Category: del.icio.us

not good news

The Iraqi defense minister said Monday that his nation would not be able to take full responsibility for its internal security until 2012, nor be able on its own to defend Iraq’s borders from external threat until at least 2018.

Those comments from the minister, Abdul Qadir, were among the most specific public projections of a timeline for the American commitment in Iraq by officials in either Washington or Baghdad.

In 2018, my oldest will be 21, my youngest 20. Professor Black reminds me that they were 6 and 5 when the war started.

2018. Mark your calendars.

The Iraqi defense minister said Monday that his nation would not be able to take full responsibility for its internal security until 2012, nor be able on its own to defend Iraq’s borders from external threat until at least 2018.

Those comments from the minister, Abdul Qadir, were among the most specific public projections of a timeline for the American commitment in Iraq by officials in either Washington or Baghdad. And they suggested a longer commitment than either government had previously indicated.

Pentagon officials expressed no surprise at Mr. Qadir’s projections, which were even less optimistic than those he made last year.

This means the surge worked, surely.

[From Send lawyers, guns and money — Dad, get me out of this]

And this isn’t like Vietnam how, again?

links for 2008-01-04

data, information, and wisdom

I don’t know that telling someone that you have a trillion barrels of light sweet crude in a stable formation so many feet below [some GPS coords] makes anyone’s day — unless they are in the refining business.

…One thing that has always made curious is the fact that the countries that have large oil reserves are willing to part with the unrefined crude oil, rather that refining it and selling the marked up products, especially as it would result in or require investments in utility infrastructure, an educated work force, etc. I suppose it’s easier to let someone else do all that, but for a cartel that seems keenly aware of power and leverage, it seems incongruous to think they would leave that power — and money — on the table.

Rands:

The only thing better than data is data about data. Data about data is information that, in quantity, becomes knowledge, which is just a short hop away from wisdom. And when wisdom shows up, you know you’re this close to figuring it all out.

★ [From Rands in Repose: Year in Twitter]

Is meta-data better than data? The analogy I have used to define these terms is that data is oil in the ground, while information is gas at the pump. The difference is refining: the data, while interesting in the raw, doesn’t always tell a story or illuminate a case. I don’t know that telling someone that you have a trillion barrels of light sweet crude in a stable formation so many feet below [some GPS coords] makes anyone’s day — unless they are in the refining business. I suppose the wisdom here is knowing where to ship the stuff for the best return.

Perhaps this example is meant to explain that, for example, the metadata that iTunes stores and what it says about me is interesting. And I suppose to someone it would be: what I listen to (and what I don’t), when, how often, etc. could be useful to someone.

All I can think of when I hear that is that someone is going to try to sell me something. That’s not wisdom, that’s commerce. And the thought of that makes me release the safety catch on my Browning . . .

Continue reading “data, information, and wisdom”

the fine print

Picture 1.jpg I don’t have a problem with people making money — far from it, I wish I knew how to do it myself — but I find the structure of this offer a little deceptive. eMusic has such good street-cred (disproportionate to the music I found when I was a member), it would be unfortunate if they squandered.

Free, eh? I like free. Free is good.

But is it really free? Ah, the 75 downloads are free, yes, but only after you re-join and pay for a month’s subscription.

Picture 1.jpg

I don’t have a problem with people making money — far from it, I wish I knew how to do it myself — but I find the structure of this offer a little deceptive. eMusic has such good street-cred (disproportionate to the music I found when I was a member), it would be unfortunate if they squandered. I think they’ll get better as we see fewer and fewer record companies trying to criminalize their customers.

links for 2007-12-29

2008

I’m not much on resolutions, especially as regards self-improvement (even as I feel compelled to take a showed in the dark rather than see my unsightly physique), I do want to learn some things and looking at the calendar, it looks like they will be 2008 accomplishments.

…I think it will work better to express these ideas as things to learn rather than milestones to reach.

I’m not much on resolutions, especially as regards self-improvement (even as I feel compelled to take a showed in the dark rather than see my unsightly physique), I do want to learn some things and looking at the calendar, it looks like they will be 2008 accomplishments.

I want to learn some things about joinery and cabinet making. I have done enough crappy butt-jointed woodworking and want to move on from that. I want to be able to make things that look as good as they are useful.

I want to garden better and more productively. My Territorial Seeds catalog arrived today, and it’s never too early to plan, especially in this fickle climate.

I think it will work better to express these ideas as things to learn rather than milestones to reach. One could even define a fitness/health-related goal in those terms, but the ideal form eludes me.

links for 2007-12-24

links for 2007-12-23