Monday, April 30, 2007

My May Day Ritual

Listening to Mountain Greenery

Thirty Years

On May 1, 1977, Argentine mothers launched their campaign to protest their 'disappearance' of their children. They are still at it today.

Look at their web site for more information.

I'm marking May 18 on my calendar

That's when ABC introduces National Bingo Night. I'll be glued to my television set hoping for B5. I suspect that the sponsors will be pitching Geritol or baby food as what mature adult would waste his time watching such inanities?

The next show designed to exploit the potential of television will be 'Watching Paint Dry'.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Rice will meet the Iranians

Iran has agreed to join this week's conference on Iraq being held in Egypt. Rice is representing the U.S. and presumably will be sitting at the same table.

Was it arrogance or ineptitude?

Probably some of both. We refused 54 of 77 offers made by Canada, Britain and Israel to provide aid to the victims of Katrina. The government has received $126,000,000 from foreign governments, but has managed to get only $40,000,000 to the victims.

Emptying Guantanamo will take longer than filling it

Our government told 82 of the 385 prisoners now at Guantanamo that they could leave. However, they are still there as the countries in which they claim citizenship will not take them, no country - including the U.S. - will give them asylum and we are bound by our laws not to send them to countries where they will be tortured (as if we had not tortured them in Guantanamo).

Rice's lawyer bemoans that other countries won't take these detainees, "In general, most countries.... believe it is not their problem. They think they didn't contribute to Guantanamo." Talk about accepting reality! What say did these countries have in determining who was 'detained' or where they would be detained or the treatment they would receive?

Also, the Pentagon has said that they expect that 60 - 80 of the detainees will eventually be tried, the others will be freed. When?

Of course, we didn't say that

I don't know about you but in the run up to the Iraq war I heard the administration say several times that the threat was "imminent". Now, Rice denies that.

How stupid do they think we are?

It's only fair...

that both men and women should follow the dictates of what are supposedly the Koran's views on people's appearances. Now Iran wants to make sure that men do not sin and get the wrong type of haircut.

It's good to know that people are trying to prevent evil from being committed in this world.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Lessons Learned?

There are a number of lessons to be learned from our reconstruction efforts in Iraq. The latest report from Stuart Bowen spells them out. Basically, the lessons are we need better management, we need buy-in from the Iraqis, buildings have to be maintained.

Because of the insecure situation in Iraq, Bowen's staff investigated only eight projects, all of which our government had touted as successes. The auditors found that seven of these eight were not working properly - plumbing was failing, electricity was inadequate, maintenance was virtually non-existent and stuff had been stolen.

The first step in making things better is recognizing and admitting mistakes. The administration has yet to take this first step.

It's not getting better

Next week the State Department will release its annual terrorism report. The McClatchy newspapers, which I find myself referring to me more and more, claim that the report will show an increase in the number of terrorism attacks on non-combatants. It's up 29% (to 14,338) in 2006. About 41% of these attacks resulted in at least one death.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Are the generals at fault?

That's what Paul Yingling, an Army officer, says in the latest issue of Armed Forces Journal. He echoes what is not an uncommon argument - the generals are fighting the last war. They did it in Vietnam. They're doing it in Iraq. It certainly does seem odd that 30+ years after Vietnam they would still be unable to fight a guerilla war.

Yingling also accuses generals of a lack of courage in that they are unwilling to speak out when they know the strategy devised by civilians is wrong. And, they refuse to report reality, they prefer the dream.

Part of the problem is lack of exposure to different cultures and different ways of thinking. Only 25% of our generals speak a foreign language or hold advanced degrees in social sciences or the humanities. Another issue is the promotion system, which rewards conformity.

In Yingling's view it is not only the fault of the generals. Congress has not played its oversight role.

The 21st century wedding

Destination weddings are becoming de rigeur. Now elaborate choreography is also becoming popular.

Unfortunately, you'll first see a short commercial.

