How secure is secure?

Next time someone says "We must secure the border", ask 'em what they mean.  You can't just say "Secure means  nobody gets thru."  That won't happen, there are always leaks.  Let talk real world. 
In the real world we can put up a standard, commercial chain link fence,  8-10 feet high, three strands of barbed wire on top.  For extra  security we can set it on concrete to make it harder to dig underneath. 
For such a fence to do much good, you have to patrol it, and pursue those who climb it or break it.  It will keep out horses, mules, motorcycles, and passenger cars.  With a truck, you can push it over, and the young and athletic can climb it. 
Next step up is a wall like the Berlin wall, or what the Israelis have put up to keep Arab terrorists out.  That will stop nearly anything.  Looks really ugly, but effective.
Then to be serious about it, you have to inspect all motor vehicles and rail cars as they cross the border.  Make drivers open their trunks, look inside trucks.  That will slow border traffic, a lot. 
   Ask 'em which option they want, and will pay for. 

Collision Warning System for RAF fighters.

No electronic counter measures, no ejection seats,  but collision warning is seen as the needed safety improvement on RAF Tornado fighters.  The safety people (Military Aviation Authority) are bashing the Ministry of Defense for stalling the installation of collision warning systems on the aging Tornado fleet.  RAF kicked this off with a dreadful mid air collision between two Tornadoes in 2011.  Three of the four air crew were killed, the one survivor cannot remember the accident.  The accident occurred at 900 feet altitude over the Moray Firth. 
   Surprising statistic comes out.  RAF has lost 42 aircraft to mid air collisions between 1979 and 2001.  That's like two a year.  In six years in USAF I don't remember a single mid air collision.  We lost aircraft, landing accidents, enemy action, mechanical failure, head up and locked, and others.  I don't remember a single mid air collision story. 
   The collision warning system being pushed is a "co operative" system.  It only works if both aircraft have the equipment.  If the other guy doesn't have the gear, your warning system won't warn against him.  RAF is planning to equip all the Tornado fighters, even though they are scheduled for retirement in five years.  Which seems odd.  I would think a Tornado's chances of hitting a civilian aircraft as much higher than it's odds of hitting another RAF aircraft, on the thinking that there are more civilian aircraft in the air than jet fighters.

So what is the real deal on Ex-Im bank?

Export Import bank was set up in the 1930's.  It provides low cost loans to finance American exports.  Boeing is the biggest user and Caterpillar is number two.  On the face of it, assisting US companies exporting stuff seems OK.  The companies employ people, more sales is good, and what's wrong with that?
   The un answered question is where does the Ex-Im money come from?  Is it just my tax money going to Boeing?  Or does the bank make enough on the loans to show a profit?  I have not seen anything in the media about just how well or how badly Ex-Im is doing.  At a guess, Ex-Im borrows money from the US treasury at the T-bill rate (very low, 3%) and loans it at close to the commercial rate (6%).  With a margin like that, they ought to make money, unless they make a bunch of loans that go bad.  Bad, means the borrower goes bankrupt and never pays off. 
   We need a public audit of Ex-Im to make an intelligent choice.  If Ex-Im makes enough to pay the staff and the rent, and doesn't get tax payer subsidies, and doesn't commit the taxpayer to paying off it's liabilities, and it makes export sales happen, it's OK.  Sales are a good thing.
   If Ex-Im looses money, gets subsidized by the taxpayer, and commits the US to bailing out the entire world, it's not OK.  Kill it.
   We need to know what's really happening, and we don't.  You cannot make good decisions unless you know the facts.  We don't know the facts.  Thanks newsies. 

How long do T-shirts last?

Regular old white cotton guy's t-shirts,  Fruit of the Loom, from Walmart?  Answer.  10 years.  How do I know this?  When I retired in 2004 I  upgraded.  All my old dingy tattered T-shirts went to the rag bag,  and I restocked with Walmart's finest. 
   Now, 2014, I find that whole batch of T-shirts going to the rag bag.  They get thin and tired (the dryer blows a lot of fabric out of them).  And they develop holes.  Now  a few holes in places that don't show, don't bother me, but when the holes are right around the collar, and show to all the world, it's time for a replacement.  Walmart come thru again.
  The new T-shirts are a lot more white than the 10 year old ones. 

