Is Outing People Platinum?

It's interesting to see how labels affect the ability of individuals to engage in real discourse (HT Natalie G). Personally, I'm very comfortable with not announcing my political beliefs. My experiences have told me that as soon as someone gets labeled, the entire conversation proceeds in a very adversarial way where someone needs to be convinced that their identity or beliefs are:
A) Wrong and Stupid
B) Misguided or naive
C) Evil
D) All of the Above

Although I originally was thinking about some dinner conversation I saw last night regarding an acquaintance's alcohol preferences, I noticed that I've seen that same set of events happen over and over again. I remember multiple situations where I've done it and where it's been done (that sounds way too harsh) to me.

For my part, I remember situations where I'm trying to explain the sexual orientation or political orientation of friends. Since I travel in what I would call a relatively eclectic political group, much of the outing I end up doing is to avoid what I believe to be unnecessary political sniping. I say sniping because while I don't enjoy arguing until I'm blue in the face, I don't have any problem defending my political beliefs when someone asks me about them in a serious way. At the same time, I don't think starting off a conversation with the off-hand comment that "Socialists are idiots" is particularly good. Not a really conducive way to start dialogue in my mind. To me, some good questions to ask before outing someone include, but are not limited to:

• Does the outing act as a pejorative or informational clarification?
• Have you talked to the outee about being outed beforehand?
• If the tables were turned, would you be happy about being outed in front of that person's friends(always good to throw a golden rule in there)?

If you can answer those questions honestly and come out on the other side clean, then you're in good shape as far as outing is concerned. If not, maybe it's time to rethink your outing ways. Then again, maybe I'm just being an hyper-conscious ass for thinking so much about this.

Therefore, with the season of reflection and togetherness in mind, I'd hope that everyone when interacting with loved ones, friends, and the randoms you inevitably see when you go home, tries to think twice about "outing" someone. I don't think it's wrong as a concept. But I do think context means something. In my experiences, in an outing situation, where Person A is getting outed, Person B is doing the outing, and Person C is the third party party learning about Person A's outable quality, Person A often doesn't mind talking to Person C about the outed issue, but they definitely aren't always so happy with Person B.

Have a good after-Christmas talk, everyone.

Unbelievable Dinner...

I think... I would give this sketch 4 platinum stars.

The Post Office is SOOOO not platinum...

So I went to the post office two days ago to mail something. No biggie, right? Wrong. Despite the fact that 1) Christmas has been going on for quite a while and 2) the U.S. Postal Service has a pretty good idea that this means a few more packages going out, the post office near me has the same two individuals working behind the counter. No extra help. No rearranging of schedules to increase workers. No anything. Just two incredibly slow and surly individuals who do not seem to be interested in working very hard.

For my accompanying friend and I, we each had relatively simply goals. We each needed to get stamps and mail some letters. Unfortunately, we needed the stamps so that we could mail our letters. When we walked in, the line to deal with the aforementioned super pleasant civil servants (Ironic Titles R Us called and wanted to give props to whoever came up with that one) stretched out the building. Looking to avoid the line, we went straight for the machines that dispensed the stamps. Wouldn't you know it, both machines were out of stamps/broken. Perfect.

My buddy and I stood in line, talking trash about the entire experience for the next 25 minutes. When we finally got to the front, my friend went up and asked for stamps. The lady, in her "I'm doing you a favor telling you this, even though I don't really need to" voice said, "We only have one kind left." She handed it to him, and he looked at me and chuckled. I walked up and asked for the same thing. She repeated the line and gave me the stamps. I quickly understood why he was chuckling.


Yes, that is the Virgin Mary and baby. How ironic that at this time of year, that's the one stamp they still have extras of. I mentioned to my friend how unamused my Jewish mother from New York would be if the same thing had happened to her (or if I sent her a card with one of those on the envelope). I couldn't help but laugh. The experience of witnessing, of all places, the Post Office, run low on stamps reminded me of when Milton Friedman said, "If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in 5 years there'd be a shortage of sand."

platinum insults.

Abase yo self! This time around the thesaurus helped me with some rank insults. Boy I'm getting to be a sharp kid. With these bullies are sure to leave you alone on the playground. (The assumption of that last sentence is that readers of this blog get picked-on at the playground. I realize this is a complete fallacy and that I am projecting a bit of myself on to y'all. As such, these are still pretty cool, even if you yourself are doing the picking on)

You troglodyte! (yea get him you troglodyte. or you lift like a troglodyte. or it's so easy even a troglodyte could do it. or you're mother was a traglodyte)

or

YOu're a Palooka!! Look it's a palooka, lets trip him! and for the festive reference... Palooka's arn't platinum...

just a few. (words are cool)

Token bailout post/Wayne's World reference...

Here’s another scary link from the New York Times RSS feed on the Auto bailout.

It's a copy of each of the actual documents/”plans" submitted by the big 3.

Mixed into all the pure huffle-puff-hodgepodge-claptrap they show how they are going to be better now, and that they used to be bad, that now everybody's going to love them. and as they say in Wayne's World... Yea and monkeys'll fly out of my butt!!

Can being a cold hearted economist be platinum?

If you are willing to really appreciate the idea of opportunity costs, then I think the answer is yes (HT: Ellie). This article appeared on Slate.com a few days ago. I think it also expresses my greatest fear about moving to a single-payer medical system. Would you want a political appointee making this decision about your family?


In Praise of Lethal Rationing
Posted Wednesday, December 03, 2008 2:06 PM By William Saletan

Good front-page article in today's New York Times on Britain's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), which, among other things, decides whether a few more months of your life are worth the expense. The article begins with a guy named Bruce Hardy who needs a drug that might give him an extra half-year of life but would cost $54,000. NICE said no. The agency comes off as heartless. "Everybody should be allowed to have as much life as they can," Hardy's wife pleads. The article concludes: "Meanwhile, Mr. Hardy waits. In recent weeks his growing tumor has pressed on a nerve that governs his voice. He can barely speak and is increasingly out of breath."

Aw, hell. It'd be great if we could buy an extra half-year for everybody. But we can't. We have unmet needs everywhere. People die every day from being uninsured and unattended. They just don't make the front page.

