Google Science Fair Experiment - Extended

Introducing the world's first online global science competition, the Google Science Fair! Google has partnered with CERN, LEGO, National Geographic and Scientific American to create a new kind of online science competition that is more global, open and inclusive than ever before. Students aged 13 - 18 from around the world are invited to enter and compete for awesome once-in-a-lifetime experiences, scholarships and real-life work opportunities. Sign up today at google.com/sciencefair.





Google Science Fair 2011 - Opening Event (over an hour)

Ferriss on the body as a startup, on hacking the body

Keen On… Tim Ferriss: How To Turn Your Body Into A Startup (TCTV)

Tim Ferriss is one of the world’s leading transcenders of limitations. Best known as the author of the 2007 monstrously successful self-help guide The 4-Hour Workweek, a #1 New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller that has accumulated over 1000 reviews on Amazon, the Princeton-educated and globe-trotting Ferriss is also a legendary bodybuilder, life hacker and re-inventor of the physical self.

According to Ferriss, modern man is driven by two great fears:

1) Too much email.
2) Getting fat.

So it’s no great surprise that Ferriss’ follow-up to The 4-Hour Workweek is The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman, which gets released tomorrow. While his first book was a guide to overcoming too much email, Ferris’ latest work is a guide to overcoming the limitations of the physical body. It’s a hacking guide to the body – a book which encourages us to treat our bodies as entrepreneurial start-ups that require continual innovation and reinvention in order to fully realize ourselves and, of course, lose weight.

For those of you with sexually demanding girlfriends or wives, The 4-Hour Body should easily provide the ROI on its $27 cover price. As Ferriss explained to me when he came into the TechCrunch studio, not only is his new book a step-by-step guide to becoming super-human, but it also offers a detailed anatomical and logistical guide about to how to give women 15-minute orgasms (clue: focus, focus, focus – and no kissing.)

Essential reading, indeed. No doubt, The 4-Hour Body will emulate the 4-Hour Workweek as the #1 book on both men and women’s bedside tables this Xmas.

Ferriss on The 4-Hour Workweek

BlackBerry PlayBook Demo

Check out our exclusive up close and personal demo of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet with RIM's Julian Dolce, Platform Lead of the QNX team.

Joe Scarborough, Glenn Beck Feud Erupts

A war of words erupted between Joe Scarborough and Glenn Beck on Tuesday, after Scarborough said that Beck was delivering a "vile message to Americans every day," and Beck said that Scarborough could never back up his assertions with facts.

Scarborough spoke on Tuesday's "Morning Joe." He was talking about his hope that amped-up media rhetoric would cool down in the wake of the Arizona shooting, and he used Beck as an example:

"I have a lot of family members that listen to him and watch him and are frightened by the things that he says every night with his chalkboard...my mom and a lot of other people like her that watch him every day start to believe if they hear every day, every day, that there's this guy in Washington D.C., this black guy that hates all white people and he wants to take your money . . . and he wants to destroy the country you grew up in. You feed that vile message to Americans every day, it's going to have an impact."


Scarborough also said that Beck was a "nobody" until Fox News chief Roger Ailes brought him to his network. "If Roger Ailes decides to kick him out of Fox News, he'll go back to the Glenn Beck he was before," he said.

Beck--and, especially, his radio sidekicks--responded later on Tuesday. Beck's co-host Pat Gray was the most outraged by Scarborough's statements.

"How do you know what Glenn Beck says and does," he almost screamed. "You moron. Joe, there's a reason that everyone you know listens to and watches Glenn's show, including your mom, and not yours: you suck!"

But Beck also had some words for Scarborough."Every day on their show you hear about how the Tea Parties are violent," he said. "What is the difference, except that one has facts to back it up and one does not?"

