by danps
Sat Dec 29th, 2012 at 07:31:02 AM EST
A CD's worth of the year's best songs, generally from off the beaten path.
If you dig these songs please consider buying them. Most can be had for less than a buck. They will also be hosted at Pruning Shears until Thursday, so you can try before you buy over there.
by danps
Sat Dec 31st, 2011 at 06:56:38 AM EST
A CD's worth of the year's best songs, generally from off the beaten path.
by danps
Sat Apr 30th, 2011 at 06:30:57 AM EST
A relatively new natural gas drilling technique - hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" - is being rushed into wide scale use with the same heedless abandon as deep water oil drilling. Activists are trying to put the brakes on it before fracking has the chance to produce its own version of last year's BP oil spill.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Tue Feb 15th, 2011 at 05:08:56 PM EST
America's foreign policy has long embraced repressive regimes when it was convenient to do so. Events in Egypt have demonstrated the price of convenience, and it may already be making a difference.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Feb 5th, 2011 at 06:48:09 AM EST
Conventional wisdom in Washington seems to have pretty quickly settled on an ideological basis for the unrest in Egypt. By doing so it has ignored a more compelling - and prosaic - explanation.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Jan 22nd, 2011 at 06:19:23 AM EST
America's war on WikiLeaks has some familiar echoes to another recent issue. Unlike last time, however, this time it might do substantial damage to the companies who cooperate.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Tue Jan 11th, 2011 at 07:23:51 PM EST
Some on the right are protesting their innocence and angrily proclaiming it terribly unfair to say their rhetoric in any way contributed to the weekend's violence. Here is why they are wrong.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Jan 8th, 2011 at 06:35:08 AM EST
The computer era has largely been marked by a willingness of users to go with the easiest security options available even when those choices weren't terribly secure. Recent developments in courts and the industry may give users reason to re-think that approach, however.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Jan 1st, 2011 at 08:37:29 AM EST
A CD's worth of the year's best songs, generally from off the beaten path.
by danps
Sat Dec 18th, 2010 at 06:11:23 AM EST
Two developments have started to fragment the Internet of late. One looks quite a bit more benign, but both threaten the openness that has been a hallmark of the connected world.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Mon Dec 13th, 2010 at 07:53:49 AM EST
The release of diplomatic cables by WikiLaeaks has provoked a strong reaction from the United States, but perhaps the most interesting part about them is what they reveal about an ally.
For more on pruning back executive power see Pruning Shears.
front-paged by afew
by danps
Sat Dec 4th, 2010 at 07:18:30 AM EST
The Department of Homeland Security recently shut down dozens of web sites. Their legal authority to do so was questionable, as was the court's, and it is part of a disturbing trend.
For more on pruning back executive power see Pruning Shears.
Civil liberties, executive power
by danps
Sat Nov 27th, 2010 at 07:06:15 AM EST
Since 9/11 the rallying cry of conservatives has been the authoritarian's mantra: If you aren't doing anything wrong, you shouldn't worry about an intrusive government. Now that an agency has finally gone too far for some of them, they have changed their tune. Civil libertarians should do something about that, and quickly - before it changes back.
For more on pruning back executive power see Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Nov 20th, 2010 at 06:00:38 AM EST
With reckless behavior by the lords of finance now given the blessing of the government, the big question is not whether the era of bubbles is past but where the next one is being inflated. The pump of choice may have already been selected.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Nov 13th, 2010 at 06:18:57 AM EST
America has passed another unfortunate milestone in its ever longer history of torture. The latest ex-president thinks that is a good thing, but for some without an immediate self-interest it doesn't look quite so pleasant.
For more on pruning back executive power see Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Nov 6th, 2010 at 06:02:31 AM EST
Efficiency enjoys a nearly spotless reputation. Business leaders invoke it to justify activities that would otherwise be frowned upon, while politicians use it to explain why policy must follow their pet theories. Its limitations are once again being laid bare for anyone who cares to see, however.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Oct 30th, 2010 at 06:53:06 AM EST
One of the biggest stories of the year is being virtually ignored by one of the most influential media outlets in America. Meanwhile, Iran's government news outlet engages in journalism.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Oct 23rd, 2010 at 07:10:00 AM EST
The firms that pushed securitization the hardest decided to treat mortgage record keeping into a game of Three Card Monte. Now that even they can't find the queen, they deserve to suffer the consequences.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Oct 16th, 2010 at 06:51:02 AM EST
The Nobel Peace prize has been awarded for many different people and for many different reasons, but there appears to be one area the committee is reluctant to go.
Cross posted from Pruning Shears.
by danps
Sat Oct 9th, 2010 at 05:59:44 AM EST
The widespread revulsion over torture in the Bush era caused civil libertarians from a wide part of the political spectrum to unite in protest. The latest presidential power grab is revealing some differences that had been concealed, though.
For more on pruning back executive power see Pruning Shears.
