Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Oregon doesn’t like illegal immigrants by 2 to 1. Oregon immigration vote is a warning for Obama. Looks like Obama is going to have trouble with his base on this one.

While this only kind of touches unintentionally on the squareness of hip, I kind of think this song is a nice all-around illustration of the concept. From a 1977 concert, here’s DEVO’s “Mongoloid.”   They weren’t terribly worried about political correctness in those days, were they? (Alas freedom. You never know it when you have…

I was recently reminded of a hilarious film, “Colour Me Kubrick,” in which John Malkovich plays a Stanley Kubrick impostor who used his nonexistent “power” as a way of getting laid. Here’s the trailer: And a scene of him scoring in a gay bar: Because they thought he was really Kubrick, they did whatever he…

Over at WUWT, commenters attempt to answer the Great Question of global warming. No, it’s not what sea levels will be in 2100, how to model water vapor and other feedbacks, or why the 18-year pause — no, this question is far more important: given their failure to model anything on Earth, what should we…

A hipster I am not, and never have been. I might have been philosophically a hippie and a punk back in the day, and for years I was a Deadhead, but I always found myself annoyed by the trappings of people who want to be “in” and who worry that they might not be, because…

WARNING: It has been pointed out that this post is Not Safe For Work. I am the last person in need of a reminder that human tastes vary widely, but a woman named Kim Kardashian seems to prove the point. Some love her, some hate her. I never would have even heard of the woman,…

The “Al Capone” remark comes about 50 seconds in.

It was based on lies.

Today is Veterans Day, and while it has a long history, the important thing is to remember and honor those who served. My dad was a World War II veteran, as were many of his friends, but unfortunately there are fewer and fewer of them around to thank. My co-blogger is a veteran, however, and…

Another day, another favorite Youtube video taken down (as usual, for “copyright” infringement). Patent royalty claims are invading the 3d printing community. I cannot shop online without later being spammed to death by Google ads offering me what I already bought, or decided NOT to buy. Under the guise of protecting the environment, cities are conning rural…

This is going to hurt: World’s largest solar plant applying for federal grant to pay off federal loan. After already receiving a controversial $1.6 billion construction loan from U.S. taxpayers, the wealthy investors of a California solar power plant now want a $539 million federal grant to pay off their federal loan. [snip] Ivanpah is…

From Jo Nova. Australians may have missed what happened this week in the US (especially if they only watch the ABC). Climate Change is over as a voting issue. Will Australian Opposition Leader, Bill Shorten, get the message? Just last month he pledged to put carbon trading on the next election agenda (again). The conservatives…

The study the video is based on: Reductions in circulating endocannabinoid levels in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder following exposure to the World Trade Center attacks. Abstract Endocannabinoid (eCB) signaling has been identified as a modulator of adaptation to stress, and is integral to basal and stress-induced glucocorticoid regulation. Furthermore, interactions between eCBs and glucocorticoids…

The experiments now going on in Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, and that other Washington (D.C.) are being watched by politicians who are trying to figure out which way to jump on the cannabis legalization issue. Here is one who admits it: Wolf would sign legislation to legalize marijuana for broader medicinal purposes. He supports decriminalizing…

Marijuana got a majority in every State (and DC) where it was on the ballot. Preliminary results: Florida – 57% in favor of Medical Cannabis (it needed 60% to pass). Oregon – legalization got 54% of the vote. That makes it the third State to legalize. Alaska – legalization got 52% of the vote. That…

China. The article’s title is China’s Third Era: The End of Reform, Growth, and Stability. This is the ending: Events are still unfolding, but we don’t have to wait for history to tell us what’s happening in China today. Three decades of stability and progress have come to an end. Deng’s China is now in…

This was brought to my attention by Ocean IR Emissivity Paper agrees with Talkshop. I won’t bore you with the gloating there. Instead lets get to the meat: New paper finds a huge false physical assumption of IPCC climate models. For all four of these physical reasons (and more) * poor absorption by water of…

I am finding out that it is very difficult to teach old dogs new tricks. I’ll start discussing cannabinoid medicine about which I know a fair amount http://rockford-for-safe-access.blogspot.com/ with “old” people who say that they are not against cannabis as medicine and they will start telling me things (like – single component cannabinoids will be…

The spooks are out tonight! I could tell by the way the sun was setting. And indoors, the sunset persists.

In honor of my mother who turned 95 earlier this week. She lives in Omaha.