From the monthly archives: May 2007

Zodiac

By Rufus Pollock On May 30, 2007 · Leave a Comment

6.5. Zodiac by David Fincher. Never quite sure what it was to become — a study of obsession, a meditation on the what can and cannot be known, a serial-killer murder mystery. Ultimately it succeeded as none of these but it did at least provide far more thoughtful Hollywood far than usual.

(To compare Summer [...]

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Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

By Rufus Pollock On May 22, 2007 · 1 Comment

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Read in 2000, summer vacation.

Notes

[71] Tricon Global Restaurants (corp) owner Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC.

Committee for Employment Opportunities: Lobby group for chain restaurants. Chief lobbyist is Bill Signer. Lobbied, for example, to continue tax credits and subsidies given by US govt for training of workers.

[...]
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Giving Away the Printer Charging for the Printer Cartridges

By Rufus Pollock On May 7, 2007 · Leave a Comment

Printers and their ink cartridges are good examples of of complementary goods. The market is particularly interesting because until recently the printer seller was the only provider of cartridges for that printer. Over the last decade it has become possible for people to get ink cartridges from others in the form of ‘refills’, that is [...]

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2007 Clare Hall Ashby Lecture: Richard Layard on Happiness and Values

By Rufus Pollock On May 2, 2007 · 1 Comment

Today I attended the the Clare Hall Ashby Lecture which was given by Richard Layard on the subject of Happiness and Values.

Notes

Four main explanatory variables for level of happiness:

Perceived trustworthiness of individuals Perceived trustworthiness of governments … [one i missed] Divorce rate

“Tsunnami of individualism washing across the Atlantic and hitting Britain [...]

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