Just the facts

Good looking bastards
Dumber than Kardashians
News correspondents

Census question

If corporations are people, what is the population of Delaware? Shouldn't the Census Bureau include corporations in the people count ?

Autosave

When I fall asleep at the keyboard, (and I admit that happens pretty often), I thank goodness for autosave. Just occurred to me that Autosave would be a handy feature for an on-line fundamentalist church. Just enter your Visa card number and wait a few minutes for Autosave to occur. Takes the guesswork out of salvation. You could also build up heavenly reward points, and redeem them for halo, wings and harp, (but only after kicking the bucket.) Actually, I can't see myself lugging around a harp - those things are heavy, and bulky and probably really give your wings a workout. Wait, I feel a sacrilegious op/ed piece in the works. Maybe I'll get inspired. Or go to hell.

Enough NFL

I really don't care if these overpaid primadonna football stars and fat cat owners play another down ever.

I think it would be only justice to see the NFL fritter away its anti-trust exemption through greed, call a lock-out, then get their Armani pants sued off. When the lock-out ends by court order, the players strike. In a desperate bid to pay the escalating mortgage on his new stadium, Jerry Jones starts a new league merging football with professional wrestling. Sidelines are replaced by ring ropes and helmets are eliminated as a concession to the WWF crowd, who want to see their heroes emote and bleed. Game scores exceed first basketball, then cricket tallies. Games are so obviously scripted that only trash sports cable TV carries the games. Even the bookies abandon the new sport, and attendance sags except for the mullet crowd. Jerry Jones is bankrupt and in prison within two years, and turns his attention toward getting a TV contract for a prison league. His memorial stadium becomes permanent host to the Fort Worth Farmers Market. Meanwhile with the elimination of the offsides penalty and full contact and tackling allowed, soccer finally starts to catch on as the national sport.

At the request of friends and neighbors, I am reluctantly placing my name on the ballot for Township Supervisor. I think the Township Board of Supervisors needs some help.

As a reluctant candidate, I hope and expect somebody better will win, and I will help them win, and congratulate them on their victory, and thank providence they won. I am probably just Plan B for the Democrats. If the preferred candidate wins the lottery or wimps out on us, I'll step into the hole. In our Township, the odds are really against any Democrat, since voter registration runs almost 2-1 Republican; but there may be barely enough independents and potential cross-over votes to at least make it possible to eke out a win, depending on how many Republicans actually vote. If they turn out in force, we will probably see only Republicans elected. Whatever happens, the show will go on.

Plastic or Paper or None of the Above ?

Now here's a good idea.

Telluride Daily Planet > Archives > News > Bag ban goes into effect Tuesday

Plastic bags are made from polyethylene, which is derived mostly from oil and natural gas, and although some bags are recycled, most of them end up in landfills. In our household, we tend to accumulate these plastic grocery bags, and sometimes recycle them by taking them back to the grocery store. We sometimes use them as trash bags (to the landfill), and sometimes just throw them away (landfill again) . It would be useful if our local trash pickup allowed us to recycle plastic bags. Even though we have enough reusable cloth bags, we seem to frequently forget them. If plastic was not an option, or if we had to pay extra for plastic bags, then we would have more incentive to break this convenient habit.

Like Cats ?

Darpa’s Cheetah-Bot Designed to Chase Human Prey | Danger Room | Wired.com

Regardless of my last post, it looks as if, even near term, DARPA may unleash feline and canine terminators. Hope they are targeted precisely on terrorists and lobbyists, and not visiting Senators. The Big Dog robot in action looks really creepy indeed. The videos are worth a look despite the propaganda.

Welcome our new overlords ? Not yet

Watson's convincing victory on Jeopardy last week resurrected the public debate about the danger of Arnold coming back from the future and messing with us. In fact there is some small concern that computers which control so many transactions now, will eventually control most human activity, and even surpass human intellectual capacity. That scenario could happen, but there are a number of very large technical hurdles barring that outcome. So what is required of technology for computers like HAL 9000 to take over ? Firstly, computers would need much better sensory capability, especially vision. Except in controlled lab environments, and the movies, HAL currently cannot accurately interpret what it is able to see via video cam or any other device. There are recent advances in interpreting visual information, like results of the autonomous vehicle competition sponsored by DARPA, where unmanned vehicles were required to navigate a closed obstacle course, however, these incremental advances do not represent any real technological breakthrough, but merely refining and applying existing technology. We are probably at least a generation away from safe, affordable, autonomous vehicles. One of the major hurdles for HALs emergence remains the development of effective artificial intelligence. AI includes learning ability, reasoning ability to apply logic, deduction, induction, and original thought. AI, once thought to be a near reality, has remained an elusive and receding goal. It seems that we just did not know how much we did not know in the area of AI requirements. We have succeeded in building expert systems, which mainly organize and repeat information previously loaded, along with some rudimentary learning capability. Development of computer sensory perception, visual processing, language skills, and learning ability will advance in the foreseeable future, but these technologies all require unpredictable hardware and software major innovation to make AI practical. . The key ingredient that will probably not be seen for hundreds of years is computer capacity for original thought. When that occurs, if we allow it, Arnold may indeed be back.