Inside the politics of renewable energy

For a few years now the Cape and Islands have been talking about a wind farm proposed to be built off Martha's Vineyard. Now, a book has been written describing the battle between those favoring and those opposing it. Here's an excerpt from a review by Ian Fein of the Vineyard Gazette.
But perhaps more importantly, it frames the project in a larger context — in terms of regional energy needs, climate change and environmental justice — and attempts to answer the question of why the United States has lagged so far behind in developing renewable energy.

We’re phonies in this country. We say we we’re in favor of energy dependence, but we don’t embrace it if it involves a monetary inconvenience or changing the way things look,” Mr. Whitcomb said this week in a telephone interview from the Providence Journal, where he has served as editorial page editor for the last 15 years. Before that, he worked as a financial writer and editor at the Wall Street Journal and International Herald Tribune.

Environmentalism out here has largely become a land protection thing for rich people,” Mr. Whitcomb said. “And I think this book nails that sense of possession — that rich people think they own everything, including Nantucket Sound.”

The book also captures the sentiment that people in the region who are opposed to the project feel their energy should come from somewhere else, without acknowledging the impacts to residents in those other places.

“As I listened to the wind farm discussion and the comments of some people here on Cape Cod, it seemed to me like they were thinking of the Cape as a Brigadoon,” said Ms. Williams, an accomplished science writer who wrote for the Cape Cod Times in the 1980s and has lived in the area for roughly 30 years. “The discussion seemed to be occurring in a vacuum, as if the rest of the world out there didn’t even exist.”

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Why the escalation in secrecy?

Now the Justice Department is moving to make it even more difficult for lawyers to represent the detainees at Guantanamo. Some people never learn. Guantanamo is a black mark against this country. Our Justice Department just wants to make it blacker.

More embarassment

Last week it was Columbia. This week it's MIT.

Who does the counting...

and what is counted is important in many aspects of life. Bush and company want to judge success of the surge by what happens in Baghdad and, within Baghdad, they don't want to count car bombings, which may be the most successful weapon in the insurgents' armory. Of course, the rising violence outside of Baghdad and the increasing number of American casualties don't count in the Bush calculus. So, every day in every way we are getting better and better.

But, of course, you can count and not tell. Until recently the Iraqi government reported the number of civilian deaths and injuries to the UN. Now, they have decided not to do so.

Trading Partners

Yesterday, the announcement was that Toyota had finally passed GM as the world's largest auto maker. Today comes word that China, not the US, is now Japan's largest trading partner. The 21st century will be the Asian century unless the West gets its act together.

Guilty of obscenity?

Here's another example of the depths to which religious nuts can sink. Some people have too much time on their hands.

India beats the U.S.

As you know, I don't have much regard for our leaders. But, here is one area where I am glad our leaders have been out-performed. 23% of the Indian legislators have criminal charges against them. While we have some corrupt politicians, I can't see us beating the Indians.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

The Back of the Bus

That's where women who ride on certain buses in Israel go. Israel supplies ' modesty buses' as part of the public bus system. These buses are designed to serve the ultra-orthodox, but, in reality, everybody uses them. The problem is that on these buses women board from the back and stay there, men board from the front and stay there. This way the 'modesty barrier' is not broken.

Apparently, this is not the only segregation practiced by the ultra-orthodox in our ally's democratic country. Women do not go to to higher education in the world of the ultra-orthodox. They are also subject to abuse if they do not dress 'modestly'.

How much different is this behavior than that which is written about nutty Muslims or Christians?

Use it or lose it

I wonder whether the fifteen minutes of fame that John Bobbitt had inspired this guy.

Passing up $700,000

The new governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick, has decided that the state does not need the $700,000 it can receive from the federal government by promoting abstinence-only sex education. Patrick's decision is based on the increasing restrictions placed on this money. In prior years all of the grant has gone to one organization, which is an offshoot of an anti-abortion group.

Will the legislature agree with the governor?

