Saturday, July 1, 2017
Friday, June 30, 2017
F35 Turns the Corner
Cover story in Aviation Week. The F-35 A (the Air Force model, no V/STOL) made it to the Paris Air Show this week. Le Bourget outside of Paris. It flew, showed off some really impressive low and slow manuvering close to the ground. With 40,000 pounds of thrust, it's hard to stall this baby, just pull the stick way back, shove the throttle all the way forward, and the engine will make the plane go up, even if the wing isn't doing much in the lift dept. Apparently they have done some work in the engine, the plane is now certified for 7 G. Used to be limited to 5 G (not much) because any more G caused the engine rotor to rub on the engine casing, which caused a fire, resulting in the total loss of one F35. They have done something about the problem, and 9G is promised in the future.
Up beat article. No talk about lack of software, horrible costs, ridiculously long development cycle.
Up beat article. No talk about lack of software, horrible costs, ridiculously long development cycle.
You cannot pay for healthcare by taxing healthcare
Every dollar sucked out of health care by Obamacare taxes, causes the health industry to raise prices to get even. Obamacare had a bunch of taxes on healthcare, there was a medical device tax, a cadillac plan tax, personal tax for being uninsured, and some others that I have forgotten. The healthcare reform bills before Congress would zap all the Obamacare taxes.
The democrats are crying and calling this "a tax cut for the wealthy". Yeah right. Democrats always say that any tax cut is "for the wealthy".
They ought to pass a one page bill that says "Obamacare is completely revoked, repealed, null and void. All Obamacare offices are closed, their personnel must be laid off, their files burned, and the buildings are to be sold. All Obama care regulations are hereby rendered null and void.
Pass that. Then if you have the votes, pass separate laws on pre-existing conditions, children remaining on the parent's policies, make health insurance premiums deductible on income tax, fund opioid treatment, and any other little Obamacare goodie you like. If you have the votes.
The democrats are crying and calling this "a tax cut for the wealthy". Yeah right. Democrats always say that any tax cut is "for the wealthy".
They ought to pass a one page bill that says "Obamacare is completely revoked, repealed, null and void. All Obamacare offices are closed, their personnel must be laid off, their files burned, and the buildings are to be sold. All Obama care regulations are hereby rendered null and void.
Pass that. Then if you have the votes, pass separate laws on pre-existing conditions, children remaining on the parent's policies, make health insurance premiums deductible on income tax, fund opioid treatment, and any other little Obamacare goodie you like. If you have the votes.
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Ivanhoe (1952) Great Costume Drama
The story is set in Merrie Old England, right after the Third Crusade. It's in Technicolor which means the color is bright and solid, none of this modern arty "fade-the-color-out-to-black&white" stuff. I first saw this flick at age nine in the old Cinema at Shoppers World out on Rt 9 in Framingham Mass. Loved it back then. I'm much older now. I popped a DVD of Ivanhoe into the DVD player last night. It's still a fine movie. It has a very young Elizabeth Taylor as Rebecca of York, ultra cute, forceful, with a serious crush on the leading man. That's Ivanhoe, played by Robert Taylor (no relation) who was a solid, competent, decent looking leading man in a bunch of movies back then. Ivanhoe is one of the best roles Robert Taylor ever had. And we have Rowena of Rotherwood, blonde, beautiful, played by Joan Fontaine, an old childhood sweetheart of Ivanhoe's and bound and determined to wed him, and not let that ultra cute Rebecca make off with him.
Costumes are great, they look extremely medieval. Workers and peasants are dressed in drab browns and grays. Nobility dresses in brighter colors, each actor wears a distinctive costume that makes it easy to tell who is who. Rowena and Rebecca have very nicely tailored medieval gowns which show off their figures to great advantage. The cast all speak clearly and distinctly, every line of dialogue is sharp and understandable. Dialogue has a proper medieval sound to it, a bit of Shakespearean flavor, no jarring twentieth century turns of phrase. For instance Locksley (Robin Hood) cries out to his merry men "Away Arrows", no anachronistic cries of "Fire". You never "fire" arrows, that only works on firearms. You shoot or loose arrows.
The camera man does it right, every scene is properly lit, none of this modern turn off the lights and let the audience struggle to figure out what is happening stuff. And no annoying "shake-the-camera" shots. The sound man places the mikes properly so we can hear everything, and avoids mixing the score or the sound effects over the dialogue.
