Althouse: Shhh.

January 3, 2012

Shhh.

I'm reading. You can talk all you want but keep it down in there.

88 comments:

edutcher said...: Looks more like a midwinter's nap.; 1/3/12, 3:05 PM
Scott M said...: You should have stopped after finding the Holy Grail, Indy.; 1/3/12, 3:07 PM
Anonymous said...: The Little Prince?; 1/3/12, 3:13 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: I was thinking Fistful of Dollars-Clint Eastwood. Just need a cheroot.; 1/3/12, 3:19 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Even though I'm planning to vote for Romney, I didn't think he would come out as my top choice on this quick and cursory USA Today Candidate Match Game. But he did and by a large margin.; 1/3/12, 3:26 PM
traditionalguy said...: Your happy birthday this way cometh. Can we start a celebration even if the fireworks interrupt your concentration?; 1/3/12, 3:27 PM
dhagood said...: why is she wearing the hat sideways? is this a political statement? a fashion statement? i thought everybody in wisconsin knew the direction of forward...; 1/3/12, 3:46 PM
Original Mike said...: @Freeman:

1. Huntsman
2. Gingrich
3. Santorum

Hmmm.; 1/3/12, 3:49 PM
DADvocate said...: why is she wearing the hat sideways?

She was standing sideways when she put it on.; 1/3/12, 3:50 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Mike, mine was

1. Romney
2. Paul
3. Gingrich

Romney and Paul were an unexpected combination.; 1/3/12, 3:52 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Apropos of Khan Academy, group projects, lecturing, etc., I heard an interesting piece on NPR recently.

Here's the writeup.; 1/3/12, 3:53 PM
bagoh20 said...: I got:

1)Romney
2)Gingrich
3)Perry

But nobody was even close to me. Even my #1 (Romney) only agreed with me on 4 of 11 issues.; 1/3/12, 3:54 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Freeman, I started the quiz as I'm killing time before another mtg., but I have to say I got mired in the choices. I apparently have a lot of unformed policy positions...; 1/3/12, 3:55 PM
edutcher said...: They had an interview with one of the Google techies on Cavuto regarding Internet searches in IA.

Over the last week, the searches ran toward Santorum, Paul, Milton, Newt, and Bachmann, in that order.

The last day or so (remember 40% undecided), it's gone Santorum, Perry, Milton, Bachmann.

Maybe a big surprise coming.; 1/3/12, 3:56 PM
Justin said...: I got

(1) Huntsman
(2) Obama
(3) Romney

Not sure what that means, but interesting quiz. Thanks for the link.; 1/3/12, 4:00 PM
Meade said...: That was fun.
1. Romney
2. Gingrich
3. Bachmann; 1/3/12, 4:02 PM
Paco Wové said...: 1. Romney
2. Huntsman
3. Gingerich

hmmmmm.....; 1/3/12, 4:03 PM
Original Mike said...: I didn't even notice Obama was in there. He was my lowest. That makes sense.; 1/3/12, 4:04 PM
bagoh20 said...: I've been sucking up the Kahn Academy for weeks now. I watch it for hours on end. I'm now smarter than a fifth grader and ready to prove it.

It's amazing to think that one (young) man has such an understanding of so many subjects as Kahn. The human mind is amazing. Some of them anyway - mine just mostly imagines sex, but now with context.; 1/3/12, 4:06 PM
Scott M said...: mine just mostly imagines sex, but now with context

Mine is usually busy with mostly out of context sex. Mostly.; 1/3/12, 4:07 PM
Scott M said...: OR

mine just mostly imagines sex

They mostly come at night. Mostly.

(is that wrong given the actress in question?); 1/3/12, 4:08 PM
john said...: Huntsman
Romney
Obama

It's rigged I tell you! No matter what I do Obama comes in third.