A view from the academy

Here's John Silber, former president of Boston University, on the Virginia Tech incident:
We cannot eliminate contingency from life. If we turn society into an armed camp and universities into virtual prisons, there will still be risks. Yes, we should repeal the Buckley Amendment. We should permit persons who are seriously mentally ill to be confined without requiring ironclad proof that they pose an immediate danger. We should restrict the sale of firearms, to the extent possible, to criminals and the mentally ill. But no matter how many laws are passed, they will never remove all contingency from life. Our peace of mind will not be attained by belief in the solution mystique but by having the courage to accept contingency and tragic loss as an unavoidable aspect of human existence.
This appeared in yesterday's Boston Globe.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Bad things happen

David Halberstam, one of the best writers of his generation, died in an automobile accident today.

Maybe she's right

My wife thinks that I'm turning into an angry old man. I hope that I am not, but sometimes I do get a tad irate. For example, the media furor over the sad events at Virginia Tech illustrate quite clearly that we are becoming a nation that prefers to live in a dream world where everything is or should be wonderful.

Fortunately, I've been away for the past few days and have had little access to the 'news', but from what I've seen, heard and read about the killings there is a subtext to this 'news': these events were preventable if - the college administration acted faster, guns were banned, immigrants were not allowed here,..... You name it; something bad like this does not happen in our world.

There is always a reason as to why bad things should not happen. But, son of a gun, bad things continue to happen. A child will die from cancer no matter what the doctors try; an old man will develop Alzheimer's; thousands of people will die in automobile accidents; someone will kill friends and strangers. These things have happened since man emerged from the slime and will continue to happen until he goes back. I am not saying that we should not use our brains and talents to try to prevent bad things from happening. However, we cannot always succeed.

This belief - if only something were different bad things would not happen to us - is predicated on the assumption that somehow we are entitled to live a dream, even though we reside on a planet that is riven with risk and difficulties.

The belief is manifested in many aspects of life. Everyone should get a college degree, not necessarily an education, but a degree. To me, this makes as much sense as everyone should be a top notch athlete. Not everyone needs or wants a college degree. Many of us can use our native talents fully without four years at an institution of higher learning.

In our world everyone should do whatever it takes to be beautiful - shorten your nose, puff up your lips, remove part of your digestive tract, spends thousands on personal trainers.

In our world, everyone should own a house. You can lie about your income and your assets but you can find some greedy mortgage broker who will get you into a house.

In our world, we can ignore our individual share, $144,000, of the national debt or the fact that we keep setting record trade deficits.

In our world, we can survive and prosper without considering the rising power of China and India.

My wife may be right. I'd better stop now.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

A mystery to me

When I first started in the software business in the early 1960s, some of the best programmers were women. Not only did you find a fair number of women designing systems and writing code but you also had them as managers. Somehow, from 1980 or so the number of women in the field dropped. I've often wondered why as the money was good, the field was exciting and - as far as I could tell - there was no male chauvinism.

Now, an attempt to bring women into the field is newsworthy enough for the NY Times.

Monday, April 16, 2007

Minneapolis gets tough

Starting May 11 cab drivers who refuse to transport people who are carrying alcohol will be barred from driving cabs at the airport for 30 days for the first offense and two years for the second. Some of these drivers have refused to take the passenger to his destination when they find out a passenger is carrying alcohol. This is aimed at the Muslim drivers who want to go beyond the Koran, which allows the carrying of alcohol.

The drivers see it as being against religious freedom. They should move to a land where sharia is the law of the land. Fortunately, that is not the case in Minnesota.

"We have never gotten it right in Iraq"

A quote from General John J. Sheehan, who was considered for the position of Iraq/Afghanistan czar but turned it down. Why? 'the current Washington decision-making process lacks a linkage to a broader view of the region and how the parts fit together strategically'.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Don't interrupt our game

I find this hard to believe, but I know it is true. 'This' is the right of the president's staff to eject people from a public building where the president is speaking when those people express viewpoints that differ from the president's. That's the defense two organizers of the president's speech at Wings over the Rockies Air and Space Museum are advancing. These freedom-lovers ejected two people who had an anti-war sticker on their car and who claim they were not disruptive.