The movie has a great love interest, lots of medieval politicking, and lots of action. Great scenes of jousting on horseback, with lists, and spectators, lances and shields, solid lance hits hurling the bad guys off their horses and into the dirt. We see Locksley and his archers take Front-de-Beouf's castle by escalade and flights of arrows. Single combat on horseback between Ivanhoe and Brian Bois Gilbert.
All in all, a great flick. You can get it from Netflix.
Costumes are great, they look extremely medieval. Workers and peasants are dressed in drab browns and grays. Nobility dresses in brighter colors, each actor wears a distinctive costume that makes it easy to tell who is who. Rowena and Rebecca have very nicely tailored medieval gowns which show off their figures to great advantage. The cast all speak clearly and distinctly, every line of dialogue is sharp and understandable. Dialogue has a proper medieval sound to it, a bit of Shakespearean flavor, no jarring twentieth century turns of phrase. For instance Locksley (Robin Hood) cries out to his merry men "Away Arrows", no anachronistic cries of "Fire". You never "fire" arrows, that only works on firearms. You shoot or loose arrows.
The camera man does it right, every scene is properly lit, none of this modern turn off the lights and let the audience struggle to figure out what is happening stuff. And no annoying "shake-the-camera" shots. The sound man places the mikes properly so we can hear everything, and avoids mixing the score or the sound effects over the dialogue.
The movie has a great love interest, lots of medieval politicking, and lots of action. Great scenes of jousting on horseback, with lists, and spectators, lances and shields, solid lance hits hurling the bad guys off their horses and into the dirt. We see Locksley and his archers take Front-de-Beouf's castle by escalade and flights of arrows. Single combat on horseback between Ivanhoe and Brian Bois Gilbert.
All in all, a great flick. You can get it from Netflix.
$82,000 per year for Nursing Home??
From Wednesday's Wall St Journal. Headline "Nursing Homes Balk at Senate Bill". The nursing home industry is largely paid for from Medicaid and the industry fears the reductions in Medicaid funding will cut into their revenue. Tough.
I can send a child to college for only $40,000 a year. You'd think all those PHD college profs, and all those overpaid and useless administrators would be more expensive than staffing a nursing home. Put another way, that $82,000 a year comes out to $224.65 a day. I can rent a first class Washington DC hotel room for half of that. I means these are nursing homes, not hospital ICU's. They provide a room with a bed, maid service, three squares a day, and somebody on the front desk 24/7 in case of emergency. Somehow I think you could do that for DC hotel room rates.
Note to self. Hope my health holds up so I can die peacefully in my bed at my home. Plead with my children to take me in should I no longer be able to shop and cook for myself.
I can send a child to college for only $40,000 a year. You'd think all those PHD college profs, and all those overpaid and useless administrators would be more expensive than staffing a nursing home. Put another way, that $82,000 a year comes out to $224.65 a day. I can rent a first class Washington DC hotel room for half of that. I means these are nursing homes, not hospital ICU's. They provide a room with a bed, maid service, three squares a day, and somebody on the front desk 24/7 in case of emergency. Somehow I think you could do that for DC hotel room rates.
Note to self. Hope my health holds up so I can die peacefully in my bed at my home. Plead with my children to take me in should I no longer be able to shop and cook for myself.
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
McConnell lacks the votes to pass Healthcare reform
Might have guessed it. As of this morning's TV some ten "Republican" senators won't vote for McConnell's health care bill. These "Republicans" are throwing away Republican chances in the 2018 election. Us voters voted Republicans in to get Obamacare out. We know that Obamacare has doubled the price of insurance and thrown a lot of people out of work. Once we figure out that Republicans cannot do anything, they are gone and the Democrats will be back in charge.
And, to add insult to injury, these ten "Republicans" haven't told anyone (voters, newsies, McConnell) what is wrong with McConnell's bill. Does it cut too much from some pet program? Is it really just a patch on Obamacare to keep it running a while longer? Does it lack something they care about? They ought to have some reasons they can express on TV for scuttling their own party and turning the country back over to the Democrats in 2018. To say nothing of ruining their personal chances of re-election.