Well maybe third is OK. At least Paul didn't come in first.; 1/3/12, 4:12 PM
Dust Bunny Queen said...: RE Test

Michelle Bachman 5 of 11
Rich Santorum 5 of 11
Gingrich 3 of 1

The 5 topics I agreed with Bachman and Santorum. Medicare, Defense spending, Climate change (it's a crock) Social Securty, Taxes.; 1/3/12, 4:12 PM
Tyrone Slothrop said...: I got

1)Homer Simpson
2)Gandalf
3)Lorenzo St. DuBois

Did anybody else get results like that?; 1/3/12, 4:13 PM
Dust Bunny Queen said...: LOL I didn't notice Obama either.

I agreed with Obama on exactly ZERO issues.; 1/3/12, 4:14 PM
Scott M said...: Did anybody else get results like that?

I got something very similar, but that was two realities ago.; 1/3/12, 4:17 PM
Toad Trend said...: 1. Huntsman
2. Paul
3. Perry

Really leaning Santorum now, too...

I can't help but see Ricardo Montalban every time Khan academy is brought up...; 1/3/12, 4:19 PM
Jose_K said...: Door of perception. Doesnt want jokes about the 60´s are calling; 1/3/12, 4:24 PM
Dose of Sanity said...: Obama (surprise)
Romney (tied)
Huntsman (tied)

Interesting.; 1/3/12, 4:25 PM
Anonymous said...: 1. Huntsman
2. Romney
3. Bachman

I plead non compos mentis.; 1/3/12, 4:26 PM
pm317 said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/3/12, 4:28 PM
pm317 said...: Santorum's angry mug (something about his mouth and the lines around it) scares the hell out of me. He may think he is putting out a serious 'conservative' face but it is annoying to look at him.; 1/3/12, 4:31 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: As for issues agreed with, mine went

1. Romney 5/11
2. Paul 2/11
3. Gingrich 1/11
4. Huntsman 1/11
5. Santorum 1/11

Zero for everyone else.; 1/3/12, 4:31 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Some of the differences between responses were minor though.; 1/3/12, 4:32 PM
pm317 said...: Khan (it is a Muslim surname)..

WV: cring {should I cringe because I am identifying the origin of that name?}; 1/3/12, 4:34 PM
Ann Althouse said...: I got Romney, by a lot, followed by Gingrich, then Bachmann. Just like Meade.; 1/3/12, 4:37 PM
Ann Althouse said...: Hat is on sideways to help keep it on while I lean my head back.. I'm wearing the hat to keep bright light from interfering with my eyesight.; 1/3/12, 4:38 PM
edutcher said...: Paul (big surprise)
Perry
Bachmann (bigger surprise); 1/3/12, 4:45 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Hat is on sideways to help keep it on while I lean my head back..

We all know the truth. Andy R is a trendsetter.

Actually I didn't know it was on sideways. Shows how much I know about hats.; 1/3/12, 4:46 PM
Original Mike said...: My Romney came in second to last, just a little bit higher than Obama.; 1/3/12, 4:47 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Oh, now that I look at the picture again, I see that the sideways-ness is obvious.; 1/3/12, 4:47 PM
Meade said...: Much as I tried to cheat, using the sliders of issue importance, I could not get Rick Perry above Barack Obama.; 1/3/12, 4:47 PM
dbp said...: Romney
Bachman
Santorum
Huntsman
Gingrich
Perry
Paul
Obama

A pretty good test in that this is pretty close to how I would have ordered them.; 1/3/12, 4:48 PM
pm317 said...: Santorum will not get this nephew's vote!; 1/3/12, 4:55 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: A relative posted on Facebook what I think is the most humorous result I've seen:

5/11 with Paul, Romney, and Perry

She asks, "How's that even possible?"; 1/3/12, 4:58 PM
AlanKH said...: Indy Althouse in "Raiders of the Wisconsin Taxpayer's Wallet."; 1/3/12, 4:59 PM
rcommal said...: Huntsman 60.1 5/11
Perry 60.1 5/11
Gingrich 53.4 4/11

