March 31st, 2009

All Of This Has Happened Before…

Well crap, they went ahead and invented hybrids.

Admiral Adama would be ashamed.

Jamie posted this at 1:59 PM EDT on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 as Toaster Update

Karlsgaard and Lewis

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.

—C.S. Lewis

Rich Karlsgaard expects a recovery, but he’s concerned about the president:

The stock market recovery will be stunted for many reasons. Inflation. Regulation. Higher taxes. Investor fears that Obama and Congress rather enjoy tearing up contracts and changing the rules. Obama himself likes to say that shareholders must sacrifice in this recovery. Hello? Suffering a 55% drubbing in equities has not been sacrifice enough?

This brings us to Obama. How the 44th president defines recovery may be a lot different than any definition we’ve come to expect. Most of us would define recovery as GDP growth, rising employment, higher incomes, and a stock market going up 10% a year. Not so with Obama. Each day it becomes clearer that Obama has far different idea of recovery.

Obama believes America must “recover” from its sin and addiction. According to Obama, the national sin is greed. The national addiction is to big homes, cheap energy and personal ambition.

. . .

Obama sees himself as a redeemer. His radicalism is not that of FDR, a man who despite his economic missteps loved his martinis, women and country—big, rowdy, excessive America. Obama is revealing himself to be more like a Woodrow Wilson or Jimmy Carter, pinched and self-righteous. Carter carried his own luggage. Obama tells bank CEOs he has not redecorated the Oval Office.

Obama is determined to save us from ourselves. That’s his idea of recovery. Unfortunately, Obama’s idea of recovery will pinch the potential of a real recovery.

Is Karlsgaard right about Obama? And is Lewis correct about omnipotent moral busybodies?

Hubbard posted this at 12:54 PM EDT on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 as CHANGE!

No Comments »

Of Course

Oh come on, you can’t tell me you all didn’t see this coming.

Jamie posted this at 9:27 AM EDT on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 as Bailoutistan, The Democratic Congress

1 Comment »

March 30th, 2009

Parody is Dead

We give Democrats control of the government, and barely two months later we get a website telling us how to cope with the mental health issues associated with an economic crisis. It’s like someone made a parody of an Ann Coulter prediction . . . except it’s real.

Apollo posted this at 9:46 PM EDT on Monday, March 30th, 2009 as CHANGE!

No Comments »

Barbarism

Using my head as a prop, an old teacher gave some good advice to a young teacher. The older one said, “Be careful what you put in here [tapping my forehead] because you’ll never get it out again.” What we teach children lasts, and sometimes the little things—like a teacher using you as an example—can make an impression decades later.

What, then, are the children of Palestine learning when the youth orchestra is disbanded for playing to Shoah survivors? [Emphasis added below.]

Palestinian authorities disbanded a youth orchestra from a West Bank refugee camp after it played for a group of Holocaust survivors in Israel, a local official said on Sunday.

Adnan Hindi of the Jenin camp called the Holocaust a political issue and accused conductor Wafa Younis of unknowingly dragging the children into a political dispute.

He added that Younis has been barred from the camp and the apartment where she taught the 13-member Strings of Freedom orchestra has been boarded up.

“She exploited the children,” said Hindi, the head of the camp’s popular committee, which takes on municipal duties. “She will be forbidden from doing any activities…. We have to protect our children and our community.”

(H/T)

When learning history and music and paying tribute to survivors takes second place to propaganda, there’s no real hope for the future. Is there an Arabic word for doublespeak—how does preventing an orchestra from playing “protect our children”?

Hubbard posted this at 9:15 AM EDT on Monday, March 30th, 2009 as Arafatistan, Ex Pede Herculem, We're all DOOMED

No Comments »

March 28th, 2009

CFLs Still Suck

Some New York-based publication has a story describing how now the new compact florescent light bulbs still suck. This complaint is specifically about how short their lifespans can be if not used “properly.” You probably didn’t know how to properly treat the light bulbs you were buying:

Experts and bulb manufacturers say that consumers need to play a role in solving the problems by learning more about the limitations of compact fluorescent bulbs. The Federal Trade Commission has begun to study whether it should force improvements in the labels of the bulbs.

Better labels might have helped the Zuerchers, the San Francisco couple. Initially, they put regular compact fluorescents in virtually every socket in their home, including enclosed ceiling lamps, dimmable fixtures and areas where lights are turned on and off frequently.

But some of those applications require specialized, more expensive bulbs, something the Zuerchers say was not made clear on the label of their Feit bulbs or on any sign they saw posted at Costco.

Yeah, right. A crappy light bulb is being marketed as the be-all-end-all of the green movement, and it’s Costco’s fault for not putting up signs detailing that these light bulbs should not be used in most of your household sockets? How many lights do you have that aren’t “enclosed ceiling lamps, dimmable fixtures, or areas where lights are turned on and off frequently”? The crappiness of these bulbs should, but won’t, cast a whole new light on the government’s idiotic decision to mandate them within a few years. One might suspect that environmentalists would be bothered by the government mandating that its citizens use mercury-containing products of questionable life span; one would be wrong. Nope, we’re still on a path to ban the incandescent bulb and give me constant headaches.