And, to add insult to injury, these ten "Republicans" haven't told anyone (voters, newsies, McConnell) what is wrong with McConnell's bill. Does it cut too much from some pet program? Is it really just a patch on Obamacare to keep it running a while longer? Does it lack something they care about? They ought to have some reasons they can express on TV for scuttling their own party and turning the country back over to the Democrats in 2018. To say nothing of ruining their personal chances of re-election.
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
US spends 19% of GNP on healthcare
That's twice as much as any other country in the world spends. And American health, as measured by life expectancy and infant mortality, is not a good as about 10 other countries. In short, for spending twice as much, we don't get any healthier.
So Congressional attempts to cut the expense of Obamacare are the right thing to do. We ought to cut healthcare spending down to 10% of GNP, from 19% today. Every other country in the world offers health as good as in the US, and spends only 10% of GNP doing it. It they can do it, so can we.
So Congressional attempts to cut the expense of Obamacare are the right thing to do. We ought to cut healthcare spending down to 10% of GNP, from 19% today. Every other country in the world offers health as good as in the US, and spends only 10% of GNP doing it. It they can do it, so can we.
Sunday, June 25, 2017
Anti Russian voter hacking measures we ought to take
Go to paper ballots. Keep them after the election in case of a recount. Get rid of voting machines which are nothing more than desktop computers running a ballot program. And could be hacked at the factory, at the polls, over the net, every which way, and you could never figure out what happened.
Let's have some security on voter registration lists. If hostile hackers managed to erase say 10% of all Republicans registered, that would throw the election to the Democrats. A voter shows up at the polls, and he isn't on the registration list, he doesn't get to vote. Ten percent of either side is enough to decide most elections.
Since we cannot do any paperwork without putting it on computer these days, we need some security on the machines that hold the voter registration lists at cities and towns. The machine[s] that store and modify the voter registration lists must NOT be connected to the public internet in any way shape or fashion. Keep the machines in a locked room and only allow a minimum of people access to them. Backup the voter registration list[s] every week or so, and store the backups off line and off site. When new voters are registered give them a printed certificate of registration that they can use to prove they registered should the computers mess up some how.
Let's have some security on voter registration lists. If hostile hackers managed to erase say 10% of all Republicans registered, that would throw the election to the Democrats. A voter shows up at the polls, and he isn't on the registration list, he doesn't get to vote. Ten percent of either side is enough to decide most elections.
Since we cannot do any paperwork without putting it on computer these days, we need some security on the machines that hold the voter registration lists at cities and towns. The machine[s] that store and modify the voter registration lists must NOT be connected to the public internet in any way shape or fashion. Keep the machines in a locked room and only allow a minimum of people access to them. Backup the voter registration list[s] every week or so, and store the backups off line and off site. When new voters are registered give them a printed certificate of registration that they can use to prove they registered should the computers mess up some how.
Saturday, June 24, 2017
What is in those two healthcare bills?
We have one bill passed in the House, and second one about to be voted on in the Senate. But I have no real idea what each bill does. For that matter I don't know all the things tucked away in 10000 pages of Obamacare. Nobody does really. Nobody can read and understand 10000 pages of legal gobble-de-gook.
The health care bill I like would repeal the Obamacare requirements that have forced a lot of workers into part time work. It would spell out who gets government subsidies and how much. It would allow the sale of "hospitalization only" insurance which is a quarter the cost of "Obamacare covers everything" insurance. It would require insurance companies to maintain coverage on insured patients who get sick, and allow such "pre existing conditions" patients to even change insurance companies should they need to (say like they took a new job) . Uninsured patients who get sick would have to pay something more to get insurance than ordinary patients. Medicaid should be reserved for mothers, children and the truly disabled. Able bodied grownups should get a job with health insurance or pay for their own. Health insurance premiums should be deductible on federal income tax to even things up between the self employed and the company employee who gets tax free health care thru hisher job.
I have no idea if either of the Congressional health care bills have any of these things. Neither do the newsies.
The health care bill I like would repeal the Obamacare requirements that have forced a lot of workers into part time work. It would spell out who gets government subsidies and how much. It would allow the sale of "hospitalization only" insurance which is a quarter the cost of "Obamacare covers everything" insurance. It would require insurance companies to maintain coverage on insured patients who get sick, and allow such "pre existing conditions" patients to even change insurance companies should they need to (say like they took a new job) . Uninsured patients who get sick would have to pay something more to get insurance than ordinary patients. Medicaid should be reserved for mothers, children and the truly disabled. Able bodied grownups should get a job with health insurance or pay for their own. Health insurance premiums should be deductible on federal income tax to even things up between the self employed and the company employee who gets tax free health care thru hisher job.
