January 19, 2017

Trump arrives at the Inaugural Concert — stopping to salute the statue of Abraham Lincoln — to the tune of The Rolling Stones' "Heart of Stone."

"You'll never break this heart of stone," Mick sings — in recorded music — as Donald Trump walks out, holding hands with Melania.

Let's keep watching.

Here's the NYT coverage:
With cameras filming his every move, even his airplane, Mr. Trump arrived in Washington a day before he is sworn in, appearing at a luncheon with supporters at the Trump International Hotel, where he praised the collective I.Q. of his cabinet members.

“We have by far the highest I.Q. of any Cabinet ever assembled,” Mr. Trump said in the remarks, which reporters heard only the first several minutes of before being escorted out.
UPDATE 1: Is Trump tweeting? Seems like he's using a device.

UPDATE 2: 3 Doors Down is performing a song — "Kryptonite" — with the line "If I go crazy then will you still/Call me Superman."

Let me get back to "Heart of Stone." That blew my mind. It was clearly cued up to began as Trump began his walk out. The song begins "There've been so many girls that I've known/I've made so many cry and still I wonder why." Given the gender politics of the campaign, that's radically insolent. And he's walking with his wife. She has to hear of the many "girls" that he's known? The song continues:
Here comes the little girl
I see her walking down the street
She's all by herself
I try and knock her off her feet
Try and knock her off her feet?! Does she just let you?

And later:
Don't keep on looking that some old way
If you try acting sad, you'll only make me glad....
UPDATE 3: Toby Keith is singing, "We'll raise up our glasses against evil forces" and holding up a big red cup of what he calls whiskey. [AND: We know Trump sees alcohol in the light of his older brother's tragic descent and death, so I don't think the alcohol-based crowd-rousing suited the occasion.]

UPDATE 4: I loved the fireworks with the military performance of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." That was properly elevated and spectacular, with reverence appropriate to the occasion and the setting. I'd have liked it if all the music had been done by the military performers, but I understand that some of the popular music suited Trump's man-of-the-people theme.

Trump's speech, with a hand-held mike, was very casual. There were some good references to national unity and a desire to serve all of the people, but too much of it leaned toward the partisan, with bragging about the campaign and even talking about polls.

I thought everyone looked great. Trump had very glossy hair. His black coat went nicely with Melania's black coat. Ivanka stood out in green. Tiffany looked better than I'd ever seen her. All the adults were super-tall. The children were adorable. But kids: No chewing gum!

105 comments:

donald said...

That's so frickin awesome.

Freder Frederson said...

Yeah let's compare Rick Perry's IQ with Steven Chu or Ernest Moniz.

Freder Frederson said...

Apparently thinks wealth reflects IQ.

eric said...

He is praising his cabinet, as he should. And the left is going to take him literally and start measuring IQs of past administrations.

The rest of us are going to laugh at them because they just don't get it.

David Begley said...

This is the BEST Cabinet ever. Watching the Dems harangue/question the Cabinet nominees is just embarrassing. Clowns v. Geniuses.

PB said...

Well, to be fair, John Kerry was a definite drag on Obama's cabinet's collective IQ. Many others were smart, but they were ma-leducated.

David53 said...

The IQ statement is an example of taking Trump seriously, not literally. He gotcha, again.

Maybe it would be more to your liking if Trump had said, "I have a bigly good cabinet."

Wince said...

Trump should have hired Hells Angels to do security.

"You gotta keep your bodies of each other unless you intend love."

Darrell said...

Steven Chu? The guy that wants to kill 5.5 billion people in the short term to achieve his maximum sustainable world population of 1.5 billion? That cocksucker? His IQ should be nailed on the wall alongside that of Stalin, Mao, and Hitler.

rehajm said...

Let's keep watching.

Just overheard on FOX: The left wing mockery will be thicker than Michael Moore's thighs

tcrosse said...

He is trampling out the vintage where the sour grapes are stored....

traditionalguy said...

