If you like PBS's America's Ballroom Challenge series you have an opportunity. Just show up in Columbus, OH in a few weeks to see the 2008 Ohio Star Ball. This is the event that they record for the series, and it attracts the top pros from across the country.
There are a couple of hotels that are physically connected to the Columbus Convention Center where the competition is held, and there are many others nearby. But this year it turns out that nearby Ohio State University has a home football game on that weekend, so it could be harder to find rooms than usual.
The competition goes on for almost the entire week, but the top pros historically are seen on Friday and Saturday nights.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Alaska panel finds Palin abused power in firing - Yahoo! News
The Associated Partisans are back at it again, with this nonsense:Alaska panel finds Palin abused power in firing - Yahoo! News.
Let's flip this around. Here's a state trooper with disciplinary issues that is related by marriage to Sarah Palin. If she had done nothing, then the story would be that she failed to protect the public from some loose cannon state trooper because he was married to her sister. And perhaps she had done so for financial gain - Wooten had financial liabilities to Palin's sister.
It's likely that none of this would have happened if Palin had not reassigned Walter Monegan, leading to his resignation. Monegan says this was because he wouldn't fire Wooten. It couldn't possibly be because of insubordination as detailed here, right?
Among other things, Wooten was accused of domestic violence. Monegan might have sympathized - after all, he had had some domestic violence issues himself as detailed here. Is it dirty pool to mention that? Awwww.
Monegan suggested that the state would have some legal exposure to Wooten if they mishandled his case. Of course there's no legal exposure for keeping a trooper with disciplinary issue on the force either, right? A guy who tasered his 10 year old stepkid couldn't possibly have any judgment or impulse control issues. Sheesh, if you can't taser stepkids or drive your police car while drinking beer what rights do we have left?
It would be interesting to see whether the people fussing about Palin now had any opinions when Bill Clinton's gang fired the White House travel office staff. And for those who are outraged that Todd Palin got involved, does anyone remember Hillary Clinton?
As for legal aspects, check this out. Shorter version - the report is BS. The kind of crap that gets published in October of election years.
Enough for now. I want to save some rage for a Palin rally.
UPDATE: More here
Let's flip this around. Here's a state trooper with disciplinary issues that is related by marriage to Sarah Palin. If she had done nothing, then the story would be that she failed to protect the public from some loose cannon state trooper because he was married to her sister. And perhaps she had done so for financial gain - Wooten had financial liabilities to Palin's sister.
It's likely that none of this would have happened if Palin had not reassigned Walter Monegan, leading to his resignation. Monegan says this was because he wouldn't fire Wooten. It couldn't possibly be because of insubordination as detailed here, right?
Among other things, Wooten was accused of domestic violence. Monegan might have sympathized - after all, he had had some domestic violence issues himself as detailed here. Is it dirty pool to mention that? Awwww.
Monegan suggested that the state would have some legal exposure to Wooten if they mishandled his case. Of course there's no legal exposure for keeping a trooper with disciplinary issue on the force either, right? A guy who tasered his 10 year old stepkid couldn't possibly have any judgment or impulse control issues. Sheesh, if you can't taser stepkids or drive your police car while drinking beer what rights do we have left?
It would be interesting to see whether the people fussing about Palin now had any opinions when Bill Clinton's gang fired the White House travel office staff. And for those who are outraged that Todd Palin got involved, does anyone remember Hillary Clinton?
As for legal aspects, check this out. Shorter version - the report is BS. The kind of crap that gets published in October of election years.
Enough for now. I want to save some rage for a Palin rally.
UPDATE: More here
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Obama is not a socialist?
Not sure what's going through Rick Moran's head with his assertions that OBAMA IS NOT A SOCIALIST.
Maybe he isn't. But how can Mr. Moran tell, when Obama has a different message for each audience each time?
The only constant in Obama's campaign is banalities about "change". Yep, just "change". Lest he should limit his options, Obama isn't even willing to hold out for "improvement". So Mr. Moran isn't totally out in left field when he suggests that Obama is non-ideological.
But if that's true, wouldn't you expect Obama to have friends more broadly distributed across the ideological spectrum?
And what about his wife? Even if Obama is nonideological, he's going home to a woman who apparently is not.
And does Rick Moran really think that Obama fooled unrepentant terrorists William Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn? Would they have picked just anyone to administer their pet Chicago Annenberg Challenge project? Sheesh, it's not as if there aren't any other leftists in Chicago.
