Patrick

unscripted

Because every new WordPress upgrade breaks K2, my previous theme, I’m working on a new home-grown alternative. Until it’s ready for prime time, here are some random items of interest:

• Some people still believe the earth is flat. Oddly, this misconception isn’t as old as many think.
• NYT’s Solzhenitsyn obit is 8 pages long.
• McCain makes his first visit to the internet, which, according to corrupt Senator Ted Stevens, is a series of tubes.
• Iran’s scientists may be on the verge of developing nuclear ballistic missiles, but they suck at photoshop.
• And in case you missed Trinity Day, here’s some background information on the detonation of the first atomic bomb.
• Beginning 9 August, The Orwell Trust will publish George Orwell’s diaries online, 70 years to the day after he wrote each entry.
• Bowser’s minions stage a mutiny.
• Typefaces have a conference to discuss membership requirements. Much funnier than it sounds.

Edit: Belated hat tip to Kristina, who noticed this ages before I did and included an anecdote about how left-leaning the WaPo is.

Clinton says she will be a hands-on manager, that she will get down into the agencies and make sure that they’re implementing the processes that her brain trust put together in the White House,” says Jim O’Toole, a business school professor at the University of Denver.

Clinton provided insight to her management style at a January debate in Las Vegas. “I think you have to be able to manage and run the bureaucracy,” she said. “You’ve got to pick good people, certainly, but you have to hold them accountable every single day.”

Illinois Sen. Barrack Obama is a hands-off manager and easily delegates authority, says O’Toole. These differing management styles mirror a debate that has been taking place at business schools over which style is more effective. The hands-on model has been practiced by a lot of the biggest companies, including Wal-Mart, where Clinton served on the board of directors for six years.

Obama’s management style reflects what is happening at technology start-up companies, according to O’Toole. That could explain why his supporters tend to skew younger than Clinton’s.

Given a choice between Wal-Mart and a technology start-up, it’s easy to see why the kids are crazy for Obama.

Wonkette jokes that all Nationals fans were waterboarded after the game. Frankly, considering Bush’s approval ratings I would have expected the jeering to be louder.

The last several weeks have seen a significant drop in the number of serious presidential candidates, with John McCain all but nominated on the right and Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama tied on the left. Any of these would be a fantastic improvement over the current administration, although some have correctly noted that not everything will change with a new president.

It is also important to note that I consider myself an independent. Although I lean libertarian, people like Ron Paul are pretty much insane and don’t have a chance of being elected, much less of enacting any of their policies.