I want to make my heartfelt apologies to the following:
Sorry Dish Network. The current economic mess has forced me to cancel your service.
Sorry NetFlix. I'll be able to entertain myself without your service for quite some time.
Sorry Baen. I will not be purchasing any more webscriptions in the foreseeable future. Thank the politicians and a greedy Wall Street.
Sorry Amazon. Blame the Wall Street bankers and investment gurus for my stopping all purchases.
Sorry eBay. I canceled the Paypal account and stopped all searches and purchases on your site. Not only does the current economy cause this, but also your irrational changes to what was once a fun experience.
Sorry Microsoft. I can no longer afford your ill conceived, unworkable software in the current economic climate. Maybe if you didn't off-shore your workforce you could be part of the solution and not the problem.
Sorry Dell or HP or any other electronic manufacturer. No new computer this year or next unless the economy changes rapidly for the better. Maybe if you didn't off-shore your workforce you could be part of the solution and not the problem.
Sorry banks and credit card companies. Your policies are to blame for this crisis! I for one do not need to feed your greed. You can take your high interest, teaser rates, and other BS elsewhere.
Sorry insurance companies, mutual funds, and stockbrokers. You bought into this financial mess and now you can eat it! Cash may be king, but Gold and Silver are for real.
Sorry Republican and Democrat politicans. I don't feel the need to vote for a bunch of politicians that have placed lobbyist, special interest groups, and "fat cat" financial moguls above the rights and economic well being of the American middle class.
Sorry China, Indonesia, etc. I don't need your cheap crap. I'll be buying very little for the foreseeable future and what I buy will be "Made in America."
Ron Paul is right! Maybe, just maybe, people will start to listen to what he has to say. If it isn't too late that is.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Are we headed for a new investment bubble?
Currently, we as the "normal" citizens of this country are suffering through the after effects of a housing bubble. Was this bubble caused by us? No! The only ones to blame are the Wall Street bankers who created the sub-prime mortgage and went on to trade these as if they had real value. Now, we as taxpayers are being asked to bail out these fools and their multi-million dollar a year jobs.
This economic problem hasn't even resolved itself and now a similar group of fools known as hedge fund managers is getting us into another bubble that will end in disaster!
Recently the prices of energy in the form of oil and natural gas has risen through the roof. Why? Simply put the hedge fund industry (those people who bought all those sub-prime mortgages) have been putting their bets on energy prices continuing to rise indefinitely.
I've got news for them! It isn't going to happen! I've been through this before in the 1970's and 1990's and the bubble always burst in energy.
Who are the hedge funders? A short answer is wealthy individuals trying to avoid taxes. But that isn't the only group in hedge funds. If you are a member of a union then you are also looking at your retirement funds being invested in this bubble. Expect losses in the next year or two is all I can say.
Meanwhile, when the losses start to pile up who are they going to call on to bail them out? You guessed it! The American taxpayer will once again be put on the spot by bought and paid for politicians!
Fair warning. Express your opinions about this coming fiasco to your elected officials now. It wont do any good, but at least you'll be on record as having given them the warning.
This economic problem hasn't even resolved itself and now a similar group of fools known as hedge fund managers is getting us into another bubble that will end in disaster!
Recently the prices of energy in the form of oil and natural gas has risen through the roof. Why? Simply put the hedge fund industry (those people who bought all those sub-prime mortgages) have been putting their bets on energy prices continuing to rise indefinitely.
I've got news for them! It isn't going to happen! I've been through this before in the 1970's and 1990's and the bubble always burst in energy.
Who are the hedge funders? A short answer is wealthy individuals trying to avoid taxes. But that isn't the only group in hedge funds. If you are a member of a union then you are also looking at your retirement funds being invested in this bubble. Expect losses in the next year or two is all I can say.
Meanwhile, when the losses start to pile up who are they going to call on to bail them out? You guessed it! The American taxpayer will once again be put on the spot by bought and paid for politicians!
Fair warning. Express your opinions about this coming fiasco to your elected officials now. It wont do any good, but at least you'll be on record as having given them the warning.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
I'm fed up! Support Ron Paul Now!
It seems that the so called main stream media (MSM) has decided who we will vote for and forget what the American public wants!
The debate last night on CNN can only be called the worst piece of garbage to come out of this election yet. It was obvious to everyone that Anderson Cooper was being deliberate in the questions and time given to Ron Paul. He was short changed when it came to time to answer and very few questions were directed to him.
I'm fed up and intend to let both the Democratic and Republican parties know that I will not donate to or in any way support or vote for any candidate they nominate if it isn't Ron Paul. No second place, no meaningless VP position, no nothing but the main candidate for President is going to win my support.
This country can't survive four more years of a typical big government, do nothing but mouth meaningless phrases, President. Billary would be just as bad for us (the American People) as McLame or McAmnesty,take your pick of favorite nickname, or big money Robme.
Get active now for Ron Paul. Donate to his campaign, volunteer as a precinct leader, and most important vote for him on February 5th!
Support Ron Paul
The debate last night on CNN can only be called the worst piece of garbage to come out of this election yet. It was obvious to everyone that Anderson Cooper was being deliberate in the questions and time given to Ron Paul. He was short changed when it came to time to answer and very few questions were directed to him.
I'm fed up and intend to let both the Democratic and Republican parties know that I will not donate to or in any way support or vote for any candidate they nominate if it isn't Ron Paul. No second place, no meaningless VP position, no nothing but the main candidate for President is going to win my support.
This country can't survive four more years of a typical big government, do nothing but mouth meaningless phrases, President. Billary would be just as bad for us (the American People) as McLame or McAmnesty,take your pick of favorite nickname, or big money Robme.
Get active now for Ron Paul. Donate to his campaign, volunteer as a precinct leader, and most important vote for him on February 5th!
Monday, January 21, 2008
Ron Paul Donation Drive January 21st, 2008
Ron Paul is having a donation drive for his Presidential campaign today. As a supporter, I've made a small donation and encourage anyone who believes in freedom, democracy, the Constitution, and economic sanity to also make a donation.
Having watched the donation totals on the website, Ron Paul 2008 , I am astounded at the breadth of support across this country. From Maine to California, from Florida to Washington, and not forgetting Hawaii and Alaska, the people are voting with their wallets. In the hour I sampled, donations came in at the rate of about $1500 per minute with an average donation of around $85. Amazing is the only word that comes to mind.
What is even more amazing is the support from those states where the caucuses and primaries have already taken place. A big hand to these supporters. Ron Paul may have not done so well in some of these contests, but his supporters still believe in the message and are shooting for the Republican National Convention and not just their own individual state.
The three weeks of this quarter have amounted to over $2.1 million so far and this day isn't over yet! For those who don't want to do the math, that's about $100,000 per day average. What other candidate is getting small donation from the average American at that rate? Very few is my guess, instead they are relying on large donation from the wealthy and businesses.
Keep up the good work people and remember to attend and vote in your upcoming caucus or primary.