There's a cruel bias built into our minds that makes you feel more for the person who's suffering in front of you than for people whose suffering appears only in statistical form. (I can't remember what the psychologists or economists call this bias. If you do, please share it with the class.) So now you know all about Bruce Hardy, and you probably regard the bureaucrats at NICE as cads for stiffing him. It's harder to remind yourself of all the health and added life that $54,000 could buy for others. For example: Where does the Gates Foundation send its medical dollars for maximum efficiency? Childhood vaccines.

As far as I can tell, NICE is doing good work. Its refusal to pay any amount for life-prolonging drugs has forced drug companies to cut prices. And by drawing a line against paying too much in some tragic cases, NICE preserves money for other cases where the money can do more good. If anything, NICE is a bit soft. For instance, the Times reports: "After consulting a citizens group, the institute decided that the nation should spend the same amount saving or improving the life of a 75-year-old smoker as it would a 5-year-old." If I ran NICE, the 5-year-old would take priority. And I'm irked to see that NICE is already backing off from its rejection of cases such as Hardy's. According to the Times, this comes after NICE was "flooded with anguished comments." I'm sorry, but anguish is everywhere. If patients like Hardy get funded at $9,000 per month, which other patients won't be funded? What about their anguish? Or does your anguish count only if you have the means and know-how to lobby the government?

Yes, everybody deserves as much life as possible. But that means the person in front of you can't take an undue share of limited public funds when others are in need.

Could I get my bailout in Platinum Bars?

http://mtblog.vanityfair.com/online/politics/2008/12/01/federalbailout.html

Time Capsule

You can tell your grandchildren you saw this website. Catch it while you can. It'll surely be gone soon.

http://www.gm.com/corporate/careers/

Beardbember is officially over...

For the month of November, I grew out a beard. I know, I know....You're wondering how it's possible to improve on perfection, but hey, I gotta do something with my free time. It appears that I wasn't the only one who thought Beardbember had some merit.

Unfortunately, it looks as though their month didn't end as well as mine. (HT: Karl)

JFK is awesome.

Just spent a couple of hours this weekend in JFK... It's great!  

It might have been that I spent the whole time in the jetblue part of the airport and it might have been that Dulles is worse then the Detroit Lions (maybe not that bad).  But JFK was really nice.

Let me just drop some convincing points:

1. Free wireless.  Yes.  I said it.  Free.
2. Touch-screen computers everywhere where you can order food.
3. Great food, and a cafeteria juice bar and not over-priced. (I had pulled pork Bao) 
4. Every things new.
5. The bathrooms are nice
6. You can also go shopping at designer stores.  

Basically I think JFK is Keepin' it Platinum.

Side note.  Dulles is the least platinum place I have been in a while.  It sucks.  they have these four wheel drive transporter things that remind me of a bad science fiction movie.  It's like Dune.  and they're slow.   Build a tunnel Dulles, less you run the risk of not being platinum. 

The Portrait Gallery goes for the gold...errr...platinum.

So I went to the National Portrait Gallery the other day and saw the Mask of Lincoln exhibit they currently have going on there.

As amazing as it is to see 160 year old photos of Lincoln, a random thing happened. When my friend and I entered the gallery, we saw this...
My friend and I proceeded to use her precious anytime minutes to have our very own audio tour of the entire exhibit. Especially interesting was when the security person came in and told us we couldn't talk on the phone and I, embarassed, pointed to this sign. We finished our (audio) tour and mused about the coolness of audio tours via cell phone. Platinum...I think yes.

Platinum Choices vs. Platinum People

After I finished college, I had a week to kill before I needed to report for my Teach For America training. Naturally, I went home to St. Louis to hang out with friends and family before my impending move to Hawaii. After going through the process of looking for jobs and making decisions that would have ramifications in both the near and long term, I was pretty reflective with regard to the reasons why I was going into teaching. Simply put, I felt lucky. Despite the fact that I come from what I consider to be a good family that cared deeply about my education, I would call the schools I attended mediocre at best. Looking back, there were maybe three teachers that I thought had had a positive impact on me as a student. The number of teachers who had a negative impact on my learning was easily above 15. Simply put, I became a teacher so I could even that number up a bit for some kids who had probably had even worse experiences than I. You can then imagine how freaked out I was when I saw that Sterling Johnson, one of the three or so teachers who I would have included in my good list, did this.

Pretty messed up, right? Nevertheless, the experience of seeing someone I held up pretty high fall from grace was good. It taught me that everyone is flawed and that my responsibility is not to judge them (aside from the whole super illegal thing), but to try and understand other people on their own terms.

Looking back, I can say honestly that Sterling Johnson wasn't that great a teacher, but at a time in my life where I didn't know if I was coming or going, he was a friend. So while what he did was atrocious and by my own standards I'm pretty sure he should have been fired much earlier in his career (I'm pretty sure I witnessed Mr. Johnson drunk at school several times but was too naive to realize it), I can't help but reflect on the things I learned from him.

I guess it reminds me of that thing I would say to any of my own students when they messed up. I'm disappointed in his poor choice, but I don't think he's a bad person. I think. At the same time, pushing that to it's logical limit means a moral relativism that this dude cannot abide. I guess the question I end up with is when do we go from non-platinum behavior to non-platinum people. I think there is probably no truly consistent rule and the best I can do is go by my gut/logic to attempt to form a system that has some general premises but allows for flexibility given circumstances...any thoughts?

Karaoke is Platinum...

So I may be getting to do some karaoke in the near future. In preparation for that, I have been working on my favorite karaoke song of all time...be prepared everyone.

Sooooo not platinum...

So, DCist just posted this:

Just a reminder that the District of Columbia is having another sales tax holiday week starting at 12:01 a.m. this Friday, November 28, through midnight Sunday, December 7. Most clothing, shoes, and accessory items that are under $100 will be exempt from the District's 5.75 percent sales tax during this time. For a complete list of eligible items, click here.

For my part, I just do not get tax holidays. The obvious goal of tax holidays is to get people to buy more stuff by lowering the cost. If the problem is under-consumption, why not just stop taxing me so much all the time! As anyone who lives in the District can attest, marginal tax rates are nuts in there. This is one of several big reasons (bad schools, poor services, Marion Barry) why people have moved to the suburbs of Virginia and Maryland.

