disqus

so nudgeblog got me started on disqus.  i'm kind of really happy about this, i can track my comments across all sorts of different blogs and keep an RSS of replies.  excellent.

food elitism

This week seems to have a wonderful theme.  Having strong opinions about things you don't understand is a) lots of fun and b) a great way to get publicity.

Exhibit A) Natalie Portman.  I understand that you're a vegan (person not evolved enough to consume animal products, to use Al Dunn's comment).  I try to not hold it against you for making bad decisions in life, but as soon as you start throwing out the burning stupid, that's it. So let's consider the hypothetical: you're a vegan attending a dinner party.  do you throw a hissyfit if some of the other guests are eating animal products?

Michael Pollan says no.  You be polite to the hosts and eat what you feel comfortable with.  Unsurprisingly, Natalie Portman offers a lovely analogy--would you do the same thing if someone were being raped?

I'm gonna let that sink in a bit.

On a related note, I was watching a documentary on PBS tonight (Michael Pollan edition) related to food production.  At one point, there were genetically modified potatoes, designed for less pesticide use.  Ultimately, this would cause the cost of potatoes to drop because they have less overhead.  One of the geniuses asked for commentary on this said "this benefits the potato growers but not the consumer."

Presumably, the same person seems to believe that prices can also rise for the producer without being passed on to the customer. 

I'm pretty sure that this is one of those issues that, the stronger your intuition about it, the more likely you are to be really, really wrong.

On why I'm glad I have the job I do

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/19/financial-illiteracy-among-the-young/

Stephen Dubner, from his Freakonomics blog, points to a study showing my generation to be financially illiterate.

Through my peer-reviewed, purely anecdotal data, this seems to be correct.  It's partly because thinking rationally about finance is not intuitive.  Even worse, the math involved makes it a hassle for someone trying to compute it correctly.

I remember through my training class for securities licenses, many of us had difficulty with the concepts involved. 

If the people who did this for a living had difficulty, what can it be like for the rest of the population?