The Obama administration admitted that they are sending another 450 US troops to Iraq, to do some training. They were going to set up a new training base near Ramadi.
If we wanted, they could recruit and train a good Sunni Iraqi army, under US control in a couple of months. Just offer enlistment, with steady pay in US dollars, decent US rations, and a good uniform, possibly even a flak jacket. Give 'em a couple of months of basic training, have the Americans run the promotion boards to fill out the squad and platoon NCO positions with good men, and I think we could have a 10,000 man army in Iraq that would fight, and we could keep 'em fighting against ISIS rather than joining political coups in Baghdad.
We did something like this in Laos, 50 years ago, and it worked.
Of course Obama would never approve.
Thursday, June 11, 2015
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
John W. Campbell, Creator of modern science fiction
John Campbell started as a science fiction writer himself in the 1930's. I've read some of his stuff, not bad, but except for "Who Goes There", not truly memorable stuff. He took the position of editor at Astounding Science Fiction magazine sometime before WWII. He quickly moved Astounding up from just another pulp fiction rag to the leading science fiction magazine. He asked his writers for good stories, with plot, with decent characters, and a thought provoking idea. And the writers delivered. Campbell found new writers and encouraged them to write for Astounding. Isaac Asimov, Robert A Heinlein, H. Beam Piper, Hal Clement, James H. Schmitz, Poul Andersen and many others were discovered and brought into science fiction writing by Campbell. On the way, Campbell had plenty of time to explain his ideas about the proper science fiction story. Pretty much everyone came around to Campbell's way of thinking, and science fiction is better for it.
Campbell stayed on at Astounding into the 1970's. He managed to change the name of the magazine to the more respectable sounding Analog Science Fiction.
Campbell stayed on at Astounding into the 1970's. He managed to change the name of the magazine to the more respectable sounding Analog Science Fiction.
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Save Money, disband the TSA
The TSA hassling and groping of passengers does nothing for air line security, it just drives away paying passengers. Doesn't matter if the would be hijackers get weapons on board, the passengers will not allow them to take over the aircraft. Flight 93 proved that. Since that dreadful day there have been a number of incidents where unruly passengers were subdued, in one case by use of a fire axe, in flight by ordinary passengers. Passengers know that should hijackers take over the aircraft, they will die in the resulting crash, which is plenty of motivation to heroic action. In actual fact we would be safer in the air if all the passengers carried concealed handguns.
Recent press stories of the total failure of TSA gropers to find 95% of concealed weapons carried onto aircraft by inspectors, failure to detect 73 airport workers who obtained airport jobs and security badges despite being on the terrorist watch list, and plundering passenger's luggage, show that we would be better off if we disbanded the TSA completely. It would save money, and put a lot of democratic voters out of a job. Those are good things.
.
Save money, increase security, make air travel less distasteful, disband the TSA. What's not to like?
Recent press stories of the total failure of TSA gropers to find 95% of concealed weapons carried onto aircraft by inspectors, failure to detect 73 airport workers who obtained airport jobs and security badges despite being on the terrorist watch list, and plundering passenger's luggage, show that we would be better off if we disbanded the TSA completely. It would save money, and put a lot of democratic voters out of a job. Those are good things.
.
Save money, increase security, make air travel less distasteful, disband the TSA. What's not to like?
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Not all books are created equal
The Abby Greenleaf library in Franconia holds a used book sale over the 4th of July. And my bookshelves are filled to overflowing. So, I filled an empty liquor carton with some books I figured I will never want to read again and took 'em down to the book sale.
Well it seems that all books are not created equal. The librarian had a written list of book they won't accept for the book sale. The black list includes:
Books in poor condition
Computer manuals
Encycopedias
Harlequin type romance novels
large collections of religeous or spiritual books
Magazines
Reader's Digest condensed books
Textbooks and reference books
Travel books older than 5 years.
Well, I mostly agree with this black list. This is stuff that nobody will ever buy, leaving the librarians with the chore of hauling them down to the dump (excuse me transfer station). Although the romance novels ought to sell to girls of the right age, not that I would ever read such. Well, maybe librarians are down on romance novels on general principles.
Well it seems that all books are not created equal. The librarian had a written list of book they won't accept for the book sale. The black list includes:
Books in poor condition
Computer manuals
Encycopedias
Harlequin type romance novels
large collections of religeous or spiritual books
Magazines
Reader's Digest condensed books
Textbooks and reference books
Travel books older than 5 years.
Well, I mostly agree with this black list. This is stuff that nobody will ever buy, leaving the librarians with the chore of hauling them down to the dump (excuse me transfer station). Although the romance novels ought to sell to girls of the right age, not that I would ever read such. Well, maybe librarians are down on romance novels on general principles.
It pays to be first.
American railroads ran on steam locomotives thruout World War II. Immediately after the war they began to convert to diesel locomotives. By 1957, a mere 12 years, diesel conversion was mostly done. Only the diehard Norfolk and Western was still running steam. We are talking about replacing every locomotive in service in a mere 12 years. That is one heck of a lot of locomotives.
And, one company, the Electro Motive Division of General Motors gained the bulk of this business. Other locomotive builders, Baldwin, ALCO, Fairbanks Morse, Ingersoll Rand, and General Electric were driven from the market. EMD sold 9 out of 10 locomotives in the early post war years.
