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ISSUE #18 - Monday, 27th October 2008
- Daniel Finkelstein, "Comment Central" blog, The Times
"The morning after the US election"
http://timesonline.typepad.com/comment/2008/10/the-morning-aft.html
DJR's gist: Finkelstein was part of the Tory government when it so spectacularly disintegrated in May 1997, and has some insightful words of advice to Republicans as they gear up to blame each other over their seemingly imminent loss. The advice? No one will care. After Labour's 1997 landslide, there was euphoria and an overwhelming sentiment for change that transcended how the public actually voted, and meant that the only news was about the new people who would be the change. The losers were history, and until they realised that they were unable to grow out of it. Lets just hope the Republicans have the opportunity to decide whether "that realisation [is] more painful than the battles themselves."
- Holly Watt, "Across the Pond" blog, Sunday Times
"Indiana - part of a different battle?"
http://timesonline.typepad.com/uselections/2008/10/indiana---part.html
DJR's gist: Securing the distinct honour of being the first journalist to feature in two consecutive issues of The Linkrod, Holly Watt's excellent account of her coast-to-coast-to-coast road-trip presently sees her in the traditionally red-as-a-tomato state of Indiana. The Republicans Presidential candidate has taken Indiana in every election since 1936, and 4 years ago Dubya winged it by a massive 20-point margin. So what the hell is she doing there? Well surprise, surprise, this state has been brought into play in the tide of pro-Obama sentiment. This has been aided by Obama's position as Senator of neighbouring Illinois, as well as Indiana's proximity to the urban sprawl and Democratic stronghold that is Chicago. If Indiana goes blue, there is surely little stopping an absolute rout.
- Michael Savage, The Independent
"Will Boris's airport sink or swim?"
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/will-boriss-airport-sink-or-swim-974470.html
DJR's gist: Heathrow is, without doubt, horrifically overcrowded with no capacity for growth without getting millions of West London residents crying like little girls. The hassle is just astronomic. I'm all for Boris' airport island, and if he can manage to push this one through then he will have, in one foul swoop, ensured that his legacy as Mayor of London is on a par, if not greater, than anything Red Ken achieved in his decade in the job.
- Nick Chambers, gas 2.0
"Are Tiny, Gas-Saving Cars Unsafe? Today, Mine Saved My Life"
http://gas2.org/2008/10/21/are-tiny-gas-saving-cars-unsafe-today-mine-saved-my-life/
DJR's gist: Despite the fact that we on the enlightened side of the Atlantic seem to have survived fine with small cars for... well, ever, your average American has always had to weigh up the environmental and economic benefits of a smaller car with a perception that driving a smaller car increases the likelihood that you and/or your family will meet with a messy, spine-crunching, face-shattering end as your runt of a vehicle is totalled by some 4x4 gas-guzzling behemoth. As Chambers reports, small cars are built tough. Particularly when they're Japanese. Or European. Or, apparently, if they're from pretty much anywhere that isn't Detroit.
- Richard Waters, FT Technology Blog
"What Microsoft has in common with Detroit"
http://blogs.ft.com/techblog/2008/10/what-microsoft-has-in-common-with-detroit/
DJR's gist: On the topic of Detroit, the technology world has its eyes on a Microsoft conference taking place in LA. What's the link? Well much like Microsoft now, once upon a time Detroit had massive market share and a dominant position in the US, and indeed global car market. But market power is useless if you stop making what consumers want, and as "cloud computing" begins to emerge as the future paradigm for technology, Microsoft has to make sure it doesn't replicate Detroit's mistakes. If it's any consolation, the likely beneficiaries should they fail will still be from the West Coast... namely Apple of Cupertino or Google of Mountain View.
- Hilary Hylton, TIME Magazine
"Science Says We Really Are What We Drink"
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1853838,00.html
DJR's gist: Last week's edition of Science - one of the world's two most prominent scientific journals (along with Nature) - included a study about how the temperature of different drinks can affect human emotions and actions. Namely, that cold drinks increase rationality and are thus ideal when making economic decisions, while warm drinks increase empathy and encourage emotional warmth. The crux is that hot chocolate is good on dates, but not so good when booking a holiday. Or something like that.
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