The press is still telling you that it is a toss-up race between Obama and Romney.

The press is, as usual, completely lying to you.

Statistically, Romney stands very little chance. For him to win, absolutely everything would have to go his way, and absolutely everything would have to go against Obama.

That is of course extremely unlikely.

I don’t personally give a fuck who wins, as it matters very little in the medium or long run (and not even that much in the short run).

Nate Silver is a good example of the importance of writing well.

Silver is not a genius forecaster; his projections merely match that of other unbiased models. However, he writes much more clearly than other forecasters and statisticians.

I see parallels with my own life.

I’ve worked in IT for a long time now, and I am pretty good at it. However, I doubt I am in the top 10% of technical skill, and perhaps not even in the top 20%.

What I am, though, is a good writer. I write accurately and quickly and am capable of explaining very difficult technical concepts in terms that non-techies can understand (or at least have the illusion that they do).

I may not be in the top 20% of techs, but in the tech world I’d wager I’m in the top 1/10 of one percent of writing ability.

That has helped me immensely over the years, and is probably responsible for most of my advancement – that and interviewing well, which I suspect is a related skill.

The ability to craft a good sentence is a transferable skill. Unlike many skills, it helps you in every field. You might be able to succeed without it, but with it you do much better than you otherwise would even if you lack top-tier skills.

If I were very rich, I’d hire a “no person.” That is, I’d hire someone specifically so that they’d find all the ways I am wrong about something.

That would be their specific job, to always be my devil’s advocate so I don’t lose perspective and become a complete assclown as most rich people seem to become.

Most of the rich seem to want to surround themselves with those who act as useless parrots of their views and desires. I want someone who will tell me, “That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard and you should be ashamed for breathing.”

Someone who tells me I am right all the time is completely useless. Hell, I think I am right most of the time. I don’t need anyone to tell me that.

Advertising for that job would be rather interesting. Interviewing would be as well.

I’d hire the first person who told me I was conducting the interview like a damn idiot.