Quite so

An article in the Scientist arguing that we can remove the damage done by alcohol by designing a better intoxicant:

So what can we do about it? I think it is time to use the now-considerable knowledge of the neuropsychopharmacology of alcohol to develop safer, alternative intoxicants whose effects can be reversed by antidotes.

I entirely agree, and have for some while argued that the best remedy for the damages caused by illicit drugs is to design a better drug; but the metaproblem is that what anti-drug and anti-alcohol activists object to is not the damage but the enjoyment, and thus a new alcohol/new drug will not remove the objection (indeed, in Ecstasy we already have a drug that's almost consequence-free).

Bearing in mind, too, that for many people the knowledge of the damagepart of the enjoyment.

Couldn't happen to a nicer pack of bastards

I follow several conservative, not to say wingnut, American sites, which also send me sales pitches for books, etc; and also stock tips -

"Below please find a special message from one of our advertisers, Eric Dickson Editor of Breakaway Stocks on behalf of Horiyoshi Worldwide (HHWW). From time to time, we receive opportunities we believe you as a valued customer may want to know about.

If You Missed Buying True Religion (Nasdaq:TRLG) At $0.67 And Selling For $31.08 – You're About To Get A Second Chance… Only This Time Your Gains
Could Be Even Bigger!
The biggest names in Hollywood and Music are making sure they're seen wearing high-end clothing brand Horiyoshi the III! And like True Religion before it, Horiyoshi Worldwide (HHWW) shares could soar 4,538% or more before the New Year!
Fellow Investor,
Fashion industry experts are already predicting big things for Horiyoshi Worldwide's exclusive, high-end clothing line Horiyoshi the III...
And it all starts with True Religion.
You see, in 2006, unknown jean designer started taking Tinsel Town by storm, popping up on some of the biggest movie and music stars all across Hollywood...
And it didn't take long for the fashion-conscious to take notice.
The rest of the story is an investor's fairy tale come true…
True Religion exploded - and this former little 65 cent “stock that could” jumped to $24 and onto the Nasdaq, making early investors in this denim company instant Millionaires!
However, as impressive and unbelievable as this price explosion is, shares in HHWW could be even more lucrative...
Why?
Because Horiyoshi the III already has something True Religion never did – a proven track record of success! Why? Well, this isn't the first time the Japanese tattoo legend, Horiyoshi Nakano's designs have hit Western shores…
Just last year, Japanese tattooing legend, Horiyoshi's artwork was used in a very exclusive, extremely successful and multi-Million-dollar-making t-shirt line for gigantic apparel company Affliction.
And even though we may not know much about fashion, if there's one thing we do understand, is the nature of business, and we'll take Million dollar sales and a proven track record every time.
True Religion never had the support of a proven track record, yet TRLG still jumped 4,538%...
And it's these proven sale records that could have HHWW surpassing the jean company's meteoric-rise to stock superstardom, and if it does, that mea huge profits for investors who act now!
And while matching True Religion's success is impressive, it's what Horiyoshi Worldwide is planning to do next that has investor's around the world salivating…
I've detailed all the eye-popping details in my hot-off-the-press report on HHWW, and lets just say Horiyoshi the III is about to set the entire fashion world on fire!
Happy Investing,
Eric Dickson,
Editor, Breakaway Stocks

Looking at the charts for the stock, the structure is clear, not to say classic; Eric selects a stock that's cheap (a dollar in mid-November) and buys up big, plugs it to the Human Events suckers till they did it up to $3 (December 10), dump the stock (drops to $1.36 by Dec 13) and....
though I got this mail on Dec 28th. So they've probably done it once already.
Still, anything nasty that happens to wingnuts is fine by me.

Though they apparently also target others: at http://jasoncalacanis.posterous.com/is-this-illegal-stock-pumping-fw-breakout-ale

I get these kind of emails from time to time after never signing up. Are they spam or stock pumping?

and a reply
GoldenSun said...

It is both spam and stock pumping! It isn't illegal, if they properly disclose what they are being paid, but it is a scam. This is a classic email pump and dump.
Nothing but the lowest quality of companies use such tactics to create demand for their shares. Mark down the price, and take a look in 6 months.

