Swami 4 Precedent!

Swami Beyondananda for Precedent!

How You Can Help Move the Upwising Forward

One of the most heartening aspects of our two-month sojourn from the Northwest to the East is meeting people and finding projects that are truly healing and transformational. You won't read about this newly-emerging butterfly in the caterpillar press, but believe me ... the evolutionary upwising is happening everywhere. Everywhere!

Meanwhile, the contrast of our collective political dysfunction has become universally palpable. Wherever we go, whether we meet progressives or conservatives, everyone gets that the unchecked power of money is out of control. As the Swami puts it:

"We have a deeply divided body politic. Half of our population believes our
elections are broken. The other half believe they are fixed. We have been
weakened by division, as we've been divided into two rival tribes ... the red
tribe and blue tribe, who spend their time squabbling about whether it's worse
to kill the born or the unborn ... while the commonwealth is being devoured by
uncommonly wealthy sociopathogens.

"So here is how we heal the body politic. Red tribe and blue tribe, sitting together in sacred circle talking until they're purple in the face. And then, when we stand as One Purple People, the peeps will far outnumber the perps, and the Golden Rule can finally overrule the rule of gold."

The entire notion of the "peeps outnumbering the perps" always gets the biggest laugh and the biggest cheer.

Consequently, I have decided to re-launch the Swami For Precedent Campaign for 2012, where we encourage and promote a "new precedent:" government of, by and for the people where the government does our bidding and not the bidding of the highest bidder. On this platform alone, we have the support of 95% of Americans. Doing the campaign in the guise of comedy will enable us to keep it "informal" and empower local groups to promote "heartland security" in the form of political collaboration and economic innovation to regrow the local economy from the grassroots up.

We already have a media-savvy campaign director signed on, and will officially launch after the 1st of the year. Informally, if you support this idea for evolutionary upwising by laughing together (sure beats crying separately), there are a number of ways you can help if you're so inspired. First and foremost, you can become a paid subscriber, sponsor, founding sponsor or profound founder for Notes From the Trail, my current vehicle for reporting on the upwising. You can do that here.

Every subscriber will receive a copy of our 2004 Swami For Precedent book, which (unfortunately) is even more relevant in the Obama era. It contains - in addition to the comedy - a lot of valuable information for political self-education. And moving these books will create the space to issue an entirely new and streamlined version for 2012. If you'd like to purchase these books for gifts or mass distribution, please respond to this email.

In coming weeks, we will be sending a more formal announcement for the campaign.

Another way you can help is to bring Swami and I to your town or region in 2012. We still have some openings for living room events and larger public events in California in early October, November and December. Next year, we plan to cover every region in the States. If you have an organization that wants to sponsor a public (or private) event, or would like to sponsor a living room event (40 or more people), please contact us. As our good friend Caroline Casey says, "Co-operators are standing by."

Again, thank you all deeply for being co-hearts on the path ... and thank you for keeping the faith as we restore heart-core values to our lives and world.

Jump!

Bottled Lightning

Just finished another book.  This one is "Bottled Lightning: Superbatteries, Electric Cars and the New Lithium Economy" by Seth Fletcher.  It's a look back at the development of batteries and the electric car starts and stops over the decades, and a look forward into the future, which seems to have lithium playing a huge role. 

It's rather sad to see Bolivia, which probably possesses the largest reserves of lithium on the planet, floundering to produce it for market because they are so afraid of being exploited by foreign mega-corporations.  The fear is grounded in fact, but it's hampering their development, big time.  Highly recommended.

Our next car will absolutely be an electric car, but not until one of our current cars falls apart!

There is a good review of the book here.

Losing our religion

Hopefully, this trend will continue!  We are long overdue to shed that metaphysical metaphorical religious straightjacket.  Religion is so ... 19th Century.

5 Signs That America Is Moving Away from Religion


If you look closely there are promising signs that American attitudes are changing in a way that may blunt the impact of religion on politics and culture.


In between bragging about the number of people they've killed and vilifying gay soldiers, the GOP presidential candidates have spent the primaries demonstrating how little they respect the separation of church and state. Michele Bachmann seems to think God is personally invested in her political career. Both she and Rick Perry have ties to Christian Dominionism, a theocratic philosophy that publicly calls for Christian takeover of America's political and civil institutions. (Even Ron Paul, glorified by civil libertarians for his only two good policy stances -- opposition to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and drug prohibition -- sputtered about churches when asked during a debate where he'd send a gravely ill man without health insurance.)


GOP pandering to the Religious Right is just one of those facts of American public life, like climate change denial and Creationism in schools, that leave secular Americans lamenting the decline of the country, and of reason and logic. Organized religion's grasp on the politics and culture of much of Europe has been waning for decades -- why can't we do that here?

But there are signs that American attitudes are changing in ways that may tame religion's power over political life in the future.

Annie Laurie Gaylor, founder of the Freedom from Religion Foundation, tells AlterNet that she thinks what happened in Europe is (slowly) happening here. While questioning religion remains controversial -- Gaylor says the group's work on church and state issues often elicits hate-mail strongly suggesting they move to, you know, Europe -- atheism, skepticism, and agnosticism are becoming more widely accepted.
1. American religious belief is becoming more fractured

2. Non-belief -- and acceptance of non-belief -- on the rise

3. Growing numbers of young people who do not identify as religious

4. Hate group that exploited religion to bash gays hemorrhaging funds
5. Getting married by friends


Click here to read the details.  Hallelujah!

Happy Birthday, JG!

On this date in 1964, actress and comedian Janeane Garofalo was born into a conservative family in Newton, N.J. Her family relocated to Houston when she was in high school. She majored in history at Providence College, where she quickly shed her parents' politics.

While a college student, Garofalo entered a Showtime-sponsored comedy talent search and won the title of "Funniest Person in Rhode Island." After college, she became a standup comedian. To make ends meet she worked briefly as a bike messenger in Boston. Garofalo's breakthrough came when she befriended actor/comedian Ben Stiller in 1992 and joined the cast of his acclaimed sketch comedy program, "The Ben Stiller Show." She starred in the 1994 Ben Stiller film, "Reality Bites," and was nominated for an Emmy, in 1996, for her role on Gary Shandling's HBO series, "The Larry Sanders Show." She briefly joined the cast of "Saturday Night Live" in 1994, worked as a correspondent on Michael Moore's news magazine, TV Nation, and hosted "Comedy Product," a standup showcase on Comedy Central. Garofalo appeared in or starred in films such as, "Now and Then" (1995), "The Truth About Cats and Dogs" (1996), "Larger Than Life" (1996), "Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion" (1997), "The Matchmaker" (1997), "Cop Land" (1997) and "Dogma" (1999), a film satirizing religion. She starred with Joaquin Phoenix and Vince Vaughan in 1998's "Clay Pigeons," and worked again with Stiller in "Permanent Midnight" (1998) and "Mystery Men" (1999).

