I suppose, since I have a shiny new blog, that I should say something for the occasion. Both first, and trivially, I’m thankful that we live in a country that has competing blog software providers, and particularly that they are free of charge (though, in the case of MT, I’ve gotten a lot less than I paid for over the past several months).
I’m thankful that, at least so far, an Obama administration hasn’t lived up to his campaign promises. I wonder if he had told the voters that he would a) support Joe Lieberman, b) put in a set of centrist economic advisors, c) go soft on his promise to “raise taxes on the rich,” d) keep George Bush’s Defense Secretary for at least another year, etc., whether he would have had a chance of winning the Democrat nomination. But I guess that what running left for the nomination, and to the center for the election, is all about.
I’m also grateful that, while I missed out on the economic boom of the last few years, paradoxically, as the ecoonomy has gone in the toilet this fall, I’m actually doing very well financially since last summer, with good prospects for continuing to do so. And I have my health, which as time goes on, become ever more precious.
I’m also grateful to my readers, devoted and otherwise, who keep coming back to read my blather. I hope that you all have much for which to be grateful as well, and have a happy holiday, and more to come.
My LA friend (from Florida) Bill Whittle has some further Thanksgiving thoughts, and gratitude, for a friend who died recently.
Spacey thanks goes to X-Prize folks for doing the LLC and SpaceX for persistence.
Also, thanks for doing this blog, esp. the space section which makes it worth coming back.
Thank you for the hard work and dedication. Great job on the shiny new looking blog.
Congrats!
Is the current font size the default? Any thought of maybe increasing it by a point? A leetle tiny to my aging eyes!
I haven’t started to play with things like fonts, but if you use Firefox or Opera, you can change the size with your browser (in Firefox, control-scrollwheel).
I’m thankful that you finally got rid of MT. Plus I like the new look.
I join Leland in thanking you for your work, Rand. I enjoy reading your blog.
I’m thankful that the Bush Administration negotiated an agreement with Iraq that says, “All the United States Forces shall withdraw from all Iraqi territory no later than December 31, 2011.”
http://media.mcclatchydc.com/smedia/2008/11/25/17/SOFA-official.source.prod_affiliate.91.pdf
Rand, congrats on getting the new blog up and running.
Being the great lover of Ares that you are :-), any comment or thoughts on the following:
OBAMA TEAM SEEKS DATA ON POSSIBLE CHANGES TO ARES, ORION
It’s not Obama per se who’s the problem: Obama is an empty suit. He just reads the speeches others give him real purty.
It’s the ones he working for that worry me. The US is well on the road to insolvency and they may be thinking about a fire sale.
I’m thankful that there are people on the right who actually see what should have been obvious all along, namely that Obama is simply a center left democrat and not a socialist, communist, crypto-muslim, terrorist, fascist, or any of the other stupid labels people tried to stick on him during the elections.
Obama is simply a center left democrat
Ha ha, don’t be silly. He’s not that in the least, so far as he has an ideology of his own. What he is — and I’m pleased to note I made this observation in the waning weeks of the election — is a giant and pretty cynical opportunist. He always sails with the wind.
Trust me, it won’t be us on the right who are outraged and embittered by the Obama Administration.
a giant and pretty cynical opportunist
What I’m saying is that a lot of people are seeing the “secret muslim” or “commie” labels from the campaign as the ridiculous, overblown smears that they were. And that, to me, is progress, even if it’s just baby-steps.
BTW, I knew from the start that I stand to the left of Obama, and yet I’m pretty sure I’m not going to be outraged or embittered by his administration. But then I just had 8 years of Bush and Cheney.
> … keep George Bush’s Defense Secretary ..<
I’m actually not high no Gates since hes VERY hostile to long range work. Attacks defense department folks for “next war itis”, planing long term purchases of equipment to have the capacity to fight the next war, not just what we need in the next few years (strange given it takes 20 years to get a program through so you can’t ever use it in this war.). He wants things like F-22 canceled and just keep flying F-15’s etc since “if you not going to use it in the next 2-3 years – don’t worry about it.
Give anything significant in space is farther downstream….
BTW, I knew from the start that I stand to the left of Obama, and yet I’m pretty sure I’m not going to be outraged or embittered by his administration.
Of course! You wouldn’t be an Obama voter if your imagination and hope didn’t dominate experience and common sense.
May your ability to rationalize be up to the coming task.
But then I just had 8 years of Bush and Cheney.
Aw. Just get out of Guantanamo, did you? Or…uh…gee, help me out here. What exactly have Bush ‘n’ Cheney done to you personally in the last 8 years, since they presumably haven’t made you lose your job (unless you’re a journalist), cranked up your taxes, forced you to serve or give your money to a Noble Cause that you don’t think is so noble, or gotten you killed in a senseless bombing? Were you sneered at by French college students in Paris or something? Whatever.
A very belated happy thanksgiving Rand & all! (I’m having trouble keeping up with all the mostly space-related sites/blogs and pdf’s and whatnot lately hence the delay).
What exactly have Bush ‘n’ Cheney done to you personally in the last 8 years
Let’s start with destroying the reputation of my country overseas (where I both have to travel on business and enjoy vacationing) through mandated torture and illegal invasions, and then move on down the list of inflating the defecit and…Oh forget it. You wouldn’t be a Bush voter if your delusion and dead-end fanaticism didn’t dominate experience and common sense.
Let’s start with destroying the reputation of my country overseas (where I both have to travel on business and enjoy vacationing) through mandated torture and illegal invasions, and then move on down the list of inflating the defecit…
Ah. In other words, he has done nothing to you personally, pseudonymous moron.
Ah. In other words, he has done nothing to you personally, pseudonymous moron.
I would say reducing our standing in the world, alienating our allies, and inflaming paranoid fear and hatred of America across the globe reduces my personal security and yours too. Is that damage enough for you?