I have no idea if either of the Congressional health care bills have any of these things. Neither do the newsies.
Friday, June 23, 2017
"Slants" is derogatory?
An Asian American rock band wanted to call themselves "The Slants". Some well fed bureaucrat refused to let them trademark the name. He claimed "Slants" was derogatory.
Strange. I was in the Air Force, I did a turn in South East Asia during the Viet Nam war. We had a lot of bad names for things we didn't like, the enemy, the locals, the food, the weather, the service, and others. I don't remember "slant" as one of them. "Slope" you heard, and slant-eye ( as opposed to round-eye) you heard, but I don't remember "slant" by itself as a put down.
Any how they took this one to the Supreme Court, and won, The band may trademark "Slants". Owners of the Washington Redskins, and the Cleveland Indians, both facing similar harassment from bureaucrats are relieved. They figure they will win their Supreme Court cases.
Welfare for lawyers.
Strange. I was in the Air Force, I did a turn in South East Asia during the Viet Nam war. We had a lot of bad names for things we didn't like, the enemy, the locals, the food, the weather, the service, and others. I don't remember "slant" as one of them. "Slope" you heard, and slant-eye ( as opposed to round-eye) you heard, but I don't remember "slant" by itself as a put down.
Any how they took this one to the Supreme Court, and won, The band may trademark "Slants". Owners of the Washington Redskins, and the Cleveland Indians, both facing similar harassment from bureaucrats are relieved. They figure they will win their Supreme Court cases.
Welfare for lawyers.
Suppose we assassinate Kim Jong whats-his-face, NORK dictator
That ought to slow 'em down a bit. The NORKs already have nuclear weapons and rockets. It's only a matter of time (a year? two? three?) before they have a nuke mounted on a rocket with the range to reach US soil. We need to prevent that. Nobody wants to start up the Korean War again, that is too awful to bring back. Diplomacy has been tried for twenty years or more to no avail. Getting a nuclear deterrent (strike force) is so important to Kim that no amount of diplomacy will get him to stop.
If we bumped off Kim, it would leave a leadership vacuum. There would be a struggle between the various number 2 men to take his place. Kim has been executing anyone who looks dangerous to him and so the bench of number 2 men is pretty thin. To take over as NORK dictator you have to have some name recognition and some friends to back you up. We don't know if anyone up north has both the name recognition and the friends required.
The NORK regime might just come apart. It's already under strain, what with peasants starving the the villages and shortages of nearly everything. The only thing holding it together is the army and the secret police. With Kim gone, nobody knows if they would stay loyal to the regime. They might not. At which point, there are very strong forces to pull North and South Korea back together. Much stronger forces than any number 2 man struggling to take over could muster. That result would be wonderful for us and for South Korea.
How to off Kim? Simplest is a smart bomb thru his bedroom window. Or a Hellfire on his official limousine (with Kim inside it of course). Or a very gutsy sniper team parachutes in somewhere, gets to within 500 yards of Kim, plugs him and then boogies to a pickup spot and waits for the Jolly Greens to pick them up.
If we bumped off Kim, it would leave a leadership vacuum. There would be a struggle between the various number 2 men to take his place. Kim has been executing anyone who looks dangerous to him and so the bench of number 2 men is pretty thin. To take over as NORK dictator you have to have some name recognition and some friends to back you up. We don't know if anyone up north has both the name recognition and the friends required.
The NORK regime might just come apart. It's already under strain, what with peasants starving the the villages and shortages of nearly everything. The only thing holding it together is the army and the secret police. With Kim gone, nobody knows if they would stay loyal to the regime. They might not. At which point, there are very strong forces to pull North and South Korea back together. Much stronger forces than any number 2 man struggling to take over could muster. That result would be wonderful for us and for South Korea.
How to off Kim? Simplest is a smart bomb thru his bedroom window. Or a Hellfire on his official limousine (with Kim inside it of course). Or a very gutsy sniper team parachutes in somewhere, gets to within 500 yards of Kim, plugs him and then boogies to a pickup spot and waits for the Jolly Greens to pick them up.
