Archive for July, 2007

Live Smart

Posted July 21, 2007 By Dave Thomer

I’m very happy to have Eureka back on the air. I’ve been going through the commentaries and deleted scenes from the season 1 DVD set – look for a review soon on that – and the first two episodes of season 2 have been strong. I think I’m most amused by the Live Smart PSAs […]

Growth of Filibusters

Posted July 20, 2007 By Dave Thomer

A follow-up on filibusters: McClatchy has a nice article and chart detailing the growth of filibusters as a tactic over the last couple of years. In many ways this is a shoe-on-the-other-foot situation, but what I find interesting is that it seems to me that Republican senators considered to be moderate have been more willing […]

Double Duty

Posted July 19, 2007 By Dave Thomer

I’m back from my educational psychology class, and there have been a couple of things running through my head since the summer session started: 1. I can not believe that this is an elective within the education program and not a mandatory introduction class. Maybe it’s just the bookworm in me, but getting this kind […]

Pass Judgment? No Rush

Posted July 18, 2007 By Dave Thomer

I’m following the reports on the Michael Vick indictment, and there are two things running through my head: 1. A few days ago, I was seeing reports that this very indictment was unlikely. I’m not blaming any particular reporter; I have no reason to believe that the reporters on the case worked diligently and trusted […]

Fill the Bus

Posted July 17, 2007 By Dave Thomer

Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo seems annoyed that several news outlets are not calling the all-night session being held in the Senate a filibuster. This isn’t necessarily isolated to TPM – folks at other blogs had been calling on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to force Senate Republicans to “actually filibuster” various amendments and […]

Relevance and Motivation

Posted July 16, 2007 By Dave Thomer

I was all set to link to an essay in the Times of London about education tat is pretty darn close to the exact opposite of my thinking in terms of the role of the teacher. And then when I went to reread the essay and get the URL I discovered that the Times site […]

Thoughts on Ratatouille

Posted July 15, 2007 By Dave Thomer

We went to see the new Pixar movie Ratatouille today. It was quite good, although the pacing was unconventional. As a result, I think there’s a little more distance between this film and me in comparison with Brad Bird’s left effort for Pixar, The Incredibles. The movie centers around Remy, a rat whose senses are […]

Shopping Discoveries

Posted July 14, 2007 By Dave Thomer

Couple of points learned during today’s errand-running: 1. Clothespins are much harder to find than I thought they would be. I’ve looked in department stores, drug stores, and a Bed Bath and Beyond, and no luck. From the Amazon searches I did when I got home tonight, it looks like hardware stores might be my […]

Lots in a Name

Posted July 13, 2007 By Dave Thomer

Started up another batch of education classes this week. Reflecting on the week, most of what I learned appears to be technical terminology for things that are pretty obvious with a few minutes’ thought. Indeed, many of the ideas I’ve encountered are things that have been in the back of my head for a while, […]

Games I Am Not Playing

Posted July 12, 2007 By Dave Thomer

Not counting my PC, I haven’t owned a video game machine since my brothers and I shared a Super Nintendo back in the proverbial day. I must admit that the upcoming Star Wars game The Force Unleashed and BioWare’s forthcoming Mass Effect have me seriously reconsidering that, as soon as the change under my sofa […]