I do have a story of the unreliability of CFLs. I bought a rather large one (equivalent to a 175 watt bulb) to put in an outdoor socket back in late 2007. As soon as it got cool here in Austin, the bulb just stopped working. I had used it maybe a dozen hours, tops. Since I didn’t use the light that much, I didn’t bother replacing it. Then one day in summer 2008, it just started working again. It kept working all through this last winter, and we haven’t had a problem with it. So maybe these people complaining about their bulbs being crappy, instead of going through the hassle of finding a way to legally dispose of these hazardous materials, should just leave them in the socket and try again in several months. Anything in the name of saving the environment, right?

Apollo posted this at 4:03 PM EDT on Saturday, March 28th, 2009 as Convenient Truth

2 Comments »

This is Not Investment Advice

Here’s an investment fund that’s only in the market on days when Congress isn’t in session. So far this year, it’s down less than 5%, which means that it’s outperformed the market and significantly outperformed every mutual fund listed on my TDAmeritrade account.

The idea of the fund is that the market does better when Congress isn’t in session. Now I know that correlation isn’t causation, but the long-term numbers this guy’s assembled make one of the damnedest charts I ever saw.

He thinks the best response is to start a fund. I think the best response is to follow Texas’s lead and only let Congress meet in odd numbered years. He might make more money, but that won’t stop me from dreaming. (H/T)

Apollo posted this at 9:36 AM EDT on Saturday, March 28th, 2009 as Uncategorized

2 Comments »

March 26th, 2009

Let’s Not Go There

The president of Brazil – a leftist, as one could have guessed from this story – blames the current economic mess on “white people with blue eyes.” “I do not know any black or indigenous* bankers so I can only say [it is wrong] that this part of mankind which is victimised more than any other should pay for the crisis.”**

A white person like myself – but I’m not blue-eyed, so I’m blameless in the present crisis! – might be called racist for saying that “I do not know any black or indigenous bankers.”*** A white person like myself would almost certainly be called racist for pointing out, “It’s those same white people who, uniquely in human history, created a widespread political and economic philosophy of freedom, which has produced the unprecedented prosperity of the last two hundred years.” But since I’m not a racist like Brazil’s Socialist president, I wouldn’t say such a thing. Perhaps it’s often best, in the name of racial harmony, to not point out certain facts that might be obvious to non-biased observers.

The best bit, though, is Gordon Brown, who responds to this racist shtick with, “I’m not going to attribute blame to any individuals.” Well neither, evidently, is Mr. Silva, who attributed it to a ~~race (or, at least, the blue-eyed subset of a race)~~ phenotype. Pretty nifty that when two socialists stand next to other and one says something blatantly racist, the other doesn’t have to criticize. No enemies on the left, eh Gordo?

*Aren’t white, blue-eyed people indigenous?

**Really, he thinks “black and indigenous” people, whatever that means, are paying for this crisis? That’s ignorant leftist demagoguery. But I’m redundant.

***I might also be called ignorant, and told, “Go to New York and actually meet some bankers.”

Apollo posted this at 10:10 PM EDT on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 as Commie Recrudescence, Race

2 Comments »

Ah, Yes

Now I remember why I don’t like talking to leftist intellectual types who take themselves seriously. This is hilarious, beginning with stupidly calling someone racist, delving into catty personal attacks, and then having an insufferable meta-discussion about the nature of the list. It more or less reads like what I would script a leftist email group to say. Though the funniest thing – and something I wouldn’t have scripted – is how much Brad DeLong hates Dr. Sullivan (Ob/Gyn). Please don’t take that as an endorsement of Brad DeLong.

Apollo posted this at 9:16 PM EDT on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 as Excruciatingly Correct Behavior, Journalism

7 Comments »

The Prudence of George Bush Pays Off

Here is an interesting and informed post regarding North Korea’s imminent missile launch. It’s amazing how, these days, we have a missile defense system and can reasonably expect it to work. This wasn’t the case that long ago, and for those of us with extraordinarily long memories might remember back in 2000, whether or not to fund missile defense research was a controversial campaign issue. Al Gore and the serious people of the world pooh-poohed the idea, regarding it as fanciful that we could ever do such a thing, thus research then was just wasted money.

George Bush, though, and some of us fellow knuckle-draggers thought in more simplistic terms. “Government should defend the people. Shooting down other countries missiles is better than letting them hit us. If we never fund this research, then we’ll never develop the technology to do this.” Those were my thoughts at the time.

Well well well. Here we are in the distant future of 2009. We don’t yet have flying cars, but we do have the ability to shoot down another country’s missiles. And, whadyaknow, one of those “rogue states” the idiot Bush talked about in 2000, a member of that “axis of evil” the moron Bush talked about in 2002, appears now to have the ability to make an atom bomb, and appears ready to launch a long-range missile over one of our closest allies toward us.