Thursday, June 22, 2017
Fueling up for Winter
Wednesday, June 21, 2017
Predictions are hard, especially about the future.
The Democrats dropped $25 mil into the Georgia special election. The Republicans dropped $30 mil, which is more money than has ever been spent running for a US rep's seat. Looks like both national parties have plenty of cash, which is a little surprising what with an expensive presidential election just last November. You would think they would still be paying off loans taken out for Hillary and the Donald.
The Republican (a chick I'd never heard of before) won, 53 to 47 percent which is decent, better margin than Trump got in that district. Way I look at it, anything better than 1% is decent, anything better than 10% is a landslide. NHPR called the margin of victory "thin" and "close" but they are just democrats with bylines.
Naturally, this win, and the win in North Carolina, delighted Republicans and disheartened Democrats. But I don't think it predicts anything about 2018. In a year anything can happen. If Trump gets health care and tax reform thru Congress the Republicans will be in decent shape. If he fails, Democrats will capture control of one or both houses of Congress.
The msm keep saying that the Republicans control both houses of Congress. But they have a lot of RINO's in both houses, who are OK with tax-and-spend and fear to rock the boat. And who may not vote the party line. Republicans also have a lot of super conservative crazies who don't under stand about compromise and that half a loaf is better than no loaf, and who will vote against anything on the slightest pretext. And there is always a pretext on any bill, no bill ever satisfies every one all the way, there are always things they want and didn't get, or things that they don't like, and are in the bill. Look at the Chinese fire drill in the House over health care. Ryan had to withdraw the Republican bill and rewrite it before he could get enough Republicans on board to vote it thru.
Republicans have a lot of work to do if they want to retain control of Congress in 2018.
The Republican (a chick I'd never heard of before) won, 53 to 47 percent which is decent, better margin than Trump got in that district. Way I look at it, anything better than 1% is decent, anything better than 10% is a landslide. NHPR called the margin of victory "thin" and "close" but they are just democrats with bylines.
Naturally, this win, and the win in North Carolina, delighted Republicans and disheartened Democrats. But I don't think it predicts anything about 2018. In a year anything can happen. If Trump gets health care and tax reform thru Congress the Republicans will be in decent shape. If he fails, Democrats will capture control of one or both houses of Congress.
The msm keep saying that the Republicans control both houses of Congress. But they have a lot of RINO's in both houses, who are OK with tax-and-spend and fear to rock the boat. And who may not vote the party line. Republicans also have a lot of super conservative crazies who don't under stand about compromise and that half a loaf is better than no loaf, and who will vote against anything on the slightest pretext. And there is always a pretext on any bill, no bill ever satisfies every one all the way, there are always things they want and didn't get, or things that they don't like, and are in the bill. Look at the Chinese fire drill in the House over health care. Ryan had to withdraw the Republican bill and rewrite it before he could get enough Republicans on board to vote it thru.
Republicans have a lot of work to do if they want to retain control of Congress in 2018.
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
Some questions about druggies
With deaths from drug overdoses at a record high we have calls to do something about it. Good idea, but what should we do? Before I can get on board some one's magic cure, there are a few things I need to know about. Such as:
1. Every young person ought to know that anything harder than pot will ruin their lives and/or kill them. Have we gotten this word out to this year's young people? Do they believe it?
2. Are all the institutions and media on board with getting the message out about the dangers of drugs? Schools, churches, parents, radio and TV, Facebook and its competitors, video games, movies, the music business, and others that might come to mind?
3. Why do people get into drugs? Is it just the pleasure of the high? Especially as a lot of drugs need injection, sticking a needle in your arm, an event I have detested ever since injections of penicillin as a small child. For me personally, doesn't matter how great the high is, I won't stick a needle in my arm because it hurts. If it isn't just the pleasure of the high, then what is it that makes the druggie keep doing it? Are there things in the druggie's life that we could change to get him/her off the stuff? If so, what might they be?
4. Does drug rehab really work? How many people have entered drug rehab and how many of them actually get off and stay off drugs?
5. What are the generally accepted medical guidelines for prescribing the stronger opioids like Oxycontin. Do these guidelines make sense? I know that Oxycontin is so dangerous that many pharmacies refuse to stock it. How many current druggies got hooked on prescription opioids?
