America may still think of itself as the land of opportunity, but the chances of living a rags-to-riches life are a lot lower than elsewhere in the world… More at Reuters.com .

The Spanish Herald: The Spanish Socialist Party will introduce a bill in the Congress of Deputies calling for “the immediate inclusion of (simians) in the category of persons, and that they be given the moral and legal protection that currently are only enjoyed by human beings.” The PSOE’s justification is that humans share 98.4% of our genes with chimpanzees, 97.7% with gorillas, and 96.4% with orangutans.I’m not going to mock, since I don’t know what was actually stated in Spanish, but it seems to me that giving them “human rights” seems less sensible than extending rights beyond the scope of …

Worthwhile article China loves capitalism, hates elections reproduced at The Peking Duck. (With a long and involved comments section following.)

I’ve only just gotten around to reading Francis Fukyama’s After Neoconservatism. My main reaction is, “Well, duh.” I mean, he’s smart, well-meaning, and all that, but some of his “conclusions” are things I’ve pretty much thought for years. I mean, sorry, when you used to be an avowed, active, committed NeoConservative, that still means you weren’t thinking straight at some point in the recent past. It’s kind of like declaring to the world that henceforth you’re not going to brothels — it’s admirable to repent, but it doesn’t mean I’m comfortable with you dating my daughter. Or, more importantly in …

Seattle? Guns? Occasionally, it seems. Remind me to stay away from City Hall when I’m there this summer.