Believe it or not, I heard this discussion on NPR this morning. Some international outfit (not our FDA) was questioning the use of experimental untested drugs in Ebola cases. Wow.
A patient has a disease with a 90% death rate. Nothing anyone can do can make the patient's chances worse than that. It's always ethical to do anything short of euthanasia to try and cure a patient who is that gravely ill. It is indeed possible that experimental untested treatments have side effects and risks. But compared with the 90% chance of dying of Ebola, nobody cares about side effects or risks of experimental treatments. Certainly not the patients.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Monday, August 11, 2014
Americans never want to go to war.
A civilized and rational viewpoint. It goes back to our Civil War, which was so terrible that the survivors swore "Never again". That attitude has been passed down to the present day. America stayed out of WWI for three years. It took a sneak attack at Pearl Harbor to get us into WWII. Korea, Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan did nothing to make war seem useful, practical, moral, or desirable. Americans are against war.
Obama keeps saying that Americans won't support action in Iraq (or anywhere else) as an excuse for doing nothing. In actual fact, while no American is real happy about getting into anything, we will do it, if we perceive our cause is right, and the enemy is despicable. Perceive is the key word here. Public perceptions are strongly shaped by the President, and the media. We have a President who doesn't want to act, backed up by a media that supports the President no matter what. If we had a President who wanted to save Iraq, and a media that supported him with atrocity stories about ISIS, things would be different. Using American reluctance to go to war as an excuse for turning Iraq over to Islamic terrorists is shameful.
It takes a lot to get Americans to mix it up in "military action", "police action", "peace keeping" or plain old war. Last time we went to war with a will was after Pearl Harbor. When we did finally get into WWII, within two years we turned that war around. The Axis was on a roll in 1942. By 1944 we were rolling 'em back.
In recent history, it takes presidential leadership to get American to go to war. Korea, Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan happened because Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, and Bush decided these wars had to be fought. Without those presidents leading, we would not have fought any of them. And there was significant political opposition to all four of those wars. Those presidents were able to overcome said political opposition. Lacking presidential leadership, modern America will not go to war. When Obama says public opinion will not support action in the Middle East, he is really saying that he does not support action.
Obama keeps saying that Americans won't support action in Iraq (or anywhere else) as an excuse for doing nothing. In actual fact, while no American is real happy about getting into anything, we will do it, if we perceive our cause is right, and the enemy is despicable. Perceive is the key word here. Public perceptions are strongly shaped by the President, and the media. We have a President who doesn't want to act, backed up by a media that supports the President no matter what. If we had a President who wanted to save Iraq, and a media that supported him with atrocity stories about ISIS, things would be different. Using American reluctance to go to war as an excuse for turning Iraq over to Islamic terrorists is shameful.
It takes a lot to get Americans to mix it up in "military action", "police action", "peace keeping" or plain old war. Last time we went to war with a will was after Pearl Harbor. When we did finally get into WWII, within two years we turned that war around. The Axis was on a roll in 1942. By 1944 we were rolling 'em back.
In recent history, it takes presidential leadership to get American to go to war. Korea, Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan happened because Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, and Bush decided these wars had to be fought. Without those presidents leading, we would not have fought any of them. And there was significant political opposition to all four of those wars. Those presidents were able to overcome said political opposition. Lacking presidential leadership, modern America will not go to war. When Obama says public opinion will not support action in the Middle East, he is really saying that he does not support action.
Sunday, August 10, 2014
Let's fly it in.
I'm hearing that the Kurdish Peshmerga has been losing to the IS terrorists cause they run out of ammunition. We oughta fix that. The Kurds still control some decent airports, big enough to take a C17. One C17 can fly in 85 tons of cargo. Make that all rifle ammunition and you bring in 4.7 million rounds in a single flight. That oughta hold 'em for a few days.
We could easily make 10 flights a day.
We could easily make 10 flights a day.
