Y'know, I don't talk about emotions much, here; mostly because I seldom talk about something unless I can synthesize some new conclusion out of the discussion, and my emotions are generally not well suited to it.

Tonight, I seem to be covering up a seething rage. I've been much nastier than necessary to all my girls, Star included; I'm sorry. I don't get angry all that often, although way more than I used to, and what scares me is how deeply it can grip me, how hard it is to shake off. Really, I seldom get angry; it tends to skip straight from irritability to rage. Not a good habit, no. But while the good bits of life are really good, the bad bits don't seem to be going away anytime soon... and they just get under my skin.

In a way, it's good. Gone are the days of Issaqua (a Shadowrun character built to manifest my -old?- totem, Snake) and Jude (a sociopathic angel who basically embodies all that is alienating about the transhumanist movement, expressing that through metaphoric/magical means - for example, he cut out his eyes so that he could see). Back, perhaps, to the days of Nikolai... which, really, was a much healthier species of rage.

Do I draw any conclusions from this? Nope. This is the exception to the rule. I just seem to want to write, today. Those of you who read this blog, poke - respond (not to this post, stupid) or the maddened fiend shall hunt you down and rip your intestines out with a Lego shark.

I think I'll go rewatch Natural Born Killers, now. Might as well try and burn out the mood so it stays away for awhile... This is a long post - Read the rest.

Hm. Reading David Brin's Earth, something just struck me. A change that's already happening, in the way broadcasting (and broadcasters) work.

Originally, the broadcaster - radio station, cable network, and so forth - was responsible for bringing you the news. Their name was just a label; the service was the information itself. Fair enough.

Nowadays, increasingly, their job has changed. Think "EdmontonJournal.com" and so forth. No longer is the task to transport the information to you; these days, that information is already reaching you. Along with way too much other stuff. No, what EdmontonJournal.com sells, in many ways, is the name - the credibility. From being an information provider, now they move toward being an information imprimatur.

Neat. This is a long post - Read the rest.

I've been thinking - and reading - about ideals and politics again, and coming to clarify some of my own thoughts. Ken's question about what I would define as 'progressive politics' may have started the thought processes rolling, but much of this is made up of scattered pieces which have been in my ruminations (usually in the shower, or while walking to work), for years.

Plus a spark: a chance link followed, to the entry on Libertarian socialism in a subbranch of Wikipedia. And while I wouldn't necessarily say that this precise movement would cover me, it does a far better job than most.

The word "Libertarian" - capital-L or small - carries all sorts of connotations in North America which are, apparently, not necessarily the case in Europe. It's the European definiton I would agree with more, which makes up the article above; closer to anarchism than to American libertarianism.

The distinction comes down to one of economics. In the social sphere, both groups agree that the only behaviours which should be prohibited in any way have to do with violence against the person, or rights, of another citizen. The government should stay out of the bedroom, the wedding hall (traditional or Heinleinian), the choirloft and so forth, thank you very much. It's in the economic sphere that it gets tricky.

Libertarians tend to argue that the right to property is a fundamental right. This generally ties itself to an extreme form of market capitalism, wherein there should be no tax of any kind; if I'm interested in roads, schools, and so forth, I should be making those decisions freely, not by coercion. Ken points out, quite rightly, that the state which meets these criteria best in today's world is Somalia; closer to home, I have a problem with a regime in which the decision to (for instance) allow my offspring to never have to work a day in their lives again, while spitting at the feet of beggars in the street, is not only supported but in fact self-supporting... it works through positive feedback to become the dominant behaviour. Enron Capitalism conditions itself into existence.

This wouldn't happen if we were all moral, rational, and well-informed citizens, but we're not, and this particular form of imperfection is one we see an awful lot of, today. Halliburton and NAFTA Chapter 11 don't fit well in MY ideal world - how 'bout yours?