In addition to her extensive acting and comedy career, Garofalo has been an outspoken critic of religion. Calling herself an atheist on her radio show, "The Majority Report," Garofalo has become a favorite of the left and a target of right-wing criticism. She helped launch Air America and has been a guest on Freethought Radio (June 2, 2007). Also a noted peace activist, Garofalo has said, "[God] just seems very man-made to me. There are so many theories, and not everyone can be right. It's human nature to need a religious crutch, and I don't begrudge anyone that. I just don't need one" ("Showbiz," Aug. 1995). Garofalo's celebrity has only grown, with appearances on the final season of "The West Wing" (2005-2006), the series finale of "Mad About You" (1999), the voice of Stith on "Titan A.E." (2000), the voice of Colette in "Ratatouille" (2007), and a recurrent role in the 2009 season of the hit show, "24." Garofalo received an Emperor Has No Clothes Award from the Freedom From Religion Foundation in 2001 , for "telling it like it is" about religion, and in 2007 became a Lifetime member of the Foundation.

"Organized religions and their dogmas only serve to indoctrinate the participants into sheeplike common behaviors. This type of blind assimilation promotes the popularity of top-forty count down radio stations and movie sequels. Skepticism towards groups, holy or otherwise, is enriching and makes you a far more entertaining person."

— Feel This Book: An Essential Guide to Self-Empowerment, Spiritual Supremacy, and Sexual Satisfaction by Janeane Garofalo & Ben Stiller, 1999, p. 172-173.

Open Letter

from Occupy Wall Street

Please join us:


This is an open letter to all Americans, and particularly to progressive magazines, Web Sites, TV programs, etc. Please spend most of your time focusing on the Occupy Wall Street protests. This is real, this is serious, and this will become a mass movement. I have been here every day for the past week. Everyone is dedicated and determined. People have come from all over the country, and they plan to stay for months. Many have been sleeping outside, on the floors of Zuccotti Park, and others have been arrested, sacrificing their comfort for the most important of all causes. It’s safe to assume the mainstream media either will not cover the demonstrations at all or will do so only to ridicule us. But liberal media outlets must get on board. If you do not, you are essentially useless.

As a journalist myself, I know the only reason any serious progressive does reporting is because he or she wants to motivate people to get off the couch and hit the streets. We journalists write articles, participate in TV segments, appear in documentaries… For what? To inform people of how they’ve been enslaved by the corporate state. And to make them understand that they have the power to restore their democracy if they choose to.

Read the rest here.

Occupy Wall Street

Occupy Wall Street

Anyone with eyes open knows that the gangsterism of Wall Street -- financial institutions generally -- has caused severe damage to the people of the United States (and the world). And should also know that it has been doing so increasingly for over 30 years, as their power in the economy has radically increased, and with it their political power. That has set in motion a vicious cycle that has concentrated immense wealth, and with it political power, in a tiny sector of the population, a fraction of 1%, while the rest increasingly become what is sometimes called "a precariat" -- seeking to survive in a precarious existence. They also carry out these ugly activities with almost complete impunity -- not only too big to fail, but also "too big to jail."

The courageous and honorable protests underway in Wall Street should serve to bring this calamity to public attention, and to lead to dedicated efforts to overcome it and set the society on a more healthy course.

Noam Chomsky

Salar de Uyuni

Bolivia just might be the "Middle East" of the lithium market!  If they can ever get their act together!  (Sunset on the Salar de Uyuni at top of the blog)

Salar de Uyuni
(or Salar de Tunupa) is the world's largest salt flat at 10,582 square kilometers (4,086 sq mi). It is located in the Potosí and Oruro departments in southwest Bolivia, near the crest of the Andes, and is elevated 3,656 meters (11,995 ft) above the mean sea level. The Salar was formed as a result of transformations between several prehistoric lakes. It is covered by a few meters of salt crust, which has an extraordinary flatness with the average altitude variations within one meter over the entire area of the Salar. The crust serves as a source of salt and covers a pool of brine, which is exceptionally rich in lithium. It contains 50 to 70% of the world's lithium reserves, which is in the process of being extracted.

Underneath the surface of the Salar is a lake of brine 2 to 20 meters (7 to 66 ft) deep. The brine is a saturated solution of sodium chloride, lithium chloride and magnesium chloride in water. It is covered with a solid salt crust with a thickness varying between tens of centimeters to a few meters. The center of the Salar contains a few "islands", which are the remains of the tops of ancient volcanoes which were submerged during the era of lake Minchin. They include unusual and fragile coral-like structures and deposits that often consist of fossils and algae.
 

The Salar contains large amounts of sodium, potassium, lithium and magnesium (all in the chloride forms of NaCl, KCl, LiCl and MgCl₂, respectively), as well as borax.  Of those, lithium is arguably most important as it is a vital component of many electric batteries. With estimated 5,400,000 tonnes (5,300,000 long tons; 6,000,000 short tons), Bolivia holds about half of the world's lithium reserves; most of those are located in the Salar de Uyuni. Lithium is concentrated in the brine under the salt crust at a relatively high concentration of about 0.3%. It is also present in the top layers of the porous halite body lying under the brine; however the liquid brine is easier to extract, by boring into the crust and pumping out the brine.

The brine distribution has been monitored by the Landsat satellite and confirmed in ground drilling tests. Following those findings, an American-based international corporation has invested $137 million to develop lithium extraction. However, lithium extraction in the 1980s and 1990s by foreign companies met strong opposition of the local community. Despite their poverty, locals believed that the money infused by mining would not reach them. There is currently no mining plant at the site, and the Bolivian government doesn't want to allow exploitation by foreign corporations. Instead, it intends to build its own pilot plant with a modest annual production of 1,200 tonnes (1,200 long tons; 1,300 short tons) of lithium and to increase it to 30,000 tonnes (30,000 long tons; 33,000 short tons) tonnes by 2012.




Original.