Community Organizer never learned Poker
Poker, an old American card game, which everyone used to know. One of the things you learn in poker is a poker face. You don't let the other players know what your cards are. If they think your cards are weak, they will bet heavily, and when your strong hand wins, it will win real money, rather than just penny antes. You never smile as bets are going down.
"Negotiation" with the IS terrorists is like poker. Never show your cards. When they don't know, they will worry about what might happen to them. You never say "No boots on the ground". That merely weakens your bargaining position. Most Iraqi's have painful experience with American soldiers who could kick their asses in every engagement. There is some useful fear there. As soon as our President says " No boots on the ground" that useful fear is canceled out.
Obama is saying "no boots on the ground" to please his left wing US voters, not to help negotiations. He clearly puts domestic politics above asserting American power abroad. He would clearly rather let the terrorists win in Iraq than offend his left wing base at home. And that is shameful.
"Negotiation" with the IS terrorists is like poker. Never show your cards. When they don't know, they will worry about what might happen to them. You never say "No boots on the ground". That merely weakens your bargaining position. Most Iraqi's have painful experience with American soldiers who could kick their asses in every engagement. There is some useful fear there. As soon as our President says " No boots on the ground" that useful fear is canceled out.
Obama is saying "no boots on the ground" to please his left wing US voters, not to help negotiations. He clearly puts domestic politics above asserting American power abroad. He would clearly rather let the terrorists win in Iraq than offend his left wing base at home. And that is shameful.
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Tax Reform
The IRS regulations, that tax payers are supposed to know, and the IRS uses to prosecute them, are 75,000 pages long. Nobody can read or understand that much legal gobble-de-gook. It's time for a complete change.
Step 1. Revoke every single IRS rule, and all the court rulings. Repeal all existing income tax laws. Start with a clean slate.
Step 2. Break the income tax into two taxes, personal income tax and corporate income tax. Write a separate law for each tax.
Step 3. Corporate income will be taxed at 20% of corporate profits. Period. No exception, loopholes, depletion allowances, or special deals favoring one kind of corporation. Profits are computed by subtracting legitimate expenses from corporate revenue. Revenue is all money from sales, fees, investments, tax rebates, everything. Legitimate expenses are:
1. wages
2. raw material
3. repayments and interest on corporate debt
4. state and local taxes
5. salesman's commissions
6. advertising
7. tools, jigs, molds, and machinery,
8. utilities, electricity, water, telecommunications services
9. insurance (including employees health insurance)
10. dividends
11. contributions to charity
12. Other expenses necessary for producing the corporate product.
13. research and development
The following are not legitimate expenses and must be paid out of after tax profits.
1. Bribes
2. political contributions
3. company cars
4. company aircraft (unless the company is an air carrier).
5. bonuses
6. stock purchases.
7. Excessive wages. Wages greater than 50 times the lowest yearly wage at the company are excessive.
Small corporations, those with profits of less than $500,000 a year are exempt. Buildings and production equipment with a service life greater than 5 years must be capitalized and depreciated over the expected service life. Land may not be depreciated.
Step 4. Pass a personal income tax law.
Step 5. Disband the Tax Court. The government can sue taxpayers in regular federal court. The Tax Court knows too much about taxes and too little about real law. Repeal the IRS power to seize money out of bank accounts.
Step 1. Revoke every single IRS rule, and all the court rulings. Repeal all existing income tax laws. Start with a clean slate.
Step 2. Break the income tax into two taxes, personal income tax and corporate income tax. Write a separate law for each tax.
Step 3. Corporate income will be taxed at 20% of corporate profits. Period. No exception, loopholes, depletion allowances, or special deals favoring one kind of corporation. Profits are computed by subtracting legitimate expenses from corporate revenue. Revenue is all money from sales, fees, investments, tax rebates, everything. Legitimate expenses are:
1. wages
2. raw material
3. repayments and interest on corporate debt
4. state and local taxes
5. salesman's commissions
6. advertising
7. tools, jigs, molds, and machinery,
8. utilities, electricity, water, telecommunications services
9. insurance (including employees health insurance)
10. dividends
11. contributions to charity
12. Other expenses necessary for producing the corporate product.
13. research and development
The following are not legitimate expenses and must be paid out of after tax profits.
