Category Archives: Decision Making

Mayor Bloomberg’s Big Gulp ban is right out.

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Mayor Bloomberg’s big soda ban was invalidated today, just one day before it  was set to go into effect.  The judge who made the decision stated that the rule was “arbitrary and capricious.”  (The word “inconceivable” came to mind in hearing this explanation, which is a sure sign it’s time to look up word meanings — as I’m often wont to do.)

So let’s take a look…

ar·bi·trar·y  

Adjective
  1. Based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system.
  2. (of power or a ruling body) Unrestrained and autocratic in the use of authority.
Synonyms
high-handed

Flickr/Usonian “Capricious”

ca·pri·cious  

Adjective
Given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior.
Synonyms
whimsical – wayward – fickle – freakish – crotchety

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Methinks his use of capricious was arbitrary.

Read the full NYT article here:

Judge Invalidates Bloomberg’s Ban on Sugary Drinks – NYTimes.com.

 

Five is right out.

Justice: What’s The Right Thing To Do? Episode 01 “THE MORAL SIDE OF MURDER”

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I highly recommend checking out the video above.  (Michael Sandel is a wonderful philospher and his lectures are readily accessible.)  If you enjoy the experience, you might want to join me in taking his EdX course (ER22x Justice), which starts on 3/12/13.  It will likely change you and that change will almost assuredly be for the better.

Transition Studies

E120, e145,

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David Frum: We Need a Federal Agent in…

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As an ardent supporter of ratcheting up absurd ideas to shed light on their flaws, I had to pass on these posts from David Frum’s Twitter feed.  I believe this is what you call winning the internet.

My favorite.

Neoliberalism Begets Neofeudalism

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I came across three excellent reads that I thought were worth sharing.  Not much for me to add other than to express my wholehearted agreement with the ideas expressed in each of these articles.

  1. Henry Blodgett It’s A Sad Comment On The State Of America That Words Like “Fair” And “Share” Are Now Insults

  2. George Monbiot Break the grip of corporate power to secure our future

  3. Umair Haque How to Fix Your Soul

Fools for the Citi?

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I learned tonight that Vikram Pandit (ousted CEO of Citigroup) and his COO will both be walking away from the firm with $15 million.  Why’s that you ask?  Well, the severance packages are apparently due to their making “significant contributions to Citi during their five years of service.”   A quick search for the history of Citi’s stock price over that time yielded the chart below.  The red (Dow Jones) and orange (S&P 500) lines track pretty well over this time for roughly break even investments.    Citi, however, goes from $34o/share  to $35.93 over that time, almost a 90% loss in share value.   (These are obviously not exact start and end dates of employment, but you get the picture.)  For me, this is akin to having someone torch your house to the ground, leaving only the garage untouched, and handing over the keys to your car as thanks.  Am I the only that has a problem with this?