Having watched the donation totals on the website, Ron Paul 2008 , I am astounded at the breadth of support across this country. From Maine to California, from Florida to Washington, and not forgetting Hawaii and Alaska, the people are voting with their wallets. In the hour I sampled, donations came in at the rate of about $1500 per minute with an average donation of around $85. Amazing is the only word that comes to mind.
What is even more amazing is the support from those states where the caucuses and primaries have already taken place. A big hand to these supporters. Ron Paul may have not done so well in some of these contests, but his supporters still believe in the message and are shooting for the Republican National Convention and not just their own individual state.
The three weeks of this quarter have amounted to over $2.1 million so far and this day isn't over yet! For those who don't want to do the math, that's about $100,000 per day average. What other candidate is getting small donation from the average American at that rate? Very few is my guess, instead they are relying on large donation from the wealthy and businesses.
Keep up the good work people and remember to attend and vote in your upcoming caucus or primary.
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Ron Paul
Ok, I've finally broke down and started paying attention to Presidential politics. I got around to looking at the candidates for the Republican nomination after avoiding it as much as possible last year and have picked Ron Paul to support.
Why Ron Paul? My answer is simple. He stands for nearly everything I believe in with only a few minor exceptions.
1. He supports a strong national defense without our spending billions every year on military installations around the world that we shouldn't have and don't need. For example, why are we still involved in Kosovo a decade later? Why do we still have bases in Germany when it's obvious they don't want us there? Why are there 40,000 service members stationed in the Middle East? I'm not talking about the number in Iraq or Afghanistan here. I'm talking Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, Sinai, etc.
2. He is for a smaller federal government. Scrape the Department of Education, reduce Homeland Security to a reasonable size and reduce the overall size of the federal government.
3. He supports strict enforcement of immigration laws, control of visas, the birthright law and NO Amnesty.
These are just a few of the reasons that I'm supporting Ron Paul. To find out more about this man, I suggest you visit the Ron Paul website
Why Ron Paul? My answer is simple. He stands for nearly everything I believe in with only a few minor exceptions.
1. He supports a strong national defense without our spending billions every year on military installations around the world that we shouldn't have and don't need. For example, why are we still involved in Kosovo a decade later? Why do we still have bases in Germany when it's obvious they don't want us there? Why are there 40,000 service members stationed in the Middle East? I'm not talking about the number in Iraq or Afghanistan here. I'm talking Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, Sinai, etc.
2. He is for a smaller federal government. Scrape the Department of Education, reduce Homeland Security to a reasonable size and reduce the overall size of the federal government.
3. He supports strict enforcement of immigration laws, control of visas, the birthright law and NO Amnesty.
These are just a few of the reasons that I'm supporting Ron Paul. To find out more about this man, I suggest you visit the Ron Paul website
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Political Polls
I found something interesting on the Fox News website the other day. Normally, I don't pay much attention to politics this early before an election, but I happened to click onto the Politics page and found something called the Real Clear Polls or something like that. It seem to be an average of all the other political polls that abound in the news media.
Anyway, in my travels around the web, I often see comments about the poor poll numbers of President Bush. Now I don't take polls too seriously since college courses in statistics have shown just how easy it is to fudge the numbers. However, this poll pointed up a gap in results that doesn't seem to be reported. It seems that congress has even lower poll numbers than the President! While his gap between approval and disapproval is 26% that of congress is 40% and it's getting worse with every poll since the 100 day grace period after the last election.
Is the US Congressional delegation really that bad? My personal opinion is yes, but this polls results shows that I'm not alone in my opinion. One can only wonder at why so many of the current crop of presidential candidates are current or former member of congress. If the results are to be believed then the American public cares even less for these people as a group than it does for President Bush.
Personally, I say a pox on all of them.
Anyway, in my travels around the web, I often see comments about the poor poll numbers of President Bush. Now I don't take polls too seriously since college courses in statistics have shown just how easy it is to fudge the numbers. However, this poll pointed up a gap in results that doesn't seem to be reported. It seems that congress has even lower poll numbers than the President! While his gap between approval and disapproval is 26% that of congress is 40% and it's getting worse with every poll since the 100 day grace period after the last election.
Is the US Congressional delegation really that bad? My personal opinion is yes, but this polls results shows that I'm not alone in my opinion. One can only wonder at why so many of the current crop of presidential candidates are current or former member of congress. If the results are to be believed then the American public cares even less for these people as a group than it does for President Bush.
Personally, I say a pox on all of them.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
On the Road Entertainment
I imagine that there are any number of people who like me don't listen to the radio while driving. An even worse problem is taking and using books while flying.
Well, in the past I tried to solve the flying problem by taking a laptop loaded with electronic books (ebooks or eBooks if you prefer) and mp3 music or audio books. The problem with this solution is lugging around ten pounds of laptop, case, recharger, etc. In addition, there are the problems of limited battery life and airport security hassles.
Now I believe I've come up with the perfect solution -- at least for the present. I've purchased an mp3 player that accepts micro SD cards and a dedicated ebook reader. Neither is the perfect solution, but they get the job done. The mp3 player allows me to listen to audio books and my music while driving or flying. The ebook reader provides me with books to read while flying or while stopped for lunch and in the evenings since television is a bore.
The ebook reader is good for about 16 hours of reading on one charge -- good for long flights. The mp3 player will last about the same time on a single AAA battery. With a couple of micro SD cards for additional content and a couple of spare AAA batteries, I have hundreds of hours of entertainment in a package that weighs in at just under a pound and easily fits into a briefcase or even my pockets.
You might be asking yourself, "Doesn't this cost a lot for the media?" My answer is not really. If you are willing to invest some time and effort to search the internet; you can find many free sources for music, audio books and ebooks. Some of my favorite sites for these freebies can be found at the following sites.
Free ebooks in many formats:
For classics in the public domain try: Project Gutenberg
For science fiction and fantasy titles try the: Baen Free Library
For free current fiction in many genre try this page from Starry.com
Free audio books in mp3 format:
My favorite site is Podio Books
Free music in the public domain:
MP3 for you is one of the best whether your tastes run to hard rock or classical or anything in between.
Here are just a few selection that I'm currently using on my mp3 player and ebook reader.
The May Day Murders audio book from Podio Books.
The Pocket and the Pendant audio book from Podio Books.
1812: The Rivers of War electronic book from the Baen Free Library. I use the rtf file for my ebook reader, but many other formats are also available.
Mr. 88 is a latin jazz work for you in mp3 format.
Enjoy, and leave me a comment if you find other sources that I may not know about. I'd like to try them out.
Well, in the past I tried to solve the flying problem by taking a laptop loaded with electronic books (ebooks or eBooks if you prefer) and mp3 music or audio books. The problem with this solution is lugging around ten pounds of laptop, case, recharger, etc. In addition, there are the problems of limited battery life and airport security hassles.
