How do economists reach consensus? Do they confer and corroborate like climate scientists? Or is the consensus achieved through a newspaper editorial process of strategically collecting quotes and designating the speakers as “dispassionate”? Or is it more a matter of slapping a headline on an article that doesn’t make a convincing case for consensus at all?
I’m guessing it’s that last.
RATING CARS BASED ON “cost to own” instead of MPG.
SINCE SOMEBODY ASKED, here’s my recipe for Thanksgiving leg of lamb.
That’s me taking it off the grill last year. (Hey, image-recycling is all the rage these days.) Note that I had already carved off a slice to “test” it. Test passed!
Hope it turns out as well this year.
BOB OWENS: The unrequited dream of smart guns. “They look wonderful in theory but fail miserably in practice.”
FROM 1952: POPULAR MECHANICS looks at Robert Heinlein’s new house. (Via reader Robert Racansky, who saw it at Jerry Pournelle’s.).
HEAVY BREATHING at a nuclear weapons plant.
A SUMMARY OF THOSE LEAKED GLOBAL-WARMING DOCUMENTS. (Via Volokh).
IN THE MAIL: From Gary Hull, Muhammad: The “Banned” Images. Containing the pictures that Yale was afraid to print, plus a ringing statement in favor of free speech.
SHOCKING NEWS: Report: ACORN Mismanaged Grant Money.
Plus this: “Although women tend to love the notion of government control more than men do, it is women who will be told they’ll have to cut back. On treatments. And years. You know we’ve been taking more than our share.”
UPDATE: A reader emails:
My ex wife has spent her life in health care, and is now involved with clinical trials in cancer research. I asked her what she thought about the new guidelines on mammograms and Pap smears. She said, “Well, if they die sooner, I suppose that will save a lot of money in the long run.” She also commented on how many women they see in their 30s and 40s who have breast cancer.
They do seem to be turning on a dime regarding the early screening and detection stuff, don’t they?
UPDATE: Reader Jon Barlow, an orthopedic surgeon, writes:
Evidence that we are overscreening has been documented in the literature in various manners for the past 10 years or so. One excellent example is breast self exams for women. Evidence has shown in a fairly reproducible manner that breast self exams do not improve mortality, but do lead to unnecessary procedures (for cystic change, etc). In any system, we should do what is right for patients. I don’t know the literature on mammography, but we need to ensure that we are doing what is right for the majority of people. That’s the rationale behind evidence based medicine. To cite that one knows “many women in their 30s” with breast cancer doesn’t imply that we should all get mammograms at 30. I am as vehemently opposed to the current health care reform as you are….we just need to be certain that we continue to use facts as our basis rather than feelings.
Well, it’s true that there’s a genuine dispute over the value of early screening. But it’s also true that the turnabout on this seems to be happening quite suddenly. And that timing gives rise to a worry that the shift, perhaps just from one plausible approach to a different plausible approach, is taking place now because of politics. Perhaps that’s harmless — they’re both plausible approaches, right? — but it’s still troubling.
It’s also true, as Ann Althouse points out above, that any politically inspired limits on health care will affect women more, because women are considerably bigger consumers of health care services. That’s something we’d be hearing a lot about, if the usual suspects weren’t lined up firmly behind ObamaCare.
MORE: Reader Tim Johnson writes:
I’m a fourth year med student going into Ophthalmology (eyes). The medical community seems to have known for a while that breast self-exams weren’t effective. But as recently as Breast Cancer Month last month, we were telling women to self exam monthly. The real reason for the seeming quick turnaround is where the debate occurred. Like I said, while the medical community has debated this for a while, we continued to tell women to keep self-examining as if nothing had changed. I think this episode really offers lessons for future controversies and guidelines. As new data debunk prior assumptions, slow transitions in the lay community should reflect those in the medical community, so as to avoid the whiplash we’re seeing now.
When experts try to present a united front to the public despite doubts within the profession, it usually produces less, not more, credibility in the end.