The Glorious Revolution Redux. Another William of Orange being celebrated all the way from Dover to London as happy people feel safe with a Protestant King who will cooperate with their Parliament's Laws and Make England Great Again.

Unknown said...

Steven Chu is a Nobel Prize Winner in Physics.

Another ignoranamus identified in Trumpland

Unknown said...

Oh, The grand old Orange Don,
He had ten thousand men;
He marched them up to the top of the hill,
And he marched them down again.

And when they were up, they were up,
And when they were down, they were down,
And when they were only half-way up,
They were neither up nor down.

traditionalguy said...

The IQ remark is probably true, even with Rick Perry as an outlier bring the average down.

jaydub said...

Did anyone else besides me think that Trump only ran for president so he could troll the lefties who comment on this blog? Is it possible that he's that devious? I hope so because it's going to be exhausting for them over the next four years.

tcrosse said...

The expression Trumpland is an expansion of the old Straw Man logical fallacy. Call it the Straw Nation.

tcrosse said...

No fair picking on John Kerry, the Durward Kirby of American Politics.

campy said...

The left wing mockery will be thicker than Michael Moore's thighs

Why didn't they use 'Hillary's cankles'?

Freder Frederson said...

He is praising his cabinet, as he should. And the left is going to take him literally and start measuring IQs of past administrations.

So we should just ignore what he says and somehow attempt to figure out what he means?

Steven Chu? The guy that wants to kill 5.5 billion people in the short term to achieve his maximum sustainable world population of 1.5 billion?

Can you provide a link for this serious assertion?


fivewheels said...

I cannot imagine anything more popular with Trump supporters than being "radically insolent" toward the political and media establishment.

I generally support decorum and class, even insist on it, but in a world with Elizabeth Warren snubbing handshakes, I'd forgive Trump a middle finger at the end of his inaugural address. Maybe even a double bird.

JAORE said...

Apparently the Donald is immune to the "vapors" felt by those with fragile sensibilities.

He might even have a sense of humor..... those on the far left can google the term.

Big Mike said...

@Althouse, "knocking her off her feet" is metaphorical.

Sheesh.

tim maguire said...

You know what? If there's an omelet when he's all done, I'll support putting him on Mount Rushmore no matter how in your face he was to the jackals nipping at his ankles.

lemondog said...

In front of the Lincoln Memorial.... nice.

tim maguire said...

Freder Frederson said...So we should just ignore what he says and somehow attempt to figure out what he means?

If you want to stop being irrelevant, then, yes. That's exactly what you should do.

If...

Fernandinande said...

Was it the version with the pedal steel?

Anonymous said...

I'd rather watch Sasquatch on Animal Planet.

Jim at said...

"Steven Chu is a Nobel Prize Winner in Physics."

Paul Krugman has a Nobel Prize in Economics, yet is braindead on the subject.
Your Boy King has a Nobel Peace Prize, while he boasts of his Kill List.

In other words, Nobel Prizes ain't worth jack.

rehajm said...

If Toby does Red Solo Cup...

tim maguire said...

Well, nobody was saying Chu isn't a genius, what was said is the world could do without Steven Chu's particular brand of genius.

As for the Nobel Prize, there's a difference between science and garbage like the economics or peace prize.

Fernandinande said...

He meant "IQ" = "Income Quotient".

mccullough said...

Trump has a dark sense of humor. He's the funniest comedian of the last 25 years, maybe ever since he's got the largest audience.

FullMoon said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
J2 said...


Music/Politics
In 2008 run against Hillary, Obama campaign rallies frequently used Jay-Z's: (I got) "99 Problems" (but a bitch ain't one).

Todd Roberson said...

In the meantime in Central Indiana we're being subjected to a minute by minute update whether or not our distinguished Congressman Andre Carson will deign to attend the inaugural.

Quick question: anybody in Althouseland ever hear of Andre Carson?

His main qualification for Congress was his luck to get pulled out of the right crotch: his grandmother crazy Julia Carson embarrassed us here in Central Indiana for a couple of decades before dying and leaving the office to her grandson.