Rhenium moves from Science Fiction to Aviation Week

Back in 1965 E.E. (Doc) Smith wrote "Subspace Explorers" a super science space opera.  In addition to much daring do and space warfare, it featured a super material with ten times the strength of good steel, made from the element rhenium.  As a holder of a PhD in chemistry, Smith knew rhenium was a scarce element, existing in little more than traces on earth.  He had his protagonists go prospecting in interstellar space and locate a far off planet rich in rhenium.
   That was then.  Now we have an article in Aviation Week reporting that the Chinese are placing orders for delivery of anywhere from 2 to 10 tons of rhenium a year, starting in 2016.  Rhenium (melting point 3182 C) improves the temperature resistance of nickel (melting point 1455 C) alloy jet engine turbine blades.  Five tons is estimated to be 10% of total world production. About 80% of rhenium production goes into jet engines, the rest makes catalysts for the chemical industry. 
   Rhenium is a byproduct of a byproduct.  Molybdenum is a byproduct of copper mining, and rhenium is found as an impurity in molybdenum.  The current price of rhenium ($3000 per kg)  is not far above the cost of the recovery process.  Increased demand could lead to vastly greater production, at a higher price, of course. 

Kill the Federal Highway Trust Fund

The Highway Trust Fund was set up during the Eisenhower administration to build the Interstate highway system.  It did a good job, and by 1985 we had excellent highways running the length and breadth of the land.  The federal gasoline tax paid for all this. 
   Now that the Interstate system is built, the Highway Trust Fund is doled out to the state highway departments to maintain the Interstates.  And to do favors, like the favor Congress did for good old Tip O'Neill upon his retirement.  That favor was the Boston Big Dig,  which soaked up $14 billion, of other states tax money, to produce some very nice real estate in down town Boston.  It didn't improve traffic flow, but Boston (and only Boston) is much prettier now. 
  The Highway Trust fund is running dry now and the road contractors, highway departments, and the newsies are crying for more funding.  The Trust Fund administrator is threatening to reduce payments by August this year.  Horrors.  End of the world.  We MUST  pour more money down this rat hole.  Our senator, Jeanne Shaheen, is pressing for a federal gas tax hike to pump up the Highway Trust Fund, and to round out the state gas tax hike Maggie Hassan just blessed us with.  
  Better, would be to shut down the Highway Trust Fund altogether.  Lay off all the bureaucrats who run it. Cancel the Federal gasoline tax.  Let the states, who do the roadwork, pay for road maintanance out of state funds.  The states could even hike their gas taxes if needed.  With the Federal gas tax removed, the states could take a much bigger bite without raising the price of gas. 
   The money would be better managed if the states had to raise it them selves.  If you have to pay for it out of your own pocket, you only do essential projects.  If Uncle  Sam showers money on you, you go out and spend it quick, whether you need it or not.  If you don't spend all the free money, Uncle won't give any more next year.  Despite Obama's disbelief, the ARE shovel ready projects to soak up free money right now.  Up here we can always repave I93. 
   The Highway Trust Fund is just a batch of free money, getting poured down rat holes.  We ought to shut it off, for good.

Franconia, Old Home Day

We held Old Home Day on Saturday, the day after the 4th.  Good luck attended us, the 4th was wet and rainy, the 5th, Saturday started out overcast, the Sun broke thru in mid morning, and it was clear as a bell by evening.  I did the FCCC pancake breakfast, checked out the flea markets.  Then I formed up for the parade at noon with the rest of the up country Tea Party.  It was just right, about 70, dry and nice.  I'm getting old, it was only a little more than a mile, but it tired me out.  We had little kids, lots of politicians, veterans, fire trucks, brass bands, the works.  And we had fireworks in the evening down on Dow field.
I was going to attach some photos but they seem to have broken the photo uploader (again).

 

 

Try, try again.  Photo uploader appears to have recovered.  This is Russ Cumbee leading the Tea Party group in the parade. Parade goers line the main street.  Franconia only has 900 registered voters.  Must have been double or triple that number out watching the parade.
Lets press our luck with a second photo.  Sorry out of luck, the uploader broke again.  I'll give it rest and try again.

OK, uploader worked again.  This is Dow Field in Franconia, crowded with families and kids waiting for the town fireworks show to go on.