I guess the president's staff has a different view of democracy than Jefferson.

Is he to blame?

Charles Wang, the man behind Computer Associates (now called CA), has been able to avoid being mentioned in any serious way with regard to the scandals surrounding the company. Now, however, a company investigating committee has accused him of being a prime mover in the scandals and will be coming after him for at least $500,000,000. He declares his innocence.

The Winner of the Sullivan Award for 2007

Who would think that a 15-year-old swimmer would win the most prestigious award in U.S. amateur sports? Especially when she is a double amputee? It's amazing and certainly heartwarming.

Congratulations to Jessica Long!

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Experience not wanted

Should someone who has never prosecuted a case but is a 33-year-old cum laude graduate of Harvard Law be a US Attorney? Rachel Brand, head of Legal Policy in the Justice Department and active in political conservative groups, turned down the offer. Was she offered the job because of her brilliance or her activism?

"It would be interesting..

if the guys who were on the compensation committee were writing the checks," Michael Kesner of Deloitte & Touche. Mr. Kesner's comments concluded an article in Sunday's NY Times about the exit packages received by big-time CEOs.

Consider in 2006 thirty-five CEOs of major companies got the boot; on average they walked out with $22+ million. But that is nothing compared to the $210,000,000 taken home by Nardelli of Home Depot or the $200,000,000 Pfizer gave McKinnell, whose reign costs shareholders $137 billion.

Now it's the vertical plane

IBM and others have long worked on producing better semiconductor chips by working on the horizontal. Now, they have started to make breakthroughs on the vertical plane, which should lead to still smaller chips that use less power.

A plague on both your houses

The following appeared in yesterday's Wall Street Journal. It was written by a Democratic Congressman, Jim Cooper from Tennessee, who recognizes that this country is not getting the leadership it deserves.
Well, it's over. Congress is in recess, budget season has come and mostly gone, and one party emerged a clear winner: the Incumbent Party. The economic platform of this 535-strong political caucus is designed to prevent any bad news from reaching voters. Despite their public disputes, both the Democratic and Republican wings of the Incumbent Party adhere to the same fundamental principles:

Pretend to budget for the next five years while offering instead a one-year political fix. Whether the issue is funding the war on terrorism, or preventing the Alternative Minimum Tax from punishing the middle class, neither wing of the Incumbent Party offers any lasting solutions, only budgetary gimmicks.

Nod gravely when America's long-term fiscal problems are mentioned, but argue that today's budgets have almost nothing to do with the unsustainability of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. After all, most of today's elected officials will be safely retired -- and some buried -- before these entitlement programs collapse.

When pressed, bemoan the fact that every American's share of the national debt is $29,000 and growing. Forget that a more accurate, audited figure is $170,000 each, or $440,000 per household. People don't owe Uncle Sam the equivalent of a car loan; they owe a home mortgage, and that's on top of their current taxes.

Pledge to protect Social Security and Medicare "trust funds" without hinting that those trust funds do not exist. Today's Social Security surpluses are invested in U.S. Treasury bonds, which enable government spending on everything except future Social Security benefits. Future beneficiaries have no real security other than the hope that future workers will pay more payroll taxes.

Promise Social Security and Medicare benefits that the Social Security actuary says are not even promises, much less vested benefits. They are only "scheduled benefits," which can be rescheduled, or eliminated, at any time by any Congress. Rescheduling is even easier to do when Congress refuses to record today's benefit levels on any federal balance sheet.

Ignore the fact that the federal budget deficit would be at least twice as large if you were not using the Social Security "surplus" to hide its true size. The use of this fig leaf is particularly ironic when, if Social Security and Medicare were properly accounted for, the annual federal fiscal gap would be roughly $4 trillion, or 10 times larger than any politician will admit. This annual gap is larger than the entire federal budget of $2.9 trillion.

