Rupert Murdock reshapes the Wall St Journal

Yesterday's WSJ had the editorial page all revised, fewer editorials, letters to the editor moved onto the editorial page and taking up half the page, and an op-ed by Murdock himself. Today's front page story announces the "resignation" of the Journal's editor. According to the story Murdock wants less long in depth stories and more quick snappy news bites. I don't think he has ruined the paper yet. Lets see what happens next.

The Russians are coming

How does NASA plan to get astronauts up and down from the International Space Station after the Shuttle is retired in 2010? Simple. The Russians fly them in the Soyuz capsule.
NASA has been buying space transportation services from the Russians under an exemption to the Iran, North Korea and Syria Non proliferation Act. The congressional exemption expires in the fall o 2011. NASA wants Congress to permit continued purchase of rides for U.S. space station crew members on Soyuz vehicles.
Wow. We passed a law lumping the Russians in with the most unsavory regimes on the planet and then we authorize an exemption. Does that improve our relations with Moscow or what?
Only in America.

Pricey Choppers

The President is getting a new helicopter, the VH71, to fly him from the White House to Andrews AFB, where he can board Air Force 1. The program is going to cost $11.2 billion dollars. They will buy four test aircraft and 23 operational aircraft at a price of $414 million dollars per aircraft. Wow. $414 million will buy TWO brand new 747's. That's one pricey helicopter.
And of course we need 27 aircraft standing alert just to fly one president out to Andrews.
The choppers will be hardened against electromagnetic pulse and directed energy weapons, and have every kind of radio ever invented. The comm system is spec'd to allow the president to talk to any federal agency at any time with secure data and voice. The republic might fall if the president has to wait til he boards Air Force 1 in order to talk to the White House travel agency.
Could this be military-industrial welfare?

Paul Valar, old man of the mountains, put to rest today

Paul Valar, the grand old man of New Hampshire skiing, was put to rest today. Paul was a ski racer, who married another ski racer in the 1940's. Since then Paul and Paula ran the Cannon Mt and Mittersill ski schools, run a ski shop, bought and operated a Vermont dairy farm, authored the American Ski Technique book, started the Professional Ski Instructors Association, and raised four daughters.
Services were at the White Mountain School, at which he and Paula had taught. The crowd was huge. All the Franconia skiers showed up, the school grounds were parked up solid. Weather was perfect, good eulogies from the four daughters and some old friends.
Paul was a serious builder of the New Hampshire ski scene, a decent gentleman, and a fine teller of stories. We won't see anyone like him for a long time.

Bethlehem dump feud

Another twist in the long standing Bethlehem dump feud. By a one vote margin (3 to 2) the Bethlehem selectmen voted to support passage of House Bill 1429. On the surface this is an anti dump state law that would require host community agreements between private landfills and towns, and more permits for landfill expansion. There are only two private landfills in the state, one of them being the Casella operation in Bethlehem. HB 1429 is sponsored by State Rep Martha McCleod, in response to widespread citizen desire to close the landfill. Looks like the pro dump faction in Bethlehem still has some life in it.

One had giveth, the other hand taketh

The Littleton Opera House is a glorious Victorian wood building, standing upon a commanding site, in the middle of town, over looking the river. It used to house the Littleton police dept, the town museum, and some town offices. Back in 2005 some humorless structural engineer declared the entire building unsafe and in danger of falling into the river. The town moved the police dept out, closed the museum and the Opera House has been standing empty for the last three years.
It will take a million or more dollars, which Littleton doesn't have, to fix the building up to modern standards. US Senator Judd Greg did whatever senators do, and a sizable Federal grant come thru to fix up the Opera House. Plans were drawn, a contractor selected and work was about to start.
Then disaster struck, by email. "The funding may be in jeopardy if the town doesn't comply with any and all requirements. " Starting with a review by the NH State Preservation Officer because the Opera House is a historic structure. Zap, project on hold till the paper work gets done. "any and all requirements" means a never ending load of paperwork. By the time the first load is accomplished, some bureaucrat will invent more paperwork.
Clearly the Opera House project has acquired some enemies from somewhere. This is surprising, 'cause I thought everyone in Littleton was in favor doing the project. Maybe someone wants the Opera House gone, so they can buy the land to erect something tasteful like a fast food place?

CIA follies, Part 2

I forgot to mention the CIA's destruction of any chance of diplomatic or economic pressure against Iran's nuclear program. When CIA said the Iranian's aren't building nukes early this year, the efforts to talk the Iranians out of a nuclear weapons program collapsed, probably for good. CIA bureaucrats managed to torpedo American diplomatic efforts.
I also forgot to mention the CIA's ever so helpful efforts to give credibility to Osama bin Laden's propaganda. Every time bin Laden releases a tape to the media, CIA jumps right out in front and validates the tape as genuine. Instead of allowing the natural doubts about bin Laden's very existance in this world to grow, they tell the world that good old bin Laden must be alive and well. Our enemies, hearing this, think "Well, if the Americans say the tape is genuine, it must be, because the Americans have every reason to declare it fake".