7 February 2013

There are some great scenes in Hollywood history, and many of them are held by one icon - Al Pacino.
One of his most stellar performances is in Scent of a Woman, where he plays a former US Army colonel who was blinded by a careless shrapnel incident. He tags an adolescent boy along for one last mortal hoorah - in the process, bestowing some of his own knowledge about life, love and tango.

Today's Daily Quota is, in this author's opinion, one of the most under-rated scenes of his career - the quaint monologue on women. 
Having written a piece on this topic, and read many many more, I've become very fond of the back-handed romanticism that some writers can bestow upon the fairer sex. 

Thivs scene is a perfect example - his words appear vulgar, his language, in some parts, distasteful. However, he speaks of the female form with such passion; so much so that he becomes almost incapacitated at the thought, unable to go on lest he become overwhelmed with emotion.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. It's not offensive, nor is it risqué - it's that fine line that only few have achieved (in my own literary experience, at least).
Ancient Greek literature, and even their Olympian myths, achieved this perfectly. They would place women on a pedestal as goddesses, but warn of their nature nonetheless. They loved them, and they also feared them.

Pacino engages in one of the most intimate tango scenes of cinema history, and flexes his acting muscles in an iconic scene of stoicism and honour. 
Enjoy this short video, my dear readers. Perhaps you will grasp that fine line of which I speak, or perhaps you won't. Either way, your daily quota has been fulfilled.
Enjoy!


WATCH IT HERE

6 February 2013

The US economy is quite evidently fucked. There is little denying it.
Over 14 trillion in debt for a GDP of 11 trillion and rapidly decreasing. A divided system of politics and populace, an obsolete, dogmatic Reaganomic system, and a social system that is designed to make the rich richer and the poor poorer.
Then we have the fact that the top 1%  use their wealth and power to pay little to no tax, or divert their incomes to foreign tax havens.
Uh-oh, what is the debt ceiling isn't increased?
What will happen if the US goes over the fiscal cliff?

But wait, US Senate Representative Jerry Nader has a plan to save the day - why don't we just print off a $1 trillion dollar platinum coin?
That's twelve zeros after the one.
Yep, it's precisely that episode from The Simpsons.

Because of a hilarious (read: genius) loophole in the US Federal Reserve laws, they can technically print off a coin 'of any amount'.
Those of you with a background in economics, or minimal fiscal capacity whatsoever, might ask; 'but what about inflation?'.
Yes, Mr. Nader, what about inflation? Well, apparently it won't be that bad since most of the trillion is going overseas.

Now, I'm not saying that this plan can't work. What I am saying, however, is that it's stupid.
Today's Daily Quota is an interview in The Atlantic, discussing this concept. It's quite light-hearted, but also very informative. The interviewer goes into the piece with heightened skepticism, and comes out with more informed skepticism, as will you.
Strange days have indeed found us.

READ IT HERE

5 February 2013

Even the most apathetic of us would know that Australia is in the midst of an online freedom revolution. Well, more of a devolution. Actually, we're on the cusp of one.
With recent news that Telstra will trial P2P traffic throttling, and the under-the-radar upgrade of AFP surveillance powers, the aforementioned observation is difficult to disprove.
This includes Conroy's dumped internet filter plans and the ALRC's frantic revision of copyright laws in the context of cloud technology.
Yep, turbulent times.

In other news, the Federal Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has up and resigned from her role in a very spontaneous manner. In a teary speech, she stated that her actions were to spend more time with her daughter - an excuse that smells fishier than a lesbian bordello.
Although we won't go into that right now.

What she did leave behind was the notorious Federal Data Retention Scheme. This proposal aimed at  capturing the browsing history of every single Australian internet user and retaining this data for up to two years. For national security, ofcourse.
Well, it wasn't that bad. I mean, it only captured the IP addresses, so there was no other way of knowing who the user was. Well, besides those that have their own computer for their own exclusive use. Time to bring out the ol' company names when signing up for internets!
Unsurprisingly, this proposal copped a lot of flak. Even in the light of her resignation, it does not signal an end to this saga.

Alas, I want you, the informed voter, to know as much as you can about this program - especially with the impending federal election creeping ever-closer. Today's Daily Quota is an article from techy kinda-leftist website Delimiter.
It reviews the current (and former) Attorney-General's data retention proposals, and what the future may hold for future AGs and their take on domestic security. This will definitely help you get your head around this whole fiasco.

Winston Churchill once said "The greatest argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter". Please don't let that be the case. Be informed, and cast your mandatory vote with some degree of purpose.