I just don't get the whole notion that we (politicians) will give you (me) a holiday from having to pay exorbitant taxes that we (politicians) recognize hurt the very businesses that we proclaim to need to stay competitive with those darn foreigners. If that's the case, shouldn't it just be permanent? More business means more more employees which means fewer people on welfare and more people that have access to stuff like healthcare through jobs and their own money rather than government programs that are poorly run. What am I not getting here?!

The same holds true for getting people to give to charity. If you want people to donate more to homeless shelters, food kitchens, and the like, don't tax them more; give them incentives by way of lower taxes and deductions from their taxes. Speaking as someone who's entire job is paid for by someone elses tax write off, I can say the American tax system has a great deal to do with job growth. My buddy Calvin wrote a great op-ed on this which you can find here. That's all I've got to say. Now I'm all angry and it's before breakfast.

Raph this is for you...

...washed up celebrity makes a career changing comeback by reorganizing best works into youtube montage. Said celebrity only assumed idea was original, public knows better. Come on buster, when's the next flick!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrfIjYACPU0&eurl=http://yourdailychum.wordpress.com/

True Story

Louis CK tells it like it is on Conan.

Snow!!!

So this morning I woke up with an unusual bounce in my stride. I couldn't quite explain it but for some reason I found myself humming and singing in the shower. Then in the process of ironing my shirt I was thoroughly delighted and it was fun. And for the first time all year I remembered not to eat my cereal so as to leave room for the bagels we get every Friday. It was gearing up to be a whopper of a day. Then as I was headed back to the office from a lunch meeting in the city it struck me... in the nose... a small flaky ice crystal. Then another. No wonder! Today was the first day of snow. Apparently it doesn't snow much in DC but I've recently spent some time in Wisconsin and this was just a delight. Here's to you, you magical snow goddess. If you aren't platinum... then my name isn't Lincoln McLain.

More Socially Platinum Behavior

I'd like to thank Raph for keeping the ball rolling, and I apologize too for lacking in regularity and frequency.

Every morning I wake up around 9am (I know, the bliss of a grad student), take the elevator down to the first floor, walk outside my apartment and grab a copy of the Express and two complimentary coffees on my way back up.  Usually I'm just in time to grab one of the last copies in the two bins relatively close to my apartment.  For some reason, the Express was in high demand on Monday, and there were no copies left in either bin.  The homeless man who usually sits by one of them saw me check both, and then offered his own copy to me for which I thanked him.  I've seen him around a lot, but I'd never given him anything before.  Guess he made the first gesture.  How ironic.  So this morning, when we woke to the fire alarm (there actually was a small fire in the building), I brought my wallet with me and gave the homeless man $1.  Next time I plan to bring him a pumpkin cupcake if he'd like.

Platinum Public Behavior

Sorry again gang for not posting more often. I know that it kind of lets the steam out of a blog when we're not doing our part. For the record, in the course of any given day, I probably think of five separate ideas for posts. My problem is that I'm rarely in a position to post them within the time frame necessary before I've forgotten the idea. So I'm going to try and post immediately as i get an idea from now on, to help deal with said problem. We'll see what happens.



Anyway, so every morning I walk to work (it's been cold in case you didn't notice). Since I walk to work every day, I've gotten pretty good at several things. The first is street names in the ten blocks between home and work. Second is my newfound knowledge of the timing for all the traffic lights I walk through. I pretty much know at this point where and how fast to walk after I see an one light in an intersection. The good news is that this means I can get to work fast without almost causing an accident in the middle of a pretty well trafficked area of Arlington. But of course, like all good things, there are always free riders.



Just this morning, someone watched me jaywalk and about 5 seconds(too late) jumped off the curb and just blindly started walking. First rule of jaywalking; Look the fuck out! Anyway, the woman almost got hit and definitely got honked. The expression on her face was something close to perplexed/startled with a hint of indignant. I laughed. Definitely not platinum behavior. For the record, I can honestly say that I learned the rules of jaywalking from my mother, an avowed New Yorker who I clearly remember describing her unhappiness with jaywalkers in St. Louis, my home. Having been to NYC many times, I can say honestly that jaywalkers there really are of a different class. Oh well. Here' s to hoping the lady on the street lost some social capital and recognized the need to look at the cars/lights and not what song to listen to on her IPod.

A post-election post about....

Absolutely nothing related to the election. Yeah, done with it.

What I really wanted to do was write about platinumness as it relates to my daily life. I was having a conversation with a friend and he asked me the following question about a recent technology acquisition I made. The conversation went something like this:

Friend: So, how's the new IPod?

Me: Oh, it's great. I don't even think about it.

Friend: Really?

Me: Yeah, it's one of those things that is so good, I tend to forget how simple and awesome it is.

The moral of the story is that I think it's pretty interesting how often we take for granted all the platinum things around us. It's helpful to remember things were not always as they are now.

A test of the [ir]rational voter?

This is the last post about voting from me for a long time, but this I simply couldn't pass up.

I woke up this morning to find this in my inbox:

"date        Tue, Nov 4, 2008 at 1:16 AM

subject   Election Day Update

To the Mason Community:
Please note that election day has been moved to November 5th. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you."

This email was followed soon after with this:

"date       Tue, Nov 4, 2008 at 8:08 AM

subject  Urgent Voting Information

Dear Colleagues,
It has come to my attention early this morning that a message was hacked into the system fraudulently stating that election day has been moved.  I am sure everybody realizes this is a hoax, it is also a serious offense and we are looking into it.  Please be reminded that election day is today, November 4th."

Next, I find myself reading about this in the Express.

Sure, this isn't platinum behavior.  But I still had a good laugh.  I can't imagine anyone falling for these schemes, but anything's possible.  Let it be clear I don't support purposefully disseminating incorrect information.  But in jest, perhaps these pranksters were simply encouraging the "civic duty" of the extremely uninformed--not voting.

Can I preach fiscal conservativism while also spending all my money on beer?