George Gershwin

reprinted with permission of FFRF

On this date in 1898, composer George Gershwin was born in Brooklyn, New York. Of the three boys in the family, only Ira, later George's lyricist, was subjected to a bar mitzvah. "This religious milestone apparently meant little to Ira himself. The fact that Rose and Morris never imposed it upon George and Arthur means that, by the time they became teenagers, the family had left their East European Jewish origins behind and were living a secularized existence in New York's cosmopolitan melting pot. . . . Rose made sure the living room curtains were drawn closed on the eve of sabbaths or festivals, so that her Jewish neighbors would be unaware she had not lit the ceremonial candles," according to Rodney Greenberg, in his biography, George Gershwin.

Gershwin's named sources of "inspiration" were not gods or prophets but two other nonbelieving songwriters: Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern, according to biographer Edward Jablonski, Gershwin: A Biography.

Self-taught as a piano-player, Gershwin began writing songs and musicals as a teenager, quickly advancing from Tin Pan Alley to Broadway musicals. Considered by many to be America's greatest song composer, Gershwin wrote memorable standard after standard, including: "Lady, be Good!" "Strike Up the Band," "Funny Face," "The Man I Love," "Embraceable You," "Somebody Loves Me" and "They Can't Take That Away from Me." His more serious work: Rhapsody in Blue (1924), Piano Concerto in F (1925), Porgy & Bess (1934-5), and Three Preludes (1926).

At the height of his career, the ambitious 38-year-old, who had been sent to see a psychiatrist after complaining of debilitating headaches, collapsed from an undiagnosed brain tumor and tragically died during surgery. D.1937.


It Ain't Necessarily So

It ain't necessarily so, (repeat)
De t'ings dat yo' li'ble
To read in de Bible,
It ain't necessarily so.

Li'l David was small, but oh my! (rpt)
He fought big Goliath
Who lay down an' dieth!
Li'l David was small, but oh my!

Oh, Jonah, he lived in de whale, (rpt)
Fo' he made his home in
Dat fish's abdomen.
Oh, Jonah, he lived in de whale.

Li'l Moses was found in a stream, (rpt)
He floated on water
Till Ole Pharaoh's daughter
She fished him, she says, from that stream.

It ain't necessarily so, (rpt)
Dey tell all you chillun
De debble's a villun,
But 'tain't necessarily so.

To get into Hebben don' snap for a sebben!
Live clean! Don' have no fault.
Oh, I takes dat gospel
Whenever it's poss'ble,
But wid a grain of salt.

Methus'lah lived nine hundred years,
But who calls dat livin'
When no gal'll give in
To no man what's nine hundred years?

I'm preachin' dis sermon to show,
It ain't nessa, ain't nessa,
ain't nessa, ain't nessa,
Ain't necessarily so.

Music by George Gershwin. Lyrics by Ira Gershwin. Copyright 1935 by Gershwin Publishing Co.

Seasons from space

download large winter solstice image (1 MB, JPEG)

download large spring equinox image (1 MB, JPEG)

download large summer solstice image (1 MB, JPEG)

download large fall equinox image (1 MB, JPEG)

download web resolution animation (6 MB, QuickTime)

download high definition animation (23 MB, QuickTime)

(see pic at top of post)

Seeing Equinoxes and Solstices from Space

One of the most frequently misunderstood concepts in science is the reason for Earth’s seasons. As we experience the September equinox today—anyone try to balance an egg yet?—we thought we’d offer a space-based view of what’s going on.

Around 6 a.m. local time each day, the Sun, Earth, and any geosynchronous satellite form a right angle, affording a nadir (straight down) view of the terminator, the edge between the shadows of nightfall and the sunlight of dusk and dawn. The shape of this line between night and day varies with the seasons, which means different lengths of days and differing amounts of warming sunshine. (The line is actually a curve because the Earth is round, but satellite images only show it in two-dimensions.)

The Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) on EUMETSAT's Meteosat-9 captured these four views of Earth from geosynchronous orbit. The images show how sunlight fell on the Earth on December 21, 2010 (upper left), and March 20 (upper right), June 21 (lower left), and September 20, 2011 (lower right). Each image was taken at 6:12 a.m. local time.

On March 20 and September 20, the terminator is a straight north-south line, and the Sun is said to sit directly above the equator. On December 21, the Sun resides directly over the Tropic of Capricorn when viewed from the ground, and sunlight spreads over more of the Southern Hemisphere. On June 21, the Sun sits above the Tropic of Cancer, spreading more sunlight in the north and turning the tables on the south. The bulge of our spherical Earth blocks sunlight from the far hemisphere at the solstices; that same curvature allows the Sun’s rays to spread over more area near the top and bottom of the globe. (Click on the animation link above to download and watch this changing light pattern through the year.)

Of course, it is not the Sun that is moving north or south through the seasons, but a change in the orientation and angles between the Earth and its nearest star. The axis of the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees relative to the Sun and the ecliptic plane. The axis is tilted away from the Sun at the December solstice and toward the Sun at the June solstice, spreading more and less light on each hemisphere. At the equinoxes, the tilt is at a right angle to the Sun and the light is spread evenly.

The equinox and changing of the seasons occurs on September 23, 2011 at 9:05 a.m. Universal Time. (Our September image above is a few days early.) Equinox means "equal night" in Latin, capturing the idea that daytime and nighttime are equal lengths everywhere on the planet. That is true of the Sun's presence above the horizon, though it does not account for twilight, when the Sun's rays extend from beyond the horizon to illuminate our gas-filled atmosphere.

1. Related Reading

2. Stern, D. (2005) From Stargazers to Starships: Seasons of the Year. Accessed September 22, 2011.
3. U.S. Naval Observatory Day and Night Across the Earth. Accessed September 22, 2011.
4. U.S. Naval Oceanographer Earth's Seasons. Accessed September 22, 2011.

Original.

A litre of light

A very bright idea, indeed! I wonder how the world's energy companies will crush it?

Litre of Light

Isang Litrong Liwanag can be translated in English as ‘Litre of Light’. This is a project brought about by students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The product a sustainable light bulb that uses no source of energy except the sun!

The main purpose of this light project was to benefit the developing communities who are affected by fires caused by dodgy electricity and many who have no light at all.

There are currently three million households that are ‘powerless’ in the Philippines; hopefully this project can help brighten up their homes. MyShelter Foundation, established by Illac Diaz, aims to brighten up one million homes in the Philippines by 2012.

