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Archive for July, 2010
Best. Post title. EVER.
Wednesday, July 21st, 2010After action report: Tucson, AZ.
Wednesday, July 21st, 2010My regular readers (and my irregular readers, too; come to think of it, “Whipped Cream Irregulars” would be a good name for a band) may have figured out by now that I’ve spent much of the past week on the road. Specifically, I was in Tucson for the annual convention of the Smith and Wesson Collectors Association. (You might have been able to guess that I also made a brief trip to the Phoenix/Scottsdale area so I could visit Taliesin West.)
I’m not going to talk much about what went on at that convention here, since it is a closed private convention, and I’m not comfortable discussing the organization’s affairs on a public blog. (Jay G. and the rest of the Vicious Circle gang might be amused to know that there was an actual S&W police bike, manufactured in Springfield, MA and complete with lights and siren, on display at the convention. I didn’t get a chance to take a photo.) I will say I had a great time at the convention, and in Tucson in general. Sadly, I didn’t have time to hit any used bookstores or gun stores in the area, but maybe next time.
This is the first extended road trip I’ve taken since last year’s DEFCON, so I thought it might be interesting to do some notes about what worked and didn’t work on this trip.
Maywood update.
Tuesday, July 20th, 2010The NYT would like for you to know that Maywood, California has not descended into anarchy after disbanding the city government and outsourcing services. Indeed, things seem to be going along pretty much as normal, at least in part because many of the city workers have apparently been rehired on a contract basis by those hired to run the city.
That’s putting it mildly.
Edited to add: One thing I didn’t pick up on, since I was on the road when the LAT reported this, is that many of Maywood’s functions have been outsourced to the city of Bell. It turns out that Bell has some issues as well:
Some thoughts on drugs and the management of risk.
Monday, July 19th, 2010There’s an interesting article in today’s LAT about one possible solution to the problem of antibiotic resistance; doctors are pulling older antibiotics out of the drug closet.
The nice thing about this is that many bacteria, such as the one that causes MRSA, haven’t had a chance to develop a resistance to these older drugs. The trade-off, though, is that there’s a reason many of these drugs went out of common use. For example, chloramphenicol, the centerpiece drug in the article, went out of favor because it carried a risk of triggering aplastic anaemia. The Wikipedia article on chloramphenicol gives the risk at 1 out of every 24,000 to 40,000 people (for oral dosage). (Please do not get your medical advice from Wikipedia. This has been a public service announcement.) That’s pretty high by modern standards, but a lot better than dying of MRSA; at least, that’s the point of view of the doctors quoted by the LAT.
This is just the most current example of a topic that fascinates and frustrates me; the trade-off between safe and effective in drug design. You say the word “thalidomide” to people and they’re horrified; rightfully so. But it turns out that thalidomide is effective for treating multiple myeloma and complications of leprosy. Are the benefits of thalidomide worth the risks of birth defects? Who gets to decide?
We saw much the same thing with Vioxx; there were (and are) people who were willing to trade a relatively small risk of cardiac complications for effective pain relief, especially since many of these people were unable to tolerate aspirin or other pain relievers.
Now we’re seeing this with Avandia, too; an effective drug for managing blood sugar and reducing the chances of diabetes complications. But, once again, it appears to carry a relatively small risk of cardiac complications, and that’s leading to calls for it to be pulled from the market.
We’re letting the FDA make the decisions for us on how much risk we’re willing to tolerate in order to get results. Is that the best way to do it? Would we be better off if the FDA was only responsible for making sure doctors had all the information? Once they do have all the relevant information, shouldn’t the risk/reward trade-off be an informed decision by the doctor and patient?
Propellers in the dawn.
Monday, July 19th, 2010Travel day. Light blogging.
This one’s for Mike.
Sunday, July 18th, 2010
I promised photos…
Thursday, July 15th, 2010I took a lot more photos than these, but I want to wait until I get back to the MacBook and iPhoto before I post too many. Some of them will need cleanup, I’m sure, and I would prefer to be able to work with the RAW versions.
Here are two high points of the day, though.
Under the radar we crept on.
Thursday, July 15th, 2010Bag found and delivered to hotel.
Blogger awake, biological clock mostly reset, soon to shower and go forth in search of bagels and coffee.
More later, including photos, I hope.
(Subject line hattip. Much much thanks to TJIC for the pointer; Abney Park’s “Under the Radar” is the official theme song for this trip.)
Happy Bastille Day, everyone!
Wednesday, July 14th, 2010I generally recommend to folks that they observe the holiday in the traditional way; get drunk and storm a prison.
Apologies for the lack of other content. Today is a travel day. And a certain bag-loving airline has temporarily misplaced my bag.
More later.
Take a look at these fabulous prizes.
Tuesday, July 13th, 2010By way of one of the mailing lists I subscribe to, an Esquire article about Terry Kniess, the first person ever to turn in a perfect Showcase bid on The Price Is Right, and the controversy that followed.
Bonus points for the reference to Michael Larson.
Obit watch.
Tuesday, July 13th, 2010Wow. Steinbrenner’s dead?
Edited to add: NYT quotes reactions from various folks, including Yogi Berra and Don Zimmer. Billy Martin was unavailable for comment.
I have seen reports that SF writer James P. Hogan passed away yesterday; however, I consider those reports unconfirmed at this point, as there is nothing on the Locus web site yet. I’ve been checking periodically; if I get confirmation, I will note it here. (Edited to add 2: Locus is now confirming the reports of Hogan’s death.)
For what it may be worth, here are links to Harvey Pekar obits from the NYT and the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Also among the dead: Tuli Kupferberg, founding member of The Fugs.
The Scales of Justice.
Monday, July 12th, 2010Continuing our intermittent series of Crime Stoppers updates, someone has stolen thirteen Japanese koi from a pond at the Zilker Botanical Garden.
This does not appear to be a lark, or a crime of opportunity by a crack head or some equivalent; the koi are pretty large fish which would be tough to handle alone, and each one needs at least 10 gallons of water for transport (that is, if you want living fish at the end of it). From what the Statesman says, I gather that the koi does not make for good sushi.
I don’t have a good explanation for the fact that the theft apparently took place two weeks ago, and we’re only now finding out about it.
Lawrence speculated to me that perhaps the koi were stolen for someone who is (or was) planning a Polynesian dinner for the masses. In other words, he thinks the motive was hoi polloi koi poi. (Yes, I’m aware that poi is not made from fish, but from the taro plant. You try telling Lawrence that.)
Anyway, be on the lookout for people selling koi on street corners. Remember; if it doesn’t look legit, it probably isn’t. Ask for papers.