It seems counterintuitive—or at least ironic—that I could be able to strongly advocate responsible spending in the government at the same time as I race to the local water hole with my months earnings… Is this platinum? Am I, in fact, sending mixed messages to my enthusiastic followers? Maybe it could be more platinum of me if I were to… (oh here it comes) invest in Platinum!! Yes you’ve heard buy gold bars and stick ‘em under your bed. But with platinum you can do the same while also not looking like a Ron Paul loony. And let us face it, buying gold is so 1980’s rapper. This generations big-wigs know how to roll with the P-funk… that is essentially the same as putting star shaped glasses on a lump of the worlds most valued metal: platinum..

Platinum Voting: Knowing what you are voting for...

So, I still have not decided about voting for individual candidates in the coming election. But, this weekend I decided that I was going to vote on individual ballot issues. First thing to do, find out what I will be voting on. Ironically, this took some effort. The state of Virginia posted lots of information on how to register, where to vote, and answers to any questions you may have about any number of voting problems, but there was no link that said "Issues that will be on the Ballot." Frustrated initially by this, I started using google to search for information. This proved to be a complete waste of time(and proof that Google is not perfect when it comes to search). I guess it goes back to the whole theory that we care more about personalities in politics than we do about issues. There was untold amounts of information about McCain or Obama, but little about the referendum to completely reconstitute the way Arlington does public/affordable housing.

Anyway, after some searching and the realization that I had completely overlooked a part of the Virginia Elections website, I found the page that had all the information I could want. A list of every constitutional amendment being proposed for the state + local referendums: check. A detailed explanations of what the changes mean relative to the status quo: check. A non-partisan analysis: truly remarkable and check.

Anyway, for those platinum readers who haven't voted and want to be prepared for Nov. 4th, go here for some good old fashioned info about issues that are probably a little more important than this. Make sure to scroll down about 3/4 of the way down the page.

Merry voting everyone. I promise I'm going to stay away from politics for the next few posts...promise.

Is Platinumness a means or an end?

Two of my favorite individuals in the world are Dr. Milton Friedman and Dr. Gregory House. Friedman pretty much rocked my worldview when he said, "One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results." House amuses me when he says things like, "Dying people lie too. Wish they'd worked less, been nicer, opened orphanages for kittens. If you really want to do something, you do it. You don't save it for a sound bite." I suppose it's because both have a way of simplifying relatively complex phenomena into one liners that I can digest pretty easily. But a question that I'm intrigued by is how their different approaches reveal different views on what constitutes platinumness.

Friedman, as the quote above suggests, obviously has a respect for the processes and knowledge required to make good decisions, although he'd be the first one to assume his lack of knowledge about any number of things. At the same time, if you spend millions of dollars and have pretty much nothing to show for it, whatever your claim is about the desired end result, it calls into question your ability to understand whether you understand the root causes of said phenomena and going one step further, calls into question whether or not the said problem is even a real "problem" as it is described. Under what I believe is Friedman's line of reasoning, platinum behavior is derived from a mixture of understanding how good premises lead to good processes which then lead to better ends for everyone.

House, on the other hand, has a much more fun way of deciding platinum behavior; Do the ends get accomplished? Usually, his end is quite simple; save the patient at all costs. The means by which this is accomplished are completely irrelevant. Through this analysis, House disregards conventions like meeting with the patients his team treats, being nice to people, and following any sort of hospital protocol. It's an alluring way to live, although the assumption all along is that House will eventually solve the problem. When he doesn't, and I've only seen two episodes in five years where this has happened (both of which involved team members, not House, making mistakes) it throws his whole analysis into a bit of turmoil, because it reveals that there are limits to the kind of success one can have with such a methodology. At the same time, the show is a testament to a weird kind of American individualism that could give a flying fuck what conventions are, mainly because they are designed and implemented not for the benefit of the individual, but so that most people will not have to actually grapple with reality as House sees it - "Everyone lies." Thus, the logic goes, if results (saving lives) are the only thing that matters, why even pretend to care about all these things that seem to gray the clear truth that awaits when cold reason works it's way through a problem.

So the question remains about platinum behavior. Is it an end (House) or is more of a means that leads to positive ends (Friedman)? Obviously, I find both approaches attractive. But being neither brilliant nor a malcontent (at least right now), it is difficult to implement either approach in my daily life. Instead, I'll apply the ideas of both men in the best way I know how: watching my favorite tv show on hulu and reading books by a nobel prize winner.

Panamanian Platinumness

For those that say that bailouts and central banks are the only way to "control" the ebbs and flows of markets, Reuters has a short and sweet article that goes to the heart of why, in my humble opinion, we have a crisis going on. Panama's banks are in a somewhat literal sense, platinum....

Greenberry's, a secret platinum stronghold...

Based upon aforementioned compliance standards at the office--i.e. keeping the always platinum promise--I regret to inform you that I cannot inform you about this wonderful new platinum joint I just encountered--Greenberry's Coffee (ampersand) Tea Company. If I were to tell you about it, which I definitely won't right now, I would likely say that my sole encounter is through a friend who offered to bring me a cup as a + externality from her own purposeful venture. I of course agreed. Turn down coffee, not I! ... said the surprisingly homogenous office worker.

If I were to not rate it on a platinum scale due to said aforementioned compliance standards, I would definitely not tell you that I give it two platinum thumbs high in the air and a surprise frown/raised eyebrow. Which is quite a bit for having not really told you anything.

Likely sources also provide scant evidence for citing of famed blogger Tyler Cowen at said coffee shop, of which I am definitely not even talking about right now.

So if you get a chance you should not head to Greenberry's Coffee (ampersand) Tea Company during work hours. Such an action would be outside platinum principles and I would be forced to refer anyone who blames such an action on me to this here post. So as to further imply that in no way do I endorse heading to Greenberry's for a delicious cup of glory juice in such a way that hinders platinumdum and in no way am I even talking about this right now.

To Vote or Not Vote?

The question that has persisted in me since the latter part of my junior year in college has been how to engage in the political process. First and foremost the question has always been what is the lowest level of political activity I can engage in while getting the biggest bang for my buck(i.e. time + my standards for ethical human behavior). Seeing actual advocacy of an individual politician as being much better than parties, which in America have few principles and even less integrity, I've consistently been on the lookout for individuals who I'd be willing to vote for.

