Grab bag: Accountability

The accountability moment for torture. If senior outgoing Bush administration officials embrace a coherent definition of torture, accept that it offers no useful intelligence and makes it more difficult to prosecute, and that it lowers American moral standing, then how can we help but pursue justice on those responsible?

Or, how to be right and not get drowned at sea by Pythagorus.

I’ll give this to Cheney and Bush: their determination to remain committed to demonstrably false information in the face of so much contrary evidence is impressive.

Interesting tip on “removing” corking taint from wine. Works? Who knows?

I actually have hope, after this goofup, that Geithner will use his experience to chase after tax code reform with a new level of motivation.

“[MIT Professor Arnold] Barnett calculates that it’s more likely for a young child to be elected president in his or her lifetime than to die on a single jet flight in the USA or in similar industrial nations in Europe, Canada or Japan.” Nice to get some good news about airline safety for once.

Where’s the creation in the “creative destruction” that venture companies are supposed to be funding?

Really valuable insight into the necessary nightmares of the valuation of startup companies.