Shamelessly exempt the federal government from normal Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), making it the only large entity in America -- private or public -- able to flout the rules. Although the Republicans' Contract with America in 1994 pledged that Congress should abide by the laws it passes, federal accounting hypocrisy is stronger than ever. Even state and local governments now have to properly report their retirement and health liabilities.

Subsidize employer-sponsored health insurance by offering the biggest federal income tax breaks to the people who need it least: high-wage employees of large companies. Oppose any redistribution of those tax breaks, even when President Bush called for such reforms in his 2007 State of the Union Address.

Keep median cash incomes stagnant for decades while fringe benefits, particularly for health insurance, consume most employee productivity and profitability increases. Deny that any tax vacuum exists that sucks up every worker's pay raise and transfers it to the health sector of the economy.

Never even whisper that Standard & Poor's has projected that by 2012, when the budgets of both wings of the Incumbent Party claim to be producing surpluses, the U.S. Treasury bond will lose its AAA rating. Even worse, S&P is also projecting that Treasuries will become junk debt by 2025.

Is America living up to its potential, or falling below investment grade? Democrats have a rare opportunity to buck the bad habits of incumbency with our new majorities in Congress. If we choose to enact the stale economic platform of our predecessors, we do so at our own peril, and our children's. If, on the other hand, we begin to speak honestly about the large problems facing the U.S. economy, perhaps voters will keep us around long enough to fix them.

Friday, April 13, 2007

Boy, was I wrong....

about the West Tisbury election.
Ann Nelson topped the ticket for Finance Committee. I didn't think she'd win.
Ginny Jones beat Ernie Mendenhall for one of the Library Trustee positions. I thought she would finish out of the money

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Have we failed in Iraq?

Here's one argument saying that we have. And here's another.

The right hand and the left hand

Sometimes they don't know what the other is doing. Five percent of the people to whom the government pays Medicare claims owe the government money, about $1 billion. Further, some of these people have been convicted of money laundering; some have had their hospital privileges taken away. Yet, we pay.

Not much has happened in 30 years

Here's what the GAO says in their latest report about weapons acquisitions by the Defense Department:
"GAO's reviews of weapons over three decades have found consistent cost increases, schedule delays, and performance shortfalls."
And things haven't changed in at least 62 weapons systems being developed at an estimated cost of $950 billion. 16% of the programs started the development process with mature technologies. What does this mean? One thing is money; those starting with immature technologies had a 32% cost increase, those with mature technologies had a 2.6% increase. Many of these weapons systems are being developed without "needed technology, design and production knowledge". This is how DOD will manage the $1.5 trillion that is allocated to new weapons?

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

649 days left

Here's a clock to tell you how many more days we will be under the sway of GWB.

Of what value is it?

As part of their annual appraisal, women working for the government in India must provide details of their menstrual cycle.

Terrorism in Europe

Here's a fascinating report by the EU documenting terrorist activity in Europe. There were 498 terrorist attacks in 2006. Most of them (424) were by separatist groups, such as ETA in Spain. Corsica was also a hotbed of terrorism by separatists, 283 in 2006. There was only one reported attack by Muslim terrorist. Despite - or maybe because of - these numbers, of the 706 suspected terrorists arrested, 257 were Muslim.

There are a lot of numbers in the report, but at least there is a report, a report that's available and readable. Would that we had a comparable report.

It might actually work

South Africa has the highest per capita rate of rape in the world: 119 per 100,000. So, I guess it's fitting that an anti-rape condom has been invented there. Rapex is a condom that has teeth, 25 of them to be exact. These teeth attach themselves to anything that comes near them. That might give a rapist a surprise or two.

Part 1 is over

Last night's Town Meeting concluded the first part of West Tisbury's political season. Tomorrow's election will end the season.

Most of you reading this probably believe that Martha's Vineyard is a wealthy place. Yes, there are wealthy people who summer here, but the typical year-rounder is not a wealthy person. In fact, the Island is one of the poorer, if not the poorest, areas in the state. The preceding three sentences represent one aspect of what I thought I'd learned in living here the past five years.