6. Does methadone work? Working means getting the druggie off the really ruinous drugs and stabilize things enough that the druggie can hold a job.
7. What happens to druggies over time? Do they eventually get off the stuff? Or does it kill them? Or what?
1. Every young person ought to know that anything harder than pot will ruin their lives and/or kill them. Have we gotten this word out to this year's young people? Do they believe it?
2. Are all the institutions and media on board with getting the message out about the dangers of drugs? Schools, churches, parents, radio and TV, Facebook and its competitors, video games, movies, the music business, and others that might come to mind?
3. Why do people get into drugs? Is it just the pleasure of the high? Especially as a lot of drugs need injection, sticking a needle in your arm, an event I have detested ever since injections of penicillin as a small child. For me personally, doesn't matter how great the high is, I won't stick a needle in my arm because it hurts. If it isn't just the pleasure of the high, then what is it that makes the druggie keep doing it? Are there things in the druggie's life that we could change to get him/her off the stuff? If so, what might they be?
4. Does drug rehab really work? How many people have entered drug rehab and how many of them actually get off and stay off drugs?
5. What are the generally accepted medical guidelines for prescribing the stronger opioids like Oxycontin. Do these guidelines make sense? I know that Oxycontin is so dangerous that many pharmacies refuse to stock it. How many current druggies got hooked on prescription opioids?
6. Does methadone work? Working means getting the druggie off the really ruinous drugs and stabilize things enough that the druggie can hold a job.
7. What happens to druggies over time? Do they eventually get off the stuff? Or does it kill them? Or what?
Monday, June 19, 2017
A hero's reward, from the msm
Everyone at that terrible Congressional shooting scene praised the bravery of the two Capitol Police officers on duty. All the Congressmen under fire say they would have been shot dead except for the bravery of the two officers who moved toward the sound of the guns.
As a reward for her bravery, the msm (Fox News no less) outed the female officer as lesbian. I didn't need to know that. It probably hurt the poor officer. A harsh reward for bravery above and beyond the call of duty.
Good work msm.
As a reward for her bravery, the msm (Fox News no less) outed the female officer as lesbian. I didn't need to know that. It probably hurt the poor officer. A harsh reward for bravery above and beyond the call of duty.
Good work msm.
Sunday, June 18, 2017
Kiss your Navy career good bye.
Skipper of USS Fitzgerald, which collided with a container ship off Japan. How that happened is hard to understand. A destroyer is far faster, and much more maneuverable than a big container ship. Destroyers have all kinds of state of the art radar which should have no trouble detecting a big, clunky container ship from 50 miles away. Plus he ignored Admiral Dan Gallery's advice concerning right of way at sea. "Steer well clear of any merchie, lest he decide to liven up your day by ramming you." Gallery is a WWII US Navy skipper, he is the guy that captured a German U-boat and towed it home as a prize. Which shows him as a man of imagination and superb seamanship. U505 has been an exhibit at the Chicago science museum ever since the war.
Saturday, June 17, 2017
A few security measures Congress ought to take
They ought to arrange for Capitol Police security at any event with a number of Congressmen in attendance. For that matter, Congressmen ought to ask local law enforcement to detail a couple of officers to any townhalls the Congressman might be giving. It's routine for law enforcement to detail some officers to cover high school ball games, they ought to be able to handle an occasional town hall.
Congress ought to straighten out the concealed carry situation in DC. They have jurisdiction. They should require DC authorities to issue a conceal carry permit to anyone over 18 who is not a convicted felon or a committed nut case. And require DC to honor conceal carry permits from any state. And provide jail sentences for any official who fails to issue the permit within two weeks of the applicant submitting his paperwork.
We ought to discourage politicians and newsies from calling opponents names, such as racist, feminazi, and the like. The name calling contributes nothing to the political debate and just inflames feelings. Publish objections to the opponents policies, not their persons. We cannot forbid name calling by law, but we could do a lot to mobilize public opinion against it.
And strengthen our mental health system. Nut cases ought to be detected early and committed to mental hospitals, not allowed to run around loose. There are no free beds in the mental hospitals. Cases where the individual volunteers to enter treatment have failed because there are no empty beds to put them in.