Sophomore year of college, before the 2004 elections and as a part of my job requirement as an RA, I put on a (poorly attended) speaker panel where students and professors at the school spoke on the question of "Should You Vote." Although sparsely attended due to my lack of planning, I thought the panel involved some of the most interesting discussion about the role of voting in a democracy that I've ever seen. Since then, I've been incredibly conflicted about when, how, and who I should vote for in any year.

Therefore, I'm here to announce that at this moment I have found a politician I feel slightly(and this is me going out on a limb) willing to support....Adrian Fenty. While I believe that Fenty knows pretty little about the ways to stimulate the DC economy and even less about why the size of government can probably be attributed to the complete poverty that many of his constituents live in, I also note that most mayors don't have to contend with the U.S. Congress when it comes to their budget. All that aside, the one area that I could not give Fenty more credit for is with respect to is taking control of DC Public Schools away from the school board and choosing Michelle Rhee to be school Chancelor. His unflinching support of her and her work in DCPS is nothing short of a miracle in the politics of public education. Articles abound about her and him, but this video does a nice job of summarizing what's currently going on. Needless to say, this blogger thinks MR is very platinum and arguably one of the most skilled politicians I've ever seen.

Alas, Fenty is not up for re-election and I live in VA. The previous paragraph was pretty much a waste of your time in that case. I apologize.

In the end, I'm really not sure if I will vote, or if I do vote will I just leave that box blank. I suppose the only real thing left to do is learn more about the local elections where I live. Does anyone have anything helpful to say about any of this? Is there ANY real platinum political activity?

On the road again...

Sorry for the long delay, friends!

This is something I can’t pass up posting about: Ford MyKey.  It eerily reminds me of the GPS tracking devices that came out a couple of years ago—black boxes installed in a teen’s car—to monitor the speed, seat belt usage, and yes, even a curfew.

Ford MyKey, which will be equipped on a certain number of select models in 2010, allows parents to program a teen’s key to not only monitor but prevent the teen from driving above 80 mph, chime when the teen drives above 45, 55, and 65 mph, and it even offers a noise level control to prevent the teen from increasing the volume past a certain point.

I can’t help but echo the following from an interviewee in the article: “If your parents are holding your hand, you’re never going to learn.”  But that could be because of how I was raised, and maybe because someday I’ll raise my children with a little more room for a trusting relationship to grow between us. 

What I really want to ask is: Does this really protect teens?  Does loud music make teens more prone to accidents?  What about texting while driving?  Do most accidents involving teens occur when a teen is driving in excess of 80 mph?  If not, then why have the limit at all?  It seems like a gimmick with a false sense of safety to me.

Consider the following.  According to AP, “Ford's research shows that parents would be more likely to let teens use their vehicles with the system, Sherwood said, and if it gets them the car more often, the number of teens objecting [MyKey] drops by nearly half.”  More teens out driving because of this system than there otherwise would’ve been in its absence?  Isn’t that even more dangerous?  The likelihood of dying or getting injured in a car accident is one of the greatest risks we face on a daily basis.  And to play a little Devil’s Advocate here, what about increased traffic congestion and the accompanying dreaded pollution emissions?

I’m thinking this could be very nonplatinum, but who knows what the results will be for sure.  Thoughts?

Tao of the Dow is made of platinum...

The team and I have been taking bets for where the Dow closes on a day-to-day basis at work. We all bet around 10,000 today, which was expected after other markets did well over the night... The day ended up being an adventure where we were statistically trying to map the progress of Wall St.'s finest, it looked something like an episode of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." The gang becomes Investment Bankers...  Anyway, this is what the newspaper reported for our little race in the next day daily. (and by newspaper I really mean me writing a mass email)

Jen and toxic takes the cake in a truly remarkable sweep. The first part of the day showed promising growth as the market rallied to a high of 10,124.03. Both Karl and Hannah thought for sure they were going to be on the underbelly of capitalism's angelic bull as she soured towards the heavens, but the reality of government intervention proved unproductive yet again; looks like uncle Sam’s safety net has some serious holes in it. Momma Dow explored the sub Atlantic trenches as she ended with a 9,447.11. Putting new feelings to the old classic song lyric "Get Low." Drop it like its hot Dr. Dow. Here we were thinking the roller coaster was gong to start but it's still falling… This is going to be awesome!!

Reporters say that when Jen heard the news of her victory earlier this evening she apparently started beating her chest and shouting, "You think you can mess with Pen!! You don't know me!! Say My NAME B&%*@!!" Onlookers and co-workers alike fled the scene as she grew to an unusual size and proceeded to pillage the town. Which was a complete non-sequitur for the cute little Asian girl she had us think she was: and she never looked better.

Congrats Jen.

Don't register to vote in DC... try it, I dare you.

My Aunt just reminded me (yet again) to register to vote... Many of you--locals--may be aware of the massive campaign to rock the vote (i.e. Ba-rock the vote, partisan?) that has hit the metro like a fire at Metro Center (historic reference #1). If you are not, than you must either: be richer than me, never leave the house, or never watch MTV. I, of course, am none of the above. If I were richer than me, then that would be a pretty cool party trick. The point being, that voter promotion campaigns have hit the streets like an LA riot (historic reference #2) and I, a poor independent, was less than prepared (me < prepared) for the shock of having to explain a not so well developed political perspective to hordes of voter enthusiasts barracking me in the face with civic duty (pun so intended). My caring Aunt got wind of this and offered her wisdom, which was followed weekly prompts and prods to get off of my button and register. Not many times in my life do I associate well with an angry mule, but this being one of them I felt the need to respond to her with the following message.

"Yea I registered to vote. ‘Ended up being that I couldn't not register to vote. Every time I hit the metro some overly excited cute girl had a clipboard and a smile waiting for me. No decent person who took the metro in the past 3 months could escape their powers. I felt like a dolphin in a tuna net: it was very strategic of them... I resisted at first, signaling that had somewhere to go, very Scrooge of me. But after copious attempts at faking somewhere important to be... my defenses broke down like a west coast football team and they reeled me in, not even the catch of the day. (I felt dirty, and used, and registered)."

Maybe its because I'm disillusioned with politicians, maybe its because I'm becoming a grumpy old man, or maybe its because to the best of my own capabilities I really can't resist a good conversation with a cute girl, but the legend has it that Lincoln's heart did not grow three sizes that day. Fact it stayed the same because its made of platinum.

