A Case for Optimism

Despite what I think are pretty miserable economic policies being implemented around the world and for which we'll be paying for - for many years to come, I happened to stumble across this video by Steven Pinker on TED.com looking at the history of violence for which there's great cause for optimism:

Quote of the er, Day

Yes, it's been a while since my last post. I'm alive and relatively well, battling jetlag again, but given what's been happening in the world, I thought this quote was all too true (and double edged) - from G.E. Anderson (ChinaBizGov):

Democracy has a well-documented downside: an irresistible urge to vote oneself a share of the spoils disproportionate to one’s economic contribution.

Of course when it comes to China economic contributions are arguably outsized on the upper end of the spectrum by constraining the bottom but I think his concluding paragraph is also true while countries like the US struggle with the deciding where the line should be:

Whether through democracy, or by some other means, China’s leaders have to figure out how to give their most successful citizens a stake in the future success of the poor.

Oh and er, happy May, er Communist day - it's also a good day to take pause in "remembrance of the victims of history’s bloodiest ideology" (Volokh Conspiracy).