Links and Riffs

• AnomalyUK is still the only one of the formalists I saw who discussed the Cowen-linked monarchy paper.  Why?  At least read Anomaly's discussion.
• David Brin has one of his usual thoughtful riffs...which most interestingly includes this graph, which suggests that productivity per worker has increased faster recently, while wages have been increasing at the same old rate.  
• My question...is that because the workers are not responsible for the increased productivity?  Rather, the movement of intelligence (algorithms) off the brain and onto machines has led to worker-free productivity?    Do we have something wrong with our productivity statistics in that they don't capture this?
• Quote from this article:

  the foundation's numerous publications repeat the finding that new firms -- not small firms -- are the source of almost 3 million net new jobs that on average are created in the United States each year.

• I've already quoted from this Falkenstein post once.  
• Spandrell is chasing his earlier insight on HNU (UPDATED) Theory being the source of many problems.  I would have said it differently, and differently focused, but the insight is strong.
• BluntObject on Ron Paul.
• Eric Crampton's Coasian Grinch story. 
• Hanson on Hubris.  on Being Weird.  hilariously mocking tyler on intransitive morality
• Ta-Nehisi Coates on the civil war.