Times Publishes Myths as Fact

New York Times reporter Micahel Lou appears terribly unfamiliar with the voting process in the United States and voters’ behavior because he presents two myths in single paragraph for an otherwise dreary story about potential Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr.

Saying his name 3 times will make him president

We Need Better Foreign Policy

We agree with Stephen Walt’s argument that newspapers need opinion writers who reflect a more realist approach to foreign policy. Unfortunately, newspaper face a tough slog finding writers who have worked over seas because they keep shuttering their foreign bureaus. The price we pay because newspaper owners need to maintain their 20% profit margins.

Arena Remains Half Full

Helping to solve New Jersey’s problems since 1966.

New Jersey Star-Ledger’s ace reporter, Maura McDermott, relies on a single source to rally support for the 10-week old white elephantPrudential Center, never mind the looming recession or New Jersey’s mammoth budget shortfall. Arena manager Dale Adams ticked off thrilling events like the circus, Spice Girls, and Celine Dion that will inflame the passions of the residents from New Jersey’s northern suburbs.

The money statistic:

The Devils are attracting 23 percent bigger crowds to their home games than they did at the Meadowlands last year and Seton Hall Pirates basketball home attendance is up by 21 percent.

The readers correctly take McDermott to task for using percentages to paint a rosy picture. The use of Seton Hall’s percentage, though, represents misleading and dodgy reporting.

Flying on Uncle Sam’s Nickel

A map made possible by taxpayers.
The back of every glossy airline magazine offers a route map for that airline. Ever wondered, who flies from Cape Girardeau to Cincinnati? Why does the route even exist? Perhaps a greater demand exists for that service than previously thought. As it turns out, few people fly in and out of the Cape along with many other markets. Those flights exists thanks only to Uncle Sam’s largesse.

A Good Step for Logic

Jonathan Weisman, writing in the Washington Post, correctly rips into Mike Huckabee for supporting a national sales tax. What you expect from a presidential candidate who maintains a strong anti-science stance?

Opposing science and tax policy since 1995

The better fix for the tax code may die from a thousand cuts as the Democrats destroy reform one of their best legislative pieces passed during the Great Society.

Twilight of Statistics Use

Caleb Crian, writing in the New Yorker, drags out dodgy statistics to scare the bejeezus out of the readership. Strap on the helmet and turn on the light because we are going deep into the bullshit.

Easy boys, the BS is piled thick here.

HLC, not Waves, Tell the Better Story

I am a Boomer, You’re a Boomer, Wouldn’t you want to be a Boomer too?

The Boston Globe puts on its generational glasses to look at the presidential candidates. Through these thick lenses of lazy reporting, the paper lumped Barack Obama in with the Boomers. Many took umbrage at this lumping action. The Globe then asked random pundits for their definition of a generation. Similar to snowflakes, no two measurements of a generation cohort appear the same.

This lack of consistent measurement points to one of many problems for using generations as a lense for analysis and prediction.

Hang 10, Boomers!

Required Reading

In addition to many technology-oriented blogs, Google now maintains a public policy blog. Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs, Andrew McLaughlin, maintains the beast although others at Google contribute to it. McLauglin writes:

At the beginning of 2005, I was Google’s lone public policy guy. Today, there’s a bigger – and growing – team of us scattered around the world, working on issues like privacy, child online safety, copyright and trademark protection, content regulation, reform of the patent system, and broadband policy. These issues are fundamental to the future of the Internet (and of the individuals it empowers), and are increasingly prominent on the agendas of policymakers worldwide.

Bully for Google. The links, as shown in the thumb image, align with McLauglin’s stated issues. However, McLauglin should expand his views and links to include competition because competition is always prominent on the agendas of policymakers.