Test post

here goes nothing. really. I'm going to delete it.

Apolititcal Diversion

The District is mentioned in Neal Stephenson's Slashdot interview. That's immaterial to my interest in posting, though; I'm just impressed by the guy in general, and this specific interview especially. Here's a favorite segment:

Nowadays, rock stars and movie stars are making all the money. But the publishing industry still works for some lucky novelists who find a way to establish a connection with a readership sufficiently large to put bread on their tables. It's conventional to refer to these as "commercial" novelists, but I hate that term, so I'm going to call them Beowulf writers.

But this is not true for a great many other writers who are every bit as talented and worthy of finding readers. And so, in addition, we have got an alternate system that makes it possible for those writers to pursue their careers and make their voices heard. Just as Renaissance princes supported writers like Dante because they felt it was the right thing to do, there are many affluent persons in modern society who, by making donations to cultural institutions like universities, support all sorts of artists, including writers. Usually they are called "literary" as opposed to "commercial" but I hate that term too, so I'm going to call them Dante writers. And this is what I mean when I speak of a bifurcated system.


Go read it.

For all those who missed it...

Found a decent link to Jon Stewart's Crossfire appearance on Friday. No idea how long it'll be up there, but give it a look.

... and Jon Stewart's response.

Fun With Statistics

The Washington Post is at it again. An atrocious front-page, top-of-the-fold story claimed that Bush has a lead over Kerry in a recent poll. But the 50-47 lead they cite is within their admitted margin of error. For non-stat majors out there, the margin of error is the space within which you can't confidently say anything about the difference in two numbers. In short, a spread less than this margin is statistically insignificant, and absolutely nothing can be said with confidence aside from that the values are equal. The poll shows a tie. Period.

I called the ombudsman (202.334.7582), who promptly rationalized the Post's error by claiming that all news organizations report polls this way. That's right, it's OK for the Post to misrepresent the facts because everybody else does it too.

Wow.

For all the non-wonks asking why this is important: the media have a habit of systematically mischaracterizing poll results, which they then run prominently as fact. Degradation of the discourse aside, these stories can influence people's perceptions of the nature of the presidential race, and a sense of hopelessness can deter voters. Also, the story is an example of the increasing encroachment of analysis over substance in the news.

Welcome

Frist post. Which should immediately ID me as an Eschaton addict, and a rather annoying one at that.

Here's to hopes of hordes of adoring readers, or any readers anyway.

Enjoy.

Housing Works Demo

Some GW SGAC students showed up at Housing Works' protest at the Bush/Cheney 2004 headquarters in Northern Virginia.