PBS - Mark Twain: Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses

A Classic 15 minute read

PBS - Mark Twain: Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses

Whenever I start to believe I am a good writer, a dose of Mark Twain restores my literary humility.

 

Church of the Twilight Zone

The more I see of organized religion, especially the TV evangelist version, the more it seems to be no more than superstition as entertainment. From the clerical antics on-screen, and the off-screen peccadilloes of the performers, it is difficult to credit that there is a god in the sense that commercialized religion promotes. Or heaven or hell; or after-life for that matter. It is much more rational that this life is the extent of our consciousness - when you're done, you're done. So do the best you can, take joy where you can find it, give joy whenever you can. Do the things that give you joy and satisfaction, and that make others feel good. Love your family and leave them a habitable home and the ability to have full lives for themselves. So if there is no god but what we find in ourselves, let's just do the best we can with what we have. Of course, there are other possibilities:

Where are we heading ?

Another thing to consider is that humans are still evolving. While evolutionary physical changes are almost imperceptible generation to generation, cultural behavior changes markedly in the same period. Behavior changes coupled with advances in technology may tend to accelerate the pace of human evolution without much outward change in basic appearance. With the constant push for smaller, cheaper, faster electronic devices, and the changes in medical technology, and the sociological drive to be in constant communication via the Internet and cellphone, it is quite conceivable that within a few hundred years, people will be hardwired into the Web with implanted always-on communication devices that also serve as personal digital assistants, data storage, and sense augmentation. Genetic engineering may also have an impact on the population, to make people live longer, healthier lives. Homo sapiens may be only 100,000 years old, but we have only very recently developed technology capable of beginning to understand the physical universe we find ourselves inhabiting. Our civilization has had powered flight for only four generations, nuclear power for only two generations, and only in the current generation have we developed powerful computing and communication capabilities.

Alien NFL Referees among us

Given that there are billions of stars in a galaxy, and that there are billions of galaxies in the universe, it is highly likely there is other intelligent life in the universe, and that this intelligence is much greater, more ancient and experienced than our own (probably god-like to us). It is less probable, although quite possible, that this super intelligence exists within our galaxy. If they exist in our galaxy, they probably know about us but don't care what we do, or know about us and observe, or know about us and control or at least influence developments on earth. So there is some small chance that the aliens are among us. It is this small possibility that I find interesting to think about. So there may be numerous, or a few super intelligent collections of beings in our galaxy. They are probably at least aware of us. What must we seem like to them ? Like ants at a picnic - a nuisance, but we don't eat much. As interesting wildlife to observe ? As an experiment to tweak and study ? Probably not as a source of protein, since the herd has not been thinned.

If there is superintelligent life and if they are capable of spanning interstellar distance, and if they are interested in more primitive intelligent life, and that's a lot of ifs, then they may well have visited at least once, possibly numerous times, and may even be here now. In any case, if they have been or are here now, they have chosen not to make themselves known publicly. If they choose to act, they would likely choose to influence events and outcomes rather than overtly dictate. Much like NFL referees, they do not play the game, but profoundly influence the outcome. In fact, perhaps NFL referees are indeed aliens. Their actions certainly seem unpredictable to us, and not based on earthly logic. Now just think about it for a minute. They supposedly have real day jobs that still allow them ample time to prepare for and travel to and from games. They don't get paid for doing a remarkably unattractive job that requires a state police escort to ensure their safety. And physically, how in the world can these fat, old guys race down the sideline almost step for step with a pro receiver ? How do they have the stamina to do this for an entire game ? The answer, of course, is that they are not of this world. (Twilight Zone theme plays softly in the background).

There must be others of the off-world persuasion as well. Think what type of person stays almost invisibly in the background, prefers anonymity, does not receive awards or public recognition, in fact they often conceal their activities and influence even when they operate in the very center of power, but nevertheless command the ability to make or break critical decisions. Lobbyists come to mind. Lobbyists are blessed with a distinct lack of human conscience or sense of ethics. Lobbyists always seem to be well funded, and operate very effectively at the behest of shadowy organizations with obscure objectives. They effectively write the legislation that Congress enacts, and determine which rules and regulations are enforced, and which ones are not. As another authoritative resource, lets ask Dick Cheney about aliens among us. If anybody knows, he does.