I remember back in 2000 being simply flabbergasted that some people opposed investment in missile defense. I hope some of those people will now look back and realize where they went wrong in their thinking.

P.S. Do also remember that missile defense only came to pass because the unilateralist cowboy Bush abandoned the ABM treaty, something that brought about much outrage from the left but seemed fairly commonsensical to many of us.

Apollo posted this at 5:00 PM EDT on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 as George Bush Rules!

3 Comments »

Holy Crapola

Apparently, running up to and barking at a police officer coming onto your property is a capital offense in Grady County, OK.

Balko has the details. Don’t get me wrong: dogs should be tied up if left outside. But can you imagine anyone except a cop in a corrupt department getting away with something like this?

Tom posted this at 2:40 PM EDT on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 as Uncategorized

1 Comment »

Kids are still kids, but. . .

Over at The American Thinker, Charlie Nathan is worrying about the millenial generation:

According to the Josephson Institute for Youth Ethics 2008 survey on the ethics of American youth, 64 percent of high school students admitted cheating on a test during the previous year and 38 percent did so two or more times. 30 percent admitted to stealing from a store within the past year. Yet, incredibly, an astounding 93 percent of those same high school students said they were satisfied with their personal ethics and character.

My personal experiences have confirmed these statistics. I know of one instance where rich parents offered a brand-new BMW to an SAT tutor to take the test for their child, who was surely in on the scheme. The parents didn’t want their child to achieve on merit alone and encouraged cheating. The tutor declined the offer, but I am confident this is not the only case.

To share another personal example of twisted morality, two summers ago I was eating at a diner with some recent acquaintances. After we finished, I left a generous tip. As we were leaving, my companions started to laugh hysterically. I asked what was so funny and they revealed that they had taken my tip, a reward for service that was perfectly fine, and replaced it with a penny. These boys essentially stole the major source of income from a waitress, insulting her in the process — all to “teach me a lesson” about over-tipping.

His concern for his generation is admirable, but perhaps his diagnosis is misplaced. Hannah Arendt once observed that in every generation Western Civilization is invaded by barbarians, which we call “children.” People aren’t born good. It’s something that needs to be learned. Mr. Nathan seems to go off track when he writes:

From Enron to Madoff, we have witnessed the economic consequences of immoral behavior. The current financial crisis was in part caused by immorality: buyers bought homes they couldn’t afford, sellers sold homes to people who couldn’t afford them, and the government sat back, enjoying the show.

. . .

So far, we Millennials have not had much of a chance to step up to the plate and prove ourselves morally capable of becoming the leaders of the American economy. But we will have no choice and, unless we change our ways, our immoral behavior can have disastrous consequences.

There’s far more to criticize in what happened before the Millenials. They’re the children of the Baby Boomers, and have come by their narcissism because they imitated their parents. It seems a stretch of logic to go from “the younger generation has a selfishness problem” to “the institutions are failing because of the older generation’s selfishness.”

The logical connection, which Mr. Nathan nibbles around but doesn’t really get to, is that the older generation, which both trashed the institutions and raised the younger badly, is at fault. The Baby Boomers shortcomings are an explanation—but not an excuse—for the Millennials. How much the Millennials are like their parents will determine the course of the 21st century.

Hubbard posted this at 12:05 PM EDT on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 as Excruciatingly Correct Behavior, Kulturkampf

1 Comment »

Meat Alert

If you’re like me and are familiar with and attached to the traditional cuts of beef sold in American grocery stores, the Wall Street Journal ($$$) has important news for you. From a story about the beef industries attempt to adapt to the new economy:

In recent months, Cargill Inc., which owns one of the nation’s biggest meatpacking companies, has begun trying to make some low-value beef cuts sound more appetizing. Thus, a piece that butchers have long called “flap meat” is being recast as “Cordelico Sirloin,” while “ball tip” has been rechristened “Cabrosa Steak.”

I’m a fan of flap meat, but if I see something labeled “sirloin” – “Cordelico” or no – and it looks like flap meat, I’m going to be very suspicious of my butcher.

But now as consumers scour delis and supermarkets for deals, the industry is trying to spotlight cheaper muscle cuts like round and chuck that have tended to be less tender and contain more muscle fiber. The industry says new cutting techniques have made the cuts more palatable.

The new Denver Cut, a steak from the “chuck roll,” near the cow’s ribs, is currently being tested in restaurants. Another cut, Boneless Country-Style Beef Chuck Ribs, is being tested in some grocery stores.

The Journal has this nifty diagram – which I hope you poor non-subscribers can see – showing where these new cuts are coming from. I’m interested in the Denver Cut; I’ve long thought that portion of the chuck was tender enough to make a steak out of, that it was a shame such a tender piece of meat was being thrown into stews, and that a tender piece of chuck should be more flavorful than most other steaks. So yay for “new cutting techniques”! I hope it means they’re using lasers to cut my steak, as that would be cool.