If it makes Mr. Moran feel better, I guess we can use another word. I for one would like to keep "socialist" from going the way of "fascist" and becoming a non-specific epithet. But the word is at least as useless if we can't use it when it applies, and IMO all that stands between Obama and full-blown socialism is how closely and rapidly he dares to approach it without endangering his election chances.
Maybe he isn't. But how can Mr. Moran tell, when Obama has a different message for each audience each time?
The only constant in Obama's campaign is banalities about "change". Yep, just "change". Lest he should limit his options, Obama isn't even willing to hold out for "improvement". So Mr. Moran isn't totally out in left field when he suggests that Obama is non-ideological.
But if that's true, wouldn't you expect Obama to have friends more broadly distributed across the ideological spectrum?
And what about his wife? Even if Obama is nonideological, he's going home to a woman who apparently is not.
And does Rick Moran really think that Obama fooled unrepentant terrorists William Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn? Would they have picked just anyone to administer their pet Chicago Annenberg Challenge project? Sheesh, it's not as if there aren't any other leftists in Chicago.
If it makes Mr. Moran feel better, I guess we can use another word. I for one would like to keep "socialist" from going the way of "fascist" and becoming a non-specific epithet. But the word is at least as useless if we can't use it when it applies, and IMO all that stands between Obama and full-blown socialism is how closely and rapidly he dares to approach it without endangering his election chances.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Filipino fast food
Betcha haven't been to Jollibee. I stumbled across one in National City, CA just south of San Diego a couple of weeks ago.
We had just eaten somewhere else but I had to check it out. The menu isn't something you'll confuse for McDonald's, that's for sure. But it must work in their home in Southeast Asia, where they have close to 600 outlets in the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Brunei, and they have about a dozen stores in CA, NV and NY here in the US.
Coming soon to a town near you?
We had just eaten somewhere else but I had to check it out. The menu isn't something you'll confuse for McDonald's, that's for sure. But it must work in their home in Southeast Asia, where they have close to 600 outlets in the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Brunei, and they have about a dozen stores in CA, NV and NY here in the US.
Coming soon to a town near you?
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
He knows the score
You know, there just aren't enough musical comedies involving mine disasters.
Some years back a mine collapsed at Beaconsfield, Tasmania. Now to commemorate it we have "Beaconsfield - a Musical in A Flat Minor."
Well, not anymore apparently. Upon further review it appears that the playwright responded to outrage at the title and has renamed it "Beaconsfield - The Musical". Such a sensitive guy!
Original link from where else but Fark.
Some years back a mine collapsed at Beaconsfield, Tasmania. Now to commemorate it we have "Beaconsfield - a Musical in A Flat Minor."
Well, not anymore apparently. Upon further review it appears that the playwright responded to outrage at the title and has renamed it "Beaconsfield - The Musical". Such a sensitive guy!
Original link from where else but Fark.
Monday, October 06, 2008
Tying it all together
American Thinker: Barack Obama and the Strategy of Manufactured Crisis. Read it.
Incidentally, let's recall that Barack Obama's mother is white. Lest I should be called a racist for daring to criticize him in any way, let me assure you that all of my critique has been directed at the maternal side of his ancestry.
More here.
Incidentally, let's recall that Barack Obama's mother is white. Lest I should be called a racist for daring to criticize him in any way, let me assure you that all of my critique has been directed at the maternal side of his ancestry.
More here.
Sunday, October 05, 2008
The Midway :: San Diego's Aircraft Carrier Museum
I recently found myself in San Diego looking for things to do when I found out about the USS Midway. It's a diesel-powered aircraft carrier that has been decommissioned and turned into a museum in San Diego Harbor.
I enjoyed it thoroughly. If you go, be prepared to climb a lot and don't expect air conditioning.
I enjoyed it thoroughly. If you go, be prepared to climb a lot and don't expect air conditioning.
Eat your heart out, Ponzi!
That Charles Ponzi sure was a sucker. He should have done Credit Default Swaps.
Wanna play? You come up with something you want to insure against, I agree to assume the risk for a premium. If things go well I get money for almost nothing. But if your fears come true and you try to collect from me, I fold up shop and leave you hanging.
The cool thing is, I don't have to do much research. In the worst case scenario, all I need is enough time to get your money out of the country before your catastrophe happens and you try to collect.
Stuart Buck links to this which has a lot more details.
Wanna play? You come up with something you want to insure against, I agree to assume the risk for a premium. If things go well I get money for almost nothing. But if your fears come true and you try to collect from me, I fold up shop and leave you hanging.
The cool thing is, I don't have to do much research. In the worst case scenario, all I need is enough time to get your money out of the country before your catastrophe happens and you try to collect.
Stuart Buck links to this which has a lot more details.