Dad on a Metro

I was on the Metro about a week ago and saw a man and his young (8-10 year old) son. The son was attempting to figure out where the Metro was taking them using the maps inside the car. The father lifted the son up, showed him the point at which they were starting and told him what was their end stop. The father then asked the son to tell him how many stops they needed to go and what was the route they would need to take to get there. The father sat down and the son, standing on the seat, worked out the problem. When he had the answer, the son promptly turned and enthusiastically told his father. When the father asked him why he hadn't chosen an alternative path, the son looked at the father incredulously and said, "Because that's not the fastest way Dad! This one is much better."

When I see people doing things like this with their kids, I can't help but smile.

Brunch at Whitlow's on Wilson

In an effort to expand the influence of platinumdom in our local community Kaylin and I have started what we hope to be a long standing tradition in the greater platinum community: the process by which we hold others up to metaphorical standards that they don't know about. Sounds pretentious, because it is. Look we're just keeping it... well, you know.

So we hit up brunch at Whitlow's and it was sweet.

Kaylin Wainwright's take:
Ambience: Gold. We were seated outside so that made all the difference in the world. The interior is dingy and perfect for their late night cover bands, but for brunch I was happy we had the opportunity of sunshine. In regards to the other patrons: there were hung-over, slovenly types (so Lincoln fit in) and cute yuppies (so I fit in).
Service: Platinum. The hostess did lead Lincoln astray with her assertion that the biscuits and gravy were rated a 9, but she was friendly and prompt. Likewise the server was nice without being annoying, prompt without rushing us, and attractive without being slutty.
Food: Silver. I ordered the eggs florentine which was good, but failed to rock my face off. The homefries were quite good, however. Lincoln was disappointed with his biscuits and gravy, in part because the hostess was suggestive about their platinum potential. He noted that they needed more salt and pepper. I pointed to the salt and pepper on the table. Also, the bacon was overcooked. The mimosas were not platinum, but I would be interested to try their bloody marys.
Company: Aluminum. Just kidding, Lincoln, the company was platinum.
Overall brunch at Whitlow's is not platinum, but I'd be willing to try it again (particularly because of affordability) and see if their other dishes are better.

Lincoln McLain's take:

Prologue:
After not eating much and spending most of the morning propped up in bed watching football I got the delightful ring from one do-gooder on her way back from church. "Wanna get brunch."
I respond with "affirmative" and slip into my robo-trousers before performing morning-bear-yawn-calisthenics. A morning ritual of sorts ever man does that gets seldom mentioned in today’s biased media.
We walk together to Food St. (i.e. Wilson) and begin the long menu shopping process. Being of the poor persuasion I find it easier to look like I am a snob who is discussed with the content of the menu rather than the prices presented. This doesn't ever get far though as my stomach reminds me that it is on the boarder of cannibalism, less it gets satisfied soon.
Whitlow's was the first we saw so Whitlow's was where we ate.

Durelogue: (just made that word up)
Said waitress did say the biscuits and gravy was a 9. and those biscuits and gravy were no such 9!!! With out deceptive comment I would give them a 7. They did separate out the gravy from the biscuits, so you could pour the gravy over the biscuits (G.D. I am getting pretty hungry right about now). This sounds nice but it really didn't have the greatest effect. I am more of a soaked in gravy kind of guy. That's really where I see myself in life. Deceptive comment included I give them a 6.51.
Secondarily, said bacon was too crispy. This usually isn't a problem less the fact that when it is poor quality bacon to begin with it looses all it's pizzazz after being over cooked. The bacon was a disappointment.
Needless to say I kept my composure and managed to pull a buzz out of the mimosa, as was pointed out to me by my faithful companion. Cheers!
Service was nice and I did like eating outside.

Epilogue:
All and all, I give Whitlow's a sub-platinum rating. Though, I do not appose the idea of eating there again. Platinum is big. It's not easy to get. Come on Whitlow's, wow me!

And We Have A Winner!

Long time no see, Platinum-lovers. I apologize for the hiatus, but we here at KeepinItPlatinum believe in quality over quantity, much like our friends.



Well, for the contest I posted a week ago, we didn't have a super number of entries, but there was quality in each idea. In the end, big kudos go to S-Rod for identify ESPN's actual database of songs used when players come up to bat. Of particular interest was the number of players who had either no music or a different song everytime they went to bat. Unfortunately, none of the suggestions made me get that tingley feeling that amazing players get when they know they're about to dominate. For that reason, I've come up with my own list of several songs, all of which would be mood specific. I'm definitely interested in comments. Therefore, in line with my communitarian beliefs, we are ALL winners! Enjoy!



1. Best double entrendre song for a baseball after it just got hit and something we don't need to describe



2. Best song with a chorus that you just cannot resist cheering out loud



3. Best song for after there's been a rain delay



4. Song that you will inevitably hear at any St. Louis sporting event



5. Newest best alternative to The Final Countdown





And here is my choice. It's a song that not many people would recognize, but would still be my choice. If you know me, you'll understand why this song would be my choice, despite violating several of the rules that I laid out in the contest. Sorry everyone. National political parties don't have to be consistent, why should I? (HT Scot)

The Nuances of Platinum DJing

I'm back from the midwest after a long, relaxing, and rather outmazing weekend that ended with my purchase of a rather platinum fedora hat. Before I go on, I'd like to take a moment to share my new title: Vice President to the Facilitator of Social Activity and Spontaneous Order.

I liked the direction that Raph's previous post was going, and it reminded me of a similar conversation we'd had on the nuances of platinum DJing. As any host/DJ would know, the atmosphere and ambience of a party is critical to its success. Music selection is the impetus of that achievement.

To begin, know your audience. Put your audience's tastes before your own in music, and you'll have a better time--everyone will. While having a core music playlist on hand is essential and easy to replay at future parties, it is also important to customize that list so that each event has a subtle but individual musical flavor. Also, customize it to the event you're staging--this goes hand in hand with your audience's preferences--for example, retro '80s may or may not be platinum for a wine and cheese party, but again, that depends on your audience.

Secondly, go with something everyone knows. This usually spans from classic rock to '90s, and even some intermittent recent songs (avoid those overplayed). This is the base of your music list, and it's extremely adaptable to any one individual's musical taste. People bond when they sings songs together, even if they don't care for the song. And TIP: well-known songs can break the ice for you single folks out there.