1. Bribes
2. political contributions
3. company cars
4. company aircraft (unless the company is an air carrier).
5. bonuses
6. stock purchases.
7. Excessive wages. Wages greater than 50 times the lowest yearly wage at the company are excessive.
Small corporations, those with profits of less than $500,000 a year are exempt. Buildings and production equipment with a service life greater than 5 years must be capitalized and depreciated over the expected service life. Land may not be depreciated.
Step 4. Pass a personal income tax law.
Step 5. Disband the Tax Court. The government can sue taxpayers in regular federal court. The Tax Court knows too much about taxes and too little about real law. Repeal the IRS power to seize money out of bank accounts.
Friday, August 8, 2014
Drain fishing
After the place slides down the drain, attempts to fish some part of it back up. We pulled our troops out of Iraq, the place slide down the drain, and now we are trying to fish out some refugees starving on the site of Noah's ark.
Miracle cleaning fluid, Alcohol
Good stuff. Cuts any kind of grease. They sell it in the paint department in quart cans. Denatured alcohol which is ethanol (drinking alcohol) spiked with something to make it undrinkable. That way they can sell it for home and industrial uses without paying the $10.50 a gallon federal booze tax. It used as stove fuel and shellac thinner.
Around the house, it cut thru some stubborn film on my kitchen floor. A combination of dirt, spills, and too much Mop-n-Glow formed a grungy film that Pine-Sol won't touch. Alcohol cut right thru it. Ancient Formica table top had acquired a stickiness that 409 wouldn't touch. Alcohol cut right thru it.
And for a tour de force, it fixed the mouse. Older mechanical mouse, with the rubber mouse ball inside it. It was getting flakey, cursor would get stuck, fail to move, PITA. Wiped down the little rollers inside with a rag soaked in alcohol. That cut the greasy crud buildup and now the mouse is smooth as new.
Alcohol is safe on nearly every thing found in the home. Paint, plastics, fabrics and wood, EXCEPT wood finished in shellac. The stuff is shellac thinner, and it will dissolve a hardened shellac surface, making the shellac go all soft and sticky, like when it was first brushed on. Not good. Fortunately all factory (store bought) furniture is done in lacquer. The only shellac finished items in the typical home are antiques, or home refinish projects. I have a single straight chair that I refinished in shellac, but if you don't do your own refinishing, you probably don't have anything finished in shellac. Not to worry.
Around the house, it cut thru some stubborn film on my kitchen floor. A combination of dirt, spills, and too much Mop-n-Glow formed a grungy film that Pine-Sol won't touch. Alcohol cut right thru it. Ancient Formica table top had acquired a stickiness that 409 wouldn't touch. Alcohol cut right thru it.
And for a tour de force, it fixed the mouse. Older mechanical mouse, with the rubber mouse ball inside it. It was getting flakey, cursor would get stuck, fail to move, PITA. Wiped down the little rollers inside with a rag soaked in alcohol. That cut the greasy crud buildup and now the mouse is smooth as new.
Alcohol is safe on nearly every thing found in the home. Paint, plastics, fabrics and wood, EXCEPT wood finished in shellac. The stuff is shellac thinner, and it will dissolve a hardened shellac surface, making the shellac go all soft and sticky, like when it was first brushed on. Not good. Fortunately all factory (store bought) furniture is done in lacquer. The only shellac finished items in the typical home are antiques, or home refinish projects. I have a single straight chair that I refinished in shellac, but if you don't do your own refinishing, you probably don't have anything finished in shellac. Not to worry.
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