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Yet more reasons to hate environmentalists
I just saw the creator of “Who Killed the Electric Car” on the Daily show. He did not address the problems raised by David Friedman (mainly cost), or any of the range argument. Instead it was the usual anti-corporate spiel.
That’s to be expected. What I found reprehensible was his not mentioning the new vehicle by Tesla Motors, or plug in hybrids from CalCars. Too many people in the alt-energy environmental front prefer a great excuse to a modest accomplishment and the director was no exception.
I suppose that’s why Solar Towers (CNN article here, WikiPedia here) don’t actually exist yet.
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Mike and I go along with the Black Rider
Last night was the first Tom Wait show in Atlanta since 1978, and it was quite interesting. The AJC has a nice review of it, along with photos.
I was quiet impressed by the band, two discreet percussionists and a discreet bass player make for a very smooth sounds where the instance of the sound doesn’t vary much from the concept of the sound. It was surprisingly true to the albums. Tom Waits in person sounds exactly as raspy and rough as all of his records.
He did most of the songs with a band, doing only one acoustic (with the band) and about three on the piano. It had much more in common with a play than the average rock show (which it wasn’t). The lighting and shadowing was well done and gave me many ideas for photography.
On the whole a good time. The only downsides were the oppressive heat inside the Tabernacle and the long (anti-scalper supposedly) lines. We spent a little over an hour outside in line, and about that inside waiting for him to start, which meant that we spent more time waiting for the show to begin than the show itself.
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War quote of the moment
…Thomas Ricks’ says the war on Iraq and subsequent occupation was ill-conceived, incompetently planned and poorly executed. I have no quarrel with that. What dismays me is that anyone expected any different. All wars are full of incompetence, mendacity, fear, and lies. War is big government, authoritarianism, central planning, command and control, and bureaucracy in its most naked form and on the largest scale. The Pentagon is the Post Office with nuclear weapons.
I’ve always thought that the odds of the government getting some large conspiracy right were much smaller than the odds of them getting some basic assumptions wrong. The complaints of “Bush didn’t get the war planning right” crowd is baffling too. How else was it going to look. In many ways Iraq is much better managed than any of our other wars, only better lit. How else is it going to look?
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It almost writes itself
Somehow I came across the book page for this book “Why Mommy is a Democrat“. There is a link to a review from some outfit called “The National Center for the Study of Children’s Literature“. To quote some of the review
Mommy is a tufted-ear squirrel who embodies and makes visual all the good things Democrats like to think they do, like playing by the rules, treating everyone fairly, and sharing their toys.
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Little lovable animals inhabit the very finely done colored-pencil illustrations, exemplifying abstract beliefs like tolerance and accessible health care.
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the representative multicultural-looking down-and-out young man who is barred from an expensive school, sleeps under a tree in the park, or looks in trash cans for dinnerThe jokes for write themselves. What I found strangest was the phrase “representative multicultural-looking”.
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Quote of the moment
A happy childhood is the worst possible training for life
Kinky Friedman -
Give your tickets to the dog faced boy
Mike and I are going to the Tom Waits show this evening. I’ll have a scouting report soon.
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Wholesome quotes for a Monday night
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.Every revolutionary idea seems to evoke three stages of reaction. They may be summed up by the phrases: (1) It’s completely impossible. (2) It’s possible, but it’s not worth doing. (3) I said it was a good idea all along.
My favourite definition of ‘Intellectual’ is: ‘A person whose education surpasses their intelligence.’
This is the first age that’s ever paid much attention to the future, which is a little ironic since we may not have one.
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run – and often in the short one – the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative.
The effects of technological innovations are typically overrated in the short run but underestimated in the long run.
In democracy it’s your vote that counts; In feudalism it’s your count that votes.
– Mogens JallbergIt was on my fifth birthday that Papa put his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘Remember, my son, if you ever need a helping hand, you’ll find one at the end of your arm.’
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And people called me crazy for stockpiling water….
All right, just one person, but still, in light of this stuff from the AJC, I think I’m validated. To wit:
It’s safe to drink the water again in DeKalb County.
The county’s water and sewer department lifted its boil water advisory on Sunday afternoon, two days after a 48-inch water main broke in north DeKalb.
Water samples sent away for testing came back normal.
“We have a clean bill of health,” said Kristie Swink, a DeKalb County spokeswoman.
The water main break Friday afternoon forced officials to lower water pressure, raising the possibility that bacteria and other impurities might seep into the water supply.
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Friday quotes
JC Penney
Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I’ll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I’ll give you a stock clerk.
George Marshall
Get the objective right; then a lieutenant could write the strategy
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Interesting thoughts from Belmont
These musings do make the Israeli strategy a bit more rational. To wit:
what is the most important component of Hezbollah’s power in the south? Again the answer is easy. It is the Hezbollah cadres themselves. Hezbollah’s most precious possession isn’t Katyushas, long-range rockets, night vision goggles or antitank missiles or electronic equipment. It is the trained core of its military force. Equipment can be replaced but Hezbollah’s cadres represent an expensive, almost irreplaceable investment. In them resides the organizational knowledge of Nasrallah’s organization. It embodies man-decades of operational experience against Israel. Rockets can be replaced. The stars of Hezbollah’s operational force are less expendable.
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The Hezbollah are doing the single most stupid thing imaginable for a guerilla organization. They are fighting to keep territory. Oh, I know that this will be justified in terms of “inflicting casualties” on the Israelis. But the Hez are probably losing 10 for every Israeli lost. A bad bargain for Israel you say? No. A bad bargain for Hezbollah to trade their terrorist elite for highly trained but nevertheless conventional infantry.That was why Spartacus’ revolt against the Romans failed as well.