Congress ought to straighten out the concealed carry situation in DC. They have jurisdiction. They should require DC authorities to issue a conceal carry permit to anyone over 18 who is not a convicted felon or a committed nut case. And require DC to honor conceal carry permits from any state. And provide jail sentences for any official who fails to issue the permit within two weeks of the applicant submitting his paperwork.
We ought to discourage politicians and newsies from calling opponents names, such as racist, feminazi, and the like. The name calling contributes nothing to the political debate and just inflames feelings. Publish objections to the opponents policies, not their persons. We cannot forbid name calling by law, but we could do a lot to mobilize public opinion against it.
And strengthen our mental health system. Nut cases ought to be detected early and committed to mental hospitals, not allowed to run around loose. There are no free beds in the mental hospitals. Cases where the individual volunteers to enter treatment have failed because there are no empty beds to put them in.
Friday, June 16, 2017
7.62 = 30 caliber
A Fox newsie was talking about the rifle used in the Congressional shooting. He described it as "7.62 big enough to kill an elephant." Let me enlighten a clueless newsie. 7.62 mm is the same as .30 caliber, the standard caliber for rifles since 1898. The US adopted the 30-06 rifle round back in 1906. It remained standard issue to US soldiers for WWI, WWII, and Korea. It is still in production. It was replaced by the 7.62 NATO round (otherwise known as 308 Winchester) in the 1950's. It's not an unusual round for rifles. Serious hunters carry 30-06 rifles today. Not so serious hunters carry the older and less powerful 30-30 rifle or the newer and less powerful 223 rifle.
The newsie was attempting to convince his audience that the Congressional shooter was carrying an unusually powerful rifle. Not true. The Congressional shooter was using an ordinary hunting rifle, chambered for ordinary .30 caliber ammunition.
The newsie was attempting to convince his audience that the Congressional shooter was carrying an unusually powerful rifle. Not true. The Congressional shooter was using an ordinary hunting rifle, chambered for ordinary .30 caliber ammunition.
Thursday, June 15, 2017
5000 Fools (tourists) visit North Korea every year.
Who wants to visit a communist dictatorship where they can arrest you, jail you, and even execute you just because they can? You would think Otto Warmbier's story, which has been in the news for better than a year, would discourage all but the most foolish tourist. They released Warmbier the other day, but he is in bad shape now. The medics didn't seem to know just what happened to him or how to treat him. They talked about loss of brain tissue, which doesn't sound good.
The Journal says that about 5000 fools from the West visit North Korea as tourists every year. Of which 1000 are Americans. And what is there to see in North Korea, other than a population being abused and starved? Creepy, I would pay money to avoid seeing that. I suppose some of the American tourists are of Korean decent, who might be visiting family members stuck in the communist hellhole. That's understandable. Other than that, it's hard to understand visiting North Korea. Especially as you can visit South Korea, a free, modern, decent, and successful country without risking your life.
The Journal says that about 5000 fools from the West visit North Korea as tourists every year. Of which 1000 are Americans. And what is there to see in North Korea, other than a population being abused and starved? Creepy, I would pay money to avoid seeing that. I suppose some of the American tourists are of Korean decent, who might be visiting family members stuck in the communist hellhole. That's understandable. Other than that, it's hard to understand visiting North Korea. Especially as you can visit South Korea, a free, modern, decent, and successful country without risking your life.
What is the worst thing about the Congressman Shooting?
It only kept the newsies off the Comey-Sessions-Mueller-Russians story for a day. Yesterday was 100% coverage of the shooting. Today they are back on the old groove, covering unsubstantiated innuendo and anonymous sources.
Wednesday, June 14, 2017
Schools Rethink Recess
Dawn over Marblehead. Anyone who can remember grade school can remember how hard it was to sit still and no talking. Recess gave relief, you could run around, talk, shout, play ball games. All practicing parents know how hard it is to get young children to sit still. Young children are bubbling over with energy and they have to work it off by running around and shouting.
To run an effective grade school, you have to let the kids outdoors for recess to let off steam. Otherwise the kids are just too bouncy to absorb any kind of learning. Back in the day, we got two 20 minute recesses every day.
Modern "educators" think recess is a waste of time, and they have been advocating no recess schools, keep the kids noses to the grindstone all day.
According to a piece in today's Wall St Journal, some "educators" have wised up and are recommending a whole hour of recess every day.