But how does it work? My crude description is: you fill a clear plastic bottle with water and add a little bit of bleach. You then cut a small hole in the roof to fit the bottle snuggly half in and half out. The outside light streams through the bottle and refracts around 55 watts of light into the otherwise dim house. The bleach prevents algae building up, meaning the Solar Bottle Bulbs should last about five years after only taking an hour to install.

While the lights are obviously functional only during the day, they're a great step toward reducing poverty, not to mention energy independence.

Watch the below video to see the light in action.

Original. Or here.

Perry toons

I'm sure there will be many, many more. We haven't had a hypocrite as blatant as Rick Perry since, well, Gee Duhbya Bush. Does anyone wonder why Texas gets a bad rap?

Eat and die!

Maybe this story will be enough to put a stop to this stupid, ridiculous, absurd, embarrassing, and dangerous spectacle called "competitive eating." But probably not, because people are stupid and absurd.

Man wins dumpling eating contest, then dies

KIEV (Reuters) - A 77-year-old Ukrainian man won a jar full of sour cream for coming first in a dumpling eating contest and then promptly died, local media reported on Wednesday.

Ivan Mendel ate 10 dumplings in half a minute to win first place and a one-liter jar of sour cream in the contest held in the town of Tokmak in the southeastern Zaporizhya region on September 18, Fakty I Kommentarii newspaper said.

Shortly afterwards, Mendel became unwell and died, according to local news websites.

Dumplings, called "vareniki" in the former Soviet republic, are a staple of Ukrainian cuisine and are often stuffed with a range of fillings from mushrooms to cherries.

Original. And hey, what a "prize" they gave on this contest, huh? Things must be really fucked up in Russia.

Make a creationist weep

In his inimitable style, Mark Morford somehow gives me a bit of hope that we won't all go down in flames.

How to make a creationist weep
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist
Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Do you want to know the real reason Barack Obama is going to win the 2012 election? The big, grinning hunk of overwhelming evidence that has little to do with the not-very-terrific job he's doing and not nearly enough to do with the fact that the man has actually accomplished quite a lot, despite being savaged and hobbled and compromised at nearly every turn?

The reason, as most comparable explanations are, is sort of awesome in its pureform power. The most interesting part is that it has almost nothing to do with Obama at all and everything to do with the fact that his opponents are, largely and comfortably, insane.

What, too harsh? Too mean? Not even close, honeybomb.

Let me back up for a second. Because here I am, reading over this swell little science item that whipped through the newswires recently, all about how some paleoecologists just discovered some stunning prehistoric feathers locked in a tiny hunk of amber they calculate to be about, oh, 70 million years old.

It's a fascinating little finding, really, one of thousands like it happening all the time in the science world; it tells of life long past, how protofeathers later evolved into actual feathers, how flight first came to be. Wonderful.

Then it strikes me. There was that magic word, "evolved." Oh my sweet goddess, to many Americans, these scientists are totally lying. They are part of some mass liberal conspiracy begun hundreds if not thousands of years ago, specifically designed to ruin homeschooled kids' minds and taint the blood of virgins and demean angry Almighty God.

Is it not true? Is this not the belief of many of the nation's current crop of top GOP presidential candidates? You bet it is.

See Rick Perry over there? He doesn't really believe in evolution. Says "It's a theory that's out there" which "has some gaps in it," which is not even remotely true, but he's been far too busy killing inmates in his home state and rallying evangelical homophobes to, you know, care much for book learnin'.

Perry "knows" only one thing. We came from God. That's it. He's just not really sure what happened next. Probably some combination of confused monkeys and flying iguanas and, like, oil or something. Poor Rick. The world must be so weird.

Over there, it's Michele "Crazy Eyes" Bachmann, who, aside from being a grade-A nutball conspiracy theorist of terrifically paranoid dimensions, is an avowed creationist, believing all existence began less than 10,000 years ago, during which man and dinosaurs co-existed, prehistoric cave paintings never happened and the planets are nothing but God's little sack of marbles.

Bachmann believes in teaching creationism in schools. She says we should "put all the science on the table and let kids decide," as if creationism has the slightest whiff of fact behind it, as if there was some sort of valid debate happening anywhere but in her own madly short-circuited brain, as if kids were somehow savvier than, say, Richard Dawkins. Isn't she adorable? Keep her away from your pets.

Mitt Romney! He's not so bad, right? Romney actually believes evolution is fact, more or less. He believes God created everything and then, well, then Joseph Smith found it all etched on some shiny plates under a rock one day while out evading his seventeen petulant wives. Yes! Who needs creationism when you've got a whole religion to "translate" on a whim?

Awesome. Let's sum up! To the majority of the "serious" GOP presidential hopefuls -- and let's toss Sarah "I Really Love the NBA" Palin in there for kicks and adulterous, coke-snortin' giggles -- our little 70-million-year-old golden nugget, well, it does not actually exist in current spacetime.

It's a fake. A sham. It cannot be real. Carbon dating is a gimmick. The Ph.D scientists in question are frauds and swindlers as are the major university programs and departments to which they belong. And the media? Oh, honey. The media is clearly the devil himself for reporting such bogus findings as "fact."

Do you see? It all provides a deliriously high level of raging ignorance against which, I firmly believe, the nation will calmly recoil when it comes time to weigh the presidential options at the polling place.

Put the other way: No matter what you think of Obama's performance to date, the man's intelligence is undeniable, his education formidable, his values regarding science and truth unshakable. Among this gaggle of science-denying misfits, he's the only real adult in the room.

And me, I believe in intuition. I believe in a certain collective wisdom, a deep instinct among the hoi polloi when it comes time to pull the lever. I still believe most Americans, if they actually vote, will sense at some deep level just how destructive it would be to basic human intelligence to have a single one of these mental infants at the helm.

Of course, I said the same thing about Bush versus Gore. And Kerry. Whoops. But now the chasm is, unbelievably, even wider.

We must be careful. We must not deride these creationist nutballs too nonchalantly. We must remember that a mere 20 years ago the vast majority of the nation, upwards of 93 percent of us, knew evolution to be a fact, and only seven percent walked around smacking themselves in the face with coloring books and wondering when Jesus was going to return with lollipops and hugs.

And now? Bad news, America. According to a new survey, in a scant two decades, the number of Americans "uncertain" about evolution has tripled. What's worse, roughly third of the nation believe evolution to be "absolutely false." Only Turkey ranks lower in such basic smarts. Thanks, megachurches!

But is this sad report really irrefutable evidence that we're on a collision course with a great wall of dumb and the gas pedal is nailed to the floor and the passengers are all snorting oxycontin and chortling at Rush Limbaugh as we hurl toward the great Walmart in the sky? I'm not so sure.