Now I believe I've come up with the perfect solution -- at least for the present. I've purchased an mp3 player that accepts micro SD cards and a dedicated ebook reader. Neither is the perfect solution, but they get the job done. The mp3 player allows me to listen to audio books and my music while driving or flying. The ebook reader provides me with books to read while flying or while stopped for lunch and in the evenings since television is a bore.
The ebook reader is good for about 16 hours of reading on one charge -- good for long flights. The mp3 player will last about the same time on a single AAA battery. With a couple of micro SD cards for additional content and a couple of spare AAA batteries, I have hundreds of hours of entertainment in a package that weighs in at just under a pound and easily fits into a briefcase or even my pockets.
You might be asking yourself, "Doesn't this cost a lot for the media?" My answer is not really. If you are willing to invest some time and effort to search the internet; you can find many free sources for music, audio books and ebooks. Some of my favorite sites for these freebies can be found at the following sites.
Free ebooks in many formats:
For classics in the public domain try: Project Gutenberg
For science fiction and fantasy titles try the: Baen Free Library
For free current fiction in many genre try this page from Starry.com
Free audio books in mp3 format:
My favorite site is Podio Books
Free music in the public domain:
MP3 for you is one of the best whether your tastes run to hard rock or classical or anything in between.
Here are just a few selection that I'm currently using on my mp3 player and ebook reader.
The May Day Murders audio book from Podio Books.
The Pocket and the Pendant audio book from Podio Books.
1812: The Rivers of War electronic book from the Baen Free Library. I use the rtf file for my ebook reader, but many other formats are also available.
Mr. 88 is a latin jazz work for you in mp3 format.
Enjoy, and leave me a comment if you find other sources that I may not know about. I'd like to try them out.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Reprise the Past
I was just reading a few of my past post and thought some updates were in order.
Television
Television has been called the "vast wasteland." I stated in a past post that I didn't watch much television. Well, I finally canceled my satellite TV service. $35 per month seemed to be an excessive expense for a couple of hours viewing per week. That works out to a trip a week to the local theaters except I don't do that. I signed up with Netflix and get three DVDs at a time delivered in the mail. Great service, so far, and at half the price of the satellite service.
Don't I miss television? I don't really think about it as the only thing I really watched was the local weather report and the SciFi channel. Since, SciFi dropped Stargate SG-1 and the Dresden Files there wasn't a whole lot I'm missing. I get the local weather off the internet now.
One interesting side benefit is that I don't have the temptation to watch any of "the lastest" from CNN, MSNBC or any of their brother networks. My blood pressure is down!
Site Updates
In June, I said that I'd be updating my sites by the end of August. Well things are running a bit late as I've changed some of the requirements. I've also taken on the task of upgrading and maintaining the family website. Yet more software and images to create and modify! Oh well, life isn't supposed to be easy.
Elections
I don't know about you but with over a year until the elections I have no interest. I don't care which politician is running around locally and I especially don't care for primaries and caucuses that start so early they may take place this year.
I'm beginning to think we need a constitutional amendment limiting national elections to a 90 day period before the general election. Hugh fines and prison terms against the political parties, PACs or individuals that violate the period would be effective in stopping early starts. My thinking is 5 to 10 times the cost of any ad, print or broadcast, with a five year minimum sentence for repeat offenders.
Mass Media
As I said, I don't watch TV anymore. I also don't take newspapers or news magazines. Why bother! You can do the same as I do and do a quick scan of news summaries on the internet. If anything interests you then research back to the primary sources and get the real facts! Bias in the mass media is endemic and you can't believe anything reporters or editors say.
Enjoy,
-phil
Television
Television has been called the "vast wasteland." I stated in a past post that I didn't watch much television. Well, I finally canceled my satellite TV service. $35 per month seemed to be an excessive expense for a couple of hours viewing per week. That works out to a trip a week to the local theaters except I don't do that. I signed up with Netflix and get three DVDs at a time delivered in the mail. Great service, so far, and at half the price of the satellite service.
Don't I miss television? I don't really think about it as the only thing I really watched was the local weather report and the SciFi channel. Since, SciFi dropped Stargate SG-1 and the Dresden Files there wasn't a whole lot I'm missing. I get the local weather off the internet now.
One interesting side benefit is that I don't have the temptation to watch any of "the lastest" from CNN, MSNBC or any of their brother networks. My blood pressure is down!
Site Updates
In June, I said that I'd be updating my sites by the end of August. Well things are running a bit late as I've changed some of the requirements. I've also taken on the task of upgrading and maintaining the family website. Yet more software and images to create and modify! Oh well, life isn't supposed to be easy.
Elections
I don't know about you but with over a year until the elections I have no interest. I don't care which politician is running around locally and I especially don't care for primaries and caucuses that start so early they may take place this year.
I'm beginning to think we need a constitutional amendment limiting national elections to a 90 day period before the general election. Hugh fines and prison terms against the political parties, PACs or individuals that violate the period would be effective in stopping early starts. My thinking is 5 to 10 times the cost of any ad, print or broadcast, with a five year minimum sentence for repeat offenders.
Mass Media
As I said, I don't watch TV anymore. I also don't take newspapers or news magazines. Why bother! You can do the same as I do and do a quick scan of news summaries on the internet. If anything interests you then research back to the primary sources and get the real facts! Bias in the mass media is endemic and you can't believe anything reporters or editors say.
Enjoy,
-phil
LibraryThing.com
There are many sites on the web some of them useful and some of them junk. I've run across a site that I consider very useful. That site is LibraryThing.
For a long time, I've been looking for someplace to catalog the thousands of books in my personal library. Finally, I've found it and surprise, surprise it's free for the first 200 books you catalog. Best of all it's only $25 for a lifetime membership with an unlimited catalog.
You may be asking, "Doesn't it take a long time to catalog a large library?" The short answer is no. Specifically, you can enter your books by hand, you can upload an spreadsheet with all of your ISBNs, or you can search by title or author from the Amazon.com catalog, Library of Congress, or 82 other library and business catalogs. The search and add function is fastest for those fiction series by the same author.
You can also add your own tags to books, make your library public or private, post reviews, keep track of favorite authors, and participate in discussions. In other words this is a great time waster of a site, if you allow it to become so.
One of the features that I like is the ability to download you library catalog. They also have widgets you can add to your website or blog to show and search your catalog. You can also get suggestions for books or authors based upon what you have in your library.
Privacy on this site seems to be of importance to the owners. They allow you to set up what you want to make public and what you'd prefer to keep private.
All in all, it is a site well worth checking out if you are a reader, author, librarian or publisher.
Enjoy,
-phil
For a long time, I've been looking for someplace to catalog the thousands of books in my personal library. Finally, I've found it and surprise, surprise it's free for the first 200 books you catalog. Best of all it's only $25 for a lifetime membership with an unlimited catalog.
You may be asking, "Doesn't it take a long time to catalog a large library?" The short answer is no. Specifically, you can enter your books by hand, you can upload an spreadsheet with all of your ISBNs, or you can search by title or author from the Amazon.com catalog, Library of Congress, or 82 other library and business catalogs. The search and add function is fastest for those fiction series by the same author.