To run an effective grade school, you have to let the kids outdoors for recess to let off steam. Otherwise the kids are just too bouncy to absorb any kind of learning. Back in the day, we got two 20 minute recesses every day.
Modern "educators" think recess is a waste of time, and they have been advocating no recess schools, keep the kids noses to the grindstone all day.
According to a piece in today's Wall St Journal, some "educators" have wised up and are recommending a whole hour of recess every day.
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Do I support a flat tax?
Today's mail brought a thick envelope marked "New Federal Tax Reform Information Enclosed". No return address, no indication of the organization doing this mailing. I didn't really believe it was from the IRS, despite the effort to make you think it was an IRS letter. So I opened it, and it was one of those "take a survey, send us a donation" letters that have been popular with the fund raisers.
This outfit, The Conservative Caucus, or perhaps Americans for Constitutional Liberty, I'd never heard of either before. They are advocating for a flat 10% income tax for everyone, no deductions except charitable contributions and mortgage interest. And they denounced the length and legalisms of the humongous Internal Revenue Code and the existence of the IRS
Thinking about it, I cannot go with them. The way I see it, we have three groups of people in the US, the well off, the ordinary working stiffs, and the really poor. And I think we ought to tax the well off somewhat more, and the really poor something less. In other words have three tax brackets. I think everyone ought to be liable for taxes, unlike the current setup where half the population owes NO tax, and the well off pay most of the Federal government's expenses. I think it is important that all citizens, even the very poor, pay something in taxes, just to let them know that the government benefits, of which we have so many, have to be paid for.
I do like the no deductions for anything, except charitable contributions. I'd even go so far as to eliminate tax breaks for dependents (children) and being married. I'd dump the mortgage interest deduction, especially deductions for mortgages on second homes. I'd get rid of capital gains. Income is income, doesn't matter where it comes from. I'd dump the earned income tax credit.
I'd declare all 75,000 pages in the Internal Revenue Code null and void, along with all rulings of the tax courts over the years. I'd abolish the tax courts. If the government has a beef with us taxpayers, let the government go to regular courts, like everyone else.
They advocating getting rid of the IRS. Well, we ought to skin 'em down a bit, but we have to have some government office to mail our tax forms to. Someone has to open the tax return envelopes and cash the checks. So we have to have something. On the other hand, we should remove the IRS's power to garnish your wages and seize your bank account. If the IRS has a beef with us taxpayers, they can take us to court, a real court, not a "tax court" where the judge is getting paid by the IRS. They don't need the power to bankrupt us on just their say-so.
This outfit, The Conservative Caucus, or perhaps Americans for Constitutional Liberty, I'd never heard of either before. They are advocating for a flat 10% income tax for everyone, no deductions except charitable contributions and mortgage interest. And they denounced the length and legalisms of the humongous Internal Revenue Code and the existence of the IRS
Thinking about it, I cannot go with them. The way I see it, we have three groups of people in the US, the well off, the ordinary working stiffs, and the really poor. And I think we ought to tax the well off somewhat more, and the really poor something less. In other words have three tax brackets. I think everyone ought to be liable for taxes, unlike the current setup where half the population owes NO tax, and the well off pay most of the Federal government's expenses. I think it is important that all citizens, even the very poor, pay something in taxes, just to let them know that the government benefits, of which we have so many, have to be paid for.
I do like the no deductions for anything, except charitable contributions. I'd even go so far as to eliminate tax breaks for dependents (children) and being married. I'd dump the mortgage interest deduction, especially deductions for mortgages on second homes. I'd get rid of capital gains. Income is income, doesn't matter where it comes from. I'd dump the earned income tax credit.
I'd declare all 75,000 pages in the Internal Revenue Code null and void, along with all rulings of the tax courts over the years. I'd abolish the tax courts. If the government has a beef with us taxpayers, let the government go to regular courts, like everyone else.
They advocating getting rid of the IRS. Well, we ought to skin 'em down a bit, but we have to have some government office to mail our tax forms to. Someone has to open the tax return envelopes and cash the checks. So we have to have something. On the other hand, we should remove the IRS's power to garnish your wages and seize your bank account. If the IRS has a beef with us taxpayers, they can take us to court, a real court, not a "tax court" where the judge is getting paid by the IRS. They don't need the power to bankrupt us on just their say-so.
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