I didn't go back and use the sliders to rate the importance of individual issues; did anyone else?; 1/3/12, 5:00 PM
rcommal said...: [checkbox click]; 1/3/12, 5:01 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: I did the sliders before I did the quiz.; 1/3/12, 5:02 PM
Andy said...: Barack Obama
Ron Paul
Rick Perry

The Perry third place finish surprised me.; 1/3/12, 5:04 PM
rcommal said...: By the way, as it turns out, on question I went back and forth, back and forth on the best answer. Had I gone with the other one, I would have had the same score for Gingrich! --60.1 5/11 . LOL.; 1/3/12, 5:05 PM
rcommal said...: Maybe this is the problem undecided Iowans have been having!!

Oh, well, time has run out. Caucuses start just a couple hours.; 1/3/12, 5:06 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Somebody hand Andy a cowboy hat.; 1/3/12, 5:06 PM
dhagood said...: @scottm:

They mostly come at night. Mostly.

(is that wrong given the actress in question?)

then, yes it would have been most very wrong.

now, you can safely think of sex in or out of context.; 1/3/12, 5:07 PM
dbp said...: I think the sliders are essential to the test. Romney came out 1st and only agreed with 5 of 11, while Bachman was in 2nd while agreeing with 7 of 11 questions.; 1/3/12, 5:12 PM
mccullough said...: The sliders seem to be important. I came up with Huntsman, Romney, and Obama, who I apparently agree with on 2 issues, but I couldn't figure out which one. I clicked none of the above on a few issues I thought were important but didn't like the choices offered. I couldn't choose from among the options, so maybe Obama is really my guy after all.; 1/3/12, 5:13 PM
ricpic said...: 1. Santorum
2. Bachmann
3. Huntsman

Have to admit wanting to get out of Afghanistan by 2014 puts me in agreement with Obama.; 1/3/12, 5:23 PM
Ritmo Re-Animated said...: How many taxpayers' dollars were spent doing that, again?; 1/3/12, 5:25 PM
rcommal said...: G-rrrrrr-eat.

So I adjust the sliders (without changing answers and without regard to any desired outcome), and while Perry flips with Huntsman for #1, my percentage of agreement with each ALL go down--and about the same amount.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

Oh, well.

I never considered caucusing for Huntman because I truly don't think he has an ice cube's shot even in New Hampshire.

Perry I was originally favorably disposed to, despite some concerns, but between the way he's campaigned and that Godawful statement of his that he'd use his soapbox to lead a nationwide campaign to add a ban on gay marriage to the consitution (PRIORITIES, PEOPLE! FIRST THINGS FIRST!!!! Plus, I don't support such an amendment.), I decided not to caucus for him.

My plan (before this survey), though not with tremendous enthusiasm, was to caucus for Gingrich, even though I think Romney's more likely to win Iowa and the nomination in general, and even though it's probably true he's more likely got the best chance to beat Obama. I'd like to see Gingrich survey for at least the people of South Carolina and Florida to have some input.

So unless I'm either hit by a lightning bolt or a sudden epiphany in the next couple of hours, that's what I'm going to do.

******

I just got my husband to take this (he's also caucusing tonight). He adjusted his sliders beforehand and came up with Romney, Gingrich and Perry, all pretty much tied at about 50% and 4-5 points of agreement out of a 11 issues for each.

So there you go.; 1/3/12, 5:33 PM
MnMark said...: Paul (5/11)
Perry
Gingrich

If we're going to get out of Afghanistan in 2014, why not get out right now and save some American lives and money? It's not like anything we could possibly do between now and then is going to keep it from reverting a few months after we leave to exactly what it was before we came anyway.; 1/3/12, 5:35 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: THE LITTLE PRINCE COMES IN A POP-UP VERSION TOO. IT'S A VERY NICE BOOK AND APPROPRIATE FOR ALL AGES, ACTUALLY, YOU CAN

WHAT?