He's apparently concerned with DJT's qualifications for the job.

Mark said...

They even have a higher IQ than Washington's cabinet which had Jefferson and Hamilton, so he claims.

Best of all, his cabinet has hands that are perfectly normal sized too!

His proclamations about how his everything is the best has become comedic even before the inauguration. It will be an interesting 4 years.

Craig said...

Darrell - Bullshit.

Jim at - Bullshit. You might not like his columns or his public punditry, but I'd bet serious money you haven't even read his scholarship with > 1,000 citations. I look forward to your explanation of the flaws in "A model of balance-of-payments crises" or of why we should think that "Increasing returns and economic geography" reflects brain death. You're a fraud.

J2 - Bullshit.

The Godfather said...

"Beer for my Horses" is a vigilante song, based on the premise that if the official law keepers won't maintain order, us folks will handle it ourselves. "Hang 'em high in the streets". A good song for Trump, to focus on what he is supposed to save us from.

Mid-Life Lawyer said...

The first thing I thought about was Obama's fake columns. Awesome entrance by Trump.

Todd Roberson said...

In case anyone is curious Marion County is the one blue dot in Indiana. Smack dab in the center of the state. Ruled by the crazy Carsons.

Andre's vocation before inheriting the throne: community organizer.

Todd Roberson said...

Update: Fresh from Fox 59 in Indy. Carson WILL attend the inauguration ... But with reservations.

Perhaps DJT and Gov Pence can - with years of effort - get his crucial buy-in to their administration.

jacksonjay said...

Where was Baron? I think Rosie was right!

John henry said...

Craig said:

"A model of balance-of-payments crises"

Got a link? I'll go take a look and give you some pointers.

But from the title it sounds like bullshit.

1) If there is a balance of payments deficit (we buy more from China etc than they do from us), it is their problem, not ours. We are getting free goods. The same way that if you buy a car from me and I never cash the check.

2) China, being rational, spends the dollars we give them for their goods. Not always on the things we want them to buy but they do spend them. I use "spend" generically to include investment including debt.

If a Chinese company buys 1,000 tons of structural steel and exports it to China to build a plant, it reduces the deficit. If it sends that same steel to Madison to build the same plant, it does not not reduce the deficit.

The idea of a "trade deficit", including the very idea that it exists, is bullshit. A substance Krugman is quite familiar with.

John Henry

Bay Area Guy said...

Just got a call from my pal who's in DC. Says the Mall is packed; hordes of happy Trump supporters, bikers, flag-wavers, MAGA hat wearers -- says it's a big fun festival.

If I was in my 20s, I'd be all over it. But, sigh, I'm in my 50s.....

traditionalguy said...

We all enjoyed the celebration, but the entire world was the audience. And that show ending with the world famous Abraham Lincoln and the Battle Hymn of the Republic along with massive fireworks going off has done more to help our foreign policy with world opinion than anything Trump will says to mediocre Foreign Leaders.

Another day's work by DJT.

Drago said...

I wonder what Rosie O'Donnell is up to right about now?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

I was taken aback by "Heart of Stone" as well. Focus on the refrain, though: "You'll never break, never break, never break this heart of stone." Is that Trump's message to the media and the Democrats? "Do your worst, assholes, I'm not changing."

Trump must really like the Stones, although I doubt Mick returns the favor. Of course, to me, that's a point in his favor.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Drago said...
I wonder what Rosie O'Donnell is up to right about now?"

She's not up to anything after downing a bottle of Grey Goose and a box of Dunkin' Donuts, she's face down on the sofa.

Drago said...

Freder will still be fumbling with Google searches on how to calculate IQ's tomorrow as Trump is signing executive orders.

Some leaders understand instinctively how to shape battlespace.

traditionalguy said...

The Mayor of Israel's Capitol of Jerusalem just issued a statement, " Let's make Israel's and America's relationship Great Again."

chuck said...

> some scholar who put the flux on the outside of the fittings.