Genetically engineered birth defects are a good thing...
in mosquitoes
If you follow the link, look around. Olivia Judson always has something interesting to say.
If you follow the link, look around. Olivia Judson always has something interesting to say.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Printout homes
What do you get when you cross an inkjet printer with a concrete pump? Something like this.
Friday, September 05, 2008
The Gravina Island Bridge
You've heard of this project. Really. But it's more popularly known as "the bridge to nowhere".
I've heard so much about this I finally decided to look it up to see what all the fuss was about. The most recent inspiration was a conversation I had recently about how Senator John McCain's running mate Sarah Palin, currently Governor of Alaska, had been "for it before she was against it", as if it's realistic to expect executives of any govt level to refuse money for a project like this.
It turns out that "nowhere" is the airport for Ketchikan, Alaska (pop 8000), which is located on Gravina Island (pop 50).
It's funny how the airport never gets mentioned. The Salon article linked above notes that it has "fewer than 10 commercial flights a day". Sounds pretty lame until you consider that Ketchikan has only 8000 residents. How many other towns of comparable size have *any* commercial service, much less 10 a day? Yes, air transportation is more important in Alaska than in most of the rest of the country.
A resident of Gravina Island notes that there is a ferry and that she can get from home to the local hospital in 5 minutes. OK. But it's still a ferry, limited in size and speed, and my guess is that anyone who lives on a place like Gravina Island didn't go there so they could have lots of neighbors. That is, the residents probably prefer the isolation and thus would oppose the bridge even if it were significantly cheaper.
Would Gravina Island ever be developed to the extent that this would make sense as an investment in infrastructure? That's hard to believe. Suppose the population of the island rose to 1000 people, and they paid $4000 per capita in federal taxes (just to have a number, probably right order of magnitude). If every time of those federal taxes went to paying off a $223M bridge to an island with no paved roads.... This is by no means an adequate evaluation, but my guess is that we'll get a lot more bang for the buck elsewhere.
To hear the overheated rhetoric, you might be thinking that this is the worst example of pork ever. In fact it's probably because it was in the budget at the time of Hurricane Katrina, and people were looking for funds that could be diverted to Katrina relief. I don't keep track of these things, but a far better candidate might be the Army Corps of Engineers' Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway that connects the Tennessee River with the Gulf of Mexico via the Tombigbee River. Many more are discussed a WaPo article here.
The article notes that the Corps of Engineers had already spent more in Louisiana in than in any other state, with spectacularly unsuccessful results - "The Corps has eluded the public's outrage -- even though a useless Corps shipping canal intensified Katrina's surge, even though poorly designed Corps floodwalls collapsed just a few feet from an unnecessary $750 million Corps navigation project , even though the Corps had promoted development in dangerously low-lying New Orleans floodplains and had helped destroy the vast marshes that once provided the city's natural flood protection."
That article goes on to note that "Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) are pushing a Corps reform bill that would require independent reviews of large projects, but they aren't getting much traction."
We will continue to have pork as long as the federal govt is empowered to do so. Sheesh, if there are "penumbras and emanations" from the Constitution that guarantee a right to choose to kill fetuses (and even live births, if you vote like Barack Obama), isn't there one to protect us from nonsense like this?
I've heard so much about this I finally decided to look it up to see what all the fuss was about. The most recent inspiration was a conversation I had recently about how Senator John McCain's running mate Sarah Palin, currently Governor of Alaska, had been "for it before she was against it", as if it's realistic to expect executives of any govt level to refuse money for a project like this.
It turns out that "nowhere" is the airport for Ketchikan, Alaska (pop 8000), which is located on Gravina Island (pop 50).
It's funny how the airport never gets mentioned. The Salon article linked above notes that it has "fewer than 10 commercial flights a day". Sounds pretty lame until you consider that Ketchikan has only 8000 residents. How many other towns of comparable size have *any* commercial service, much less 10 a day? Yes, air transportation is more important in Alaska than in most of the rest of the country.
A resident of Gravina Island notes that there is a ferry and that she can get from home to the local hospital in 5 minutes. OK. But it's still a ferry, limited in size and speed, and my guess is that anyone who lives on a place like Gravina Island didn't go there so they could have lots of neighbors. That is, the residents probably prefer the isolation and thus would oppose the bridge even if it were significantly cheaper.
Would Gravina Island ever be developed to the extent that this would make sense as an investment in infrastructure? That's hard to believe. Suppose the population of the island rose to 1000 people, and they paid $4000 per capita in federal taxes (just to have a number, probably right order of magnitude). If every time of those federal taxes went to paying off a $223M bridge to an island with no paved roads.... This is by no means an adequate evaluation, but my guess is that we'll get a lot more bang for the buck elsewhere.
