Huh?

I was reading a Reuters article today about the Iowa Caucuses today when I came across some poll data that was disturbing.

"Nearly 60 percent of Americans believe trade is bad for the economy, according to an NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll conducted in September."
-Iowa voters take Democrats to task over jobs (Reuters)

Uh, trade is the economy. That's what capitalism is; trading money, goods, or services for other goods and services.

So you're saying that the economy is bad for the economy?

Either the quote/poll drastically misrepresents Americans' feelings toward trade, or the average American is quite dull. I'm really hoping it's the former.

Americans, Drop What You're Doing!

If you live in America, or have access to American magazines, go out right now and pick up a copy of the 150th Anniversary issue of The Atlantic. There are a series of fifty essays by prominent American thinkers from diverse walks of life (artists, writers, politicians, judges, etc.) discussing the American Idea.

The Atlantic's website doesn't allow non-subscribers to read the articles online, but it does have some interesting (and conflicting) quotes. Among the better ones:

"We don't have to diminish the American idea in order to save it. Indeed, the only way to prevail in the struggle between freedom and fundamentalism is to enrich that idea in the face of threats."
-Senator Joe Biden

"We are not unique; our ideals are not exceptional; and, to everyone's good fortune, our ability to put those ideals into practice, however special it once may have been, has not remained so."
-Justice Stephen Breyer, US Supreme Court

"Ours are loyalties to an ideal, not to a revelation, and this must have been the reason, even if he was not conscious of it, why Lincoln referred to the American 'proposition.'"
-William F. Buckley

"America is now a nation of 300 million souls, wielding more influence than any people in human history—and yet 240 million of these souls apparently believe that Jesus will return someday and orchestrate the end of the world with his magic powers."
-Sam Harris

"The question is: Do we live to serve ourselves alone, or shall our lives bear witness to something larger?"
-T.D. Jakes

"America's uniqueness is based in the Christian consensus of the Founding Fathers, who penned documents guaranteeing religious and personal freedom for all."
-Tim La Haye (in counterpoint to Sam Harris)

"The American idea, as I understand it, is to trust people to know their own minds and to act in their own enlightened self-interest, with a necessary respect for others."
-John Updike

David Foster Wallace's piece has been reproduced in its entirety, and is definitely worth a read, even if you don't pick up a copy of the magazine. You can read it here.

Barça Update: WOOOOO!!! -or- Suck It, Rangers

Rangers prepares their defense before the game

After the ugly slugfest a couple weeks ago in Glasgow, tonight was Barcelona/Rangers: The Rematch, and did Barça ever deliver. Henry (6') and Messi (42') found the back of the net for a 2-0 finish. Yes, Henry's goal touched his hand, but there was a deliberate handball in the box that wasn't called, so it evened out.

Barcelona was out for blood from the start, using a 4-3-3 to great effect. (For non-soccer folks, that's four defenders, three midfielders, and three forwards. A more-or-less "standard" formation is 4-4-2. The more forwards you have, the more attack minded your team will be, and the more defenders you have, the more defensive minded your team will be.)

Rangers, again playing for the draw, tried a formation that looked more like five defenders, the Maginot line, four midfielders, the Union blockade of the Confederacy, and one lone forward. Funny how that didn't work outside of Scotland.

So, four group games down, two to go. As a bonus, Madrid has stumbled in league play, dropping a match to Valencia (mmm... oranges) while Barça have continued to roll. I haven't seen the games recently, due to a combination of sickness (Sunday's game) and being at the Espanyol game (Thursday's game). From what I understand, Thursday should have been a win, but the tie isn't the end of the world. Barcelona is now only one point behind Madrid in the standings. Speaking of standings...