Wow. I suppose if you have never done anything with pipes/wiring/carpentry that such things might be a mystery, but... Wow.

Anonymous said...

Blogger Drago said...
I wonder what Rosie O'Donnell is up to right about now?

1/19/17, 5:58 PM

A sleep-over with Meryl Streep?

Megthered said...

"Beer for my Horses" is how we, the people take care of the bad guys. Appropriate for the occasion/

JaimeRoberto said...

Surely Steve Chu has a high IQ and is a great scientist, but that doesn't necessarily mean he's a competent manager.

YoungHegelian said...

But kids: No chewing gum!

These kids today! They probably'll chew gum at a funeral!

I went downtown yesterday & today to to Capital Hill client, a conservative think-tank, making sure that every single byte of on-premise data is safely backed up off-site somewhere. Just in case the shit hits the fan. Unlikely, but possible. And, waddya ya know, one of the scholars had, all by his little lonesome, replaced the PC he trashed without telling the office manager or us. He was gone on an international conference but he left behind 525GB of unprotected data. Got that backed up & off-site.

The Mall area was full of Trumpies, doing the DC tourist thing. The roads were, for some strange reason, full of huuuuuge SUVs, (e.g. Escalades). Some were clearly law enforcement. Others seemed to be driven by folks who had no idea where they were going. Maybe they're rentals, which explains both the local plates & the clueless driving. I got stopped by a cop in order to wait for a motorcade to form in, of all places, the part of Western Ave east of Chevy Chase Circle. Who the hell lives up there from the administration?

buwaya said...

Re Stephen Chu -

The man is a proper genius at what he has actually worked on, which is in the field of making lasers do interesting things.

Unfortunately he does not seem to have been a very good executive of the DOE. He doesn't have a reputation for dishonesty, which is a serious plus among his peers, in this notably corrupt administration, though he likewise hasn't had any influence on them. Very notably he has proven to be an utter dud at promoting his preferred solution to energy supply, nuclear power.

That was his thing, a practical thing, a doable thing. This could have been not just a tangible benefit to the nation but in many ways a truly uniting move, to get beyond some absurd ideological categories, nuclear power being a "Republican" technology. But no, it was a completely wasted opportunity, in large part because he was simply the wrong personality for this, a man unable to impose his will vs the money men like Tom Steyer and the party officials that operated the President and much of his cabinet like puppets.

But its not one bit less difficult and risky to do a nuke project today than it ever was, nor has he done anything to prevent states from, for largely political reasons, forcing the decommissioning through barring re-licensing of perfectly good nuclear plants, in NY and CA.

Brains are overrated. In such a role, and especially for, er, older men, the other organs must play a larger role. Young men can excel though their wits, but the older we get the intestines, liver, spleen and testicles become just as important.

Comanche Voter said...

Back in the day whenever I traveled to Washington D.C. on a business trip involving meetings over two or three days, I usually found time to go visit Mr. Lincoln and his memorial at twilight. I found it strangely comforting to sit and share a half hour with the statue, and reflect on who he was. He reminded me that occasionally giants sat in the Oval Office, and that took the sting out of knowing that moral midgets occasionally sat in the same office. If I'd been able to make one of those visits sometime in the last eight years, it might have helped take the sting out of Obama's presidency. And who knows what lies in wait for us after tomorrow?

Abraham Lincoln, the odd looking rural bumpkin from Illinois was very much an unknown quantity to the political establishment in 1860. He made some early mistakes, but he grew in stature in the office. Regardless of what you think of Mr. Trump (also an unknown quantity insofar as his political skills are known) if you love this country, then you'd better pray that Trump grows in office (or at least that he doesn't screw up too badly).

YoungHegelian said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Never mind Rosie O'Donnell: I imagine Trumpit, Unknown/Inga, and sunsong spending their evening like Glenn Close did in this scene from "Fatal Attraction," except they're playing Obama's '08 Inaugural speech while gazing at their Love Trumps Hate bumper sticker.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfZVysDy8zk

FullMoon said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Drago said...

exiledonmainstreet: "Never mind Rosie O'Donnell: I imagine Trumpit, Unknown/Inga, and sunsong spending their evening like Glenn Close did in this scene from "Fatal Attraction," except they're playing Obama's '08 Inaugural speech while gazing at their Love Trumps Hate bumper sticker."