For here is our not-so-big secret. (And here, for that matter, is how to make a creationist weep. I know! Finally!)

Tell them advanced civilizations do not ever really intellectually degenerate. Tell them that, developmentally speaking, the human brain is not really designed to unfurl and regress, to suddenly erase complex, deeply learned wisdom. It is not our nature to understand, say, electromagnetic waveform and photosynthesis and suddenly revert to thinking it's all magic fairies and gnome spit.

You can say we will never return to slavery. Our hospitals will never again lop off gangrenous limbs with rusty hacksaws and no anesthesia. Never again will we believe the earth is flat, that we are the center of the universe, that trepanning will release evil spirits from your skull. And sorry, but we will never again believe that everything was created when angry bearded grandpa suddenly snapped his fingers and belched.

You can thusly summarize: If the arc of history bends toward justice, it also lurches, hiccups and stumbles toward basic progressive intelligence. Barring some sort of environmental cataclysm and starting all over, there really is no going back.

As the tears begin to flow, you can offer solace: "It's OK," you can smile, "we just evolved that way."

Original.

Krugman under attack

The "left" in America?? Uh, right.

Last week in crazy

Plenty of crazy to go around. After all, ignorance seems to be celebrated in this country these days. At least on the right end of the political spectrum.

This again? Forever 21 was caught selling a shirt aimed toward young girls that bears the message, "Allergic To Algebra" and other "school is boring" slogans. Only weeks ago, JC Penney yanked a shirt with the message "I'm Too Pretty For Homework!" Seems like the perfect opportunity for some crafty retailer to launch a line of Brainy Girls attire.

Pat Robertson was candid about what he believes people should do when their spouses are afflicted with Alzheimer's: Divorce them. Hey, it's not like there's anything in the Bible about staying married till death, right?

A San Diego man named Jacob Kiss finally turned himself into police after holding up a 7-Eleven dressed as Gumby. At least it wasn't a bad publicity stunt for Eddie Murphy's Oscar-hosting stint.

Oh, Canada. Don't you know you're supposed to be the polite, sensible version of America that we gently mock but secretly want to be best friends with? So when a bunch of white University of Montreal students dressed up in blackface for an "Olympics tribute," we forget how tenderly you seduced us with your socialized medicine and John Candy movies. As an apology, we'll gladly accept Ryan Gosling in every movie.

After South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley went on a taxpayer-funded state trip and racked up quite a bill, she was called out by Renee Dudley of The Post and Courier. In response, Haley told Laura Ingraham, "God bless that little girl at The Post and Courier. I mean, her job is to try and create conflict." She later apologized -- in the cattiest way imaginable. "Everyone can have a bad day. I'll forgive her bad story, if she'll forgive my poor choice of words."

Hey, you hear about this? Michele Bachmann learned the hard way how removed she is from mainstream opinion when Jay Leno, the milquiest milquetoast around, took her to task for her more, um, imaginative claims, such as that HPV vaccines cause mental retardation and that gay people can be "cured."

Two Denver men were arrested after they found their friend dead, and instead of taking him to the authorities, they drove his corpse around to restaurants and strip clubs -- all sponsored by their deceased friend's ATM card. It's like if "Weekend at Bernie's" had less Hawaiian shirts and more real-life horror.

Look, we're all for piling on Sarah Palin for her willful ignorance, her petty rhetorical style and her transparent, self-serving hypocrisy. But we're not fans of publicly (and sleazily) mocking her for who she chose to sleep with in the 1980s, especially if the reports focus on the race of said partners. We're looking at you, unofficial Palin biographer Joe McGinniss.

Rick Santorum ended the Tea Party Express GOP Presidential Debate on a note of ignorance when he accused Ron Paul of having the same agenda as al-Qaeda for writing on his website that 9/11 was caused as a result of the United States' foreign policy, not because they "hate our freedom." Worse, the crowd booed loudly at Paul's nuanced response, as it was more complicated than "let's bomb the entire Middle East."

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Climate Reality Project

I have little doubt that the climate is changing. We need to take some serious actions, not to save the planet, but to save our civilization. The world will survive the infestation by humans. But for how long will humans survive if we keep pumping tons of pollutants into the atmosphere and plunder the seas and every facet of this gorgeous planet?

There's also no doubt in my mind that special interests, specifically the oil and gas industry, are sowing doubt, trying to keep us from taking serious actions.

If you missed the recent 24-hour "Climate Reality Project" on Current TV, you can see all of it here.

One set of highlights:

Watering trees

I recently heard that Hurricane Ike, three years ago, destroyed 6 million trees around the Houston area. So far with this drought this year, over 15 million trees have died just in the Houston area alone. That's mind-boggling.

What follows is an article from the Texas Forest Service about watering trees. If we don't get any rain anytime soon, we won't have any forests left.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — With the Lone Star State mired in a record-breaking drought, the parched trees that dot the landscape can no longer depend solely on Mother Nature to quench their thirst.

Just like people, trees need water to survive. Without it, they can’t carry nutrients up into their leaves or push the sugar they create down into their roots.

During damper days, a mature tree — a mighty oak, flowering magnolia or even a stately pecan — likely could make-do with just the rain provided by Mother Nature. But as she gets stingier and stingier with her watering can, that’s just not the case anymore.

“We’re seeing trees dying now, and the longer this goes on, the worse it’s going to get,” said Paul Johnson, a Texas Forest Service regional urban forester in San Antonio. “If you’ve got a tree in your yard … it’s stressed.”

Watering is the single most important thing you can do for your tree during a drought. Without water, trees stop growing and drop their leaves in an act of self-preservation. As the drought worsens, so does the tree, making it more susceptible to a potentially-deadly insect infestation or disease.

“Trees are amazingly resilient so things look a little better now than I expected, but they’re still under serious stress,” Johnson said. “It’s worth the investment in your water bill to avoid the very real cost of having a tree removed, never mind losing the shade and cooling effect and all the other things trees do for us.”

The key is making sure you water the right amount, the right way, Johnson said, explaining that watering too much or too little can be just as detrimental.

Texas Forest Service tree experts have compiled a list of watering tips that can help you nurse your trees through the drought:

• Before you drag out the hose, check for and follow local water restrictions, which often are enacted during a prolonged drought. In San Antonio, for example, residents can water just one day a week during early morning and late evening hours.