La Liga (Jornada 11)
1) Real Madrid / 8-2-1 / 25 points / +16
2) Barcelona / 7-1-3 / 24 points / + 15
3) Villareal / 8-3-0 / 24 points / +6
4) Valencia / 7-4-0 / 21 points / -2
5) Atlético Madrid / 6-3-2 / 20 points / +9

Champions League Group E (Matchday 4)
1) Barcelona /3-0-1 / 10 points / +7
2) Rangers / 2-1-1 / 7 points / +2
3) Olympique Lyon / 2-0-0 / 6 points / -2
4) VfB Stuttgart / 0-0-4 / 0 points / -7 -- ELIMINATED --


Pelé Sez: It's time to start thinking about who will advance in the Champions League. There are 32 teams in the Group Stage, and 16 will remain when the Group Stage is done. If you finish in the top two in your group, you move on. If not, you're out of the Champions League. Right now, advancement looks like this:

Through to the Next Round
Manchester United (ENG)
Arsenal* (ENG)

Looking Good
Chelsea (ENG)
Real Madrid (ESP)
AC Milan (ITA)
F.C. Barcelona (ESP)
AS Roma (ITA)
Inter Milan (ITA)
Fenerbahce (TUR)
Sevilla (ESP)

On the Bubble
Marseille (FRA)
Liverpool (ENG)
Rosenborg (NOR)
Shalke 04 (GER)
Lazio (ITA)
Olympiacos (GRE)
Celtic (SCO)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Rangers (SCO)
Olympique Lyon (FRA)

In Trouble
Besiktas (TUR)
Valencia (ESP)
Werder Bremen (GER)
Benfica (POR)
Sporting Lisbon (POR)
Slavia Prague* (CZE)

Eliminated
VfB Stuttgart (GER)
Dynamo Kiev (UKR)
CSKA Moscow (RUS)
Steaua Bucuresti (HUN)

* Arsenal could theoretically not advance to the knockout stages, but here's what would have to happen. Arsenal would have to lose its next two games. Slavia Prague would have to win its next two games. In addition, Slavia Prague's goal differential (goals scored minus goals allowed) would have to be better than Arsenal's by at least twenty. Keep in mind that when the two teams met in England, Arsenal won 7-0. I say Arsenal is through to the next round, and I'm Pelé, so you should listen to me. Love! Love! Love!

Prophetic Words

"This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom..."

-Charles Dickens
A Christmas Carol

Yup, Nancy Grace had her twins, John and Lucy. Personally, I was pushing for Damien and Lilith.

Evil with a capital... Oh, hell, she's just evil, okay?

iPhone Goes Crazy

One of the best features of the iPhone is that you can look at documents (.doc, .xls, .jpg, etc.) at full size, even though the screen is tiny. You accomplish this by using a pinching motion that, like all other Apple products, is ridiculously simple. How far can you zoom in? Just take a look:



Is he reading National Geographic?

I'm Sick

I'm laid up in bed with a cold or flu or something nasty, so you'll have to depend on Susie for a more substantive post today.

In the meantime, here's a clip from Robot Chicken's Star Wars special. I like the space slugs ordering Chinese and Jedi President Bush.

What do I do?

So, I know one of you has asked me this, and more of you might be wondering this, but what exactly do I do here? What is my job like?

Well, my official title is "Assistant to the Director of the Knox College Barcelona Program." I hate to be aloof, but that job title actually is a pretty good description of what I do. I assist the Director of the Program (one Mr. Tim Foster) to make sure that everything runs smoothly. Each day is different, and so far my main tasks have included handling all the visa/residency paperwork, coordinating the students' arrival, planning excursions, finding activities for the students, handling university registration, planning for the big December trip, and planning the Thanksgiving dinner. Some days are insanely busy, while others are more relaxed. I am also available to listen to the students' problems, concerns, experiences, and help them out when I can.

I really like the group of students that is here now. I am sad that a good chunk of them will only be here fall term. However, 19 more students are arriving in January, so that will keep me on my toes.

Where do I work? At the University of Barcelona. The UB has many campuses, but I work at the main one in the city center. It was built in the 1860's, and was declared a historic site in the 1970's. So, yeah, I basically work in a castle. It's pretty amazing, actually. However, the office where I work is fully equiped with the most modern of technologies (ok, not the *most* modern, but we do have computers, internet, fax, etc.), so despite the historical surroundings, we can still get everything done quickly and efficiently.

I know I may not have fully and adaquately described my job, but my job is really a hodgepodge of different tasks. In all, I try to make sure that the program runs as smoothly as possible, and I do everything possible to achieve this goal. That's all.

But for now, I'm going to enjoy this glorious four day weekend. Yep, that's right! Today is a holiday here in Spain (All Saint's Day) and I always have Fridays off, so another nice long weekend here in Spain.