Jerry Jones is the second coming of Al Davis

Listen, Jerry Jones should himself take over as head coach of the feckless Dallas Cowboys football team. There is only one other NFL owner who comes close to Jerry in team management expertise, and that is Al Davis. Also, recall that Al was actually the head coach and offensive coordinator of the Raiders for several years (and compiled a winning record). Jerry has done so well as GM that he should now hand that function off to someone else who could continue his fine performance, someone like Matt Millen - I hear he is available. Then Jerry could try his hand as head coach - it is the only viable alternative. He could even keep Wade around, since he has to pay him anyway; maybe put him in charge of post-game apologies and team refreshments. I'm certain Jerry is just as mentally competent as Al Davis, and Al has done it all - owner, GM, and coach. Why should Jerry let Al outshine him in such fashion. This arrangement would have truly great entertainment value, and would be no worse than the current snafu. Jerry may make a great coach, who knows ?

Up against the wall dickwads !

I just abandoned a book called The Extinction Event, by David Black.

Here's what I thought of it:

The writer, editor, publisher and anyone else associated with this wanna-be novel should be pelted with rotten tomatoes. Either the author has been smitten with senility and the other culprits are giving him a pass, or this was written as a comic book and someone forgot to include the artwork. In any case it is a fraud, and if I had bought it instead of borrowing from the library, I would be insisting on my money back. Specifically, the characters in this travesty are one dimensional caricatures, and the plot is some stream-of-consciousness, ever-diverging departure from reality. The dialog is lifted directly from the Big Book of Cliches to Avoid, and the whole mess is punctuated by tedious descriptive narrative that adds nothing to the story, but must be intended merely to take up white space. This drivel is what I would expect from a vapid high school sophomore trying to write in the style of Mickey Spillane. This is the worst book I have ever attempted to read, and I admit I gave up a quarter of the way through, and just spot checked a page here and there after page 57, expecting it just had to get better, but it did not. Instead it just gets painfully worse and more improbably chaotic, and inspired me to write this review. Save your money. Wait for the comic book to come out.

Corporate Sludge Dumping

We have lived in rural, agricultural areas for more than forty years, in Texas, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. We never encountered farmers desecrating their land with sewage until it happened in our area of Shrewsbury Township beginning in 2007. Sewage sludge has poisoned the wells of surrounding land-owners, caused illness and bacterial infection among nearby residents, reduced property values, and taken from people the normal use and enjoyment of their homes. Unless you have experienced nearby sludge dumping, you cannot possibly know how bad it is. The DEP calls sludge application a normal farming practice. It is not. The Attorney General, taking the side of the polluters, strikes down any attempt by local governments to protect their citizens from the dangerous results of sludge dumping. The current situation is intolerable, and citizens will continue to oppose the collusion between politicians and corporate interests that allow violation of our rights.

Let the bastards fail

The Congress should not use taxpayer dollars to bail out Wall Street.

This bill does nothing to fix the root causes of the current problem. The bank liquidity crisis is caused by a decade of lack of effective regulation and oversight in the banking, mortgage, and securities markets. Rampant deregulation and lax enforcement has allowed greedy and even criminal speculators to profit from unsound and deceitful business practices.

The current Senate proposal uses taxpayer dollar bills to cover up the problems temporarily. This is like using paper dollars to smother a bonfire. It may block the flames for a short while, but will eventually be fuel for an inferno.

The notion that taxpayers will profit from the 700 Billion dollar “investment” into worthless Mortgage-backed securities is as ludicrous as the claim that the Iraq war would pay for itself.

This bill is a bad law. Let the market work to kill off incompetent bankers and speculators. We will endure the tough times ahead and emerge a stronger economy without the incompetent gamblers the bailout would preserve and cause to prosper at taxpayer expense.

Bailout Mistake

There may be a few problems with the proposed taxpayer bailout of the equity markets.

Aside from the immorality of rewarding already rich Wall Street weasels for their malfeasance in bringing the economy to ruin, the prospect of a taxpayer bailout only postpones the problem, and saddles the next administration with a huge debt and the prospect of continuing to prop up a fragile economy led by insolvent financial services giants.

If the intent of the bailout is to restore investor confidence in the market, as stated by the Secretary of the Treasury, then it has already failed. Investors are evacuating from the market like from a burning building, and are not likely to return soon. After the current debacle, the equity markets will not likely recover for many years if ever.