Also--it's important to pick songs that are generally "up-beat"--meaning, even if everyone knows the wishy-washy love song you're considering playing, you won't want to compile your entire music list with this particular tempo or attitude, which brings me to another finer point...

Shuffle the genres and the ages: if you just played Kanye's "Stronger," you should go with something disconnected next like Journey's "Small Town Girl." And never repeat songs unless it's strongly requested: you should have a music list long enough for the planned length of the party, with room for error. Arbitrary music lists are useful in keeping the crowd interested in the playlist instead of lulled into one music niche, no matter how up-beat it is.

Finally, if you insist on implanting your own tastes, do so with caution, and very sparsely into the list. If that song, or any that may have made the list, changes the general positive mood be sure to change that song as soon as possible. I'm sure there's something going on at a psychological level here, but parties with good vibes from great music last longer, or at least give a lasting impression that you know how to host a platinum party.

A boy's dream...

When I was a boy, my father would take me to Cardinal's baseball games. To this day, those few trips to a baseball stadium have made me a lifelong fan of baseball and the Cardinals. Happily, because I have a midwestern temperment and am always interested in seeing other baseball teams, regardless of their talent level or the city in which they inhabit. Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce you to the Washington Nationals. Last night, I was able to attend my first(of many) Nationals baseball game(with pretty nice seats) courtesy of the generosity of a friend of a friend. The game was a lot of fun despite absurd prices for food, mainly due to the good company and decent baseball(don't even ask me to describe Dodger's third baseman's abysmal fielding). Overall, a very nice experience.

But this got me thinking. Whenever I go to random events like a sporting event or concert, I always end up pondering random questions. Last night's question was "If I was a major/minor league playerWhat would I have as my intro music when I walked up to home plate for my at bat?"

The initial response I have to this is always that I would want to play the raunchiest rap song I could think of, just for my pure amusement. See examples here and here. Thinking about it, I realized that this is too short sided. All should get enjoyment from the song I choose, especially if my goal is to "Keep It Platinum."

Add to this the songs that Lincoln just mentioned for intro music at political events and you understand the importance of such musical choices. McCain did have it way over on the Democrats, especially for using the theme song to Rudy as his intro music.

So I put to you readers in the form of a contest. What would be a good song for that walk up to the plate or being introduced in a game or event?

Some parameters:

- It's got to be something memorable - usually something with a good hook(not many of us get to stand up on stage for a three minute introduction/crowd warm up).

- It's got to appeal to a wide variety of people at said event. This means that the music that does well in Hawaii may not work so well in the Bronx. Feel free to specify in your recommendations.

- It needs to get you AND the audience pumped for the event at hand, whatever it may be.

Those that enter and are selected as finalists will receive exactly one bagel + cream cheese from me via the bagel place across the street from my office. The winner will be invited to a special viewing of Arrested Development at a point to be determined. Also, they will from then on only be referred to as the Hermano.

Let the games begin!

music in the campaigns

Republicans:
Van Hagar
Rudy Soundtrack

Democrats:
Sharyl Crow

I just slipped and fell and landed in a pile of not-platinum...

Thanks universe! Real nice of you! I didn't spit in your water bowl. Why did you have to go and let this bit of embarrassment happen? For those of you who don't know me, I do tend to shame my own expectations on a regular basis, but that aside this was unnecessary.

So the team and I were putting some good ideating to use in one of the small conference rooms (i.e. the old intern's room, one for my dead hommies) and we were bashfully taking a moment or two from time to time to shoot hoops on one of those stick-um basketball hoops that most offices have as corny give-aways. Yes we have quite a few, and yes I am getting quite good at miniature basketball. Bring it! When all of a sudden there came a shinny demon, and she said!! "Could you guys keep it down in here, every time you throw that basketball it echoes through our office..." she was, of course, referring to my bosses office. With our tail between our legs we all of course blamed Jen, who had no part in the basketball shenanigans.

Not-platinum successfully avoided. With a lie? Yes. But mean platinum was maintained...

Be it platinum or not-platinum, I leave it up to you.

Mr Rogers' moment... Platinum or not?

So I was packing up to leave today and I brought along my aforementioned new shoes.  Then it dawned on me... 

I sat myself down to switched out of those burdensome work-loafers and slipped myself into some trendy street kicks as some awesome techno music came on in the background.  Best thing is I left my loafers in a drawer at work.  Here's to you neighbor!! 

I'm really excited to be here...

Is that platinum?

self-confessed less than platinum

I wrote about this event on Craig's List...
kind of embarrassing...
check it out...

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/mis/811514221.html

Last but not least...

I'd like to cap off the weekend and finally make my debut on Keepin' It Platinum. Unlike Licoln and Raph, I currently bear no official title--add that to the list of not platinum things.

You may have heard in the news recently that the debate over lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18 has once again been stirred up. And this time, it's not the usual collegiate opinion writers with no new material on the subject. Instead, more than 100 university and college leaders have signed the Amethyst Initiative petition to lawmakers to reconsider the legal drinking age--and it's about time. Not even a petition of 10,000 college students would carry as much weight or gain as much media attention as the current list of petitioners.

College-age young adults who drink realize two things: 1) the law is still relatively new because their parents had the right to drink beer at 18, and 2) 18 year olds (and younger) in nearly all other countries can to do so legally. Will the real "land of the free" please stand up? Kudos to college leaders who voiced their concern: they realized that government isn't better at preventing adults from making potentially stupid or irresponsible choices, like binge drinking. Now there's just millions of responsible and irresponsible "criminals" attending colleges and universities nationwide.

I propose that the states take the initiative to decentralize government control by lowering their drinking ages--no more federal funding for highways. Even if you increase state-level sin tax on alcohol by small percent (just think of Nevada!), states could potentially recover the portion lost from federal funds. Also, the cost to enforce MIPs would fall, and that money could be reallocated to a more useful purpose: enforcing DUI offenses. If that fails and the highways deteriorate, at least kids won't be out on the highways driving drunk. In the meantime, MADD should be thankful for the recent surge in gas prices.

Yet another illusion of platinumdom...

