ocmpoma

Quieter

ocmpoma — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 01:43:02 +0000

Last time I fell off the posting wagon, it was mostly due to a move that really ate up my time, and before I knew it several weeks had past with little to no activity from me here.

This time I know that there is going to be a hiatus; it’ll probably be a rather long one — for now I’m going to say that posting here is going to cease for an indefinite period.

My apologies to my vast and undyingly loyal readership!

Quiet

ocmpoma — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:39:19 +0000

Sorry my posting here has been rather light lately — other things have just been taking up much more time than normal.

Here’s an interesting discussion over at MR on why wine has a price listed on the menu, but beer doesn’t. I think several of the commenter’s are spot on: a big indicator to me is the fact that in most places, wine, and sometimes cocktails, have prices on the menu and no other beverages, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, do not.

Weekly photo #88: Roadside

ocmpoma — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 02:59:14 +0000

Back when I lived on Fort Ord, I liked to run and walk the dobie back toward where the old ranges were — and this stand of trees is along the road that led uphill, to where the observation tower is.

Interest piqued

ocmpoma — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 04:16:36 +0000

Now, this is an author recommendation.

Money quote:

“Lawrence Watt-Evans’s stories aren’t about the intelligence or rationality of his characters. Nonetheless, Watt-Evans writes intelligent characters, and he’s willing to deal with the consequences, which are huge.”

Graphic art

ocmpoma — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 02:52:05 +0000

It’s overdue, so I’ve added indexed to the blogroll. Here’s my favorite:

Weekly photo #87: Falling Fountain

ocmpoma — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 02:47:28 +0000

I took this week’s photo in DC, at the National Gallery of Art. If you’ve never been, there’s an underground walkway connecting the two branches of the museum (or, at least, there was last time I was there…) Fountains in the plaza above funnel into this ladder fountain which you walk past as you traverse from one branch to the other.

Weekly quote #33: Mike Munger

ocmpoma — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 01:24:39 +0000

This week’s EconTalk has Mike Munger as guest, talking with host Russ Roberts about public transportation. The quote shows up at a little after the twelve-minute mark of the podcast, and is spot on as to why I don’t really see the difference between the public and the private sector (except for the public sector’s (usually) greater access to legal power):

“It’s not just true that people respond to incentives in markets. People respond to incentives in every situation they find themselves. And so, the way that we compensate drivers — it doesn’t matter if it’s a market setting or if he’s employed by the government, it’s going to have implications for his behavior.”

People respond to incentives, period. Regardless of whether it’s a railroad tycoon or a parliamentary tycoon, the incentives are directly influencing the decisions being made.