Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
-
Thoughts on Colorado – Freedom vs. Safety
This is was written as a comment on this NYT piece. I’ve made it much longer here because the NYT limits space. — Restricting access to firearms will never stop these kinds of attacks. As a society we need to resolve ourselves that some people are crazy and will drive cars into crowds, shoot other…
-
New Govt Laser Reads You At Molecular Level
The Department of Homeland Security will soon be using a laser at airports that can detect everything about you from over 160-feet away. Gizmodo reports a scanner that could read people at the molecular level has been invented. This laser-based scanner – which can be used 164-feet away — could read everything from a person’s…
-
OxyContin Redesigned: Users Switching to Heroin
This is a story about how smart people are stupid. In the past, OxyContin was designed to be released into the body’s system slowly, over the course of many hours, meaning each pill contained a large reservoir of oxycodone. Drug users soon discovered by crushing the pills and inhaling them, or dissolving the pills in…
-
St. Charles School Group Hates Class Rankings
Members of the St. Charles District 303 school community want to eliminate class rank at the high schools and expand foreign language and technology offerings at all levels, according to a report released Monday. The information was compiled from several community meetings this year. via chicagotribune.com. Well this is easy right? About 2% of the…
-
New Chemical Makes Teeth ‘Cavity Proof’
A new chemical could make human teeth ‘cavity proof’ – and do away with the need for visits to the dentists forever. The molecule has been called ‘Keep 32’ – after the 32 teeth in a human mouth. The chemical was designed by dentists in Chile, and wipes out all the bacteria that cause cavities…
-
NAACP Requires Photo I.D. to See Speech
Earlier today, Attorney General Eric Holder addressed the NAACP Nation Convention at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas. What did media need in order to attend? That’s right, government issued photo identification (and a second form of identification too!), something both Holder and the NAACP stand firmly against when it comes to…
-
Denise Rich: Democrat Who Fled the U.S.
Denise Rich, the wealthy socialite and former wife of pardoned billionaire trader Marc Rich, has given up her U.S. citizenship – and, with it, much of her U.S. tax bill. Rich, 68, a Grammy-nominated songwriter and glossy figure in Democratic and European royalty circles, renounced her American passport in November, according to her lawyer. via…
-
Eat the Rich vs. Obama
I was reading this story: President Barack Obama will officially launch the battle over the impending fiscal cliff this morning, announcing a plan to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for people earning under $250,000, while letting the rest of the tax cuts expire. via Business Insider. This got me thinking about how much money will…
-
John Kerry = Inside Trader and Profiteer
Another oldie but goodie: For years, Kerry has invested millions in a number of green energy companies that have benefitted from the president’s efforts to aggressively subsidize the industry with taxpayer dollars. These companies include Exelon, which received a $646 million taxpayer-guaranteed loan in 2011 to build a solar facility in California and created only…
-
Labor Force Participation Rate Lowest Since 1981
This story is actually over a month old. It’s been sitting in the “drafts” folder. Still just as relevant as the day it was published. In April the number of people not in the labor force rose by a whopping 522,000 from 87,897,000 to 88,419,000. This is the highest on record. The flip side, and…
Got any book recommendations?