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Beauty-Pageant-Style Tariffs
We are going to have a beauty-pageant-style announcement for the new tariffs, mostly on our ally countries, on the “liberation” day, April 2nd. That’s pretty much all Mr. President understands; a competition in a TV show, be it the Beauty Pageant which he owned for a while, or the Apprentice show, in which he actually…
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In His Memory
A few weeks ago, when our dog boy, Munchkin, passed, I posted a farewell letter here which has likely raised some eyebrows. Not because it was inappropriate or had questionable content, but because it seemed too emotional to be true. I even received a comment from a well-meaning dear friend of mine who, certainly with…
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A Government “of Narcissists”, “by the King’s Cronies”, and “for Retribution”
In his Gettysburg Address in November of 1863, Abraham Lincoln famously articulated a core principle of democracy, the emphasis on citizen-led governance and representation, as a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Through all the variations in the policies and ambitions of administrations from different political parties since then, and the…
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تو نیستی که ببینی
تو نیستی که ببینیچگونه عطر تو در عمق لحظه‌ها جاری استچگونه عکس تو در برق شیشه‌ها پیداستچگونه جای تو در جان زندگی سبز است هنوز پنجره باز استتو از بلندی ایوان به باغ می‌نگریدرخت‌ها و چمن‌ها و شمعدانی‌هابه آن ترنم شیرین به آن تبسم مهربه آن نگاه پر از آفتاب می نگرند تمام گنجشکانکه در نبودن تومرا به باد…
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Farewell Munchkin
Munchy, my boy, my best buddy! Saying goodbye to you has been the most painful experience of my life, and I doubt I will ever come across anything more difficult. Munchy, you have no idea how much I love you! You are my boy, and you are my best buddy! How can I let go…
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Fixing the Elections, or Voter Suppression?
In the last post, I discussed the magnitude of potential errors due to ineligible voters in the election results in the US, and proposed a very generous confidence interval of 0.01%, based on the results of a recent investigation from the state of Georgia, a with substantial amount of overestimation and scaling to be applicable…
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Elections, or Statistical Experiments?
As you can guess from the title of this post, I am trying to pose elections as statistical experiments. I know there is a big difference; unlike polling, elections do not involve taking a sample of data to make a decision. Instead, every single vote is expected to be counted in every election. So, yes,…
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The Glass Is Half Full
It has been about two weeks since President Trump has taken the oath of office (mind you, without placing his hand on the bible; not that it bothers me, nor is it required by the Constitution, but something that may be of potential interest or significance to the vast number of Christian and especially evangelical…
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Dreading Tomorrows
Many years ago, when I was dealing with major depression and severe anxiety at its peak, I would go to bed at nights hoping, and praying (yes, praying!), that I would not wake up the next morning. And I would wake up the next morning, disappointed and fearful, of having to confront another day. I…