You can also add your own tags to books, make your library public or private, post reviews, keep track of favorite authors, and participate in discussions. In other words this is a great time waster of a site, if you allow it to become so.
One of the features that I like is the ability to download you library catalog. They also have widgets you can add to your website or blog to show and search your catalog. You can also get suggestions for books or authors based upon what you have in your library.
Privacy on this site seems to be of importance to the owners. They allow you to set up what you want to make public and what you'd prefer to keep private.
All in all, it is a site well worth checking out if you are a reader, author, librarian or publisher.
Enjoy,
-phil
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Changes Keep Occurring
Well, I've decided that the time has come to revamp all of my sites. This wasn't an easy decision as I really hate doing any kind of programming and learning new software tools. I thought that I'd left that behind me years ago.
So, you might be wondering how I'm going about doing this? I started by looking over the many options available for packages with the GNU/GPL licenses. There are so many options that it has taken several months of investigation and trial to narrow the list down.
For the Quail Books website, I finally settled on a Content Management System (CMS) package called Joomla! for the front end to handle the welcoming pages, forum and customer polls, etc. I tried out the integrated VirtueMart store software, but finally decided on a subdomain for the store running ZenCart software. This might be all too technical for most people, but .... I'm also going to use Joomla! as the CMS for the Quail Publishing website and the Survive Disaster website.
The nice thing is that I'll be able to provide a common template system for all sites along with a common Forums board and online polls. NO MORE LEARNING A NEW SOFTWARE SYSTEM at least for a while.
My plan is to have the Quail Books site up and running by the end of June 2007 and make the changes to the other two sites in July. Hopefully, this isn't too ambitious but with the experience in customization gained in testing out the packages on my local server I think I'll be OK.
Just as a side note on Technorati. It seems that this blog is listed, but not very high (around 3.5 million or so). That's my fault as I haven't been very diligent about posting for the past year or so. Also, how can people get interested in visiting when my postings cover such a wide range of my interests? Oh well, what can I say but this blog is more of an online diary mostly for myself.
So, you might be wondering how I'm going about doing this? I started by looking over the many options available for packages with the GNU/GPL licenses. There are so many options that it has taken several months of investigation and trial to narrow the list down.
For the Quail Books website, I finally settled on a Content Management System (CMS) package called Joomla! for the front end to handle the welcoming pages, forum and customer polls, etc. I tried out the integrated VirtueMart store software, but finally decided on a subdomain for the store running ZenCart software. This might be all too technical for most people, but .... I'm also going to use Joomla! as the CMS for the Quail Publishing website and the Survive Disaster website.
The nice thing is that I'll be able to provide a common template system for all sites along with a common Forums board and online polls. NO MORE LEARNING A NEW SOFTWARE SYSTEM at least for a while.
My plan is to have the Quail Books site up and running by the end of June 2007 and make the changes to the other two sites in July. Hopefully, this isn't too ambitious but with the experience in customization gained in testing out the packages on my local server I think I'll be OK.
Just as a side note on Technorati. It seems that this blog is listed, but not very high (around 3.5 million or so). That's my fault as I haven't been very diligent about posting for the past year or so. Also, how can people get interested in visiting when my postings cover such a wide range of my interests? Oh well, what can I say but this blog is more of an online diary mostly for myself.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Older foreign currency images
These are images from some older foreign currency that I recently acquired. Most of them have little or no value, but if you have a different opinion then please post a comment here. Click on the image to go to the album.
Photobucket Album
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Emigration/Immigration and Cultural Change
This is just the expansion of a theory that I had proposed on David’s Medienkritik blog on German-American relations and German media bias against America. The blog is available on the link for anyone that may be interested.
The basic premise of the theory is that a culture, in this case the German culture, is effected by its emigration/immigration patterns throughout history. A good example is Germany verses the United States from the early 18th Century to a period just prior to World War II. Short-term examples can be found for other European countries during the 19th Century mainly in the Scandinavian countries, Ireland and Italy. A case could even be made to support the theory using the United Kingdom during the “brain drain” years of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. It’s possible, but I haven’t researched it, that a case could be made for the current emigration/immigration movement from Mexico and Central America to the United States would fit this theory. By the way, the United States is not the only country that fits the recipient class as Canada and Australia also figure as immigrant rich countries.
The theory boils down to a simple statement. The emigrant population from a country, whether poor, rich or middle class, is drawn from the most adventurous and risk taking portion of the population. This emigrant population has a number of advantages that they bring to the receiving country. First, they are willing to work had for their success or the success of their children. Second, while they may not be highly educated they support and encourage their children to achieve an education and succeed. Third, the immigrant and his children contribute to the development of their adopted country in ways that are deprived to the country they left. This effect has a permanent effect in the receiving country, but the loss is not long lasting, only a generation or two, to the losing country.
Let us use the United Kingdom and the “brain drain” mentioned earlier as a short-term example. After World War II and into the 70’s, the United Kingdom lost a large number of highly educated and talented people to the United States, Canada, and Australia. The questions that you need to ask about this “brain drain” are simple. What caused it? What were the long-term advantages to the receiving country? What were the results to the losing country? How long did it take the losing country to recover?
In the case of the United Kingdom the answer to the first question is obvious. A liberal and socialist government raised taxes and placed restrictions on business development that restricted peoples natural inclination to improve their “lot in life.” For the United States this admittedly small population shift didn’t have the profound effect that earlier immigrants had because it was simply too small. However, it did have some effect in medicine and the other scientific fields. What happened in the United Kingdom? Well, they lost their parity in the military, medical, and scientific fields. Did the United Kingdom recover? The answer is yes and in only a single generation after the conservatives under Margaret Thatcher took the reins of government in the 80’s.
Now let us look at a large and more long-term shift in populations. Germany started losing population even before the emigration with the death of nearly a third of the population during the Thirty Years War. Recovery was underway when the 18th Century brought the emigration because of lingering religious restrictions and the rising population caused economic hardships to the rural population of mostly farmers. The result was emigration to both the British colonies of North America and the prairies of the Russian Volga region.
What effect did this have on the assortment of independent states that would later make up a United Germany? A short-term population relief of the rural areas along with a pronounced rise in food prices was the primary result. What was the effect in the British Colonies? A near doubling of the population and the colonies became major exporters of raw materials and food to the “mother country.” It is interesting to note here that of the 40,000 or so Hessian troop brought to the colonies during the Revolutionary War, nearly 8,000 choose to stay and married into the existing formerly German families. What was the long-term result of that immigration to the new United States? The rise of a middle class of mechanics and artisans, which put the country on the road to a later industrial powerhouse, was the primary result. Did the future Germany recover? Yes, but continued emigration slowed this recovery until the mid 18th Century.