Obama Arizona Memorial Speech:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Please, please be seated. (Applause.)
To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow. (Applause.)
There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: The hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And we add our faith to yours that Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the other living victims of this tragedy will pull through. (Applause.)
Scripture tells us:
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
On Saturday morning, Gabby, her staff and many of her constituents gathered outside a supermarket to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and free speech. (Applause.) They were fulfilling a central tenet of the democracy envisioned by our founders -- representatives of the people answering questions to their constituents, so as to carry their concerns back to our nation's capital. Gabby called it "Congress on Your Corner" -- just an updated version of government of and by and for the people. (Applause.)
And that quintessentially American scene, that was the scene that was shattered by a gunman's bullets. And the six people who lost their lives on Saturday -- they, too, represented what is best in us, what is best in America. (Applause.)
Judge John Roll served our legal system for nearly 40 years. (Applause.) A graduate of this university and a graduate of this law school -- (applause) -- Judge Roll was recommended for the federal bench by John McCain 20 years ago -- (applause) -- appointed by President George H.W. Bush and rose to become Arizona's chief federal judge. (Applause.)
His colleagues described him as the hardest-working judge within the Ninth Circuit. He was on his way back from attending Mass, as he did every day, when he decided to stop by and say hi to his representative. John is survived by his loving wife, Maureen, his three sons and his five beautiful grandchildren. (Applause.)
George and Dorothy Morris -- "Dot" to her friends -- were high school sweethearts who got married and had two daughters. They did everything together -- traveling the open road in their RV, enjoying what their friends called a 50-year honeymoon. Saturday morning, they went by the Safeway to hear what their congresswoman had to say. When gunfire rang out, George, a former Marine, instinctively tried to shield his wife. (Applause.) Both were shot. Dot passed away.
A New Jersey native, Phyllis Schneck retired to Tucson to beat the snow. But in the summer, she would return East, where her world revolved around her three children, her seven grandchildren and 2-year-old great-granddaughter. A gifted quilter, she'd often work under a favorite tree, or sometimes she'd sew aprons with the logos of the Jets and the Giants -- (laughter) -- to give out at the church where she volunteered. A Republican, she took a liking to Gabby, and wanted to get to know her better. (Applause.)
Dorwan and Mavy Stoddard grew up in Tucson together -- about 70 years ago. They moved apart and started their own respective families. But after both were widowed they found their way back here, to, as one of Mavy's daughters put it, "be boyfriend and girlfriend again." (Laughter.)
When they weren't out on the road in their motor home, you could find them just up the road, helping folks in need at the Mountain Avenue Church of Christ. A retired construction worker, Dorwan spent his spare time fixing up the church along with his dog, Tux. His final act of selflessness was to dive on top of his wife, sacrificing his life for hers. (Applause.)
Everything -- everything -- Gabe Zimmerman did, he did with passion. (Applause.) But his true passion was helping people. As Gabby's outreach director, he made the cares of thousands of her constituents his own, seeing to it that seniors got the Medicare benefits that they had earned, that veterans got the medals and the care that they deserved, that government was working for ordinary folks. He died doing what he loved -- talking with people and seeing how he could help. And Gabe is survived by his parents, Ross and Emily, his brother, Ben, and his fiancée, Kelly, who he planned to marry next year. (Applause.)
And then there is nine-year-old Christina Taylor Green. Christina was an A student; she was a dancer; she was a gymnast; she was a swimmer. She decided that she wanted to be the first woman to play in the Major Leagues, and as the only girl on her Little League team, no one put it past her. (Applause.)
She showed an appreciation for life uncommon for a girl her age. She'd remind her mother, "We are so blessed. We have the best life." And she'd pay those blessings back by participating in a charity that helped children who were less fortunate.
Our hearts are broken by their sudden passing. Our hearts are broken -- and yet, our hearts also have reason for fullness.
Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman many of them went to see on Saturday.
I have just come from the University Medical Center, just a mile from here, where our friend Gabby courageously fights to recover even as we speak. And I want to tell you -- her husband Mark is here and he allows me to share this with you -- right after we went to visit, a few minutes after we left her room and some of her colleagues in Congress were in the room, Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. (Applause.) Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. (Applause.)
Gabby opened her eyes. Gabby opened her eyes, so I can tell you she knows we are here. She knows we love her. And she knows that we are rooting for her through what is undoubtedly going to be a difficult journey. We are there for her. (Applause.)
Our hearts are full of thanks for that good news, and our hearts are full of gratitude for those who saved others. We are grateful to Daniel Hernandez -- (applause) -- a volunteer in Gabby's office. (Applause.)
And, Daniel, I'm sorry, you may deny it, but we've decided you are a hero because -- (applause) -- you ran through the chaos to minister to your boss, and tended to her wounds and helped keep her alive. (Applause.)
We are grateful to the men who tackled the gunman as he stopped to reload. (Applause.) Right over there. (Applause.) We are grateful for petite Patricia Maisch, who wrestled away the killer's ammunition, and undoubtedly saved some lives. (Applause.) And we are grateful for the doctors and nurses and first responders who worked wonders to heal those who'd been hurt. We are grateful to them. (Applause.)
These men and women remind us that heroism is found not only on the fields of battle. They remind us that heroism does not require special training or physical strength. Heroism is here, in the hearts of so many of our fellow citizens, all around us, just waiting to be summoned -- as it was on Saturday morning. Their actions, their selflessness poses a challenge to each of us. It raises a question of what, beyond prayers and expressions of concern, is required of us going forward. How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?