• Well-established, valuable, mature trees should be watered every week or two during times of major drought.


• When you water, do so deeply — 6 to 8 inches into the soil under the foliage of the tree. Avoid shallow, frequent watering. You can measure the depth with a long screwdriver; taking note of how easy it slides into the soil.


• The easiest way to give your tree a good, deep soak is with a soaker hose or sprinkler system. A mature tree needs about an inch of water — or 60 gallons per 10-foot by 10-foot area — every week or two.


• Time your sprinkler or soaker hose so you’ll know how long to run them. With a sprinkler, place an empty tuna or cat food can near the tree and time how long it takes to fill it up. With a soaker hose, curl it up inside a kiddie pool, let it run for a set period of time and then measure how much water is released.


• Young, newly-planted trees should be watered three times a week. During each watering, they need 5 gallons of water for every inch of stem — or trunk — diameter, which is measured 6 inches above the ground. So if your tree measures 6 inches in diameter, that’s 30 gallons of water, three times each week.


• Water should be concentrated at the base of a new tree, which is why water bags are ideal. If you don’t have access to them, drill a few holes in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket, place it next to the tree, fill it up and let the water slowly drain out.


• Generally, a tree is considered established about two to three years after planting, but the ongoing, extreme drought is causing some older trees to struggle. Keep a close eye on any trees planted within the last seven years.


• Another option is to reduce your watering needs by removing plants that surround your tree. Grass and trees often fight for available water. Replacing that grass — especially around new trees — with a 6-foot diameter, 2-inch deep circle of mulch can help keep moisture on the ground and available to the tree.

Don't bother praying for rain. It might make YOU FEEL better, but it won't do any good.

Avoid GMO foods

Do we really need genetically modified foods? Have we had them around long enough to know if they are truly safe or not?

GMO Foods to Avoid
www.wikihow.com/Avoid-Genetically-Modified-Foods or

http://www.dirtdoctor.com/GMO-Foods-to-Avoid_vq4044.htm

1. Learn about crops most likely to be genetically modified:

Soybeans - Gene taken from bacteria (Agrobacterium spp. strain CP4) and inserted into soybeans to make them more resistant to herbicides.

Corn - There are two main varieties of GE corn. One has a Gene from the lepidoptera pathogen microorganism Bacillus thuringiensis inserted to produce the Bt toxin, which poisons insect pests. There are also several which are resistant to various herbicides. Present in high fructose corn syrup and glucose/fructose which is prevalent in a wide variety of foods in America.

Rapeseed/Canola - Gene added/transferred to make crop more resistant to herbicide.

Sugar beets - Gene added/transferred to make crop more resistant to Monsanto's Roundup herbicide.

Rice - Genetically modified to resist herbicides; not currently available for human consumption, but trace amounts of one GM long-grained variety (LLRICE601) may have entered the food supply in the USA and Europe. More recently, golden rice, a different strain of rice has been engineered to produce significantly higher levels of beta carotene, which the body uses to produce vitamin A. Golden rice is still undergoing testing to determine if it is safe for human consumption.

Cotton - engineered to produce Bt toxin. The seeds are pressed into cottonseed oil, which is a common ingredient in vegetable oil and margarine.

Dairy - Cows injected with GE hormone rBGH/rBST; possibly fed GM grains and hay.
Aspartame/AminoSweet - Addictive and dangerous artificial sweetener commonly found in chewing gum and "diet" beverages. A building block ofaspartame, the amino acid phenylalanine, is usually manufactured with the aid of genetically modified E. coli bacteria. This process has been used industrially in the USA for many years.

Papayas - Virus resistance: ''immunization" of papayas through transfer of the gene for the envelope protein of the pathogenic virus (particularly papaya ringspot virus – ( PR virus) are a major problem in papaya cultivation; they can lead to a drastic loss of yield. In Hawaii during the 1990s, half of the papaya harvests were lost due to PR virus infections. The development and cultivation of virus-resistant papayas have largely solved this problem.

Farm Raised Salmon - The genetically altered salmon eggs include a growth hormone gene that cause them to reach full size in about half the time it takes regular salmon to reach the same size. Farm-raised salmon contain significantly more dioxins and other potentially cancer-causing pollutants than salmon caught in the wild, says a study that could confuse consumers long told the fish is heart-healthy. Eating more than a meal of farm-raised salmon per month, depending on its country of origin, could slightly increase the risk of getting cancer later in life.

2. Buy food labeled 100% organic.

The US and Canadian governments do not allow manufacturers to label something 100% organic if that food has been genetically modified or been fed genetically modified feed. However, you may find that organic food is more expensive and different in appearance from conventional products. Also, just because something says "organic" on it does not mean that it does not contain GMs. In fact, it can still contain up to 30% GMs, so be sure the labels say 100% organic.

This applies to eggs, as well. Eggs labeled "free-range", "natural", or "cage-free" are not necessarily GE-free; look for eggs to be 100% organic.

3. Recognize fruit and vegetable label numbers.

If it is a 4-digit number, the food is conventionally produced.

If it is a 5-digit number beginning with an 8, it is GM. However, do not trust
that GMO foods will have a PLU identifying it as such, because PLU labeling is optional.

If it is a 5-digit number beginning with a 9, it is organic.

4. Purchase beef that is 100% grass-fed.

Most cattle in the U.S. are grass-fed, but spend the last portion of their lives in feedlots where they may be given GM corn, the purpose of which is to increase intramuscular fat and marbling. If you're looking to stay away from GMOs, make sure the cattle were 100% grass-fed or pasture-fed (sometimes referred to as grass-finished or pasture-finished)? The same applies to meat from other herbivores such as sheep. There is also the slight possibility that the animals were fed GM alfalfa, although this is less likely if you buy meat locally. With non-ruminants like pigs and poultry that cannot be 100% grass-fed, it's better to look for meat that is 100% organic.

5. Seek products that are specifically labeled as non-GM or GMO-free.

However, it is rare to find products labeled as such. You can also research websites that list companies and foods that do not use genetically modified foods, but be aware that information is often incomplete and conflicting interests may not be declared.

6. Shop locally.

Although more than half of all GM foods are produced in the US, most of it comes from large, industrial farms. By shopping at farmers' markets, signing up for a subscription from a local Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm, or patronizing a local co-op, you may be able to avoid GM products and possibly save money at the same time.

More and more small farms are offering grains and meat directly to customers, in addition to the usual fare (vegetables, fruit, and herbs).