Libertarian socialism, in various branches and various ways, suggests that the "right of the individual to property" is at the root of this sort of thing. Georgism and geolibertarianism contend, for instance, that specifically the Earth and all its natural resources (including living space and land, as well as other things like the airwaves in radio) belong to humanity as a whole [or at least to the society under discussion], not properly to individuals at all. That it is up to humanity to decide through whatever social means - variations on democracy are usually suggested - how they should be used and shared. That the assertion of a right to "property" over land - no matter how you assert it, including via capital - is an example of coercion by the individual, robbing the commonweal to pay themselves. The fundamental right of the individual, in this picture, is to a voice in the decision of how we graze the village's cows - not to a chunk of the
village green.

I'm good with that.

Some of the things which tend to get associated under the same umbrellas are less up my creek, though, but that's not the focus of my rambling here. My thought of the day takes the idea of "what is the more appropriate fundamental right of the individual?" in a different direction.

Posit this instead. The most fundamental right of the individual is the right to a maximized chance to actualize their desires. It's a bit of a mouthful; call it the right to opportunity. This is the right which we all instinctively feel to have been abrogated, when we envision the children of an Old Oil Money family next to the children of a Ruwandan refugee. It's not even that material goods are being inequitably distributed; the refugee children might not need those, to be happy. It's that the opportunity is unequal. And that offends us - at least, it offends me, and it does so greatly.

I think this is why the issue of an inheritance tax is such a hot-button item. Adherents of the right to property hold it - rightfully, in this worldview - as a great ill, that the state should appropriate your property for the non-crime of having died, and abrogate your right to do with it as you will. But instinctive adherents of the right to opportunity see it as a measure which can, under the current imperfect system, make progress toward their ideal world. Which inserts a negative feedback mechanism into the positive feedback loop of privilege. Negative feedback is the bones and marrow of homeostasis; homeostatic systems have a massive long-term record for survival and achievement, compared to passive equilibria... starting with life over unlife, and going from there.

What does this imply for social organization? That, I'm not sure of; that is, it seems intuitively clear what sorts of societies would give all their members high levels of opportunity, but it's not clear by what mechanism this maximum is calculated, achieved, and maintained. A crude mathematical example: Abe has one apple, Betty has no apples, and Craig has five apples. We refuse to impose statist controls on the situation; the laws by which they live should by themselves tend the situation toward a maximized degree of fruitiness for all - two apples each.

What kind of rules to live by those might be, I don't know. The same Wikipedia derivative discussed (from both pro- and con- viewpoints) libertarian socialism as frequently subscribing to a pragmatic, or organic, view of this... "No, we don't know what laws will work, what the society will look like. Same way that a scientist doesn't know what his numbers or laws will be, in advance. We just want to enter into it with our eyes open, like scientists, instead of like dogmatics who would make the world fit their theories. Political theory to date has always put the carriage before the horse in this regard...". Which does seem like the only reasonable response, at the same time as it is deeply dissatisfying and feels like a cop-out.

But a good start would be a willingness to put that optimization process ahead of other ideologies - like property right and centralization - which impede progress in that direction. Again it seems like a utopian perspective; wouldn't this need perfect humans, too? I'm not sure, though. I guess just because we haven't ever really seen it in action, apart from a few exceptions (the Spanish Civil War, the sixties, the Basque success story of Mondragón)... and even those hewed to other versions of principle. I am inclined to guess that yes, it'd have its own problems... but that to switch to pursuing this ideology, over an ideology of property right, would be a healthy move no matter what. We may not know which is which yet, but we've seen a lot of the good points of capitalism and the entrepreneurial spirit in this world... and also a lot of the bad, and IMO the latter is on the rise. It's like the concept is a bit tapped out; the good have reinforced themselves as far as they may, the bad continue to positively reinforce themselves to the detriment of civilization.

Say we gave a society based on the right to opportunity a try for a few decades; never mind how we might accomplish the switch. It'll probably decay, and show its bad sides to us; if we're unlucky (Soviet communism) it'll happen sooner, if we're lucky (Mondragón collectivism) it may take a while. But the point is that we, as an adult species, must perhaps learn a mature attitude toward social systems. In no other sphere do we expect perfection on tap; we expect attempts to fail, but in failing, show us what does work, and then to create new ideas based on that wisdom gained. (We may find that both "right to property" and "right to opportunity" are both misphrasings of some more fundamental, intuitively satisfying, and fulfilling human right, and backtrack a bit; who knows.) The Eric who might write a follow-up to this piece, after two decades of living under opportunity economics, wouldn't be the same guy who's writing now. So even if it might have flaws we don't see...

