How to View the YouTube Videos for the Top 100 Songs of the Year

This posts may help you to watch the music videos for the Top 100 songs of 2008 (I think they're the second half of the list, below) without having to look them up or open them individually. Here are the steps, but with luck you can skip most of these and go to the list of URLs, below. 1. Prepare a list of URLs. Do this using e.g., the list at About.com. In your browser, view the page source. Copy it all as text to e.g., Microsoft Word. Sort the paragraphs; delete everything that doesn't have a reference to YouTube; do some global searching and replacing (optionally using a macro) to remove everything except the YouTube URLs. 2. Put the URLs in batch file form. This means (a) do a global search and replace to put the appropriate command at the start of each line, with optional (probably advisable) quotation marks; (b) save in Notepad as a text file; (c) unless your browser can handle 200 video tabs at once, cut and paste this text file in pieces to another text file with a .BAT extension. Example: URL-List.txt has all 200 URLs, stated in command-line form (see 200 examples below); Open-URLs.bat has 20 of those 200; double-click on the latter and run it. 3. Get your browser in shape to run the batch file. I use Tab Mix Plus and set it to make sure that all tabs open in the same window, so I'm not opening dozens of distinct Firefox sessions, which would be a load on the computer. 4. Run the batch file. Wait for the videos to all download, and then you can watch them at your leisure. Repeat with the next set until you've worked through the whole list. I created a single list for 2007 and 2008 before I thought of writing this post, so the following list combines them both. About.com doesn't seem to have links to videos for anything before 2007 at this time, so that's why I did only those two years. If you understand the basic idea of the foregoing steps, you can probably just copy and paste the following lines into Notepad and run pieces of them as a batch file (see above). You may want to have Firefox already open before you run the batch file. start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aLFmVwbxro" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hd-uklv-5g" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PZ1Wh0jV-E" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GDnqLPEVnY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-HQN44VfFk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OjTspCqvk8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zeR3NSYcHk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2__Qdd11rfA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25qiZy7vmqY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2csB5B1AUe4&feature=related" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PWfB4lurT4" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30w8DyEJ__0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3esKbQK58OI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gvcpb4_7ZQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C_oHwLcivY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DC4Rb9quKk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sTHw7HEfHo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TN5umzSnFU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WAapKx2TvM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5H6n6TX3lsY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ojza4LcC-4" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JIrpLtqAJc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O3NmqzTpFM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70FGeQmPjeg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PxBGHjABnU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sei-eEjy4g" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7TvXAT_pTE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z1wyXxmnEw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89oS4SN4mNg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89V7hvEmSD8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JUvbJekM88" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mVEGfH4s5g" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r23cm7bL9E" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R8Qvm24dbU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sgycukafqQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tEROk-Y27Q" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YAHodp2H2Y" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ylgchWR-Ig" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2oO8kyZ6SM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4X7eFbP3u4" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6zdhHLvT7k" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCyGvGEtOwc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT434G38OBg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuK2A1ZqoWs" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3u65f4CRLk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8XC7idFyvE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbFo6u7l23k" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCvXzjGRnKc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPKUdoBKVqc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqpA5Acc8-c" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BV7PFX_GOZA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVTyLqkez6A" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYb9pkJqZf4" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYGCT4AQIR0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzGNgjwCdgs" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgmL2LeuhY4" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj63G4MZpms" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJmghwq7k2I" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP5fBx8JLoQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQ25-glGRzI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZd1Js0QaOI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzxR8OH-fDQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEskowncmlM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfzEbmBEh_Q" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHX3oTEB4i8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJZDsJ8UU64" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKhnmUdmz74" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_exesnCA5Y" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5QobtPLU_I" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbJtYqBYCV8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiiU-Fky18s" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkHTsc9PU2A" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epHN4uSHox0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUYYcvhvXuM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAYbPWJ9I64" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIUv3dOBbCk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKi125iqnFg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flAvh1o-s5E" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmX9ci9Fczw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftZ0jpYdn70" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIYXHLlxD8U" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWdC-ELzfYE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWzlD7Lc6w8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZSLIq6YiRY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhqhkwKZnqw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhZ5-L9znt8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKNA42bj-do" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlqfpPf_EO0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPnSq4TCQGY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr0Wv5DJhuk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYWOxuh33dw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i20Y9fMTj8U" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8WTDO6KWT8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjlOYHpi-A0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IUSZyjiYuY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWg3IMN_rhU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyiOD41srFo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3aIBrGfVw0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeoVHUQuzR0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJOzdLwvTHA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqliYGN_VHA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtxpcQaSR0k" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwXxUTGNe2U" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5-BJY00nHI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6EQAOmJrbw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE2orthS3TQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFeaqB-AAMo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHfyDxy8i5o" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN9vm95SocU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktUSIJEiOug" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY4W1b8WurU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzwAXlWkk3Y" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-_ZywDWRK8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l06M-dsQf3Q" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-38tShbnTg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljTkG8qcFzQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpocrqvP2Yg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPYZgwbqJ2Q" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt6o8NlrbHg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYMDXK9ZpxQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3ceCMpPJgc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M65zI9LH-as" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEskpfHOTAk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MR5xv3pt7KI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVmbGsEtmFI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXuxRWXisUQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1PCW0C1aiM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6r4KT8-VX0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBDbUVXXp-U" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdkiEjuZQ4g" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-FdoZdfpmE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhQZBeaxd9M" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NO2nqcN3EGg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOQvcMLll4E" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQnhVgPr-NU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyfY98PZkSQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyrSjN3M9oQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2Rd749vuG8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obhdTlImFBo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqumjziPTzk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5TNK-TvIcI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8Z-DIAthbM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDET_TrS4_Y" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PINJsCDBvOY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsCV61zsdtA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvrDM3CFBIw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8A2FaHhc3c" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCFbKEVzlOo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz7vGW2_5c0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_mhpRz0liA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0Hrx63_xOc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7DRtl6CTqc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhtdXu1rc_0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI_xYIxUTE0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruyKqhSidyw" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvnkAtWcKYg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1R_txIuuio" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S38-mjy5NtA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScXLHgPcZuc" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF84pIhP5UM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sftymVyLb-Q" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPUJIbXN0WY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx5dGjrze4k" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxlg6BIrQZY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t6iNXgvRXU" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAp9BKosZXs" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcZVpaVn-eM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tezx03k8W4s" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPW70sgrHiY" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ty0u1PzXfTo" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDAaevTq51I" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uI39Tzvtd7k" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRi_ZSr0VZI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwIGZLjugKA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzA0nG_PurQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQ4Jslynxcs" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrNoDUblAtE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGmdoOP7E24" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wtm8v6MryBk" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2IExa2A198" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5VdYqd6CdA" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X75mry1LcFg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsRWpK4pf90" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTNXrkBSp_o" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWHf_vYZzQ8" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yff9nCctMkg" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFRuUJR4LPI" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykW4rtW2eu0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnbBVWDtYm0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRC77brGYWs" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySbXw8AHlKM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ0z86LmXBM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzyys6kW8yg" 2&index=0" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4xmxb9K8RI&feature=PlayList&p=12E43D243BEF14F" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8lrjCVQnkE" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhpqXbndFvQ" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqqY07OZWps" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUTh3OJjWjM" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVZX-W3vo9I" start firefox.exe "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxtvHxQllzM"

