As as child I used to build plastic model airplanes...mostly jet aircraft -- fighter planes -- and spacecraft. The parts were numbered, and had to be glued together, a simple enough task but it still required skill with sanding to get the "flanges" off, and to glue struts with the correct alignment. Then the painting and decals.

One time the old man running the hobby shop (and they were always old men) pulled me aside when I was buying lots of paint and told me, you know, the paint job will never disguise poor craftsmanship. In fact, it will make those flaws more pronounced.

"Happy" is as crappy as one of Pharrell Williams' hats. I find him a perfect fit for a Wal-Mart party.

Possie on Broadway was ok but Baby Got Back was what he killed at Benaroya.

Overvaluation - and the dips who fork it out - of tech-shit-du-jour like Uber and Beats and neato social chat apps... It's the next big bubble that's going to pop and crash the economy.

Californians [subst. Washingtonians] should wise up about our stupid tax code

The solution is a straightforward and standard prescription in economics. California should tax primarily what can never escape its borders: its real estate. And we should abandon state income and sales taxes.

Wealthier individuals would still pay more in taxes because they generally own more expensive houses in more expensive locations. Property taxes rates could be progressive, sliding upward with the value of the land and house: a $5-million mansion would be taxed at a higher rate than a $100,000 condo.

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-…

Republicans want to leave our soldiers behind. Disgraceful! Obama is working to leave Afghanistan. How could we do that with Afghans in our prisons? He should make no apologies.

fuck those starfish; the world is full of oppressed and underprivileged humans. We must remain vigilant and resist the urge to secede and reverse globalism. March!!

Wow Sir-Mix-A-Lot! I did not think that could be listenable, and instead it sounds great.

Performing for Walmart? Whatever excuse Pharrell has for that, it's not good enough. I was big a NERD fan. Sucks.

@10
How come you didn't think the Mix-A-Lot could be listenable? Preconceived notions not allowed! Don't you read Slog? Sounds you may be a closet bigot-racist-homophobe. Shapen up dear son.

Loved the music/arrangement. Thank you for that.

No, they weren't paid minimum wage, but they were locked in until the job was done.

@8: He already did, to the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D) and other members of Congress for circumventing constitutionally-required Congressional approval.

I mean Congressional notification.

@4 named after the black Jacobins of the Haitian independence movement.

@5: Beats pulls in just under a billion in profit each year. Hard to see how buying them for the equivalent of 3.5 years profit (2 years revenue) is an overvaluation.

Whenever I buy something that pays for itself in under 5 years, I'm pretty pleased with it.

@11, I didn't think symphony Sir-Mix-A-Lot would be good. I thought it was. I don't understand how that's racist. You should take your advice to sharpen up jackass.

Uber is worth $17B in the same way the gold in the back of the bus during the final scene of The Italian Job is worth $4M.