What about the esteemed "thought-to-be good act of less than platinum" that turns out to be more like plastic.  It's like fools platinum.  I feel what your laying down my brother from another post.  And I feel like it needs to be drawn out a little.  

The thought-to-be-good act of less than platinum ....

is an honest card someone plays in a social situation: usually small group.  Most times the person in subject (call him subject A) is completely oblivious to their act of less-than-platinum.  They force themselves onto conversation without taking into consideration the finer details of social cues and awkward interaction.  It's just tough, because you know they don't even know that everything they do drives the social herd bonkers.  They just slide on through it.  

example:

I experienced an individual portraying these characteristics with some zeal.  After politely pointing out that his belligerent approach to social interaction was less than constructive (at this point it is appropriate to point out that I am the Deputy to the Director of Constructive Feedback, or something close)  he had the audacity to enlighten me on his supposed norms of human behavior and how he didn't give a flying fudgesickle what other people thought about him and he wasn't going to let anyone tell him what to do or how to be.  

Basically, my point is to pose a question to the greater platinum community. How do you deal with people who don't recognize they are not acting with platinum?  How do we stay platinum around plastic when the plastic thinks it's platinum?

oh yea and we invented a word this weekend: "outmazing"   

use it wisely...

 

Things that are not platinum...

As much as we'd like for everyone in the world to keep it platinum on a consistent basis, we recognize that there are times when it's difficult for everyone. A good example would include being given an ultimatum by female friends regarding shaving facial freedom beards you may or may not be attached to (no pun intended). You have feelings for both, but at the end of the day, freedom sometimes rides bitch so that your friends can take shotgun. We also recognize that some people are just simply not interested in keepin' it platinum. Examples include Osama Bin Laden, the Chinese Government, and Soulja Boy.

Personally, what I find more offensive than the first two categories is when people do something they know is not platinum, just so they can obtain a little bit of personal benefit at the expense of the rest of the platinum loving populace. Whereas the first two categories are a mix of difficult situations and complete disregard for others, the latter is just people ignoring platinum rules when it is semi-convenient for them. Below are a list of a couple things that happened this weekend that were definitely NOT platinum:

1. People bringing their 3-4 month old babies to an IMAX screening of The Dark Knight. So what if I've seen the movie twice already? That is poor parenting and they didn't even take the baby out of the theater when it started screeching. I envision delinquent children 12 - 13 years down the line.

2. Being forced to interact with annoying people while out with real friends. I understand my own lack of social skills, but seriously, it's 2008 and there's a War on Terror. Step your game up people.

I am certain this list will continue to grow over time. Don't worry, we are here to help slow the tide as best we can and will work overtime if need be.

Today in keeping it platinum

Being my first post I feel as if I should introduce myself.  My name is Lincoln J. McLain, Assistant to the Deputy Director of Constructive Feedback.  (It's just a title.) 

I was watching a movie you may have heard of called "Transformers." (it's just a movie)  and they had a scene where a couple of the human fleshies lock themselves in a library-esk room in the secret layer of the Hoover Dam after being chased by a small but dangerous little chub-chub transformer.  There just so happened to be a set of shot guns on display.  which they used initially to fight off the chub-chub robot unsuccessfully.  At first we thought it would be out-of-the-ordinary that there would be shot guns on display just when you needed them but then we realized with a quick gesture/flex of our arms that there are always shot guns on display... platinum moment number one of the night. 

Oh yea and I got some new shoes today, which I thought were gorgeous. 

School Choice

While our(and my) goal on this blog is to keep things relatively apolitical, we realize that much of what we talk about in the context of KeepinItPlatinum(KIP) is informed by our political beliefs. It is for that reason that sometimes we'll be delving into some topics you may hear about in the news at times. One that is near and dear to my heart is the idea of school choice. Those that know me know that I will argue for it until I(or the other person I am talking with) is blue in the face. I'm that passionate about it .

The video below is probably the best articulation of the argument for school choice I've ever seen. It's witty, direct, and it doesn't sugar coat what are the end goals of true school choice. It is definitely platinum viewing....

Buzzwords are Underrated

As a rule, my friends and I believe that buzzwords are a very unappreciated part of the American English language(I can't speak to their usage in other peoples' languages). Why, you ask? In my mind, buzzwords, like most of language, are only as serious as the people using them and the seriousness of the context in which they are being used. The name of this blog comes quite directly from buzzwords used in the context of my current job, yet we have no problem taking the words that are used inside the office and applying them to things in our daily lives such as movies, food, event planning, and even the occasional consumption of alcohol. In an odd way, our tongue-in-cheek references to buzzwords like decision rights, liberty, transaction costs, and comparative advantage help us to better understand the true meaning of the words.

Language, like all good spontaneous orders, has no one individual in charge of it. It evolves as it needs to in order to fit the society it is in. One classic example you may have heard of is that Eskimos have over thirty words they use to describe snow. While there is no one person in control of Eskimo language(I wouldn't even pretend to act as if I know what it's called) the language has evolved in a starkly different way than my own to reflect the needs/values of the society and individuals where it exists. For my own part, I'm pretty happy with the 4-5 different words that I know of to describe different kinds of snow.

So how do Eskimos relate to buzzwords? I'm going to say the connection lies in the idea of language being evolutionary. By removing buzzwords from their original context and placing them in a new one, my friends and I are exploring what the underlying meaning of the word really is. We mean no harm. In fact we think that by using the word out of context we allow for it's broader consumption. How many people really have a deep theoretical understanding of the phrase transaction costs? Yet when I use the phrase transaction costs in relation to me not wanting to move my party location on a Friday night from Clarendon to Adams Morgan, it provides a very clear example to someone who may not have that all-important undergraduate degree in Economics. For me, the most effective writers, teachers, speakers, and public figures have always been those who could take a very important yet complicated idea and bring it "home" into a context the average person could understand. In short, by removing buzzwords from their usual domains and messing around with them as we see fit, my friends and I are trying to make a small contribution to this evolutionary process that we call society.

What we're about...

As anyone that knows me can tell you, I love the Flight of the Conchords. They are funny. They make me smile when I am having an otherwise bad day. Towards my goal of making other people as happy as I am, I have decided to post a video of my favorite Flight song. I leave it to you to understand and appreciate their brilliance.