Category Archives: Miscellany

Posted on by

Game-studies scholars (there are such things) like to point out that games tend to reflect the societies in which they are created and played. Monopoly, for instance, makes perfect sense as a product of the 1930s — it allowed anyone, in the middle of the Depression, to play at being a tycoon. Risk, released in the 1950s, is a stunningly literal expression of cold-war realpolitik. Twister is the translation, onto a game board, of the mid-1960s sexual revolution. One critic called it ‘sex in a box.’

Angry Birds, Farmville and Other Hyperaddictive ‘Stupid Games’

Posted on by

It could be cheaper to buy groceries at Kroger with cash

People love the convenience of paying with credit and debit cards, but they don’t often think about the fact that credit card companies add processing fees that increase the cost of everything we buy. Since most businesses aren’t allowed to charge extra for using a credit card, even customers using cash pay this credit card “tax.”

Giving cash discounts gives the choice back to the consumer. You can pay cash, get a discount, and remain relatively anonymous; or you can pay with credit, continue to earn points/frequent flyer miles, and never worry about going to the ATM.

It’s good to see major retailers like Kroger taking this idea seriously.

Posted on by

Restore copyright protection back to 28 years

Our Founding Fathers established an initial copyright duration of 28-years, but that has been repeatedly extended to up to 120 years to favor corporations like Disney and Sony and authors’ descendants at the expense of the public. Such durations ignore the Constitution’s requirement that copyrights be for limited times and promote progress in science and the useful arts. They actually inhibit scientific progress by restricting the free flow of information, preventing global digital libraries, and withholding information that future generations need to freely exchange and build upon. The original copyright duration provides ample incentive for companies and authors to create, so we ask the President to urge Congress to pass a bill restoring copyrights to their original duration of 28 years.

Eternal copyright does not “promote progress,” it actually allows copyright holders to stop innovating.

Posted on by

Parents consider lawsuit after daughter loses valedictorian spot

This is insane. The girl did not have the highest GPA, and therefore, she is not the valedictorian. Perhaps she did not have the opportunity to take as many AP classes as some of her fellow students, but that’s just how the weighted GPA system works. That fact that she got straight A’s does not guarantee her the valedictorian spot.

This girl is going to have lots of problems when she grows up and gets out into the real world. Her parents are obviously big believers in “helicoper parenting” and will probably threaten to sue anyone who hurts their adult daughter’s feelings.

I’m so glad I wasn’t raised that way, and I feel sorry for anyone who had helicopter parents.

Posted on by

All the research says go live with your friends and fam­ily. Oth­er­wise, you have to look at why you’re not doing that. If you want to look at a city that’s best for your career, it’s New York, San Fran­cisco or Lon­don. If you’re not look­ing for your career, it doesn’t really mat­ter. There’s no dif­fer­ence. It’s split­ting hairs. The whole con­ver­sa­tion about where to live is bullshit.

Pene­lope Trunk

Posted on by

Baby boomers had better embrace change

Yet a Pew Research Center survey published in November showed only 23 percent of baby boomers regard the country’s growing population of immigrants as a change for the better. Forty-three percent saw it as a change for the worse. Almost half of white boomers said the growing number of newcomers from other countries represented a threat to traditional U.S. customs and values.

No additional commentary needed — the title of the article says it all.