To hear the overheated rhetoric, you might be thinking that this is the worst example of pork ever. In fact it's probably because it was in the budget at the time of Hurricane Katrina, and people were looking for funds that could be diverted to Katrina relief. I don't keep track of these things, but a far better candidate might be the Army Corps of Engineers' Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway that connects the Tennessee River with the Gulf of Mexico via the Tombigbee River. Many more are discussed a WaPo article here.
The article notes that the Corps of Engineers had already spent more in Louisiana in than in any other state, with spectacularly unsuccessful results - "The Corps has eluded the public's outrage -- even though a useless Corps shipping canal intensified Katrina's surge, even though poorly designed Corps floodwalls collapsed just a few feet from an unnecessary $750 million Corps navigation project , even though the Corps had promoted development in dangerously low-lying New Orleans floodplains and had helped destroy the vast marshes that once provided the city's natural flood protection."
That article goes on to note that "Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) are pushing a Corps reform bill that would require independent reviews of large projects, but they aren't getting much traction."
We will continue to have pork as long as the federal govt is empowered to do so. Sheesh, if there are "penumbras and emanations" from the Constitution that guarantee a right to choose to kill fetuses (and even live births, if you vote like Barack Obama), isn't there one to protect us from nonsense like this?
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Women being abused!
I thought maybe I could make it through a political season without blogging, but no. I managed to sit still as the lamest candidate ever managed to game the system to the point where he beat someone who's forgotten more than he'll ever know, but enough about Barack Obama - this time it's about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
Good grief, the crap we're hearing already. What is there not to like about this woman?
Yet look at this video - apparently someone is trying to paint her as stupid for asking what the vice president does on a day-to-day basis. It's a fair question, because no two administrations are the same. Does anyone think that, say, Al Gore did the same things from day to day in the 1990s that Lyndon Johnson did in the early 1960's? The Constitution doesn't have much to say about day to day veep work - most of that will be determined by John McCain and Ms. Palin if he wins.
And really, how many veeps can you name who weren't elected in your lifetime? The job isn't a big deal unless you think the Pres is likely to keel over during his turn or you're worried about close votes in the Senate. It's true that McCain is in his 70's and has been treated for cancer. But he kept campaigning while Obama had to stop and rest, and McCain's mother was robust enough to show up at the Republican National Convention. He must have some good genes.
Oh yeah, her daughter is knocked up! Obviously Palin must have failed as a parent! That's arguable, but I would say no (I'm having a hard time imagining what it must be like to be a teenager in small-town Alaska with long cold winters). But it is interesting how parenting talent didn't come up while Al Gore's kid was getting busted for speeding and drugs, and if he knocked up any girls there are always plenty of abortionists willing to kill the baby cheap.
Heavens, she'll be distracted by her family! Maybe. I hope so. Every minute she's worrying about them is one more she won't be spending looking for things to meddle with or laying the groundwork for becoming filthy stinking rich after she leaves office. And I'll bet that lots of parents would like to have free help from the Secret Service in looking after their children.
Then there's her husband, who has a DUI conviction that dates back before they even married!
She wasn't adequately vetted! I have no idea, but then neither do the jackasses who are asserting this. They appear to be making the assumption that if they don't approve of something, McCain wouldn't either, therefore vetting must have been inadequate. Contrast this with Bill "you'd better put some ice on that" Clinton and his "bimbo eruptions", among other things - did he get vetted at all?
It would be nice if in fact the media had decided that *all* candidates' backgrounds should be investigated, not just Republicans', but that's not a change I can believe in.
I could go on, but really, this stuff is absurd. Come on Barack Obama, grow a pair and call off your lickspittles in the media. That doesn't sound like a new kind of politics to me.
Good grief, the crap we're hearing already. What is there not to like about this woman?
Yet look at this video - apparently someone is trying to paint her as stupid for asking what the vice president does on a day-to-day basis. It's a fair question, because no two administrations are the same. Does anyone think that, say, Al Gore did the same things from day to day in the 1990s that Lyndon Johnson did in the early 1960's? The Constitution doesn't have much to say about day to day veep work - most of that will be determined by John McCain and Ms. Palin if he wins.
And really, how many veeps can you name who weren't elected in your lifetime? The job isn't a big deal unless you think the Pres is likely to keel over during his turn or you're worried about close votes in the Senate. It's true that McCain is in his 70's and has been treated for cancer. But he kept campaigning while Obama had to stop and rest, and McCain's mother was robust enough to show up at the Republican National Convention. He must have some good genes.