Obamas pretty, pretty words. That no one can remember. Nor should they.

Anyone know when the Churchill bust will be placed back in the oval office?

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

traditionalguy said...
The Mayor of Israel's Capitol of Jerusalem just issued a statement, " Let's make Israel's and America's relationship Great Again."


The first step would be to establish exactly which partner is the client state.

Anonymous said...

Trump wanted a Soviet style parade with missles and tanks. The Pentagon said no.

wildswan said...

i Liked the whole thing. The plane taking off from New York. The plane landing and a whole big family stepping out. Trump's speech of thanks to his cabinet. He made a few jokes about the way the papers had built up the hearings on his cabinet picks. How they were going to get Jeff Sessions. And were going to get Tom Price. And were trying right at the moment to get Mnuchin. But weren't getting anywhere. How the hearings merely showcased that his picks were far more prepared and far smarter than the Democrats. (And that's true. As I see it the Dems have gotten fat, stupid and lazy in the Obama years. Running to parties with Hollywood. Being cool. Hating the workers. Probably that won't last but it is true now.) I loved the Lincoln Memorial setting and the fireworks. A huge crowd. Yuge. MAGA

Anonymous said...

Melanoma couldn't be bothered to take off her sunglasses at the ceremony at Arlington. Disrespectful.

Chuck said...

In the entire songbook of American patriotic music, has there been a worse or more overrated song, than "God Bless the USA?" Or is the name of the song "Proud to Be an American?"

It sure ain't Irving Berlin. "I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free..." It has to be the most underwhelming lyric in history.

I'm listening to the King of the Trumpkins, Jeffrey Lord, claim that the song was a Reagan Administration favorite and one of his own favorites. With the uneven cultural tastes of the Reagan era, I'm not surprised.

Chuck said...

Wildswan;

Isn't the really big story coming out of the cabinet hearings, the number of times that the Trump nominees totally contradicted the Trump campaign promises and rhetoric?

Anonymous said...

Nikki Haley's testimony was especially interesting as it totally contradicts Trump's on Russia. Mattis's too.

Of course Trump still can count on General Flynn, with his his kooky mind reading headgear company.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Known Unknown said...

"Trump wanted a Soviet style parade with missles and tanks. The Pentagon said no."

The military shouldn't get involved.

Known Unknown said...

Isn't the really big story coming out of the cabinet hearings, the number of times that the Trump nominees totally contradicted the Trump campaign promises and rhetoric?

I imagine Doris Kearns Goodwin is creaming her sensible pants over this Team of Rivals, no?

Known Unknown said...

Chuck, the lifelong Republican snob.

Michael K said...

MackM has completely digested the DNC talking points and should be a great authority on them

Freder will still be fumbling with Google searches on how to calculate IQ's tomorrow as Trump is signing executive orders.

Freder is pretty amusing. I assume Freder believes all the Shockley taught about race and stuff like that.

The three scientists invented the point-contact transistor in 1947 and were jointly awarded the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Shockley's attempts to commercialize a new transistor design in the 1950s and 1960s led to California's "Silicon Valley" becoming a hotbed of electronics innovation. In his later life, Shockley was a professor of electrical engineering at Stanford University and became a proponent of eugenics.


Freder absolutely believes this.

Late in his life, Shockley became intensely interested in questions of race, human intelligence, and eugenics. He thought this work was important to the genetic future of the human species and came to describe it as the most important work of his career, even though expressing his views damaged his reputation. Shockley argued that a higher rate of reproduction among the less intelligent was having a dysgenic effect, and that a drop in average intelligence would ultimately lead to a decline in civilization.

Nice work Freder. Appeals to authority are so brilliant.

Todd Roberson said...

Fuck!