ENTREPRENEURS go on strike? (Via Michelle Moore)
MICHAEL TOTTEN: A Third Lebanon War Could Be Much Worse Than The Second.
TOM MAGUIRE: “Work with me here – suppose we get a conviction on some terrorist who then discovers that his former defense attorney has been active on his case at the DoJ. Why wouldn’t that be grounds for a mistrial? If attorney-client privilege is an issue at all, it is an issue for the defendants, who have the right to assurance that their former defenders are not now aiding in the prosecution.”
UPDATE: Bush-era Justice Department alumni Jim Comey and Jack Goldsmith defend Holder’s decision. “Mohammed is many things: an enemy combatant in a war against the United States whom the government can detain without trial until the conflict ends; a war criminal subject to trial by military commission under the laws of war; and someone answerable in federal court for violations of the U.S. criminal code. Which system he is placed in for purposes of incapacitation and justice involves complex legal and political trade-offs.”
JAMES TARANTO: Failure Is Not An Option: Obama and Holder’s Assault On Due Process. “Obama’s and Holder’s assurances that KSM will be convicted (and, according to the president, “put to death”) make a mockery of due process. Nothing is more fundamental to America’s criminal justice system than the presumption of innocence, and if terrorist detainees are to be treated as criminal defendants, they are entitled to that presumption. For the sake of political expediency, Obama and Holder are refusing even to make a pretense of respect for due process. If KSM & Co. are convicted and put to death, America’s critics and enemies will point to Obama and Holder’s assurances in arguing that the defendants were subjected to sham justice. Nice work restoring America’s moral standing, Mr. President.”
“BOMBSHELL:” John Hinderaker has been reading those leaked global warming documents. “What they reveal, more than anything, is a bunker mentality. . . . They also suggest that pro-global warming scientists fudge data to get the results they are looking for.”
GPS UPDATE: Reader Frank Brown writes, “Please give an update on your new Garmin GPS. How is it?”
Still fine. (Most impressively, it’s stayed suction-cupped to the windshield the whole time without coming loose once. The old one would barely stay up an hour.) The “traffic” feature works fairly well, though driving home yesterday I noticed that the Interstate was backed up (luckily on the other side) and it didn’t show up on the traffic display. I’m not sure how they gather information or update it, but in general it’s been pretty good.
For those who missed it, I got the Garmin 1390t.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DRINK ON THANKSGIVING? Glorious American Cabernets.
FIRST CHINA, NOW THIS: Germany warns US on market bubbles.
WILL JOHN MCCAIN need Sarah Palin to save him in Arizona? J.D. Hayworth is polling well against him, and would likely enjoy Tea Party support in the primary . . .
First and foremost, the protests are about privileged kids demanding subsidies from working people. The UC system will continue to be heavily subsidized by taxpayers, and the students who attend are among the most naturally gifted, with the highest future earning potential, in the country. This is especially true at the system’s flagship schools of Berkeley and UCLA, where the protests have been most intense. Narcissism and self-absorption are the norm on college campuses, but it really is pushing the limits to throw such a tantrum at the idea that you will be getting a smaller amount of free money taken out of the paychecks of strapped taxpayers, most of whom could never dream of the advantages and opportunities you enjoy.
Read the whole thing.
IPHONE OWNERS demand to see Apple source code.
ANOTHER FAKE CANDIDACY FOR A FAKE DISTRICT: Dodd Harris emails: “I announced my candidacy for Kentucky’s new 00th (Zero-Zeroth or Aught-Aughth?) a couple of days ago on Facebook. I live in KY-03, but it seems pretty obvious there’s no residency requirement.”
STILL MORE ON “CLIMATEGATE,” FROM Charles Martin and Richard Fernandez.
NOBODY TELL ANDREW SULLIVAN: The Sarah Palin’s Uterus Blog.
AT AMAZON, it’s the Friday Sale.
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