The mid 18th Century saw another major loss of population for Germany. The failure of the so called 1848 revolution caused a major loss of an educated middle class to the United States. What did Germany loose besides this educated middle class? Very little as the emigrants did not make up a large percentage of the population. What did the United States gain? A large population of educated and dedicated people that went on to build businesses schools, and colleges throughout the under populated regions around the Great Lakes, along the Mississippi River and into Texas were the primary results. How long did it take Germany to recover from this population shift? A generation at most, but because of this population shift along with the political disunity Germany missed the empire building of the United Kingdom and France during this period.
After the American Civil War, a new emigrant population began arriving in the United States and continuing for over 40 years. While this immigrant population would nearly double the population of the United States, it differed in that many countries in Europe contributed. At this time, we also see the first signs of Asian immigrants.
Continuing with the German example, millions left Germany to take up lands that had become available on the prairies of the Midwest. Educated and inventive these people not only farmed, but built businesses and industries that turned a country from essentially a rural farming economy into an industrial power in 50 years. What was the effect in a now united Germany? As a percentage of the population, the emigrants were spaced out so that natural population increase replaced the losses. However, culturally Germany became more autocratic and centralized and the population accepted these changes. Thus, we have the “respect for authority” culture that developed in Germany. The 20th Century cost Germany much because of the world wars not only in terms of population, but also in terms of a vast cultural change. However, that cost was replaced by the “miracle rebirth” of Germany first under an Allied administered government and later under more conservative German governments. It was only with the rise of the liberal governments in the last few decades and their emphasis upon a socialist state that the economy and spirit of the German people has suffered.
So does emigration cause a collapse of a nation’s culture? The short answer is no, but only if the nation encourages population growth and economic freedom. Does immigration cause a nation to grow and prosper? The short answer is yes, but only if the immigrants integrate into the existing culture and they are allowed to seek their own economic prosperity and educational advancement without government interference.
Thus ends a long story on a theory that may be valid but needs more research than I can give it. Full research would have to look at all the emigrant countries, past and present, along with all of the immigrant countries, not only the United States but also Australia and Canada. I would also think any proof requires looking at the results of the massive immigration into the United States from Mexico and Central America that currently exists. Are these immigrants integrating into the American culture? Also the question of Islamic immigration into Europe should be examined. Are they integrating into the European cultures? If neither Europe nor the United States encourage this integration then what happens? Do both regions loose power and influence both militarily and economically? Do they stagnate? Just some points to consider.
The basic premise of the theory is that a culture, in this case the German culture, is effected by its emigration/immigration patterns throughout history. A good example is Germany verses the United States from the early 18th Century to a period just prior to World War II. Short-term examples can be found for other European countries during the 19th Century mainly in the Scandinavian countries, Ireland and Italy. A case could even be made to support the theory using the United Kingdom during the “brain drain” years of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. It’s possible, but I haven’t researched it, that a case could be made for the current emigration/immigration movement from Mexico and Central America to the United States would fit this theory. By the way, the United States is not the only country that fits the recipient class as Canada and Australia also figure as immigrant rich countries.
The theory boils down to a simple statement. The emigrant population from a country, whether poor, rich or middle class, is drawn from the most adventurous and risk taking portion of the population. This emigrant population has a number of advantages that they bring to the receiving country. First, they are willing to work had for their success or the success of their children. Second, while they may not be highly educated they support and encourage their children to achieve an education and succeed. Third, the immigrant and his children contribute to the development of their adopted country in ways that are deprived to the country they left. This effect has a permanent effect in the receiving country, but the loss is not long lasting, only a generation or two, to the losing country.
Let us use the United Kingdom and the “brain drain” mentioned earlier as a short-term example. After World War II and into the 70’s, the United Kingdom lost a large number of highly educated and talented people to the United States, Canada, and Australia. The questions that you need to ask about this “brain drain” are simple. What caused it? What were the long-term advantages to the receiving country? What were the results to the losing country? How long did it take the losing country to recover?
In the case of the United Kingdom the answer to the first question is obvious. A liberal and socialist government raised taxes and placed restrictions on business development that restricted peoples natural inclination to improve their “lot in life.” For the United States this admittedly small population shift didn’t have the profound effect that earlier immigrants had because it was simply too small. However, it did have some effect in medicine and the other scientific fields. What happened in the United Kingdom? Well, they lost their parity in the military, medical, and scientific fields. Did the United Kingdom recover? The answer is yes and in only a single generation after the conservatives under Margaret Thatcher took the reins of government in the 80’s.
Now let us look at a large and more long-term shift in populations. Germany started losing population even before the emigration with the death of nearly a third of the population during the Thirty Years War. Recovery was underway when the 18th Century brought the emigration because of lingering religious restrictions and the rising population caused economic hardships to the rural population of mostly farmers. The result was emigration to both the British colonies of North America and the prairies of the Russian Volga region.
What effect did this have on the assortment of independent states that would later make up a United Germany? A short-term population relief of the rural areas along with a pronounced rise in food prices was the primary result. What was the effect in the British Colonies? A near doubling of the population and the colonies became major exporters of raw materials and food to the “mother country.” It is interesting to note here that of the 40,000 or so Hessian troop brought to the colonies during the Revolutionary War, nearly 8,000 choose to stay and married into the existing formerly German families. What was the long-term result of that immigration to the new United States? The rise of a middle class of mechanics and artisans, which put the country on the road to a later industrial powerhouse, was the primary result. Did the future Germany recover? Yes, but continued emigration slowed this recovery until the mid 18th Century.
The mid 18th Century saw another major loss of population for Germany. The failure of the so called 1848 revolution caused a major loss of an educated middle class to the United States. What did Germany loose besides this educated middle class? Very little as the emigrants did not make up a large percentage of the population. What did the United States gain? A large population of educated and dedicated people that went on to build businesses schools, and colleges throughout the under populated regions around the Great Lakes, along the Mississippi River and into Texas were the primary results. How long did it take Germany to recover from this population shift? A generation at most, but because of this population shift along with the political disunity Germany missed the empire building of the United Kingdom and France during this period.
After the American Civil War, a new emigrant population began arriving in the United States and continuing for over 40 years. While this immigrant population would nearly double the population of the United States, it differed in that many countries in Europe contributed. At this time, we also see the first signs of Asian immigrants.
Continuing with the German example, millions left Germany to take up lands that had become available on the prairies of the Midwest. Educated and inventive these people not only farmed, but built businesses and industries that turned a country from essentially a rural farming economy into an industrial power in 50 years. What was the effect in a now united Germany? As a percentage of the population, the emigrants were spaced out so that natural population increase replaced the losses. However, culturally Germany became more autocratic and centralized and the population accepted these changes. Thus, we have the “respect for authority” culture that developed in Germany. The 20th Century cost Germany much because of the world wars not only in terms of population, but also in terms of a vast cultural change. However, that cost was replaced by the “miracle rebirth” of Germany first under an Allied administered government and later under more conservative German governments. It was only with the rise of the liberal governments in the last few decades and their emphasis upon a socialist state that the economy and spirit of the German people has suffered.