...I'd try it.

Okay. Enough rambling. The point stands. The floor is open. This is a long post - Read the rest.

When the usual search engines just can't find the occult information you need, this site is the answer.

To a question you didn't know you had... This is a long post - Read the rest.

The Extropians mailing list is usually dull (a couple of verbose extreme-right-wingers tend to dominate discussion), but it comes up with the occasional gem.

Life rocks. This is a long post - Read the rest.

This is a long post - Read the rest.

The morning comes, the night decays, the watchmen leave their stations;
The grave is burst, the spices shed, the linen wrapped up;
The bones of death, the cov'ring clay, the sinews shrunk & dry'd
Reviving shake, inspiring move, breathing, awakening,
Spring like redeemed captives when their bonds & bars are burst.
Let the slave grinding at the mill run out into the field,
Let him look up into the heavens & laugh in the bright air;
Let the inchained soul, shut up in darkness and in sighing,
Whose face has never seen a smile in thirty weary years,
Rise and look out; his chains are loose, his dungeon doors are open;
And let his wife and children return from the oppressor's scourge.
They look behind at every step & believe it is a dream,
Singing: "The Sun has left his blackness & has found a fresher morning,
And the fair Moon rejoices in the clear & cloudless night;
For Empire is no more, and now the Lion & Wolf shall cease."

- From "America: A Prophecy" by William Blake

Something about this piece captures in a stroke the difficulties I've been having, capturing the meaning in my own work regarding angels - and the solution, in the same breath. It has that inexpressible quality to it, which I can only consider a sign that my poetry has been shut up too long, though the inexpressible itself carries a plangent scent which has come to signal wisdom.

This one has to do with empire, with oppression and dominance. With the fact that (per St. Augustine) "angel" is not their nature, it is the name of their office and their task. With the blessing and curse which knowledge of the Law brings, two sides of a flamberge.

Never mind God. What is "angel" when the Law is gone? Is there, in truth, any distinction between an angel and a demon, when there is no longer a winning side to uphold? Seems like one take [among many] on the nature of Heresy would be that the Ruin is, in simple, just the final victory of Lucifer - the defeat of the chains of that which is ordained, the victory of uncertainty over certainty. With all the bitterness that brings.

"The thing about the master-slave relationship is that it perverts everything it touches." - Frank Chalmers, in Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars.

So very true at every level. Poor Blake, it's hard to be so right and yet so wrong. Empire is far from done...

... which hardly changes the fabulous optimism of the quote. What was it Robin Williams' character in Dead Poets Society called him, pointing at a wild-haired portrait? "Uncle William," I believe. Thanks, unc.

O Captain, My Captain. This is a long post - Read the rest.

It's one of those fascinating ideas which comes up as a joke, but sticks around, because I can find nothing inherently wrong with it.

Introducing...

The Revenue Canada MasterCard!

That's right. Rather than putting money into the pockets of big financial corporations and banks, now your interest fees (which start at a low introductory rate of 5% for six months) can go directly toward the national debt! Get all the convenience of a regular credit card, combined with the satisfaction of knowing that you're contributing to the financial health of your country, every time you swipe your card.

What's more, that low introductory rate will be back. Unlike commercial cards, the Revenue Canada card doesn't just stay at the high rate forever. Just bring your RevCanCard to any polling station, next time you vote in any civic, provincial, or federal election... swipe your card at the door, and your interest rate drops back down to the intro rate for another six months!

Also available is the RevCan / Air Canada AeroCan card, which gains you air miles every time you use it - miles which count double for all Canadian domestic flights onboard Air Canada. Sign up for either version when you renew your passport, and Immigration Canada will put your passport photo right on the back of your card - add security to your signature! - for no extra charge.