After days of respite from the played out, worn out "lifelong Republican" drivel it's back.

Was funny and cutting the first 10,000 times it was used. Now just sad.

John henry said...

Blogger Chuck said...

Isn't the really big story coming out of the cabinet hearings, the number of times that the Trump nominees totally contradicted the Trump campaign promises and rhetoric?


Why, Chuck?

A's hire A's. B's hire C's.

Trump has always seemed to want to hire the best people he possibly can then have them tell him what they think. He doesn't necessarily follow the advice but he does listen to it.

The last thing a person like trump wants is a bunch of minions just nodding their heads and saying "Uh-huh, boss, that's right, boss"

John Henry

FullMoon said...

Chuck said... [hush]​[hide comment]

Wildswan;

Isn't the really big story coming out of the cabinet hearings, the number of times that the Trump nominees totally contradicted the Trump campaign promises and rhetoric?


But, you cannot give him credit for that, right? Hurts, don't it?
Probably more than Greta's arm after you abuse her.

buwaya said...

Shockley certainly wasnt the first with that observation, and Freder certainly should embrace it.
A very good new Icelandic study backs it (sort of; they use an "educability" metric). Basically there is something intrinsic about intelligence that significantly reduces the probability of reproduction. Nature hates brains.

I suspect its all those intelligent women wasting their time trying to make non-reproductive use of those brains. And perhaps the effect on those smart fellows who are still, regardless, still after them.

Anyway, also recent Norwegian and Dutch studies IIRC.

As for Stephen Chu, part of the appreciation for the fellow, presumably, should come through approval of his nuclear energy enthusiasms.

Chuck said...

Full Moon;
You want me to give Trump credit, after he said he let the nominees testify as they pleased, and after what "they pleased" was to contradict Trump in about 50 different ways? Trump gets credit for that?

Um, okay. I give Trump credit, for effectively abandoning dozens of his nuttiest promises and pronouncements from the campaign. It was an idiotic campaign, and the sooner it gets trashed, the better.

Now; you can explain to Trumpkinland, how so much of that stuff that Trump talked about is not going to happen.

Sydney said...

I saw the fireworks above the Lincoln Memorial on a Facebook post. The setting and the music and the fireworks were beautiful, but it feels surreal to me that Donald Trump is going to be our President. I didn't feel that way until I saw that video, now I can't shake it.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

Chuck, yeah, takin' some sly swipes at Reagan, nice work bro.

Its weird you didn't say how happy you were to hear the many ways Trump's nominees have contradicted his less-conservative rhetoric while campaigning. You...you should be happy about that, no?

Tank said...

Chuck said...

In the entire songbook of American patriotic music, has there been a worse or more overrated song, than "God Bless the USA?" Or is the name of the song "Proud to Be an American?"

It sure ain't Irving Berlin. "I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free..." It has to be the most underwhelming lyric in history.


A great song, and no surprise Chuck doesn't like it. I always feel good every time I hear it played. I could listen to that song every day.

roesch/voltaire said...

Amazing Trump knows the IQ of his cabinet choices?Really more fake news treated by Trump.

JML said...

Rick Perry was a C-130 pilot. As an old C-130 nav, I can safely say he is a brilliant idiot...

Anonymous said...

It's being reported tonight that 5 federal agencies are investigating the Trump Putin connection now. Focus is on intercepted communications regarding monies funneled to Trump campaign from Kremlin.

Happy Inauguration.

Alex said...

Maybe in some parallel universe Fiona Apple is performing for Trump.

Trumpit said...

The public must demand to see their I.Q. test scores. Those morons, and crazies will divulge that when we see Trump's tax returns. NEVER. Trump's reign will probably be like Caligula's: constant looting for himself and his rich cronies, orgies of excess, peeing prostitutes, gluttony and greed, self-aggrandizement, hubris, a whopping financial crisis, famine, & vainglorious construction projects with obscenely opulent hotels and private golf clubs (only token black rappers allowed). Will Trump have his opponents thrown in a lion's pit - in a manner of speaking, yes. They can have their fun - for a while - until Trump's follies, and madness catch up with him - just like Caligula.