Oh.

see how it looks if you like, page by page, in this video.; 1/3/12, 5:35 PM
rcommal said...: One last thing:

We are both among those who were registered as "no party" in Iowa but are becoming Republicans. And we are also committed to voting for, and help campaign for, whoever gets the nomination (barring some bizarre happenstance from left field--I ALWAYS reserve the right to revisit a decision under extraordinary circumstances and change my mind: that's what a mind is for, IMO; but I don't anticipate doing so).

And that, as they say, is that.; 1/3/12, 5:40 PM
Chip S. said...: My highest correlation with any of them was 3/11, and that was with Gingrich and Huntsman. Romney and Perry were at the bottom, yet I voted for Romney in the straw poll.

Either that algorithm is weird, or I am.

Must be the algorithm.; 1/3/12, 5:40 PM
Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...: 1) Huntsman 5/11
2) Gingrich 4/11
3) Romney 4/11

Wow, I might have to give Huntsman a second look.; 1/3/12, 5:51 PM
Timeforchange said...: Ann
Thank you for the lead into David Foster Wallace. I spent a lot of time looking up the meaning of words.I guess I wasn't the only one looking for meaning.

David shared this:
As something I'm all but sure Harper's will excise, I'll also insert that we even had a lighthearted but retrospectively chilling little family song that Mom and we little SNOOTlets would sing in the car on long trips while Dad silently rolled his eyes and drove (you have to remember the title theme of Underdog in order to follow the song):
When idiots in this world appear
And fail to be concise or clear
And solecisms rend the ear
The cry goes up both far and near
For Blunder Dog
Blunder Dog
Blunder Dog
Blunder Dog

Solecism is currently in the bottom 40% of lookups on Merriam-Webster.com.
A green arrow indicates a fast mover: this word increased significantly in lookups over the past seven days.

I wonder why?; 1/3/12, 5:58 PM
cliff claven said...: Narcissus wears a hat. I think there's a conspiratorial plot being hatched under that cheap lid. It's so ludicrous it's almost funny. But, it's too self absorbed to be truly humorous...just pitiful, ala Gloria Swanson.; 1/3/12, 5:59 PM
cliff claven said...: toby=frankz=ndspinelli=?; 1/3/12, 6:03 PM
WineSlob said...: Does this Lass Beneath the Fedora
In the Sun, Sure and Begorrah
Exude a Certain Aura
Like Dawn's Goddess Aurora
Or is She Like Pandora?

Alas, Does She Shine in La Brillante Hora
Like Flora in Glocca Morra
Or Does She Darken Like Pandora
Or the Souls of Gomorrah
The Blog-Reading Plethora?; 1/3/12, 6:07 PM
Sue D'Nhym said...: Romney, Bachmann, Santorum

Obama came in last. That was easy to predict.; 1/3/12, 6:53 PM
kjbe said...: 1. Huntsman
2. Gingerich
3. Obama

hmmmmm, too...; 1/3/12, 6:53 PM
Palladian said...: My score from the somewhat bogus Candidate Match Game test:

Ron Paul - 5 of 11 issues
Rick Perry - 5 of 11 issues
Jon Huntsman - of 11 issues

I'm least like Mittens and 0bama.

When I received my results for the Candidate Match Game, I was just disappointed that I didn't match Richard Dawson, Bret Somers or Charles Nelson Reilly.; 1/3/12, 6:55 PM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: Interesting. I got Romney (no surprise); Gingrich (some surprise); and Huntsman (considerable surprise, though it really shouldn't have been: I'm only a conservative in the first place because I've been surrounded by raging leftists for a quarter century, and tilted the other way out of instinctive repulsion).

wv: matorm; 1/3/12, 6:56 PM
Patrick said...: On the IRS question my preferred choice wasn't an option. Do away with it. I had about 4 questions in there with no good answer to me.; 1/3/12, 6:58 PM
MaggotAtBroad&Wall said...: 1. Paul
2. Perry
3. Santorum

No real surprises, since according to the media I'm a right-wing extremist. However, I didn't like any of the possible answers for two of the questions and had to answer "none" for those two, so I'm not sure how that impacted the results.; 1/3/12, 7:09 PM
Steven said...: Rather than "which do you most agree with" and "how important is the issue", I think it should list the positions and allow the user to assign points to each (either typing in a number or using a slider). I hope it doesn't think that I consider one answer right and the rest of them wrong.

