Governments around the world are rushing to develop military robots capable of killing autonomously without considering the legal and moral implications, warns a leading roboticist. But another robotics expert argues that robotic soldiers could perhaps be made more ethical than human ones. Let the nishi-bashing begin.

Some videos of our little party put together by Chris Cafiero, the band archivist, are out on YouTube.  Here’s Good Night To Boogie, featuring favorite guest Vince Herman.  It illustrates the often, um, ad hoc nature of the proceedings in Jamaica.  But then, the boys never were afraid to jump in the pool feat first.  Did I actually say that?  A little Cajun Rage, into High Roller (at Bill’s request),

h/t A.Pendragon Yes, it’s a shock.  And I’ll miss trying to figure out how one speaks that way.  Still, he departed before he could decide to do something desperately changey and vote for Obama, so that’s some consolation. NYT delivers a nice eulogy.

Casus belli? Turkey is preparing to publish a document that represents a revolutionary reinterpretation of Islam – and a controversial and radical modernisation of the religion. The country’s powerful Department of Religious Affairs has commissioned a team of theologians at Ankara University to carry out a fundamental revision of the Hadith, the second most sacred text in Islam after the Koran. The Hadith is a collection of thousands of sayings

At TNR, Noam Scheiber casts Barack Obama’s policy advisors as non-ideological: Despite Obama’s reputation for grandiose rhetoric and utopian hope-mongering, the Obamanauts aren’t radicals–far from it. They’re pragmatists–people who, when an existing paradigm clashes with reality, opt to tweak that paradigm rather than replace it wholesale. But Scheiber’s claim does not hold up very well under scrutiny.

“If elected President, my first order of business will be to do away with the prefix anti-. Because to me, in order to think positively, you have to surround yourself with the trappings of positivityness, in all of its forms. And to surround yourself with the trappings of positivityness — to immerse yourself in its warmth, to feel its reassurance along the finer hairs of your thighs, to really live

Vodkapundit Stephen Green has done a two–part early look at the general election map, assuming John McCain and Barack Obama are the nominees. Green colors 41 states as solidly Red or Blue, for a virtual tie of 229-227.  he then lays out a best-case scenario for McCain of 311-227 electoral votes and a best-case scenario for Obama of a 309-229 win. I think Green’s general observations are sound, although data-free.  Granted, polling data this early

who was blowing you? What the polygraph test now is showing you? Who hummed on your kazoo?   Do you know? What Larry claims occurred in that hotel room . . . He drove your limo and then gobbled your goo . . . Because the crack you smoked Had left you stiff! At least you had the grace To buy him a whiff! Ace: Hm. Sounds credible. Well, he

This is referenced in Memeorandum as the “egg as person” amendment: Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee on Monday endorsed a proposed Colorado Human Life Amendment that would define personhood as a fertilized egg.*   And I suppose that from some perspectives it’s outrageously strange. Almost as strange, perhaps, as the imputation of bovine sentience. Pajamas Media link to Darleen’s post as “Authentic Feminists Can’t Enjoy a Burger?” which–for reasons obscure–made me

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Stephen F. Hayes frets that Republicans, including presumptive nominee John McCain, are making the same mistake with Barack Obama that Democrats made with Ronald Reagan in 1980 — misunderestimating him as an empty suit: The assumption behind much of this criticism is that because Mr. Obama gives a good speech he cannot do substance. This is wrong. Mr. Obama has done well in most