You see, when a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations -- to try and pose some order on the chaos and make sense out of that which seems senseless. Already we've seen a national conversation commence, not only about the motivations behind these killings, but about everything from the merits of gun safety laws to the adequacy of our mental health system. And much of this process, of debating what might be done to prevent such tragedies in the future, is an essential ingredient in our exercise of self-government.
But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized -- at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do -- it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds. (Applause.)
Scripture tells us that there is evil in the world, and that terrible things happen for reasons that defy human understanding. In the words of Job, "When I looked for light, then came darkness." Bad things happen, and we have to guard against simple explanations in the aftermath.
For the truth is none of us can know exactly what triggered this vicious attack. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped these shots from being fired, or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man's mind. Yes, we have to examine all the facts behind this tragedy. We cannot and will not be passive in the face of such violence. We should be willing to challenge old assumptions in order to lessen the prospects of such violence in the future. (Applause.) But what we cannot do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on each other. (Applause.) That we cannot do. (Applause.) That we cannot do.
As we discuss these issues, let each of us do so with a good dose of humility. Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let's use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy and remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together. (Applause.)
After all, that's what most of us do when we lose somebody in our family -- especially if the loss is unexpected. We're shaken out of our routines. We're forced to look inward. We reflect on the past: Did we spend enough time with an aging parent, we wonder. Did we express our gratitude for all the sacrifices that they made for us? Did we tell a spouse just how desperately we loved them, not just once in a while but every single day?
So sudden loss causes us to look backward -- but it also forces us to look forward; to reflect on the present and the future, on the manner in which we live our lives and nurture our relationships with those who are still with us. (Applause.)
We may ask ourselves if we've shown enough kindness and generosity and compassion to the people in our lives. Perhaps we question whether we're doing right by our children, or our community, whether our priorities are in order.
We recognize our own mortality, and we are reminded that in the fleeting time we have on this Earth, what matters is not wealth, or status, or power, or fame -- but rather, how well we have loved -- (applause)-- and what small part we have played in making the lives of other people better. (Applause.)
And that process -- that process of reflection, of making sure we align our values with our actions -- that, I believe, is what a tragedy like this requires.
For those who were harmed, those who were killed -- they are part of our family, an American family 300 million strong. (Applause.) We may not have known them personally, but surely we see ourselves in them. In George and Dot, in Dorwan and Mavy, we sense the abiding love we have for our own husbands, our own wives, our own life partners. Phyllis -- she's our mom or our grandma; Gabe our brother or son. (Applause.) In Judge Roll, we recognize not only a man who prized his family and doing his job well, but also a man who embodied America's fidelity to the law. (Applause.)
And in Gabby -- in Gabby, we see a reflection of our public-spiritedness; that desire to participate in that sometimes frustrating, sometimes contentious, but always necessary and never-ending process to form a more perfect union. (Applause.)
And in Christina -- in Christina we see all of our children. So curious, so trusting, so energetic, so full of magic. So deserving of our love. And so deserving of our good example.
If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate -- as it should -- let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost. (Applause.) Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point-scoring and pettiness that drifts away in the next news cycle.
The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better. To be better in our private lives, to be better friends and neighbors and coworkers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their death helps usher in more civility in our public discourse, let us remember it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy -- it did not -- but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to the challenges of our nation in a way that would make them proud. (Applause.)
We should be civil because we want to live up to the example of public servants like John Roll and Gabby Giffords, who knew first and foremost that we are all Americans, and that we can question each other's ideas without questioning each other's love of country and that our task, working together, is to constantly widen the circle of our concern so that we bequeath the American Dream to future generations. (Applause.)
They believed -- they believed, and I believe that we can be better. Those who died here, those who saved life here -- they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another, that's entirely up to us. (Applause.)
And I believe that for all our imperfections, we are full of decency and goodness, and that the forces that divide us are not as strong as those that unite us. (Applause.)
That's what I believe, in part because that's what a child like Christina Taylor Green believed. (Applause.)
Imagine -- imagine for a moment, here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that some day she, too, might play a part in shaping her nation's future. She had been elected to her student council. She saw public service as something exciting and hopeful. She was off to meet her congresswoman, someone she was sure was good and important and might be a role model. She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.
I want to live up to her expectations. (Applause.) I want our democracy to be as good as Christina imagined it. I want America to be as good as she imagined it. (Applause.) All of us -- we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children's expectations. (Applause.)
As has already been mentioned, Christina was given to us on September 11th, 2001, one of 50 babies born that day to be pictured in a book called "Faces of Hope." On either side of her photo in that book were simple wishes for a child's life. "I hope you help those in need," read one. "I hope you know all the words to the National Anthem and sing it with your hand over your heart." (Applause.) "I hope you jump in rain puddles."
If there are rain puddles in Heaven, Christina is jumping in them today. (Applause.) And here on this Earth -- here on this Earth, we place our hands over our hearts, and we commit ourselves as Americans to forging a country that is forever worthy of her gentle, happy spirit.
May God bless and keep those we've lost in restful and eternal peace. May He love and watch over the survivors. And may He bless the United States of America. (Applause.)

