The insurgency is in its last throws

Sock and awe:

Louis C.K. — Everything’s Amazing, No One’s Happy

(h/t Kathy Sierra)

I'll get right on that

'The corruption of the profession'

What Josh Said:

Of all the shortcomings of the establishment press today, none is more central to the corruption of the profession than the decision to prioritize balance over accuracy. That corruption is visibly on display in the current coverage of the McCain campaign's policy of deliberate lies. And you won't find a better example than Cathleen Decker's piece in yesterday's LA Times.

Read into the article and you'll see numerous instances of McCain's repeated use of false claims and lies and one instance Decker is able to dig up of an Obama campaign claim that arguably leaves out some information.

But the conclusion and packaging of the article is that both candidates deceive equally and that they do so because it works. (There was another example, though not quite as egregious, by Jonathan Weismann last week in the Post.)

We hear a lot about the steep and perhaps terminal decline of the business model underlying daily print newspapers. But this corruption in the basic conception of the craft -- which is actually related to the economic decline -- gets discussed much less.

This is what gives liars a clear strategic advantage over non-liars. And it's an open question whether McCain's level of dishonesty turns out to be so great that it overwhelms reporters' unwillingness to report accurately on it.

They're baaaack

It's been move-in time all over the neighborhood as the students return to campus. Rental trucks have been showing up every day. Today was the most intense: A huge apartment block between here and the UT campus opened for move-ins, and when I rode by on my bike this afternoon I lost count of the U-Hauls when I reached 20. Traffic on Nueces Street was severely backed up into the evening.

I've been grousing about all the big new buildings in the neighborhood, but the new housing stock already seems to be exerting downward pressure on rents. The three-bedroom unit downstairs from me, which I think is a bit overpriced, is still vacant a week before classes start, and a house down the street has lowered its advertised rent by more than 10% (it was way overpriced and probably still is). I don't like seeing empty apartments, but as a tenant I like it when prices stay reasonable.

And until the landlord finds someone to move in downstairs, it's always quiet. And I can be noisy if I want.

Not the future yet

I'm at the annual convention of the Assn. for Education in Journalism and Mass Comm. A leading topic of discussion is dealing with digital media and the online world, from a lot of perspectives. We find that we must be not just aware of but conversant with digital tech and applications.

There is no Wi-Fi in the meeting areas.

What year is it again?

I guess I'm now a triple threat

After last week's kayaking foray, I realized that I enjoyed getting the upper-body exercise from paddling around the lake. I sometimes ride my bike to the lake, jog on the nice hike 'n' bike path they have there, then ride home. Today I decided to add some arm work, and I rented a kayak for an hour or so before heading home.

Fun! I enjoyed paddling about. The west part of the lake has some nice scenery, including high rock cliffs. Toward the end of the lake is an island with a dog park; I saw lots of dogs and their people there.

I was quite tired on the bike ride home. And now I'm sunburnt; I should have brought some extra sunscreen. But overall it was a good workout. The rental fee is high enough that I won't be doing this every week, but it's good for an occasional change.