Maybe It's Time for the Next Crisis

The received wisdom on the New Deal -- the wisdom as I've received it, anyway -- is that Roosevelt's efforts helped some people a lot, but what really yanked the U.S. economy out of the Great Depression was the advent of World War II. So maybe that's the kind of solution we need now, or maybe that's what will ultimately end the current economic crisis. If that's possible, then it might make sense to try to select the crisis that will pull us out of the current economic funk. Another global war is a possibility, but is there something comparably extreme -- something that people can and would die for -- that might be capable of stimulating extraordinary commitments by large masses of individuals? No comparable candidates spring to mind. People might somehow become united or energetic in the face of a global epidemic, but it is hard to see how the prospect of a few billion people being killed by disease would call for superhuman efforts by the remainder. Moreover, wars are competitive; are people apt to exert themselves to the maximum, without regard for their own ease and comfort, only when they are competing against others? A different sort of constructive scenario might emerge if World War II were instead construed as an excuse and opportunity for large numers of people to work together to build something remarkable out of great deprivation. In that way of looking at it, a period of tremendous growth could result if, say, the social, political, and economic map of the U.S. were suddenly scrambled, such that people were no longer locked into what may be outmoded forms and structures. If, hypothetically speaking, people were free to take off westward in covered wagons, to found new settlements in remote regions, they might well display the same industry and determination now as did those white settlers who went westward in the 1800s. But what, precisely, is the modern equivalent?

What Seems to Have Happened to the Economy

We were using nonexistent money to buy things. Not exactly -- the money did exist on paper, and often that's as far as money ever gets -- but it was nonexistent in the sense that the valuations (for e.g., house prices, mortgage-backed securities) were not supported by actual money that someone had. There was not enough money in the world to support the valuations. For instance, when subprime mortgages began to go underwater, there were not enough buyers at the supposed price levels to maintain those prices. In this interpretation, we are now in the process of adjusting the actual amount of money in the world to match the paper valuations of everything. We are doing this in two ways: by reducing the paper valuations via deflationary market pressures (where prices drop because people are no longer willing to supply the same amount of money as before in order to buy something), and by increasing the amount of money available. At some point, we will reach equilibrium, where prices will have dropped far enough and/or enough money will have been created. We will presumably reach equilibrium at relatively higher prices if we create lots of money very quickly; or equilibrium will come later, at lower prices, if the rate of price drops exceeds the rate of money creation. Money can be created in different places, for the benefit of different people. A bailout plan for banks replaces their nonexistent money with existent money, insuring that the banks stay afloat. A bailout plan for other kinds of debtors (e.g., auto companies, school systems, individuals) would do the same thing for them. The decision of where to create the money is apt to be steered by politics, where the people who have money tend to complain louder and make more trouble if they lose money, at least to a certain point. Not creating any money would reward those people who valued assets conservatively -- who, for example, did not assume that the temporarily inflated values placed upon their homes were available to be tapped for spending. But it would reward them in a negative sense: they would be the only people who were not wiped out by financial calamity. If they happened to be surrounded by neighbors who went wrong, it might develop that many houses would become vacant, in which case the fiscally conservative individuals might experience a loss in the value of their own assets. Or, in the case of banks, if money vanishes to such an extent that there is not enough money to cover all deposits, then banking as a whole might suffer, as people began to consider it safer to stash their cash in their mattresses. The flaw of the conservative approach is that it fails to provide a safety net. If you are determined not to let banks, communities, or individuals completely fail and go belly-up, then people know that the worst case will not be absolutely horrible, and it becomes possible to imagine letting the bad planners take a bath. Let the smart ones win, flush out the dummies, but make sure everyone lives to fight another day. In other words, if your competition becomes too cutthroat economically, then eventually it will become unpalatable politically. You've got to balance penalty and safety for the losers. By that priniciple, the place to create money is wherever people are lacking a safety net.