So does emigration cause a collapse of a nation’s culture? The short answer is no, but only if the nation encourages population growth and economic freedom. Does immigration cause a nation to grow and prosper? The short answer is yes, but only if the immigrants integrate into the existing culture and they are allowed to seek their own economic prosperity and educational advancement without government interference.
Thus ends a long story on a theory that may be valid but needs more research than I can give it. Full research would have to look at all the emigrant countries, past and present, along with all of the immigrant countries, not only the United States but also Australia and Canada. I would also think any proof requires looking at the results of the massive immigration into the United States from Mexico and Central America that currently exists. Are these immigrants integrating into the American culture? Also the question of Islamic immigration into Europe should be examined. Are they integrating into the European cultures? If neither Europe nor the United States encourage this integration then what happens? Do both regions loose power and influence both militarily and economically? Do they stagnate? Just some points to consider.
Friday, January 13, 2006
Medicare Part D: A fiasco from the start
The Nevada Appeal editorial board has a very interesting opinion that they have published. Look here to read it. The following is my comment to their editorial.
Fix it! I’d rather that they junked the whole mess or at least set it up much like the veterans program where they do bulk purchases and then handle the distribution themselves.
I spent hours researching various plans for my mother with excellent help from the pharmacists at WalGreens. Then I spent more time with help from an insurance agent filling out the forms well before the January start date. What happened? She still doesn’t have a card from the insurance company as they are backed up for weeks if not months. The insurance agent has tried to help, the pharmacist has tired to help, the state has tried to help, but we are looking at weeks of bungling around by the federal government. Meanwhile, my mother needs medicine now not months from now!
Turning this whole mess over to congress to fix will take years and just produce another boondoggle. Witness just how long it took them to produce this horror of a federal government monstrosity.
On a very related topic, now we have the current state AG saying that importing drugs from Canada under a state approved list of pharmacies can’t be done because of the liability to the state. I find it strange that his predecessor didn’t raise objections in the months between the time the legislation was signed and he resigned to take a federal judicial position.
I looked into online pharmacies and couldn’t find any I would trust. At least the state Pharmacy Board has the resources to research and examine the Canadian Pharmacies that will be on the website. I applaud the Pharmacy Board for voting to go ahead with implementation of the law at this time without waiting.
Fix it! I’d rather that they junked the whole mess or at least set it up much like the veterans program where they do bulk purchases and then handle the distribution themselves.
I spent hours researching various plans for my mother with excellent help from the pharmacists at WalGreens. Then I spent more time with help from an insurance agent filling out the forms well before the January start date. What happened? She still doesn’t have a card from the insurance company as they are backed up for weeks if not months. The insurance agent has tried to help, the pharmacist has tired to help, the state has tried to help, but we are looking at weeks of bungling around by the federal government. Meanwhile, my mother needs medicine now not months from now!
Turning this whole mess over to congress to fix will take years and just produce another boondoggle. Witness just how long it took them to produce this horror of a federal government monstrosity.
On a very related topic, now we have the current state AG saying that importing drugs from Canada under a state approved list of pharmacies can’t be done because of the liability to the state. I find it strange that his predecessor didn’t raise objections in the months between the time the legislation was signed and he resigned to take a federal judicial position.
I looked into online pharmacies and couldn’t find any I would trust. At least the state Pharmacy Board has the resources to research and examine the Canadian Pharmacies that will be on the website. I applaud the Pharmacy Board for voting to go ahead with implementation of the law at this time without waiting.
Sunday, November 27, 2005
New business venture started
I have started a new business called Quail Publishing. Primarily, this company will publish books on CD Rom. Not your typical eBook, but rather CDs filled with information on many subjects. Each CD is filled with text, pictures, printable documents, and often-multimedia files.
The format of the CDs uses standard html for the text and pictures that can be viewed in any web browser, Adobe Reader provides the engine for printing any documents from the CD and QuickTime is the engine for any viewing or listening to any audio or movie files.
The main topics we plan to cover with these CDs are travel, how-to, history in the twentieth century, biography and autobiographical books, and other informational books. The first book is now ready and offered for sale on the Quail Publishing website.
Survive Disaster, at over 600 megabytes, provides the owner with information on pre-disaster planning and post-disaster recovery. Everything from avalanches to volcanic eruptions is covered in detail. There are printable checklists, emergency cards and evacuation plans along with dozens of movie clips of past disasters. The CD also contains nearly a thousand links to governmental agencies, private relief organizations and news and other information sites. Special sections are devoted to dealing with the disabled, children, pets and livestock. There are also links to child friendly web sites about disasters. This is both a great resource for ensuring the survival of you and your family during a disaster, but also a great teaching resource for anyone interested in the history of or causes of disasters in this country.
I hope everyone that reads this will visit the Quail Publishing and purchase a copy for themselves and their family.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Harry Reid, also the NO Levee Problems
Why did the levees break?
I asked myself this question and began to do a little research. The answer seemed obvious enough to me – corruption on the Orleans Levee Board. Any answer would have done and much to my “not” surprise I was right. One has only to look at the news reports over the past few months, both pre and post Katrina, to find that the board has been playing fast and loose with funds that should have gone into maintaining the levees.
Here is a link to an NBC report, post Katrina, that illustrates the problem.
Is the Orleans Levee Board doing its job?
Other bloggers have also notice this and that a federal investigation was underway before Katrina.
New Orleans Levee Board Under Fire
The Orleans Levee Board has always had a problem with financial skullduggery. It’s obvious from this newspaper article that they didn’t like to let go of the purse strings until forced to by court action.
Levee Board to borrow to pay settlement
Finally, even the a Canadian newspaper was reporting on the investigation going on before Katrina.
Levee board under federal investigation before Katrina hit
Harry, I’m ashamed to say you’re my Senator
Harry Reid came out yesterday with the worst balderdash about why he’s not voting for Judge Roberts. One can only wonder how he expects to survive another election. It’s past time for the people of Nevada to ‘Tom Daschle’ him at the next election.
I asked myself this question and began to do a little research. The answer seemed obvious enough to me – corruption on the Orleans Levee Board. Any answer would have done and much to my “not” surprise I was right. One has only to look at the news reports over the past few months, both pre and post Katrina, to find that the board has been playing fast and loose with funds that should have gone into maintaining the levees.
Here is a link to an NBC report, post Katrina, that illustrates the problem.
Is the Orleans Levee Board doing its job?
Other bloggers have also notice this and that a federal investigation was underway before Katrina.
New Orleans Levee Board Under Fire
The Orleans Levee Board has always had a problem with financial skullduggery. It’s obvious from this newspaper article that they didn’t like to let go of the purse strings until forced to by court action.
Levee Board to borrow to pay settlement
Finally, even the a Canadian newspaper was reporting on the investigation going on before Katrina.