Oh yeah, her daughter is knocked up! Obviously Palin must have failed as a parent! That's arguable, but I would say no (I'm having a hard time imagining what it must be like to be a teenager in small-town Alaska with long cold winters). But it is interesting how parenting talent didn't come up while Al Gore's kid was getting busted for speeding and drugs, and if he knocked up any girls there are always plenty of abortionists willing to kill the baby cheap.
Heavens, she'll be distracted by her family! Maybe. I hope so. Every minute she's worrying about them is one more she won't be spending looking for things to meddle with or laying the groundwork for becoming filthy stinking rich after she leaves office. And I'll bet that lots of parents would like to have free help from the Secret Service in looking after their children.
Then there's her husband, who has a DUI conviction that dates back before they even married!
She wasn't adequately vetted! I have no idea, but then neither do the jackasses who are asserting this. They appear to be making the assumption that if they don't approve of something, McCain wouldn't either, therefore vetting must have been inadequate. Contrast this with Bill "you'd better put some ice on that" Clinton and his "bimbo eruptions", among other things - did he get vetted at all?
It would be nice if in fact the media had decided that *all* candidates' backgrounds should be investigated, not just Republicans', but that's not a change I can believe in.
I could go on, but really, this stuff is absurd. Come on Barack Obama, grow a pair and call off your lickspittles in the media. That doesn't sound like a new kind of politics to me.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
It's not news, it's Reuters
The headline says Shooting spree leaves six dead in Washington state.
They did note that "Local media reported that the suspect has a history of mental illness and a criminal past." One might suspect that this might account for the man's rampage.
But no, this is Reuters. We must be told that "The incident is the latest in a series of mass shootings over the last few years in the United States, which is estimated to have the world's highest civilian gun ownership rate, leading gun control advocates to push for tighter restrictions."
Do you suppose I'll live long enough to see Reuters report on massacres of civilians in places like Darfur and note that "this is the latest in a series of mass shootings by governments or criminals, leading self defense advocates to push for more arms for civilians"?
They did note that "Local media reported that the suspect has a history of mental illness and a criminal past." One might suspect that this might account for the man's rampage.
But no, this is Reuters. We must be told that "The incident is the latest in a series of mass shootings over the last few years in the United States, which is estimated to have the world's highest civilian gun ownership rate, leading gun control advocates to push for tighter restrictions."
Do you suppose I'll live long enough to see Reuters report on massacres of civilians in places like Darfur and note that "this is the latest in a series of mass shootings by governments or criminals, leading self defense advocates to push for more arms for civilians"?
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Conflict of interest?
Margaret Sanger's defenders all have one thing in common - they weren't aborted.
I can't say if they all believe in fantastical moral equivalences too, but one who read Jonah Goldberg's writing clearly does. He reproduces her screed here. She manages to find similarities between Margaret Sanger and Helen Keller and various other historical figures. Thus in her world Justice! demands that if anyone condemns Margaret Sanger as Goldberg has for her views, he must do the same of Helen Keller and the others.
Helen Keller might not be well remembered today, but she was famous for overcoming both deafness and blindness to become a prominent American. She was in fact very liberal, as anyone else might be if they were as limited in their ability to experience the real world as she.
What's interesting is that Mr. Goldberg was demonstrating the historical ties between liberals and eugenicists. Mr. Goldberg's critic apparently did not say where Ms. Keller stood on eugenics. What do you suppose eugenicists would have done with a girl who was both blind and deaf?
I can't say if they all believe in fantastical moral equivalences too, but one who read Jonah Goldberg's writing clearly does. He reproduces her screed here. She manages to find similarities between Margaret Sanger and Helen Keller and various other historical figures. Thus in her world Justice! demands that if anyone condemns Margaret Sanger as Goldberg has for her views, he must do the same of Helen Keller and the others.
Helen Keller might not be well remembered today, but she was famous for overcoming both deafness and blindness to become a prominent American. She was in fact very liberal, as anyone else might be if they were as limited in their ability to experience the real world as she.
What's interesting is that Mr. Goldberg was demonstrating the historical ties between liberals and eugenicists. Mr. Goldberg's critic apparently did not say where Ms. Keller stood on eugenics. What do you suppose eugenicists would have done with a girl who was both blind and deaf?
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Was Einstein an atheist?
I'm not arrogant enough to be an atheist. Apparently Albert Einstein wasn't either.
Dinesh D'Souza has more, with quotes from the man himself.
Dinesh D'Souza has more, with quotes from the man himself.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)