Rioting for Unemployment

I know, I know, paci.blog is not supposed to be another blog that links to other blogs. I wanted to have original content and all that, but this post is just too spot on.

I was having a conversation with someone here at work as to why the US system of employment-at-will makes our economy better able to weather downturns and rebound more quickly when things turn around. By being able to cut unnecessary-at-the-time workers so the core company can survive and hire them back when they're needed, US-based companies (Big 3 automakers not included as well as the MBTA - that's just chronyism) are able to rebound faster and take better advantage of a stronger economy.

US to test 700-tonne explosive

All I can say is neat.

Who says the Swiss are boring

OK, it's not as pulse-elevating as bullfighting, but the Swiss apparently have a tradition of, um, cowfighting.

Off-day catblogging, in memoriam

Customarily, catblogging is a Friday activity, but we make an exception here for a recently departed feline Thatcherite.

Humphrey, the cat who shared 10 Downing Street with two British prime ministers but was evicted by current resident Tony Blair, has died. He was aged about 18.

Read the rest and check out the photo.

(Hat tip to dad.)

One of these things....

Click the title to find out why one of these tanks is not like the other.

Stick around and read his blog, too.

A little detective work please...

Saw this article in today's NY Times over lunch (on paper of all things) and discussed it with my buddy Doug, a recovering Manhattanite.

This type of article surfaces every year spotlighting the ridiculous lengths that New Yorkers go through to get slots for their tots in the city's private kindergartens and nurseries. Normally, I'd read the article just to amuse myself, but I caught a detail today that would have made an interesting story in its own right:

The fierce competition for private preschool in New York City has been propelled to such a frenzy this year by the increased numbers of children vying for scarce slots that it could be mistaken for a kiddie version of "The Apprentice."
....
Part of the problem is that the number of twins and triplets born to women in New York City has increased, according to city Health Department statistics.

In 1995, there were 3,707 twin births in all the boroughs; in 2003,there were 4,153; and in 2004, there were 4,655. Triplet births have also risen,from 60 in 1995, to 299 in 2004. Because preschools strive for gender and age balance in generally small classes -- and also, some parents suspect, as many potential parental donors as possible -- it is harder to get multiple slots in one class.

Does someone care to take a whack at this in the comments? I have my own conclusion but would be interested in hearing yours.