Levee board under federal investigation before Katrina hit
Harry, I’m ashamed to say you’re my Senator
Harry Reid came out yesterday with the worst balderdash about why he’s not voting for Judge Roberts. One can only wonder how he expects to survive another election. It’s past time for the people of Nevada to ‘Tom Daschle’ him at the next election.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Recent Events
It’s been months since I posted anything and I apologize for that however, everyone has to make a living somehow. I do need to post since so much has happened in the past few weeks.
Courts, Courts and yet more Courts
The John Roberts nomination and upgrade from member of the Supreme Court to Chief Justice is something to cheer about. His confirmation seems to be going along in smooth fashion even with the cheap shots by the likes of Biden and Kennedy.
Speaking of “Teddy” Kennedy, one can only wonder how the people of Massachusetts can continue to re-elect him to office. Not only is he a drunken murderer, but it has become obvious watching his performance at the confirmation hearings that the substance abuse has taken its toll on his ability to think. He looks wooden sitting there reading his questions and not even looking up when he is finished. He also seems to have trouble following the answers given by Judge Roberts. Perhaps it is time he retires before he makes a greater fool of himself.
Out West, we seem to have another idiot of a judge in California. The decision to ban the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance will obviously be appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court and just as obviously, they will uphold the ruling. All of which means that the whole issue will be back to the Supreme Court hopefully for a definitive ruling this time.
I do think it is past time for Congress to split the Ninth Circuit Court area and limit them to just California, Hawaii and the other Pacific Island Districts. With the population growth in the other seven states, it is past time for the more conservative states Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, and Montana to have their own court.
The News Media and Hurricane Katrina
The news media in this country and overseas has shown its usual bias in coverage of the Katrina disaster. Blame Bush seems to be the chant that never ends. The only outlets that seem to question the actions of local and state politicians are Fox and the online bloggers. I must admit that NBC has lately begun looking into corruption at the local level. In case you missed it, on September 14th they had a segment on the nightly news about the local agency involved in levee construction and maintenance and why they would spend $2.5 million for a fountain, $45,000 to investigate a critical radio talk show host, another $45,000 to settle out of court when this talk show host sued, and $15 million to build overpasses to a gaming boat. This is only the tip of the iceberg, believe me, Louisiana political corruption will go rampant unless the federal government sends an army of accountants to watch over the $60+ billion that is to be spent on rebuilding.
Overblown reporting with sensational headlines seems to be the practice. Let’s examine some on them shall we. “Over 10,000 feared dead in New Orleans” when in reality it has been less than 1,000. “Toxic Waste Dump” verses the reality that one of the worst toxic spills seems to be diesel fuel from the hundreds of buses left to flood. Why weren’t these used to evacuate the stranded earlier? Could it be that some corrupt official was thinking ahead to a nice kickback on repair and replacement work? “I called for federal troops” when in reality the Governor admitted on camera (CNN) that she had opposed federal troops until it was too late. To my knowledge, CNN never did broadcast this comment again and of course, the Governor didn’t know the camera was still live. You can find the clip yourself. Just search the web. “Survivors Resort to Cannibalism” was a lie pure and simple that was retracted by its originator early on but the retraction was never given mention in the media. The list goes on and on and I’m tired of writing about this. Just examine the issues yourself and you will come to the same conclusions I have, DON’T TRUST THE MEDIA FOR ANYTHING THAT DOESN’T FIT THEIR AGENDA.
Courts, Courts and yet more Courts
The John Roberts nomination and upgrade from member of the Supreme Court to Chief Justice is something to cheer about. His confirmation seems to be going along in smooth fashion even with the cheap shots by the likes of Biden and Kennedy.
Speaking of “Teddy” Kennedy, one can only wonder how the people of Massachusetts can continue to re-elect him to office. Not only is he a drunken murderer, but it has become obvious watching his performance at the confirmation hearings that the substance abuse has taken its toll on his ability to think. He looks wooden sitting there reading his questions and not even looking up when he is finished. He also seems to have trouble following the answers given by Judge Roberts. Perhaps it is time he retires before he makes a greater fool of himself.
Out West, we seem to have another idiot of a judge in California. The decision to ban the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance will obviously be appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court and just as obviously, they will uphold the ruling. All of which means that the whole issue will be back to the Supreme Court hopefully for a definitive ruling this time.
I do think it is past time for Congress to split the Ninth Circuit Court area and limit them to just California, Hawaii and the other Pacific Island Districts. With the population growth in the other seven states, it is past time for the more conservative states Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, and Montana to have their own court.
The News Media and Hurricane Katrina
The news media in this country and overseas has shown its usual bias in coverage of the Katrina disaster. Blame Bush seems to be the chant that never ends. The only outlets that seem to question the actions of local and state politicians are Fox and the online bloggers. I must admit that NBC has lately begun looking into corruption at the local level. In case you missed it, on September 14th they had a segment on the nightly news about the local agency involved in levee construction and maintenance and why they would spend $2.5 million for a fountain, $45,000 to investigate a critical radio talk show host, another $45,000 to settle out of court when this talk show host sued, and $15 million to build overpasses to a gaming boat. This is only the tip of the iceberg, believe me, Louisiana political corruption will go rampant unless the federal government sends an army of accountants to watch over the $60+ billion that is to be spent on rebuilding.
Overblown reporting with sensational headlines seems to be the practice. Let’s examine some on them shall we. “Over 10,000 feared dead in New Orleans” when in reality it has been less than 1,000. “Toxic Waste Dump” verses the reality that one of the worst toxic spills seems to be diesel fuel from the hundreds of buses left to flood. Why weren’t these used to evacuate the stranded earlier? Could it be that some corrupt official was thinking ahead to a nice kickback on repair and replacement work? “I called for federal troops” when in reality the Governor admitted on camera (CNN) that she had opposed federal troops until it was too late. To my knowledge, CNN never did broadcast this comment again and of course, the Governor didn’t know the camera was still live. You can find the clip yourself. Just search the web. “Survivors Resort to Cannibalism” was a lie pure and simple that was retracted by its originator early on but the retraction was never given mention in the media. The list goes on and on and I’m tired of writing about this. Just examine the issues yourself and you will come to the same conclusions I have, DON’T TRUST THE MEDIA FOR ANYTHING THAT DOESN’T FIT THEIR AGENDA.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Dis ’N’ Dat
Again, I apologize for not posting for awhile but I’m starting a new business and that has been taking a large amount of my time. If you haven’t visited yet my initial store is at http://shops.half.com/quailbooks, take a look when you get a chance.
The title of this post says it all. I’ve included several unrelated items with short commentaries. Maybe I’ll expand upon some of the topics in later posts since the subjects have attracted my interest. Sorry about the title but I’ve been watching some Amos ’N’ Andy lately after a discussion with a friend about that old TV show and I couldn’t resist.
Academy Aboreds
I can’t take credit for the title as it was created by someone in a message board I visited on Monday. It does have the advantage of accurately describing the feelings of everyone that posted as to their opinion of the annual waste of time known as the Academy Awards Show. Most people seem to have watched other channels, movies, or worked on the internet. I was one of the movie people myself.