JML said...

Lee Greenwood did a USO tour in the Philippines in '84 or '85. He was a warm, gracious man who gladly autographed a CD for me. The song was greatly appreciated by us service members after those barren carter years.

Darrell said...


NEWS RELEASE

07/11/94

CONTACT: Stanford University News Service (650) 723-2558

Optimum human population a third of present, scientists say

STANFORD -- Until cultures change radically, the optimum number of people to exist on the planet at any one time lies in the vicinity of 1.5 billion to 2 billion people, about a third of the present number, three California ecologists estimated in an article published in the journal Population and Environment.

Paul and Anne Ehrlich of the Center for Conservation Biology at Stanford University and Gretchen Daily of the Energy and Resources Group of the University of California-Berkeley said that figure, "if achieved reasonably soon, would also likely permit the maximum number of Homo sapiens to live a good life over the long run."

"Determination of an 'optimum' world population size involves social decisions about the lifestyles to be lived and the distribution of those lifestyles among individuals in the population," the scientists wrote.

Between a minimum viable population size (one just large enough to ensure against extinction) and the maximum number that can be supported by Earth's life-support systems ("housed and nurtured by methods analogous to those used to raise battery chickens"), determining an optimum becomes a problem of choosing what lifestyles are to be led. Community-level, national and international discussions of lifestyle preferences will be required before population size targets can be established.

The team predicated their estimate on a desire to preserve the great diversity of human cultures and also to secure basic human well- being for all the world's people, including future generations.

"In general, we would choose a population size that maximizes very broad environmental and social options for individuals," they wrote. "For example, the population of the United States should be small enough to permit the availability of large tracts of wilderness for hikers and hermits, yet large enough to create vibrant cities that can support complex artistic, educational and other cultural endeavors that lift the human spirit."

Daily and the Ehrlichs said that, since the present population has already exceeded 5.5 billion, even if the optimum were actually 4 billion, "the policy implications of our conclusions are still clear." In other words, any reasonable optimum already has been passed; thus, not only a halt to growth, but subsequent shrinkage, is required.


Paul Ehrlich worked at Stanford along with Stephen Chu. How do you think you get that 5.5 billion shrinkage they are calling for in the short run without killing people? Chu has supported this and probably provided the energy requirements analysis contained within, since that's the "science" part.

http://news.stanford.edu/pr/94/940711Arc4189.html

Saint Croix said...

Mick Is Unhappy

"This is really embarrassing. You can't just steal our music, man. What kind of Republican are you? What about contract rights? What about property rights? You can't just steal our bloody music. That's not right. That's not right. Don't make me sing a song about respecting the property rights of other people. I'm starting to rethink all of our lyrics, actually.

Go to church
Go to church
Be nice
Be nice
Don't steal
Don't steal


I'll sing this song if I have to! You're going to turn me into a bloody do-gooder. What the hell, man. It's supposed to be entertainment. It's not a blueprint! If you keep stealing our music we're going to start covering Joan Baez. Stop liking us, you idiot. What the hell kind of millionaire are you, stealing from other millionaires. Who does that?

wholelottasplainin said...

Freder Frederson: Yeah let's compare Rick Perry's IQ with Steven Chu or Ernest Moniz."

************

Judged on accomplishments, let's compare Freder Frederson's IQ with Rick Perry's.

YoungHegelian said...

orgies of excess, peeing prostitutes,

No, that was the Clinton & Kennedy administrations.

wholelottasplainin said...

Aw that intelligence gene is pure bullshit.

No one's ever found "the intelligence gene".

Nature doesn't "know" who is intelligent. Nature only allows those with greater intelligence to, on the average, out-reproduce those with lesser intelligence.

Even then, that's IF greater intelligence conveys a a reproductive advantage.

In Iceland's case, the frickin' country went bankrupt just a few years back.

Ya think that might affect the reproductive choices of some people at the top?