Shopping locally may also give you the opportunity to speak to the farmer and find out how he or she feels about GMOs and whether or not they use them in their own operation.

7. Buy natural foods.

Favor foods that you can cook and prepare yourself, rather than foods that are processed or prepared (e.g. anything that comes in a box or a bag, including fast food). What you lose in convenience, you may recover in money saved and satisfaction gained, as well as increased peace of mind. Try cooking a meal from scratch once or twice a week--you may enjoy it and decide to do it more often.

4 More Years

I feel somewhat the same way. Obama has severely disappointed me, and no doubt millions of other Democrats, but considering the alternatives, and as it appears that Obama will have no primary opponents ... (sigh)

Sanger/Humboldt

What a day, September 14. Three great people were born on this day, that I am aware of. Two of them are noted below, and the other, my wonderful wife, who turns 56 today. Perhaps someday she will be written about like these two below. Kinda doubtful, but I'll see what I can do.

On this date in 1879, Margaret Sanger (née Higgins), was born.

Watching her mother die at age 48 of tuberculosis after bearing 11 children changed not only the course of Margaret's life, but world history.

As a young child, Margaret was introduced to the power of the Catholic Church when the local priest locked the doors of the town hall to prevent agnostic Robert Ingersoll from speaking in Corning, N.Y. Margaret wrote in her autobiography of the spellbinding experience of hearing Ingersoll speak in the woods instead.

She herself would later personally repeatedly experience being locked out of public halls, even countries, under Catholic pressure. Her experience doing obstetrical nursing of the poor in New York City as a young mother herself galvanized her conviction that women had the right to control fertility.

Sanger's turning point was witnessing the death of patient Sadie Sachs from a second illegal abortion. When the 28-year-old mother had pleaded with her doctor for birth control, he had responded: "Tell Jake to sleep on the roof." Sanger researched contraception (coining the term birth control), while editing a monthly newspaper, The Woman Rebel (1914). Its purpose: to challenge the 1873 Comstock Act classifying contraception as "indecent articles" and preventing dissemination of contraceptive information.

Facing 45 years in prison when indicted under the Act, Sanger fled the country, leaving behind a book, "Family Limitation." It sold 10 million copies while Sanger continued research in England and the Netherlands. When she returned to the United States, she was rearrested. Then her young daughter, Peggy, died of pneumonia in November 1915. Devastated, Sanger went on a headline-making speaking tour to challenge the charges, which were dropped in 1916.

She opened the first birth control clinic that year, which was raided, and spent the next two decades educating physicians about birth control and overseeing the creation of birth control clinics around America. In 1934, she brought the lawsuit that finally overturned much of the repressive Comstock Act. Over her lifetime, she was jailed eight times, brought diaphragms to the United States and distributed them, helped develop contraceptive jelly, founded Planned Parenthood, and commissioned the creation of the birth control pill.

Doing more to free women than any other individual, she was hailed as the "heroine" of history by H.G. Wells and named "Woman of the Century" by a U.S. magazine the year of her death. D. 1966.

“No Gods—No Masters”
— Motto of Margaret Sanger's newspaper, The Woman Rebel.

For more about Sanger and her views on religion, see Women Without Superstition. Compiled by Annie Laurie Gaylor

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander von Humboldt
September 14, 2011

On this date in 1769, Alexander von Humboldt, who would come to be known as one of the greatest explorers of his time, was born in Berlin.

Humboldt and his older brother, Karl Wilhelm, were educated by private tutors in the classics, French, mathematics, philosophy, politics and law. Botany quickly became Humboldt's favorite subject and, even at an early age, he collected and classified insects and plants at his family's estate in Tegel, near Berlin.

At 16 years of age, Humboldt attended physics lectures at a physician's home, learned of Benjamin Franklin, and ultimately installed a lightning rod on Castle Tegel, which the local orthodox clergy deemed "blasphemous."

In 1792, at 22 years of age, Humboldt completed his studies in geology (a new science at that time), became an inspector of mines and, later, an advocate for the welfare of miners. Humboldt was introduced to Goethe in 1794, and the two became close friends and intellectual comrades. Goethe reportedly said that he could learn more in one hour of conversation with Humboldt than in a week of reading books.

Restless and curious about the world, Humboldt resigned from the mining business, traveled around Europe (developing revolutionary theories on the geological structure of Spain), and, in 1799, embarked on an expedition of scientific discovery. He traveled for 5 years, visiting and exploring the Americas, where he became horrified by the practice of slavery.

On this voyage, in addition to establishing the foundations of geography and meteorology, Humboldt met Thomas Jefferson, and was deeply impressed by his enlightened political views but could not reconcile that he nevertheless owned slaves.

While in South America, Humboldt contracted malaria and was nursed back to health by cannibals. He wrote with dismay about their treatment by the Jesuits and remarked at their deep sense of humanity.Upon his return to Europe, Humboldt published writings of his travels and scientific discoveries, which brought him fame throughout Europe.

He became an active voice in politics, supporting the 1848 revolutions, universal political rights, the emancipation of the Jews, and championing the rights of poor artists and scientists that faced persecution. In 1845, at 77, Humboldt wrote Kosmos: Entwurf einer physischen Weltbeschreibung, hailed as one of the century's most extraordinary scientific works. Kosmos attempted to explain the unity of the Universe with naturalistic (rather than spiritual) laws, easily understandable to the public. It was never finished but it was an encyclopedic treasure of all that was known of the physical sciences in the mid-nineteenth century.

Among Humboldt's other achievements, he was the first to raise anthropologists' awareness of the neglected Inca, Maya and Aztec civilizations; he was the first in astronomy to observe a meteor shower with scientific instruments; for the field of botany he collected over 60,000 plants and identified 3,500 new species; his maps of Central and South America were the first for geographers; and in geology, he was the first to accurately understand volcanic activity.

Humboldt died at age 89 in the same year Origin of the Species was published. A state funeral was held for him with more than 600 people (including many students) in attendance. He was buried in Tegel next to his brother. D. 1859.

“One of the most encyclopedic scientists of the time, Humboldt was a
Pantheist like his friend Goethe, and a contemptuous anti-clerical like his
friend F. Arago . . . His letters use very strong language about the Churches to
the end of his life. He calls Luther ‘that diabolical reformer.’ ”
— Joseph McCabe, A Biographical Dictionary of Modern Rationalists 1998, p.
367

Compiled by Bonnie Gutsch

Hazardous to whom?

Don Addis vault.

FFRF Houston chapter?