Indeed, the equity markets may never return to past levels, because the bailout sets a precedent of government intervention in equity markets that completely changes the economic principles of the markets. The precedent shifts risk from investors to taxpayers. Once that precedent is established, who knows what new investment dynamics will apply? Marx and Lenin would be saying “I told you so.”

The gutless Congress, with an eye on elections in a few weeks, will bluster and posture for the cameras, but will eventually roll over and agree to the bailout to avoid blame for the eventual and unavoidable economic crash.

A hasty bailout extends the legacy and flawed philosophies of the current presidency into the next administration. The needless rescue inflates the federal deficit to the point that the incoming administration will have very little opportunity to make significant change. The additional 700 billion will be borrowed from mostly foreign sources at unavoidably higher interest rates. The huge deficit and interest payments will cause the value of the dollar to further decline, thus increasing inflation as the cost of oil and other imports increases in lock step.

In the Senate hearings yesterday, the spokesmen for the Executive branch reminded me of snake oil salesmen, whose basic pitch was “give us the money, or bad things will happen”. They have a concept. They have no plan, no strategy, no tactics, and few specific actions they are willing to share in public. They offered only vague ideas of how the bailout funds would be spent. The administration has already authorized $300 Billion for the bailouts of Wall Street investment bankers and AIG. Now the request is for another $700 Billion, with no end in sight. Put in perspective, the cost of the six year Iraq war is $560 Billion.

This vague approach is not surprising, since this administration generally has a shoot-from-the-hip approach to major issues. They just seem to careen from disaster to catastrophe without learning that preparation, planning, and follow up are necessary for any major activity.



Remember some of the high points of this presidency:
“We know where the weapons of mass destruction are located.”
“The war will pay for itself.”
“Mission Accomplished”
“Good Job Brownie.”
“The Economy is strong (last month)”

We, the taxpayers, are in for tough times ahead, regardless of what the economic “experts” predict. The bailout does not fix Wall Street. It will only slow down the probable crash past the next election. At best, we can hope for a long and deep recession with a lot of belt-tightening all around.

We should just take our lumps now and let the markets sort things out. Congress should not saddle taxpayers with a huge additional debt. Let the incompetent and greedy financial companies fail. Let those responsible for bad loans fail, both lenders and borrowers. Let the Congress establish adequate regulation in the wake of the wreck. Wall Street and Main Street will survive, and will go on, poorer and wiser, but ready to rebuild.

Thankfully, there is an election soon, which affords the only glimmer of optimism in the shambles that the current bunch of incompetents has left us.

Bush is such a tool

Words cannot express my sense of powerless rage at what George Bush and friends have done to my country. He has a true genius for destruction.

"An aide to the prime minister of Canada called President Bush a moron. Well that's not fair. Here's a guy who never worked a day in his life, got rich off his Dad's money, lost the popular vote and ended up president. That's not a moron, that's genius!" —Jay Leno

Airline Insecurity

I am not so rash as to suggest that we put guns into the hands of your typical airline passenger, who is typically already on edge from having to show photo ID every ten steps on the way to the airplane, and ticked off about having his shoes searched for explosives, and may have steadied his insulted nerves with several adult beverages before boarding. No, no, I would suggest a much more basic form of self protection, and one which many Americans learned to handle as boys and girls. I am speaking of course of the venerable Louisville Slugger. As a weapon, it is simple to operate, very safe (how many accidental beatings do you hear about ?), and requires minimal training for an operator. I suggest that, upon arriving at the airport, each passenger be issued a baseball bat (hickory, not aluminum), and allowed to carry this handy utensil throughout their trip.

Imagine a group of terrorists standing up and announcing that they are taking over the plane only to be met with a rustling sound as bats were removed from their handy canvas covers, and the peculiar clanking sound of bats knocking together as passengers take a few practice swings in close quarters. In the confined space of the economy class passenger cabin, the swing of the bat would be limited to say, a drag bunt; still painful and intimidating; and with enough people pecking away at the terrorist, eventually disabling. The real action would be closer to the cockpit, in First Class, where there is almost enough room for a full swing. The bad guys would never make it to the cockpit door.

In addition to the obvious deterrent to terrorists and hijackers in the passenger cabin, this solution has many attractive side benefits, including the probability of drastically improved airline customer service, with ticket agents serving passengers with alacrity and new-found courtesy; with every effort being expended to ensure customer satisfaction. Likewise, the boarding and security screening processes could be reduced to a simple walk through metal detectors as in the old days. There is also no doubt that cabin service would also improve, with stewardesses sprinting down the aisles to insure customer needs are met. With a cabin full of bat-wielding passengers, I bet the incidence of unscheduled layovers, and long delays on the runway will almost cease to exist. This change might even improve airline food.