READ IT HERE

4 February 2013

We've all heard about the Placebo Effect - all those studies you hear about in journals, in the corner of Men's Health magazine, in interviews or via your GP.
You know, the one where half the test subjects are given painkillers and the other half are given corn syrup tablets (but told they are given painkillers), and then lo and behold, both groups note the same pain relief.

It really is amazing what the mind is capable of, especially when you trick it into thinking things are getting better. I call it delusion, others call it positive thinking, but the underlying concept may very well be the same - the Placebo Effect is very powerful, but seems to defy all medical logic.

Dr. Ted Kaptchuk is an expert at the Placebo Effect.
He has the equivalent of a Ph.D in Chinese Medicine, but has devoted the past 15 years of his life to testing and retesting this effect on unsuspecting patients; in fact, some of them were even told they were taking a placebo and noted positive results. He is the only faculty member of Harvard Medical School without a Doctorate in Western Medicine, and his studies are causing a storm - mainly because they seem to discredit traditional medicine at every turn.

Today's Daily Quota is an article from the current issue of Harvard Magazine.
It discusses Dr. Kaptchuk's eccentric work, his numerous studies, and some external counter-studies that seem to discredit his own results.
Overall, it's a great article - especially reading about all those unconventional placebo-skewed medical results.

READ IT HERE

3 February 2013

Superficial Sundays on The Daily Quota, where we pursue the trivial.

Today's link is a great one. We all love a good conspiracy theory - but the only thing better than a conspiracy theory is a conspiracy theorist. Henry Makow is one of the most vocal out there.
I mean, he's no David Icke, but he's still a lot of fun.

His website, henrymakow.com (formerly savethemales.ca) posts an article every few days about topics ranging from Illuminati, Freemasons, Zionism, New World Order, Jews, homosexuals and many more. All your favourites are there.
However, his speciality topic is feminism; in particular, how feminism is a movement aimed at emasculating males, causing us to become 'pussified', rendering us unable to stand up to our overlords due to our own crapulence.

His feminism theory goes hand in hand with his take on homosexuality - a method of killing off the population by proliferating relationships that do not bear offspring. Also, again, homosexuality is there to emasculate the male and so on.
For instance, yesterday's post was titled 'When Did Gays Become Jews?'.

Admittedly, some of his posts are very well researched, and somewhat convincing. Who knows, he could be right about a few things. Although as it stands, probably not.
But until he's proven right, to the skeptics go the lols.

READ IT HERE

2 February 2013

Welcome again to Sardonic Saturdays on The Daily Quota - where every silver lining has a cloud.

Today's link discusses the recent release of a US Intelligent report on global trends by the year 2030.
Basically, it's the US government's attempt to hypothesize future trends - most of which do sound quite accurate.
This is the report itself, and it's one hell of a PDF file (pedophile?).

It anticipates a shift in power from state actors to individuals and NGOs, a shift from Western to Eastern power blocs, an increasing population placing further strain on resources (particularly in developing countries), and a worsening of climate change.

Hey guys, what's new?

As we can see, the exponential curve is very much taking its toll on humanity. Technology and population are growing exponentially, but resources are staying constant, food output is linear and improvements in technology seem to be addressing the deficiency in fart apps and not the battle against cancer.
Yes, sardonic indeed.

READ IT HERE

1 February 2013

Welcome back to another edition of Filosophy Fridays for your Saturday mornings.

The Daily Quota for today is not a big one, but it does provoke a lot of thought.
Once again we douse ourselves in the wisdom of Plato, mentor of Aristotle and student of Socrates.

In Plato's Republic, he paraphrases Socrates as he describes his Allegory of the Cave.
Basically, he describes a cave populated by a set of 'prisoners', lined up and facing the cave wall.
Behind them, a number of objects move around in front of a fire, causing their shadows to project onto the cave wall.

These shadows obsure the objects, sometimes causing them to appear normal and proportionate, other times not. This is all these prisoners know, so their perception of reality is distorted by their lack of insight. A projection becomes their reality, and they know of nothing else.

Plato had initially discussed this concept as part of his Theory on Forms, but I've taken a much greater lesson from this - our reality must always be doubted. What we are trained to know, the words we use to describe an object, the 'facts' that we bet our lives on...are facts until we turn and see the fire.
It is a lesson in favour of open-mindedness, an omen against dogma, and a lingering reminder of Kierkgaard's famous quotation - everything must be doubted.

According to Plato, the role of the philosopher in society is to enlighten these prisoners to the true nature of the Forms that they perceive - similar to the snake in the Garden of Eden.
Enjoy the explanation below, and form your own lessons from this anecdote; as I have.

READ IT HERE