Social Security Reform
I’ve been deliberately avoiding this subject up to now, but the Sunday talking head shows and both the Republicans and Dumbocrats have me upset enough to make my opinion known. We need to reform the system and now is the time before it becomes a crisis even if that crisis if twenty or more years in the future. The Dumbocrats have only one solution that shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. There mantra of ‘Increase Taxes’ is really beginning to irritate me and a lot of other people. What really surprises me is that some Republicans are willing to go along with that idea.
I have my own simple solution that I would like to put forward. What should be done is to include everyone that currently does not pay into the system. This of course will not be liked by the public employee unions, teachers, railroad workers, and of course the U.S. Senate and House members that would have their plans absorbed into social security and have their benefits cut to those that social security pays or is scheduled to pay. Of course, they would also be required to pay into the system at whatever level is required by their salaries. This would have several advantages. First, the social security fund would be increased by hundred of billions of dollars for current pension funds like CalPERS. Next, everyone would be treated equally and that cushy pension that the legislatures get would be cut drastically.
I have to say that nearly thirty days into the 120 days of the current Nevada Legislative session they haven’t accomplished much. Yesterday the Assembly, House of Representatives in most states, got around to passing a bill increasing the minimum wage by $1 per hour for businesses that don’t give their employees medical benefits. There are only two things wrong with that action. The people passed an initiative petition during the last election that does the same thing and after it passes again in the 2006 election it will become law anyway. Why did they even bother wasting time with this? Second, they have put in so many exemptions that the only people hurt will of course be the small businessman who can’t afford to pay the expenses involved in the measure. This is a ‘gimme’ since they were the only ones that didn’t have a heavy lobbying effort to protect themselves or the fund to by off the Dumbocrats next election. For those who don’t know the Dumbocrats control the Assembly and the Republicans control the Senate so I don’t see this bill surviving.
Isn’t it wonderful to see
Wednesday, February 23, 2005
Cell Phones
First, I must apologize for not posting yesterday but I was busy as I’ll explain further. Also, I should note that I don’t bother to post on the weekends or holidays.
Now, I was trying to get some work done on Monday even if it was a holiday. I should also explain that even though I hate cell phones I have had any number of them over the years for business purposes. Back to Monday, I was working when the cell phone started ringing. Answering it I got no response but rather a text message popped up much to my surprise. The message was obviously to the wrong number as it was from a teenager to another teenager. I deleted it and went back to work. A few minutes later another text message came up. I kept getting these idiotic messages for the better part of an hour without answering any of them.
Now I don’t know about any of your cell phone plans, but in mine I pay for text messages and the airtime dealing with them. Thus I never use them and tell anyone who might call me that I don’t use them. After about 20 messages, I got feed up and lost my temper. The cell phone went crashing into a cinder block wall needless to say. So I spent the better part of the morning on Tuesday dealing with the cell phone company trying to get my number installed in another phone. I haven’t had such a frustrating time since I tried to get in contact with my ISP about their charges for service.
I should explain that I’m one of those people that rarely throw anything out so I have about four unused cell phones lying around. All I wanted was for the company to install the SMI chip from the broken phone into one of those. No, they couldn’t do that was the first answer. I’d need to get a new phone. Realizing that all they wanted to do was sell me another phone, I kept insisting that they could do that and they would do that otherwise I was going to sign with another company and get yet another phone I didn’t need or want. They finally relented and did like I asked. I also had them remove the text messaging from my plan so I wouldn’t be bothered like this again.
I should mention that to me a cell phone is for making calls and getting voice mail. Nothing else matters and I don’t want it or use it. There are a number of reasons for this. I get my email off the internet, I watch TV if I want to see something, I write letters if I want a hardcopy of my correspondence, and I have a phone book for looking up numbers. I don’t need a cell phone to do any of this for me!
A warning to those of you out there using cell phones for all of these functions, there are computer viruses starting to spread to cell phones that use some or all of these functions. I knew it would happen sooner or later and it has now. If your cell phone uses the Bluetooth wireless communications with other devices then you are vulnerable to this first wave of viruses. The most insidious one so far drains you phones batteries. I expect the next wave will use the actual phone networks to spread and do greater damage.
I personally have enough problems with the internet and viruses protection, popup protection, ad ware protection, and spam email that I don’t need to be bothered fighting these on my cell phone. What’s the old saying, something about forewarned is forearmed!
Friday, February 18, 2005
Journalism or Yellow Journalism?
First, there was a report on someone who is dredging up that false report about the reinstatement of the draft. In case you’ve forgotten, during the election there was a big stink about President Bush starting up the draft again to support the war in
The second report the following day was about how the
I keep wondering how these so called journalists can develop this mentality and then I remember that they went to
I also get tired of hearing
All of which brings me to another point. Just where do the UN and Europe get off telling us how to do things, that is until they need money then they seem to come calling fast enough. Even then they seem to feel that they can insult this country if they don’t get the amount they feel we should be handing them free and clear. Even the so called loans seem to lack any interest rate or repayment periods! A good example of this is the One Billion dollar loan the UN wants the
WAKE UP
Thursday, February 17, 2005
Baseball season is almost here.
Meanwhile, what brought all this on you may be asking yourselves? Well, it was the current tell all book about steroid use in baseball. A book I might add that was probably written by a poor underpaid ghost writer. The credited author and his agent will be splitting the profits you can be sure of that fact.
Lest you think I’m just down on baseball the same statement could be made about basketball, hockey, or football. And I’m not just limiting my denunciation to the professional players but have to include the major college sports of football and basketball in that statement. Why should we the fans support drug use, murder and mayhem, or rape with our dollars?
I’ve done my own little effort to bring a solution to these problems by not watching broadcast games and not buying season passes to the satellite feeds for playoffs or regular season games. Nor do I attend games in person. I should put in a qualifier that I still enjoy the high school sporting events and minor league baseball. The minor leaguers are the only ones upholding the traditions of a game deeply rooted in the American way of life.
What can be done to correct the situation? I find that a good start was made when Senator McCain threatened government regulations if the players union didn’t make concessions to resolve the recent steroid scandal in baseball. You’ll notice that they reached an agreement mighty fast after that threat. In my own opinion, the best thing for baseball and the other professional sports is to break the stranglehold that the players unions, sports agents, and owners have on the games.
As for the “pro” sports at college lever, I’ve noticed that any number of the great universities and colleges in don’t have intercollegiate sports teams. I’m thinking here of Northwestern and Oral Roberts, but I’m sure that there are others. I have heard all of the arguments against dropping sports, but most of them sound facetious to me at best. As an alumni myself, I don’t give money to my alma mater’s sports programs or to the general university fund. Instead, when I give money it is to a specific program like the library or a particular department. I can only encourage others to follow my example. Starving them out is the only way to end the abuses at a college level.
Just my two cents worth of advice, but something has to be done and waiting for the situation to correct itself over time is not a solution. Think about it and you’ll see I’m right.
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