Wrong map, right map

We've often seen the above map of the United States that colors the states red or blue, or sometime purple, during election season. Since at least the beginning of the 21st century, as I can recall, it's usually looked like vast swathes of the country are red (or republican, maps used to actually have the colors the other way around). Sometimes you wonder how a democrat can win with the much red. People who vote republican are dismayed and blame liberal cities for having too much influence. However, that map makes us forget that we elect people based on population, not land mass. Numbers of voters, not square miles. Electoral college votes are given to states based on their populations. Whether you think it's right or wrong, it is also a fact that needs to be reminded that New York, Florida, Texas, and California have a much larger influence than Nebraska or Wyoming. Again, not right or wrong, but a fact you should keep in mind every time you see a map like the one above.

Nate Silver's Fivethirtyeight blog offers a map that is much more accurate. That gives us a far better snapshot of the leanings of the states. Each hexagon is one electoral vote in the map below. Here we see the actual weight each state can throw around. I won't offer any judgments about this situation. I don't know if "red state people" are under-represented, I don't know if we should somehow reduce the influence of usual blue urban areas. Ideally we can learn to stop being red and blue and just be humans. But I hope this map offers a different perspective.


(from the fivethrityeight.com page, 10-21-16)

Tags: thoughts, politics

I wish it could be just about music. And the art. But it isn't. It's life and everything else that comes along with that. As I've entered my 40th year on planet Earth, I am more certain than ever that I am not a liberal. I am not a conservative. I am not a libertarian or a green. I am a rationalist. And I am sick and tired of the relentless attacks from all sides on intelligence, science, and reason. The far left is just as bad as the far right. On a good day I can just make music. Doing the podcast helps, at least I feel like I'm doing a little bit for the long-term good of civilization. But the lack of thinking skills in America today is appalling. If you understand what scientific consensus means and you agree with the consensus on climate change, you must logically follow the consensus on other topics like GMOs and vaccines. If you think the government is inept at everything except hiding who killed Kennedy and how we faked the moon landing, go back to school. If you think your God commands you to kill you need a new god. I'm sorry this will offend some, but I am no longer willing to live a separate life with my music, tiptoeing around my personal convictions. If you are offended, perhaps you can separate the art from the artist and still listen to my music or look at my drawings. If you can't, all I can do is wish you well.

I do wish it was just about the music.

Tags: atheism, science, politics, art, music