Taleb on Skin in the Game

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Nassim Taleb talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about his recent paper (with Constantine Sandis) on the morality and effectiveness of “skin in the game.” When decision makers have skin in the game–when they share in the costs and benefits of their decisions that might affect others–they are more likely to make prudent decisions than in cases where decision-makers can impose costs on others. Taleb sees skin in the game as not just a useful policy concept but a moral imperative. The conversation closes with some observations on the power of expected value for evaluating predictions along with Taleb’s thoughts on economists who rarely have skin in the game when they make forecasts or take policy positions.

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Dennett on Wieseltier vs. Pinker

Dennett

This from Edge

Postmodernism, the school of “thought” that proclaimed “There are no truths, only interpretations” has largely played itself out in absurdity, but it has left behind a generation of academics in the humanities disabled by their distrust of the very idea of truth and their disrespect for evidence, settling for “conversations” in which nobody is wrong and nothing can be confirmed, only asserted with whatever style you can muster.

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Coming to terms with Napoleon

napoleon bonaparte

Matt Dawson is a top-notch illustrator and is currently working on a book project I’m involved with. I came across Matt via the image below (fans of A Confederacy of Dunces will get the reference) and I knew immediately that here was a man of “taste and decency”. If you want a highly responsive, well-judged and artful chap to add class and distinction to your project, this is your man. No flat, schlocky, cliched or corporatized aesthetic here! Now when Matt says that there will “hopefully” be a book cover he’s being way too modest – this is what he’s been engaged to do and having seen the preliminary sketches, things are shaping up beautifully – it will make for a lovely poster as well. Stay tuned for more details as they emerge about this project. Suffice to say, New Orleans plays a pivotal role in this project.

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The real “boss”: Gatemouth

Clarence Gatemouth Brown

Gatemouth died on this day in 2005. So many tributaries flowing seamlessly into this bona fide genius’s unique style which includes covering Led Zep’s “Rock and Roll” and the Stones’ “Ventilator Blues.” To give an idea of this man’s standing, Clapton was consistently upstaged by him: Clapton very graciously got Gatemouth as support on his 1995 tour (note what Gate says about Clapton’s collection of stage guitars in the interview below). The interview is  wonderful (not in the sense that the questions are any good) but solely to hear Gatemouth speak in his mind in his characteristically frank way. Speaking of Frank – Zappa was in full accordance with Gatemouth’s criticism of the phony virtuosity of many guitarists. Here are my previous Gatemouth posts.

Toward a Science of Consciousness 2014

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What a terrific idea for a poster:

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Kitcher on Nagel

thomas nagel

Things Fall Apart (an aside: the man best known for this phrase).

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A Confederacy of Dunces – quotes and extracts – 27

A Confederacy of Dunces

Social note: I have sought escape in the Prytania on more than one occasion, pulled by the attractions of some technicolored horrors, filmed abortions that were offenses against any criteria of taste and decency, reels and reels of perversion and blasphemy that stunned my disbelieving eyes, that shocked my virginal mind, and sealed my valve. (p. 87).

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Review of Franco-Marsh Companion

a companion to michael oakeshott, oakeshott

Review essay of A Companion to Michael Oakeshott

CONVERSATIONS WITH MICHAEL OAKESHOTT – AN INTERLUDE TO OAKESHOTT SCHOLARSHIP

by Suvi Soininen

Redescriptions: yearbook of political thought, conceptual history and feminist theory. 2012/2013, vol. 16, pp. 172-187 (in downloadable pdf)

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Rompin’ Boogie Woogie Classics

boogie-woogie

A must have for any discriminating record collection. Interesting to note that the label is UK-based but then we Brits have always had a soft spot for boogie-woogie, one of the finest practictioners along with Jools Holland was of course the “sixth” Stone –  Ian “Stu” Stewart, immortalized by Led Zep as “Boogie with Stu” on Physical Graffiti. I’m very much looking forward to getting my copy of Boogie 4 Stu.

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