iPhone Movie to Hit South Korea Theaters

iPhone Movie to Hit South Korea Theaters

An award-winning South Korean film director shoots a 30-minute movie using only Apple's iPhone 4. Video courtesy of Reuters.

Creativity?

First look: Steve Wozniak and the history of computing

The Computer History Museum, in Mountain View California, is opening a 25,000-square-foot exhibit, titled “Revolutions,” on Thursday. Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, gave us and a few other journalists a tour of the new exhibit while it was still being built. Harry McCracken wrote up the tour and detailed more about each of the computers Woz explained at http://technologizer.com/2010/12/02/a… In the tour we went from Herman Hollerith’s punch-card tabulating machine through the Macintosh era.

More info:
The Computer History Museum: http://www.computerhistory.org/
Steve Wozniak web site: http://www.woz.org/
Steve Wozniak on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevewoz
Steve Wozniak profile on CrunchBase: http://www.crunchbase.com/person/steve-wozniak

Tour of the new "Revolutions" exhibit at Computer History Museum

The "Revolutions" exhibit opens tomorrow at the Computer History Museum. What does it look like? Here's a quick tour. Along the way you'll meet an IBM Fellow, see Apple-co-founder Steve Wozniak, talk with Pong inventor Al Acorn, among other cool people.

Computer pioneers talk with the press

Today the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA, opens a new "Revolutions" exhibit and to celebrate the opening several computer pioneers sat down for a QA with the press.

From LEFT,
Len Shustek is chairman of the board of trustees of the Computer History Museum
John Hollar, CEO of Computer History Museum.
Max Mathews, computer music pioneer..
Donald Knuth, software pioneer.
Steve Wozniak, co-founded Apple.
Al Alcorn, invented Pong
Steve Russell, inventor of first computer game.
Frances Allen, pioneered several computer languages.

The magic of software (interview with Word Lens inventor)

Have you ever seen magic? I have and once in a while I see magical software.
Over on Quora we were discussing just what software is magical, but here we have an even newer example: Word Lens, which translates Spanish to English (and vice versa) in real time on your phone.
Here the inventor, Otavio Good, talks about that “the magic comes out of video translation and no one else has done that yet.”
Now, this isn’t perfect, and in the interview you’ll see Otavio lays out why it isn’t, but I am more amazed that this works at all, than the fact that it doesn’t work in all situations.

As most of the United States is covered in frosty goodness this morning, daydreamers and procrastinators of all ages are wondering how the icicles thr

Nor'easter Time-Lapse: Medford, MA by Jim Meegan

1.12.11 Nor'easter Time-Lapse: Medford, MA from Jim Meegan on Vimeo.

This time-lapse was shot in Medford, MA (just outside of Boston) during the Nor'easter on 1.12.11

I started it at midnight and left it running until 7pm.

The camera was set to take a shot every 2.5 minutes over the course of those 19 hours. I used AV mode on my Canon 7D.

The image sequence was conformed to 12fps and placed on a 24fps timeline with frame-blending enabled.

Overall very satisfied. Wish I caught the mess on the window sooner though. We got around 16" here, but only about 13" made it on to the porch I was shooting from because of an overhang. Obviously not as dramatic as the guy from Jersey who captured three feet, but that was just out of my control.

Music: Kevin MacLeod

China’s empty city

Billions of dollars have been poured into the construction of the new Ordos City, and real estate has sold like hotcakes, yet the city built for millions remains eerily empty, only inhabited by a few thousand construction workers.