Do the same for the next few emails you get. After a while, you will see the obvious pattern. At that point its time to open a brokerage account at firm that will let you short sell....and then welcome to the dark side.

And looking on google I see that this particular pump 'n' dump has been running since November 30.... No, November 17... No, November 10th... so this is the second time around, or alternatively they just set up a spambot and didn't provide a shutoff date.

New meme?

365 Ways to Drive a Liberal Crazy
No. 2 of 365

Tell a joke:
Q: Why was Obama so disappointed when he went to a screening of The Men Who Stare at Goats?

A: Being a Muslim, he thought there would be more romance.

from (an ad for) James Delingpole, 365 Ways to Drive a Liberal Crazy

OK, the joke, such as it is, is that Muslims fuck goats. Oddly, though, it's the first time I've heard that particular slur, and I keep up with the ethnic slur categories pretty thoroughly, I would have thought. Let's check google: "muslim goatfuckers" has only 53 hits, which doesn't sound very mainstream.

Aha. Urban Dictionary says

"A slur Theo Van Gogh used to describe militant Dutch immigrants from Muslim countries. Also sometimes used to describe Muslims in general.
"This is what our multicultural society has brought us: a climate of intimidation in which all sorts of goatfuckers can issue their threats freely.""

So a known, if not terribly successful, meme. I was wrong.

Lust

Oooh.

An Edward Gorey auction.
17. GOREY, Edward (1925 - 2000) Skull Necklace A skull neclace on a string, possible onyx, turquoise, or Abyssinian. Provenance: Edward Gorey to the Edward Gorey Charity Trust, Accompanied by a letter signed by Andreas Brown, Co-Trustee, confirming the ownership. A FINE EXAMPLE OF THE ECCENTRIC JEWELERY WORN BY EDWARD GOREY.

est. $500 – $800

Tempting, but no...

NSW Right Footshooting trophy

Arbib points out that there's no law against discussing Labor party politics with embassy officials. Well, yes; but compare and contrast -

Document H

The Petrov Document labelled ’H’ was written by Press Secretary to Dr Evatt, Fergan O’Sullivan. It is a series of pen-sketches of the 1952 Press Gallery. Fergan O’Sullivan claimed to have written Document H to help the Soviet Union target journalists who might publish pro-Soviet articles. In fact Moscow used the information in an effort to identify potential agents. No one named in Document H was found to be a Russian spy.

That one justified an entire volume of a Royal Commission.

Burn, Pigs

Reading this -
"After nearly 40 years of service, six F-111 fighter bombers have taken their final flight from Queensland's Amberley Air Force base.
The F-111 is known for its ability to get down low and fast for bombing runs, earning it the nickname 'the pig'.
Four F-111s will end up on display at military museums and the 17 others will be scrapped."
I'm not sure which is the oddest thing, historically speaking - that a combat fighter has been a credible threat for nearly 40 years - by which standard Blériot's channelcrosser would have ended up being used in Korea - or that Australia has had nearly forty years of peace, defined as 'not having to use your fighters".

Another Amis

To A Baby Born Without Limbs

This is just to show you who's boss around here.
It’ll keep you on your toes, so to speak,
Make you put your best foot forward, so to speak,
And give you something to turn your hand to, so to speak.
You can face up to it like a man,
Or snivel and blubber like a baby.
That’s up to you. Nothing to do with Me.
If you take it in the right spirit,
You can have a bloody marvelous life,
With the great rewards courage brings,
And the beauty of accepting your LOT.
And think how much good it’ll do your Mum and Dad,
And your Grans and Gramps and the rest of the shower,
To be stopped being complacent.
Make sure they baptise you, though,
In case some murdering bastard
Decides to put you away quick,
Which would send you straight to LIMB-O, ha ha ha.
But just a word in your ear, if you’ve got one.
Mind you DO take this in the right spirit,
And keep a civil tongue in your head about Me.
Because if you don't,
I’ve got plenty of other stuff up My sleeve,
Such as leukemia and polio,
(Which incidentally you're welcome to any time,
Whatever spirit you take this in.)
I’ve given you one love-pat, right?
You don’t want another.
So watch it, Jack.

Kingsley Amis