Saturday, November 3, 2012
Firing Generals and Admirals over Benghazi
The TV news has mentioned this, but let it drop. Obama fired General Carter Ham, head of Africom. Then he fired Rear Admiral Charles M. Gaouette from his command of the powerful Carrier Strike Group Three (CSG-3) currently located in the Middle East . General Ham was fired right in the middle of the Benghazi attack, and Admiral Gaoutte was fired shortly afterwards. Service rumor has it that both officers were re leaved of command because they were sending re inforcements to Benghazi against Obama's orders to let the consulate be overwhelmed
Disgraceful.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Offshoring to the US.
Why Bizjet makers are going stateside. Cover article in Aviation Week. Embraer, a Brazilian aerospace firm, opened a $52 million assembly, completion, and painting facility in Melbourne Florida. Honda has a 500,000 square foot facility in Greenboro, North Carolina employing 700 people. France's Dassault has a plant in Little Rock, Arkansas to make Falcon jets employing 1600 workers.
All this investment went to right-to-work southern states, rather than old union strongholds in Wichita Kansas and Seattle Washington.
Said one executive "Why in the world would you go to Wichita and take all that trouble. You'd be nuts."
And this is why we need to pass a right-to-work law here in New Hampshire. Industry won't invest in states that are not right-to-work.
All this investment went to right-to-work southern states, rather than old union strongholds in Wichita Kansas and Seattle Washington.
Said one executive "Why in the world would you go to Wichita and take all that trouble. You'd be nuts."
And this is why we need to pass a right-to-work law here in New Hampshire. Industry won't invest in states that are not right-to-work.
This is job growth?
Early this week they announced a mere 360,000 "new claims for unemployment" i.e. people out of a job. This morning they announced a "job gain" of 171,000 jobs. Boy that sure sounds like a net loss of 360,000 minus 171,000 equaling 189,000 jobs.
This is good economic news?
This is good economic news?
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Federal regulation of Cell Phone Carriers?
Good old lefty NPR was calling for this today. They claim the FCC wanted to require each and every cell phone tower have enough backup power to keep it on the air for 8 hours after the electricity failed. The cell phone carriers successfully sued to block this regulation, some time ago, like right after Katrina. NPR is obviously in favor of this, and speculated that the issue might be revived after Sandy blacked out NYC.
Hmm. What do I think? You can always spend more money to harden the cell phone system more. How much money should be spent to keep every one's cell phone working during a future Hurricane Sandy? Every buck spent on backup power, secure land links, tree trim back and such goes right onto your cell phone bill.
Who should decide how much money to spend? The government or the cell phone carriers? The carriers have some incentive to provide reliable service. Certainly carriers who stayed on the air thru out Sandy will attract subscribers from carriers that died at the first raindrop. We could let market forces control the level of backup, which will result in a leveling off between reliability and cost. The carriers will put enough money into disaster proofing to give them a competitive edge, but not so much as to drive off subscribers thru increased fees. And, knowing the business a whole lot better than any bureaucrat, they will put the money where it will do the most good.
That FCC proposed eight hour backup power rule wouldn't do New York much good now. Power has been off for a lot longer than eight hours, and it doesn't look like it will be back on any time soon.
People who really care about uninterrupted phone service can get a land line.
Hmm. What do I think? You can always spend more money to harden the cell phone system more. How much money should be spent to keep every one's cell phone working during a future Hurricane Sandy? Every buck spent on backup power, secure land links, tree trim back and such goes right onto your cell phone bill.
Who should decide how much money to spend? The government or the cell phone carriers? The carriers have some incentive to provide reliable service. Certainly carriers who stayed on the air thru out Sandy will attract subscribers from carriers that died at the first raindrop. We could let market forces control the level of backup, which will result in a leveling off between reliability and cost. The carriers will put enough money into disaster proofing to give them a competitive edge, but not so much as to drive off subscribers thru increased fees. And, knowing the business a whole lot better than any bureaucrat, they will put the money where it will do the most good.
