August 12, 2026

Stray Books: beware, or forever will they dominate your destiny

  [Incidental Comics]          

What I’m looking for at the Republican National Convention

Next week, the Republican National Convention will gather in Tampa Bay to formally nominate Mitt Romney for President and Paul Ryan as Vice President. In spite of hurricane Isaac, I’ll be there with KSL News Radio as their “Star Correspondent” for the week. We’ll be there to report back to Utah on the convention, to make sure you hear about what is happening, even if it doesn’t make the prime time broadcast.

Here’s a few of the things I’ll be looking for at the convention: [cont…]

Utah Democrats refuse Republican help & continue their tantrum

Given the choice between accepting Republican help and continuing a public temper tantrum, Utah Democrat Jim Dabakis prefers a tantrum.

In the end, Utahns can tell the difference between grand standing and good public policy. On one hand we have Litvak, who represents the image of a consistent, fair public servant. On the other hand, we have Dabakis, more interested in a headline, in smearing his opponents than seeking compromise and the public interest.

We need public servants more like Litvack, willing to stand by his oath to the public over short-term interest and party loyalty. Politicians like Dabakis are savvy with the media, and he makes for great copy, but his grandstanding does little for the public interest. [cont…]

Round-up: Newsweek turns on Obama, and Romney’s Mormonism to play in the Convention?

This is a bird’s eye view of the race for the White House in the week before the Republican convention. Rasmussen find Romney up and Obama down, under-40 breaking for Romney, Newsweek turns on Obama while the Obama campaign fights internal strife, and Noonan asks: “If it had been a Republican vice presidential candidate who had made those gaffes…the subject today of the panel would be how stupid is this person, can this person possibly govern?”

Also, Romney’s Mormon faith and the opening prayer at the convention…

Are you overtaxed? Do you know how much you pay?

Do Americans “dramatically underestimate” taxes? Not only do more than half of Americans believe they are overtaxed, it turns out that many of us don’t even realize that our employer pays more taxes on top of our payroll deductions. In other words, many Americans don’t realize that your employer is paying an extra price for every worker, money that might otherwise be spent wages, R&D, employee benefits, or investment. I’m just sayin’…

How reality shapes words more than words shape reality [TED]

“Most politicians choose their words carefully, to shape the reality they hope to create. But does it work? Etymologist Mark Forsyth shares a few entertaining word-origin stories from British and American history (for instance, did you ever wonder how George Washington became “president”?) and draws a surprising conclusion.” (From TEDxHousesofParliament in London)

5 Minute Book Review: “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson

Isaacson’s biography is fascinating, covering warts and and moles along with his contributions and genius. With direct access to Jobs, his associates, rivals, and family, it is an incomparable work that will be the defining biography for decades to come.

I suppose there are a lot of ways to look at Steve Jobs. However you view him, though, it’s hard to dispute his success in technology, design, and animation. Not quite an inventor or engineer, Jobs thought himself more an artist, and perhaps he was. He had an attention to detail and a vision of minimalism that allowed him to build great products that changed how we compute, listen to music, and make purchases, to say nothing of his contributions to the digital animation industry with Pixar. [cont…]