The 1.5 million residents of old Ordos aren’t yet willing to move to the city without an economy, in addition to the fact that many have been priced out of the market by speculators. Is this China’s city of the future or a bubble ready to burst?

An Important Message from Al Franken

An Important Message from Al Franken

The Tucson Shootings, Civility And The New Class War Zone

The Tucson Shootings, Civility And The New Class War Zone

Paul Jay: Instead of using 'civility' to cover up reality, how about a people's civility intended to reveal it




Bio

Tyson Theron Slocum is Director of Public Citizen's Energy Program. Tyson works to highlight the significant financial costs and safety and security risks associated with nuclear power. Tyson covers the regulation of electricity, natural gas and petroleum markets, including commodity futures and FERC-jurisdictional matters to promote stronger transparency measures. Tyson was appointed to serve on the CFTC's newly created Energy & Environmental Markets Advisory Committee. Tyson also covers federal legislative efforts to address climate change, particularly the impact such programs will have on the ability of moderate- and low-income households to afford access to sustainable energy. Tyson is the author of numerous reports on these subjects, presenting his findings in testimony before the U.S. Congress.



The Tucson Shootings, Civility and the New Class War Zone


Every so often, a tragic event shreds a gapping hole in the fabric of the official American narrative. Then the political elite and their media do what’s necessary to smooth things over, to find some calming equilibrium, lest we think about things that should not be questioned.

This time it’s the shootings in Tucson, Arizona where six people died including Christina Taylor Green, a nine-year-old child who was born, in some kind of awful irony that connects the two events, on September the eleventh, 2001. She appeared in the book Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11 and it says something about what’s happened to America over the last decade that her life ends in such a heartbreaking and meaningless way.

Murdered along side Christina was Chief Judge for the U.S. District Court for Arizona, John Roll and five others. United States Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, the intended target, was gravely wounded.

As we once again peer into the American heart of darkness, we see two nightmarish features of this country. First, it’s another alarming instance of a young man playing out his paranoid delusions with an easily available automatic weapon. The extent of the violent psychotic behavior spawned by our culture must be faced.

Also exposed, in all its hideousness, is the latest rise of a national political culture based on such paranoia, with one section of the movement wanting to refight the New Deal and the other, the Civil War. One wants a return to the unrestricted capitalism of the 19th century, while the other wants the unrestricted racism of slave society.

What are we told in the elite media is the problem? The lack of civility. Once again, a formulation that will provide that much needed calm, a solution that if we all try really hard, we can achieve. Let’s just all get along, and we will find that cherished equilibrium.

Certainly lets not talk about the fossils of the fossil fuel industry that pave the right populist way with tens of millions of dollars (read about the Koch brothers to start, but they are not alone).

These billionaires and their neo-con brothers finance and help organize populist politicians and movements that attract people who are legitimately alienated and legitimately angry with a big government that mostly serves big pools of capital. Capital for example, like that of the Koch brothers. Of course people taken in by all this wind up supporting one set of billionaires over the other, even against their own interests, but it’s designed to feel like a fight for personal liberty and freedom.

This right-elite sponsored ‘populism’ also deliberately attracts people who want simplistic answers and ways to vent their bile on easy targets. In one election the target may be gays, the other immigrants, Muslims and who knows, maybe some day they’ll make their way back to Jews, and always, that is always, a foundation of deep hatred and fear of African Americans.

Playing a support role in all of this, the Internet ‘paranoia business’ feeds the tortured psyches of the world, preying on panic, like the creature on Star Trek that drew energy by creating terror. In this case, it’s dollars these webmasters of fear want. Finding secret conspiracies is much more profitable than revealing systemic underpinnings of abuse, there to be seen right in front of our noses.

There are no direct ties that we know of connecting the alleged shooter Jared Lee Loughner, with any of these movements. But the Sheriff of Tuscan put it well enough:

[Sheriff Clarence W. Dupnik] “When the rhetoric about hatred, about mistrust of government, about paranoia of how government operates, and to try to inflame the public on a daily basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, has impact on people especially who are unbalanced personalities to begin with…”

So, are our politicians and mass media pundits discussing why the conditions of American life breed such mental illness and such vile politics? What do they say is the problem? What’s the solution?

Well, so far the answer is, as I said before, “lack of civility”. Our rhetoric is inflammatory.