However, based on last night's Town Meeting, I'm starting to think that maybe the Vineyard is really a haven for the wealthy all year round. No matter what the issue, the Town was in a spending mood. Spend $5+ million on renovating Town Hall rather than a million or two less by building a new Town Hall? No problem. Accept continually rising school budgets while the school population is declining year after year? Give me the checkbook. Give Town employees a cost-of-living increase significantly above the rate of inflation? Fine with me.

Do people have that kind of money? You often hear them complain about rising taxes. But, when it comes time to do something about the issue, they don't show up or they get carried away by 'motherhood and apple pie' rhetoric.

You really have to wonder whether those espousing fiscal responsibility will continue to serve the Town, as their research and analysis continues to be discarded by the voters.

Monday, April 09, 2007

It's spreading

The scandal re bribing admissions officers to swing student loans to Student Loan Xpress. Today, Johns Hopkins, Widener and Capella joined the crowd.

CIT, which owns Student Loan Xpress, has placed top management of the subsidiary on leave.

Almost over

Tomorrow is Town Meeting night for West Tisbury. On Thursday we have Town elections.

I'm still uncertain as to how the Town will vote on the most publicized articles - the school budget, withdrawal from the school district and the report of the Space Needs Committee. There are powerful voices on both sides of these issues.

I'm more confident of the election results. But, even here, there are real contests. Anyway, for what it's worth, here are my predictions:
  • Diane Powers will defeat Cynthia Riggs for Selectman.
  • Cynthia Mitchell will defeat Jonathan Revere for Assessor(although this could go either way)
  • Sharon Estrella and Joan Ames will win seats on the Finance Committee.
  • Ernie Mendenhall and Dan Waters will win the battle for Library Trustees.

Saturday, April 07, 2007

More dishonoring of the fallen

Until recently the bodies of our soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan were brought home as baggage in commercial flights and, in most cases, their caskets were delivered to the family on a forklift in a warehouse.

Fortunately, that has changed.

Overstepping boundaries?

Recently, the head of the U.S. Office of Population Affairs resigned. The articles reporting his resignation indicated that he was being investigated by Massachusetts. Now, the story is starting to come out.

It looks as though he got too close to at least one of his patients - and not in a sexual way. He gave the patient money, arranged for her to get free drugs and provided some form of counseling. Yes, he was stupid. Yes, he overstepped boundaries. But the press seems to be blowing this out of proportion.

Friday, April 06, 2007

A Shafting

The Army is willing to stretch the rules and now recruits people without a high school diploma, or people who have spent time in jail, or people who have difficulty meeting the physical fitness requirements. But they are unwilling to bend the rules for someone who has been an Army man since 1986.

Fred Nicholson joined the Army to escape a "dead-end life". He was such a good soldier that he was asked to go to a course to become an officer. Of the 43 who took the course, Nicholson was among the dozen or so who passed. He was named a lieutenant in 1992. At that time the rule was you needed two years of college to be an officer, which he had. Later on, in an attempt to 'professionalize' the Army, Congress changed the rules so that all officers had to be college graduates. That's when Nicholson's troubles began.

In 2000 he was discharged because he did not have a college degree. One reason why he was unable to earn a degree is that, although he was registered at a university, the Army sent him to Germany for several months for war games.

In 2005 when the Army's needs escalated, a recruiter asked him to re-up and told him he would be promoted to captain if he served a year in Iraq. Nicholson re-upped and filed an application for a waiver from the college degree rule.

The waiver was denied in February of last year and he was told that he would be discharged by August 1. Nicholson thought that the Army would not send him to Iraq if he had to be discharged in a few months. Nicholson was mistaken. The Army sent him to Iraq and deferred his discharge until he came back from Iraq.

He performed heroically in Iraq and earned a bronze star. But, rules are rules. He was discharged when he returned to the states. As a result of the discharge, he has not put in sufficient time to earn a pension. Yet, the bulk of the past twenty years have been spent in the Army. He has been an exemplary officer. He risked his life in Iraq. And how does the Army thank him? With the shaft.