I got Huntsman, Bachmann, and Santorum. I like Huntsman and think he'd be doing better if he hadn't falsely marketed himself as a liberal. I'll probably vote for Romney twice this year.; 1/3/12, 7:17 PM
Peter Hoh said...: Huntsman
Obama
Romney; 1/3/12, 7:20 PM
caplight45 said...: I'm voting for Freeman Hunt.; 1/3/12, 7:36 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Since I didn't feel like thinking my way through the quiz, put me down for Herman Cain.; 1/3/12, 7:39 PM
Meade said...: caplight45 said...
"I'm voting for Freeman Hunt."

I am too, cap. We all are. But she won't be available until 2036 when her youngest kid turns 18.

Try to be patient.; 1/3/12, 7:44 PM
caplight45 said...: Dang!; 1/3/12, 7:50 PM
Palladian said...: Uh, guys? You're veering awfully close to that comment-cluttering flirtation thing, aren't you?; 1/3/12, 8:06 PM
caplight45 said...: Palladian, I assure you that my intentions are solely political and completely honorable. :) However, the thought of being deleted is somewhat exhilarating.; 1/3/12, 8:19 PM
Mark Leavy said...: That's a hell of a great photo.
BTW - been reading for years, never commented before. This post put me over the edge.; 1/3/12, 8:25 PM
Sprezzatura said...: I got
Perry 5/11
Bachman 4/11
Paul 4/11

(and then Santorum and BHO at 3/11); 1/3/12, 8:33 PM
Known Unknown said...: I just wish their were more latitudes with the answers. There's no "bomb the shit out of Afghanistan just to prove to the rest of the world we aren't to be trifled with" option.

1. Gingrich (2/11)
2. Paul (3/11)
3. Bachmann (3/11)

I have no idea what this means.; 1/3/12, 9:33 PM
Rosalyn C. said...: Huntsman, Perry, Obama --Perry??

Odd results for a traditionally Democrat voter, a centrist. Huntsman has no chance to become the Republican candidate, does he? So that leaves me at square one if I want to vote for someone besides Obama. Romney wasn't even on the radar and fergettabout Santorum.; 1/3/12, 11:09 PM
Kirby Olson said...: Romney
Huntsman
Santorum

I'd like the two Mormons to run as president and vice president, and give Santorum a role in the cabinet as Secretary of Defense or something.; 1/3/12, 11:15 PM
Thorley Winston said...: I retook the test (this time picking a choice from all of the questions and my results were:
Tie for 1 and 2 Michelle Bachman and Mitt Romney (6/11)
3 Rick Santorum (5/11)
On weighing the questions, I moved the bar for importance all the way to the right (indicating the most importance) for Health Care, Medicare, Experience and Social Security and move the bar all the way to the left (indicating the least importance) for Gay Marriage while leaving all other questions at the default position. I played around with changing the weights for the questions that I left at the default and Newt Gingrich was my fourth choice (5/11).
I’m a bit confused why the creators chose only eleven questions and left out ones that seem like they’d be more pressing for voters in the fall election. It seems that it should have been fairly easy to make it an even 20 questions by adding categories for:

Job Creation/ the Economy (which is likely to be the #1 issue this election)
Deficit Reduction
Education
Judicial Appointments/The Federal Courts
Regulatory Reform
Legal Reform/Tort Reform
Homeland Security/PATRIOT Act
Gun Rights/Gun Control
Abortion

It seems to me that many of these issues are likely to be motivate a lot of people in this fall’s election (even if some of them like Gay Marriage are not particularly important to me personally) and it seems like an odd choice to pick 11 questions while leaving out glaringly obvious ones like the Economy.; 1/4/12, 10:57 AM