[BLOG] Some Saturday links

[rfmcdonald]

• At Acts of Minor Treason, Andrew Barton supports the unions in Wisconsin on the simple ground that the mere threat of unionization forces employers to treat their workers more nicely.


• BAG News Notes is properly scathing about anti-abortion ads targeted at New York City's African-American community which manage to position African-Americans as uniquely irresponsible as per established stereotypes.


• The Burgh Diaspora notes that recession-0hit Las Vegas is trying to learn from Detroit's struggles in keeping its own fleeing skilled and its youth. Might they return?


• Centauri Dreams features a guest post from Kelvin Long, a player in the British Interplanetary Society, on the movement's history and importance.


• Crooked Timber's Chris Bertram approves of this, the "Arab 1848," calling Qatar's al-Jazeera-sponsoring emir an Enlightenment despot in the tradition of Prussia's Frederick II, and suspecting American leverage is going to be much weakened.


• Daniel Drezner points out that, from his perspective, China's purchases of U.S. Treasury bonds etc haven't led to growing Chinese influence over the United States.


• At The Dragon's Tales, Will Baird has more about the latest generation of stealth fighters. Europe apparently has none in the works, instead prioritizing drones.


• Eastern Approaches reports on the various economic and military connections remaining between the states of the former Yugoslavia and Libya.


• Extraordinary Observations' Rob Pitingolo blogs--approvingly, I think--about the ongoing disappearance of gas stations in Washington D.C., hoping their disappearance will leave more city-friendly neighbourhoods. Ah, but there's clean-up costs! a commenter notes.


• GNXP points to recent studies--possibly with questionable samples--arguing that, contrary to stereotypes, Brazil is not mostly African by ancestry but rather mostly European.


• Michael in Norfolk links to reports that one-quarter of counties in the United States are losing population.


• The normally acute Norman Geras at Normblog seems to be entering into an unpleasant sort of dialogue with a co-ethnic critical of diasporid beliefs. Unimpressed here by neither comment, actually.


• The Search's Douglas Todd notes the claims of the Canadian Cosnervative Party to have captured the Roman Catholic vote without, well, having any signs of captured it.


• Slap Upside the Head features a guest poster who points out that Dr. Phil doesn't offer good advice to parents with non-gender-stereotypical children at all.