That FCC proposed eight hour backup power rule wouldn't do New York much good now. Power has been off for a lot longer than eight hours, and it doesn't look like it will be back on any time soon.
People who really care about uninterrupted phone service can get a land line.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Demo Slams
US representative race up here. We have Anne Kuster (D) TV ads slammng Charlie Bass (R) for voting against the minimum wage act. Hell, that might be the best vote Charlie has cast. Minimum wage doesn't boost wages, it kills entry level jobs. A whole lot of entry level jobs (life guard, pizza delivery, retail work, fast food) are just barely profitable to the employer. Raise the pay and the jobs go away 'cause the employer starts to loose money on them. These are the summer jobs for high schoolers, first jobs out of welfare, the no experience needed jobs.
Passing a law to raise the pay on these jobs just makes the jobs disappear.
So Charlie, I'll vote for you if you keep voting against minimum wage.
Passing a law to raise the pay on these jobs just makes the jobs disappear.
So Charlie, I'll vote for you if you keep voting against minimum wage.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Christmas Catalogs
They ain't what they used to be. Used to be, the Christmas season kickoff was the arrival in the mail of the Sears Roebuck Christmas Catalog. Full color illustrations. Full of toys, clothes, tools, Christmas decorations and fruitcakes. As kids we used to go thru it page by page. When we wrote letters to Santa Claus, my father demanded Sears Roebuck stock numbers. Well, Sears dropped out of the catalog business 20 years ago.
Today the Walthers catalog (model trains) arrived. It's the Christmas issue, we have a picture of Santa in his shop, painting a train model. Inside we have lots of train sets. Train sets are strictly gift-for-kid items, the grownup hobbyists buy stuff car by car and locomotive by locomotive. About half the train sets are steam engines, the other half diesel. Times are changing. Used to be, every kid knew that a decent road steam engine had pilot wheels and trailing wheels. Steamers with just drivers were humble yard switchers, never seen on the mainline.
That's gone now. Half the steam sets had just all all-drivers switch engine. Probably 21st century parents and kids don't know the difference. And the prices. A G gauge (really big) set with just two passenger cars $500. O- gauge (Lionel) $300 a set. HO gauge $129 a set.
Today the Walthers catalog (model trains) arrived. It's the Christmas issue, we have a picture of Santa in his shop, painting a train model. Inside we have lots of train sets. Train sets are strictly gift-for-kid items, the grownup hobbyists buy stuff car by car and locomotive by locomotive. About half the train sets are steam engines, the other half diesel. Times are changing. Used to be, every kid knew that a decent road steam engine had pilot wheels and trailing wheels. Steamers with just drivers were humble yard switchers, never seen on the mainline.
That's gone now. Half the steam sets had just all all-drivers switch engine. Probably 21st century parents and kids don't know the difference. And the prices. A G gauge (really big) set with just two passenger cars $500. O- gauge (Lionel) $300 a set. HO gauge $129 a set.
Bye Bye Sandy
It's nice being far off the storm track. My deepest sympathy for the Mid Atlantic states suffering power outages, flooded everythings, downed trees and 2 foot of snow.
Yesterday the wind picked up around mid afternoon and it started to rain, lightly. That kept up all night. Our power stayed on, phone works, internet works, no trees down. We've done much worse in the past.
There was that mini tornado thru here five years ago that dropped a tree on the house, blew off a neighbor's roof, and put the lights out for a week. Those were the days. Sandy was nothing like that up here.
Yesterday the wind picked up around mid afternoon and it started to rain, lightly. That kept up all night. Our power stayed on, phone works, internet works, no trees down. We've done much worse in the past.
There was that mini tornado thru here five years ago that dropped a tree on the house, blew off a neighbor's roof, and put the lights out for a week. Those were the days. Sandy was nothing like that up here.
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