a conspiracy theory. I meant it more as because the US is in a privileged position in the world, it can continue to avoid using the SI system compared to other countries.
It might also just be inertia, obviously.Report
Inertia is necessary, but not sufficient. In the eighteenth century, every other country had their own traditional measurements. Each had inertia; each was abandoned. So… why not us?Report
I’m a libertarian and I like SI units. It doesn’t hurt that the Imperial system is fairly ridiculous.Report
And what are americans doing with an Imperial system anyway. One war or another, its tellingReport
Barry’s illegal alien uncle released from jail. So much for no special treatment. He ignored a deporation order but they let him go now and people wonder why folks think the govt is broken.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2011/09/09/obamas_uncle_quietly_released_from_jail/?p1=Local_LinksReport
Would you be mollified if Obama had issued a presidential pardon?
I’m not saying he should or shouldn’t have. I’m just pointing out that the presidential pardon can have some surprising effects.Report
At least it would have forced them to admit that he had done something wrong.Report
Gosh, and we’d had a perfect record of sparkly-clean, ethical government up to that point.Report
This comment grants you there is some nefarious plot to the whole thing, too.Report
Mark:
Didn’t Barry promise us hope and change from the corrupt Bush years or was that just my imagination? How else could an illeagal who skipped on a previous deportation order walk out of jail?Report
Same way that innocent guy in Texas manages to get executed with Governor Perry hogtied in his ability to do anything about it. Certainly there’s a review board, right?Report
Mark:
Really, is that the most intelligent you response you have? What do the two have to do with each other?Report
What’s a deporation order? Like, “get thee to the L’Oreal stand at Macy’s posthaste” or something?Report
Do open threads have thread winners? If so…Report
Yeah, I’ll give a thumbs up to this one. This might even be better than the winners on the “Caption” thread.Report
My wife is beautiful and I love her, and if I have any regrets it’s that I didn’t invest in Amazon and am not a millionaire and cannot shower her with jewelry tools and scrapbooking stuff and cake-decorating gear.Report
I just saw Yo La Tengo in concert on Tuesday this week (with Wye Oak and The National). They were considerably more excellent than I expected.Report
I am always somewhat surprised that they aren’t bigger.
I’m pleased (but not surprised) that they gave good concert.Report
Nanny state strikes again. Cops ticket citizen that tries to help out during traffic light outage. Sometimes I think the gov’t really wants to kill any initiative that anyone has.
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2011/09/09/citizen-ticketed-for-directing-traffic-after-police-fail-to-in-south-pasadena/Report