Your grandmother relied on Canada Savings Bonds. Today's generation of patriots have a new financial option. The RevCanCard. Get yours today. As a limited time offer, each card comes with a transparent sew-on envelope patch, for your backpack or jacket. Go hitchiking in Europe with the maple leaf proudly flying... and swipe the leaf today. This is a long post - Read the rest.

I've been paying a fair bit of attention to the US election, and there are some frightening stories coming out of it, but the possibility that the whole thing will be rendered meaningless by one machination or another remains awfully high.

I can't find the link, but there was an AlterNet article awhile back which had an excellent phrasing. It went something like this:

Imagine that an election is in progress with electronic voting machines being used to tabulate part of the vote. Exit poll numbers and preliminary results show the incumbent, a rather extreme right-winger, to be losing by a substantial margin. Then, late at night on the night of the election, workers for the company making the voting machines are called to the county seat, and ushered inside by county officials. In the morning, the election results give the incumbent the victory by an unprecedented margin. Sounds like a fable? It's not. It happened exactly this way during (I believe it was in Georgia, and couldn't tell you the date).

And that's not an isolated incident. Florida has retained the same company that provided a list of felons which, in 2000, prevented huge numbers of legit voters - largely black - from voting. And the same chick who approved the list and defended it is still in office, thanks to an 'upset' very similar to the story I just recounted above. And so on, and so forth.

But the one I ran across today pretty much takes the cake for sheer bald-faced corruption, if true. It involves a disgruntled employee, so it should be taken with a grain of salt, but some cross-checking has been performed, which I'd need to see more details on.

Basically it involves a company being paid by the Republican party to register voters (that is, get their names on the list). An ex-employee alleges that his bosses basically ripped up the submitted forms from those who gave their affiliation as Democrat, and threw them out. This won't stop those people from voting - but it'll throw a rock in their path, when they show up on election day and find out they're not registered, despite having sent in the forms. There are technically
ways for them to get around this (called provisional ballots), but not only many voters but also many election officials either don't know they exist or don't use 'em properly. Not to mention the proportion who panic and/or head to a different polling station and so forth.

The cross-checking is that they have (reportedly) taken some of the ripped-up forms and checked with the actual list, and found that indeed those people weren't registered to vote.

Frightening to think how much effect these kinds of shenanigans could soon have on us, living in Canada, never mind our unfortunate friends to the south. I'm not big on the US Democrats, either, but I don't think that their influence is likely to fuck us up across the border, which is certainly not true for a second Bush term. (If nothing else, my employer prices things to most of its customers in US dollars, and the decline of the US dollar during the Iraq invasion made the difference between me getting a substantial yearly bonus last year, and what actually happened - not only no bonus, but a wage freeze for the year. So the Iraq war directly and clearly cost our household a few thousand dollars, in this manner alone.)

Let's just hope Michael Moore is right, and it's only that the polls are blind to a substantial voter mass who don't get counted because - before - they didn't care. And that despite shenanigans like the above, we're fretting over something which is actually no real contest. This is a long post - Read the rest.

So maybe it's not up to my existing intellectual standards. These days I am usually not up to my existing standards. Nonetheless, this bears repeating...

Enron Capitalism
You have two cows. You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt-equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows. The milk rights of the six cows are transferred through an intermediary to a Cayman Island company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the rights to all seven cows back to your listed company. The Enron annual report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. This is a long post - Read the rest.

(Yeah, yeah, lollyblogging. I hate being sick and, apart from physically, I'm really ready for A & J to find a new home.)

Congratulations to Scaled Composites for successfully claiming the $10M X-Prize today, with a second test flight well over the spec of 62 miles - a tidy 71.5, thank you very much. Well done, guys. Sound bites and so on abound, but I personally like the shots of the pilot (one Brian Binnie) taking a ride on top of the taxiing spacecraft, arms in the air, triumphant.

I'll give any takers ten to one odds that 'Sana will see orbit in my lifetime. (Aria too, but can't you just see 'Sana growing up to be a hotshot pilot?)

The world just got another notch neater today. This is a long post - Read the rest.