YA THINK???

p.s. and what about "regression of the mean"? Since when are the offspring of supposedly smart people guaranteed to be equally as smart? Ever hear of "The Kennedys"???

wholelottasplainin said...

Darrell, let the record reflect that by answering Freder's challenge, you pounded his ass straight into the ground.

Josephbleau said...

Why is obama's gloating tube hardon videos on af1 not considered equivalent to the pussy grab verbalization? I think waving your hard dick around is considered harassment in the workplace of female reporters. Probably not actionable if all the reporters gave the object lip service.

chuck said...

You know, I kinda like it that Trump is sticking it to those erstwhile bad boys and cultural appropriators, The Rolling Stones. Who, by the way, don't own the rights to their earlier music.

Chuck said...

I would agree to waive any I Q test of Rick Perry, if only he would stipulate to pronounce "nuclear" as NOOK-lee-ur, and not nook-you-lur.

Kthanxbye.

buwaya said...

Chuck,
Perry is entitled to his native dialect.
If I were to go to Laguna province and complain about how they pronounce things in Tagalog, they would call me a dick, and be correct.
If I were to show up in Vigo Spain and berate the natives about their mushy half-Portuguese that never saw the inside of the university of Salamanca I would probably end up in the gutter, and very properly too.
In fact, these Texans and southrons could, with justice, go north and start making fun of you on the same grounds. They do after all have better claims to speak a dialect closer to the original "English" folk varieties than what passes for academic, media, or BBC English. They would probably win an authenticity war.

eddie willers said...

In fact, these Texans and southrons could, with justice, go north and start making fun of you on the same grounds.

That's one of the reasons why I loved the movie Fargo so much. As a southerner, it was rewarding to find out that other regions had accents that, in and of themselves, could be funny.

Doncha know?

eddie willers said...

I would agree to waive any I Q test of Rick Perry, if only he would stipulate to pronounce "nuclear" as NOOK-lee-ur, and not nook-you-lur.


Jimmy Carter pronounced that way...and he was studying to be a nook-you-lur engineer.

Fen said...

Always amusing to see who believes the pronunciation of "nuclear" is a litmus test for intelligence.

Like the dinner party guest who beams with pride as he explains that dolphins are actually mammals not fish.

Fen said...

Hah. Chuck calls the biggest political upset in ameramerican history an "idiotic campaign"

I once considered adopting a parody sock puppet for this blog, just for the amusement of seeing how many people I could snare before someone busted me.

So I choose to believe that's what certain people are already doing here. Just to entertain us untill we finally get some of those smart sophisticated liberals we keep hearing about.

Michael McNeil said...

I see that both Merriam-Webster's and Dictionary.com show (in the case of the former) “ˈnü-klē-ər, ˈnyü-, ÷-kyə-lər”, versus “NOO-klee-er, NYOO-, or by metathesis, -kyuh-ler” (for the latter) — all as valid pronunciations for the word “nuclear”. Note the last one in each case. Since neither dictionary declares the third usage as belonging to any particular regional dialect, but instead identifies it as just a recognized alternate pronunciation — thus, it isn't even a dialectal difference; while “lifelong Republican” Chuck merely shows us once again his classist snobbery.

Amadeus 48 said...

I hope you called it Fen.
It seems fair to say that if Chuck is a real person, he has a unique view of our political landscape. Is the lifelong Republican really in favor of Jeb!/Marco/Kasich/Christie/Ted/etc. at this late date? Does he think any of them would have won, or that any of them would have stood up to the Dem/MSM/IC complex better than Trump? One wonders what Trump could do at this point to win the favor of Chuck, who I believe says he voted for Trump.
Pence, Priebus, Sessions, Price, Tillerson, Mattis, DeVos, Pompeo, Perry, Carson, etc. are good enough for me.

WA-mom said...

@jacksonjay check this video of Baron entertaining his nephew. He looks like a nice (albeit unfortunately named) boy. http://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/politics/2017/01/20/trump-children-steal-spotlight-after-inauguration/96843178/