I have the opportunity to found the Houston Chapter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. All I have to do is locate 10 Houston-area freethinkers. A city of this size? No problem. You just have to hope that the Christinistas don't pull a gun on you. But do I want to go to the hassle? And become a target?


The Freedom From Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., is a national association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics) that has been working since 1978 to keep church and state separate.

Classic Projection

Another great toon from Nick Anderson.

Hey, Rick!

Perry Tales

Sounds like ... "fairy tales!"

How Rick Perry Has Been on the Public Dole His Whole Life

by Jim Hightower

When this taxpayer-supported lifer flits into your town to declare that he will slash public benefits, he means in your life, not his.

September 6, 2011 - Presidential wannabe Rick Perry is flitting all around the country -- hither, thither and yon -- spreading little "Perry Tales" about himself and the many wonders he has worked as governor of Texas.

His top Perry Tale is a creationist story about what he has modestly branded "The Texas Miracle." While the rest of the country is mired in joblessness, says the miracle worker, his state has added 1.2 million jobs during his 10-year tenure.

I've built "a job-creating machine," the governor gushed during one of his recent flits across Iowa, and a Perry PR aide smugly added, "The governor's job creation record speaks for itself."

Actually, it doesn't. Far from having the best unemployment rate in the nation, the Lone Star State ranks a middling 26th, behind New York, Massachusetts and other states whose "liberal" governments he routinely mocks.

Even more damning, Perry's Texas is not creating nearly enough jobs to keep up with its fast-growing population. Those 1.2 million new positions are 629,000 short of the jobs needed just to bring the state's employment level back up to where it was in 2007. Some miracle.

Worse, probe even a millimeter into the million-jobs number that he is sprinkling around like fairy dust, and you'll learn that Perry's jobs are mostly "jobettes" that can't sustain a family. They come with very low pay, no health care or pension, and no employment security, labor rights or upward mobility -- many are only part-time and/or temporary positions.

Here's a particularly revealing stat that the Perry pixies don't want us to see: On his watch as governor, Texas added more minimum wage jobs than all the other 49 states combined. More than half a million Texans now work for $7.25 an hour or less. He can brag that he's brought Texans down into a tie with Mississippi for the highest percentage of workers reduced to poverty pay.

Spreading even more fairy dust, Perry claims that his Texas Miracle is the result of him keeping the government out of the private sector's way. But peek behind that ideological curtain, and you'll find this startling fact: During Perry's decade, the greatest job growth by far has come from the public sector, which has more than doubled the number of new jobs created by the private sector.

One out of six employed Texans are now teachers, police officers, highway engineers, military personnel or other government workers -- and many of these jobs were created with the federal money that Perry-the-candidate now loudly denounces. Indeed, he's running around ranting about President Obama's stimulus program, but he gladly accepted the third highest amount of stimulus funds taken by the 50 states. There's his miracle.

Interestingly, even his tea-partyish hatred -- nay, loathing! -- of big government's intrusion into the lives of ordinary citizens turns out to be just another Perry Tale. In fact, there would be no Rick Perry without the steady "intrusion" of government into his life.

Local taxpayers in Haskell County put him through their public school system -- for free. He and his family were dry-land cotton farmers, and federal taxpayers helped support them with thousands of dollars in crop subsidies -- Perry personally took $80,000 in farm payments.

State and federal taxpayers financed his college education at Texas A&M, even giving him the extracurricular opportunity to be a cheerleader. Upon graduation, he spent four years on the federal payroll as an Air Force transport pilot who never did any combat duty.

Then, in 1984, Perry hit the mother lode of government pay by moving into elected office -- squatting there for 27 years and counting. In addition to getting regular paychecks from taxpayers for nearly three decades as a state representative, agriculture commissioner, lieutenant governor and governor, he also receives platinum-level health care coverage and a generous pension from the state, plus $10,000 a month for renting a luxury suburban home, a covey of political and personal aides and even a publicly paid subscription to Food & Wine magazine.

So when this taxpayer-supported lifer flits into your town to declare that he will slash public benefits and make government "as inconsequential as possible," he means in your life, not his.

Perry literally puts the "hype" in hypocrisy. Forget his tall tales and political B.S. -- look at what he actually does.

Jim Hightower is a national radio commentator, writer, public speaker, and author of the new book, "Swim Against the Current: Even a Dead Fish Can Go With the Flow." (Wiley, March 2008) He publishes the monthly "Hightower Lowdown," co-edited by Phillip Frazer.

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We're Cool

Oh, what a relief! We may be getting pretty fucked up financially and politically as a country, but we're still the coolest!

The world still thinks Americans are "coolest" - poll

LONDON (Reuters) - They may be witnessing their global superpower influence decline in the face of challenges from other emerging players on the world stage, but Americans have been voted the world's "coolest nationality" in an international poll.

Social networking site Badoo.com (www.badoo.com) asked 30,000 people across 15 countries to name the coolest nationality and also found that the Spanish were considered the coolest Europeans, Brazilians the coolest Latin Americans and Belgians the globe's least cool nationality.

"We hear a lot in the media about anti-Americanism," says Lloyd Price, Badoo's Director of Marketing. "But we sometimes forget how many people across the world consider Americans seriously cool."

Of course, not all Americans are cool far from it. Some like Snoop Dogg, Lady Gaga, Samuel L. Jackson, Johnny Depp and Quentin Tarantino are way cooler than others.

Americans, however, are the dudes who invented cool and who still embody it in many fields from music to movies and TV to technology.

"America," says Price, "boasts the world's coolest leader, Obama; the coolest rappers, Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg; and the coolest man in technology, Steve Jobs of Apple, the man who even made geeks cool."

Brazilians are ranked the second coolest nationality in the Badoo poll and the coolest Latin Americans, ahead of Mexicans and Argentinians. The Spanish, in third place, are the coolest Europeans.

The French are voted cooler than the British, and Canadians cooler than the Belgians. This may come as a relief for Canadians, who are sometimes viewed as chronically uncool.

Or, as Michael Ignatieff, the Canadian politician, once put it: "Paris, Texas stands as a metaphor for broken dreams; Paris, Saskatchewan just sounds ridiculous."

THE 10 COOLEST NATIONALITIES
1. Americans
2. Brazilians
3. Spanish
4. Italians
5. French
6. British
7. Dutch
8. Mexicans
9. Argentinians
10. Russians

FIVE LEAST COOL
1. Belgians
2. Poles
3. Turks
4. Canadians
5. Germans

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