What gave EMD the edge? Back before the war, EMD had been working hard to grow self propelled passenger rail cars into real road freight locomotives. In 1939, on the eve of war, EMD put the 1300 horsepower FT freighter on the market. There had been a few switch locomotives, of 600 horsepower or such, and low speed trucks built, but the FT was the first unit with enough power to move a big train at road speed. Not only that, but the 1300 horsepower units could be coupled together, to form four unit lashups with 5200 horsepower. That was enough to move anything, over any kind of mountain. EMD managed to build and sell a few dozen units before WWII.
When America joined WWII, the government set up the War Production Board to mobilize American industry for the existential struggle. The new high tech diesel engines were needed for submarines, to power air and army bases, and dozens of other crucial tasks. War Production told the railroads they would have to make do with the traditional steam locomotives, there was a war on, the the diesels were needed to fight it. The only diesel railroad locomotives running were the few dozen that EMD had put on the rails. They ran thruout the war, and those teething troubles that new machines are subject to were discovered and fixed before the war ended.
So, when the post war locomotive boom began, EMD was the only company with a tested, debugged, and reliable design. The also rans had to debug their new products, at the customers expense. The customers noticed, and flocked to the reliable EMD product. Which gave EMD the entire North American locomotive market for decades.
It pays to be first.
And, one company, the Electro Motive Division of General Motors gained the bulk of this business. Other locomotive builders, Baldwin, ALCO, Fairbanks Morse, Ingersoll Rand, and General Electric were driven from the market. EMD sold 9 out of 10 locomotives in the early post war years.
What gave EMD the edge? Back before the war, EMD had been working hard to grow self propelled passenger rail cars into real road freight locomotives. In 1939, on the eve of war, EMD put the 1300 horsepower FT freighter on the market. There had been a few switch locomotives, of 600 horsepower or such, and low speed trucks built, but the FT was the first unit with enough power to move a big train at road speed. Not only that, but the 1300 horsepower units could be coupled together, to form four unit lashups with 5200 horsepower. That was enough to move anything, over any kind of mountain. EMD managed to build and sell a few dozen units before WWII.
When America joined WWII, the government set up the War Production Board to mobilize American industry for the existential struggle. The new high tech diesel engines were needed for submarines, to power air and army bases, and dozens of other crucial tasks. War Production told the railroads they would have to make do with the traditional steam locomotives, there was a war on, the the diesels were needed to fight it. The only diesel railroad locomotives running were the few dozen that EMD had put on the rails. They ran thruout the war, and those teething troubles that new machines are subject to were discovered and fixed before the war ended.
So, when the post war locomotive boom began, EMD was the only company with a tested, debugged, and reliable design. The also rans had to debug their new products, at the customers expense. The customers noticed, and flocked to the reliable EMD product. Which gave EMD the entire North American locomotive market for decades.
It pays to be first.
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Voter ID
The dems have been bad mouthing it. Could it be that they fear it would weed out illegal democratic voters? Actually where I am, it doesn't matter much. I know the poll workers, and they know me. It is small town America up here. But, having the ability to ask for a photo ID from people they don't recognize, does tighten things up. And everybody has a driver's license in America. And they all have photo's on them now. I don't believe all the sob talk about what a terrible burden it is to obtain a photo ID, every one has a driver's license. Otherwise how do they get to work?
Actually, if we want to tighten things up, we need to get rid of "same day registration". Serious voters can jolly well get down to town hall before the election and register. If they cannot be bothered, then they are not serious voters. Who wants to allow clowns to vote? And to register in New Hampshire, you better show a New Hampshire driver's license. Out of state license means you ain't a New Hampshire resident, and therefore you ain't eligible to vote in New Hampshire. Same goes for out of state plates on your car.
Registered voters names appear on the printed voter list used by the poll workers to check off voters as they vote and prevent double voting. If the name ain't on the voter list, you don't get a ballot, no matter how much photo ID you have.
I'm not sure how absentee ballots are checked, but at a minimum the absentee voter's name MUST appear on a registered voters list.
Actually, if we want to tighten things up, we need to get rid of "same day registration". Serious voters can jolly well get down to town hall before the election and register. If they cannot be bothered, then they are not serious voters. Who wants to allow clowns to vote? And to register in New Hampshire, you better show a New Hampshire driver's license. Out of state license means you ain't a New Hampshire resident, and therefore you ain't eligible to vote in New Hampshire. Same goes for out of state plates on your car.
Registered voters names appear on the printed voter list used by the poll workers to check off voters as they vote and prevent double voting. If the name ain't on the voter list, you don't get a ballot, no matter how much photo ID you have.
I'm not sure how absentee ballots are checked, but at a minimum the absentee voter's name MUST appear on a registered voters list.
Friday, June 5, 2015
Hacking US computers.
The TV newsies have been making a big deal of the big hack of the federal Office of Personnel Management, where the personnel records, security clearances, performance reports, salaries, contact information, social security numbers, everything, of 4 million civil service workers were stolen.
Wanna bet the records were stolen off Windows systems? Thank you Bill Gates for your continuing contributions to American security.
Wanna bet the records were stolen off Windows systems? Thank you Bill Gates for your continuing contributions to American security.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)