Here’s some of what was said on the Sunday morning news shows just after the shooting:

Rep. Raul Labrador, on Meet the Press: “I just hope that we can have some civility and move forward”

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, on Meet the Press: “I think members of Congress either need to turn down the volume, begin to try to exercise some high level of civility, or this darkness will never ever be overcome with light”

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, on Meet the Press:”… I agree, it's our responsibility to make sure that we set the right example and set the tone of civility…"

Donna Brazile, on ABC: “…I believe that we can return to civility. We can have debates, honest and strong disagreements on many of the major issues facing our country, but we can do it with civility”

Rep. Steny Hoyer, on Face the Nation: …in politics and in the media, in the public square, fashion our rhetoric so that it does not incite but informs and yes can differ but can differ in a way that is civil and consistent with our democracy’s efforts.

Here’s how scholar and cultural critic Benjamin DeMott answers all of this:

What is the real American malaise? Why is this country in trouble? Lately the leader classes have been floating a fresh answer to these queries, talking up a new “root cause” of national woes. Not race, not class, . . . Our not-so-secret malaise is,

in a pet leader-class phrase, the decline of civility.”

He said this in an article titled Seduced by Civility: Political Manners and The Crisis of Democratic Values, published by The Nation magazine in 1996. Now 15 years later, we get the same evasive answers at a time of even more serious national crisis.

While the far-right and neo-conservative elite mobilizes sections of the population for more war and a further weakening of constitutional and economic rights, the neo-liberal elite calls for bi-partisanship and civility.

President Obama said we shouldn’t prosecute the former regime, not to open up old wounds. Instead it opened the door to the resurrection of the Rove-Cheney gang, who lurk behind this growing far-right populism, pushing and seducing it towards their agenda. It won’t be long till the true Libertarians in Congress are either bent or marginalized and we are left with the bunch that ran the country into the ground under Bush.

The neo-liberal Obama Administration’s demand for civility and compromise is a clarion call to the whole elite: “don’t let our differences get in the way of saving the economic system”.

But as his administration works to save the very structures that created the financial crisis to begin with, that enrich the top 2% as even larger segments of the population fall into poverty, his far right opponents are preparing his demise, building a movement that will usher in a regime permeated with the kind of bigotry and hatred of government and collective solutions described by the Sheriff of Tucson.

Listen to Dick Armey, a former Republican US Representative from Texas’ 26th Congressional District, and House Majority leader 1995-2003. Now Chair of Freedom Works, one of the driving forces behind the Tea Party and the far right. He pays lip-service to the ideas of civility, but the message to his troops is clear:

Dick Armey, on ABC: “…this incident is no basis by which anybody who sees their duty to America to stand down from that duty, but to redouble it, perhaps with a greater degree of caution, and hopefully with a greater degree of civility. We've always wanted that, but still, nevertheless, we must do our duty and defend our liberties in this great country.”

The real question is what are the rest of us going to do. We’d better start by understanding that the lack of civil discourse and extremes of competing ideology is not the underlying problem, but a symptom of objective difference of interest. We’re not one nation; there really are at the least two Americas. We are ruled by an elite that can compromise with each other to “save the economy” or to wage a war, but shows less and less willingness to ‘compromise’ with working people and the poor. They want us to pay for the crisis, and they want us to be very polite about doing it.

Benjamin DeMott put it well: “‘civility’ is in fact a theater of operations - the classless society’s new class war zone.”

Instead of using ‘civility’ to cover up the realities of life, how about we call for a people’s civility intended to better reveal it.

We can start by telling the truth about the society we live in. Let’s examine with honest and uncompromising inquiry, the actual conditions of life in America, without fearing the words race and class. Let those who want collective solutions try to find some common ground with those who distrust big government - which almost everyone agrees serves the top 2% more than anybody else. Let’s agree that we value individual rights and freedom and understand that can only be meaningful in a more equitable society.

How about we answer this question: how can our schools and public health care system better intervene with students when there are obvious signs of psychotic disorders? What can we do to address the cultural, political, healthcare and law enforcement issues that have lead to so many mass shootings by disturbed young men? What policy would be in the public interest?

Let’s base the inquiry on a study of facts, evidence, and researched opinion, because like so many other issues facing us, lives depend on it.

If you’d like to join us in this inquiry, and yes, you want to keep it civil, please write us at contact@therealnews.com We will open up a section of the web site for people to submit their thoughts and proposals. We will interview experts and debate solutions. And of course, you can comment on this commentary in the space provided below.

Thank you for joining us on The Real News Network.

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