Employment Is in the Air

It would seem that everyone is talking about employment (or lack thereof) these days. Let's begin with today's comics (you can click on the images for larger versions, if these are too small or fuzzy):








In addition, one housemate just sent out this article about the top ten reasons to quit your job. It's a passable list, though I didn't see anywhere on it, "You're not making enough money." That seems like an obvious one.

In fact, some time ago Lucy Kellaway - a wonderful columnist for the FT who addresses such pressing problems as "My boss wants to be my friend on Facebook" and runs a close second to Yulia Tymoshenko as my secret love interest - wrote a column on this very topic of quitting your job. She took to task all the business-speak types who talk about "meaningful expectations," "affirmation" and "fulfillment." It's about the money, she said. And some other stuff. Which I don't remember because I can't find the article online right now. So major points to you if you can.

Muslim scholars decry terrorism

It's this sort of thing that will win the War on Terror in the long run:

An influential group of Muslim theologians in India have denounced terrorism, saying it is completely against the teachings of Islam.

Click here to read the article.

Some Fun Music Videos

Beirut, "In the Mausoleum," from The Flying Club Cup




Sufjan Stevens, "The Lakes of Canada"

Modern metaphors.

Thinking About Writing it Down

As Americans, we tend to think of constitutions as things written on yellow paper and kept in bomb-proof vaults for all to see. Well, that's not the case in Britain. The British constitution is a collection of customs and odd laws here and there. But that may change.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw is looking at the possibility of drafting a single, written constitution. The BBC reports:

He said the move would encapsulate in one document a citizen's rights, their responsibilities and an outline of how the different arms of government work.

He told the BBC the process could take 20 years and depend on a referendum.

In a speech in the US later he will say most UK people "struggle to put a finger on where their rights are".

Remembering the Integrated Humanities Program

I was reading up on the University of Kansas' Integrated Humanities Program today and feeling nostalgic for Dallas. While our programs of study were different in many ways - we took notes in class, for one - I think many of the goals of the IHP were also accomplished at UD, outside the classroom, if not necessarily within, and in particular during the Rome semester. I strongly recommend reading the article linked above.