The beginning of the decline?

Over the past few years there have been a number of articles about the likelihood that the supply of oil will peak soon.

Twenty years ago there were twelve oil fields that produced a million or more barrels a day; now there are four. After WWII, eight big oil fields were discovered. In the '70s and '80s two big fields were discovered. In the past 20 years only one big field has been discovered.

It's expected that the two biggest fields - one in Saudi Arabia, the other in Mexico - will be producing less oil in three years. The Saudi field is expected to produce 10% less, the Mexican field 30% less.

Perhaps, Mother Nature will take care of global warning in her own way.

When you gotta go

An English dentist really didn't care where he went.

What an embarassment

Columbia, University of Texas, USC - all appear to have admissions officers who were greedy and pushed student loans from companies in which they had an interest.

This kind of behavior extended to the federal Department of Education and, very likely, SUNY as well.

Greed is all around us.

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Hey, Sxxt happens

Sometimes it can save a life.

If nothing else, he's persistent

Bush has made two great interim appointments. Susan Dudley is now in charge of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, which approves all federal regulations (such as for the environment or the nation's health) deemed economically and otherwise significant. It so happens she is against government regulation. Andrew Biggs is now Deputy Commissioner of Social Security. It so happens he wants to privatize it.

Hey, two cannot live as cheaply as one

I guess Paul Wolfowitz believes this as he gave his girlfriend a fantastic raise or two before she moved to the State Department, where she makes more than her boss, Condoleeza Rice.

McCain for President

Things are really getting better in Iraq. Here's a report of the day after McCain visited a Baghdad market and pronounced it safe for strollers - provided you have a bodyguard contingent of 100 and helicopters watching over you.

Monday, April 02, 2007

I know it's early..

but I predict that Bill Richardson will get the Democratic nomination for president. I just don't think that a senator can be elected president; others will come to the same conclusion. But, even beyond this 'rule', Richardson seems the most qualified.

Richardson has a unique blend of experience in the current race. He's been a congressmen for several terms, UN ambassador, Energy Secretary and Governor. So, he has a sense of the cesspool that is Washington, an awareness of the interconnectedness of the world, knowledge of a major, major problem facing us and the world and experience actually running a government.

Plus, from what I know of his ideas, they make sense.

Sunday, April 01, 2007

A Glimmer of Hope

Olmert has said he is willing to meet with moderate Arabs and Israel was ready to make "big and painful" concessions to advance the peace process.

We've heard similar statements by both sides before. Maybe one of these times they'll both mean it.

13 and counting

13 is how many times that the Energy Department has had problems finding all of their computers. In the latest gaffe the department could not find 20 laptops, 14 of which had classified information. On the other hand, the department was using some computers that were not listed in their inventory.

The problem is that the computers are in the Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence, which is responsible for protecting the department's data from spies. Some of this data involves nuclear weapons information.

Will there be a fourteenth time?

Living under a gag order

This piece from the Washington Post describes the effects an FBI gag order with regard to national security letters has had on one person's life. Even though the FBI has said that they no longer need the information they had demanded, the gag order is still active. So, no one can speak about the injustice.

Is this the government we want?

Boston Schools, January 11, 2007

From Brian McGrory's column in today's Boston Globe:

Consider a few other incidents, included in a confidential report prepared by the Boston school police for city officials and provided last week to the Globe:

Three Wilson Middle School students were arrested on charges of carrying bullets.

Boston police intercepted a student walking to Brighton High School with a pellet pistol.

A Madison Park High student was seen concealing a 10-inch carving knife before walking through a metal detector.

An English High School student was found carrying a knife.

A student shot another in the back of the head with a BB gun on a school bus.

Here's what's most remarkable: They all happened the same day, Jan. 11. And if anyone thinks Jan. 11 was anything but typical, think again. The day before, there were three episodes involving knives; the day after, another four.