Yes, and sow the ground with salt.
Category Archives: Business
America The Weird
Victor Davis Hanson on the appeal of the West:
America remains the exceptional Western nation, whose influence and stature transcend the size of its economy and population, and its vast land mass of rich natural resources. Its cocktail of property rights, unfettered oil and gas development, muscular national defense, gun rights, religiosity, free-market economics, limited government, philanthropy, and great private universities is, again, unlike anything in the West.
Likewise, its excesses that arise from the marriage of free-market affluence and constitutionally protected unfettered expression, in the eyes of the world, appear often as license and indulgence. Certainly, the First and Second Amendments, the National Football League, rap music, the U.S. Marine Corps, Silicon Valley, Wall Street, the Ivy League, or 24/7 cable news could not originate elsewhere.
The result is that America exists both as the world’s refuge and its beacon, the sole place where individuals can find a safe harbor. Only in America can the individual remain free and able to live his life under the assumption that the major decisions of his life are his own and not predicated on state approval. Only in the United States does the rags to riches story still exist, given that neither regulation, the deep state, nor an entrenched aristocracy can fully suppress entrepreneurs or aspiring capitalists.
A key goal of my Outer Space Treaty project is to extend this to the solar system. Speaking of which, Michael Listner has an analysis of the latest U.S. legislation along these lines.
Rejuvenation
This seems like a very promising approach. First dogs, then use the revenue to do clinical trials on humans. I’m holding up pretty well for my age, but I’d really like to set the clock back.
[Update a few minutes later, after reading]
I’d note that one of the “diseases of aging” listed is diabetes. I think it’s pretty clear at this point that this is mostly a problem of poor diet, based on decades of criminally terrible nutrition recommendations, and can largely be reversed by simply going keto. In fact, they’ve found that it can even be an effective treatment for Type 1 (and it was, prior to the development of insulin).
[Thursday-morning update]
New at Analog: Can we reverse aging?
[Via Gary Hudson]
[Bumped]
Bridenstine
He didn’t make any friends in Huntsville with his brief speech on return to the moon today. So, off to a good start.
[Late-afternoon update]
[Update a while later]
Another report from Marcia Smith.
CBO Estimates
Why they are useless BS, that can’t provide a guide to policy. Remember how the “tax cuts” were going to increase the deficit?
All told the government collected $515 billion and spent $297 billion, for a total monthly surplus of $218 billion. That swamped the previous monthly record of $190 billion, set in 2001.
CBO analysts were surprised by the surplus, which was some $40 billion more than they’d guessed at less than a month ago.
Analysts said they’ll have a better idea of what’s behind the surge as more information rolls in, but for now said it looks like individual taxpayers are paying more because they have higher incomes.
You don’t say.
Orion
The latest on overruns and slips from the GAO. As I often note, overruns and slips on a program like this and SLS are a feature, not a bug. At least until they finally get canceled.
Vulcan
An interview with Tory Bruno about his new rocket.
Big Government And Bad Science
Probably not news to my readers, but here’s a Reason interview with Nina Teicholz on how government recommendations have made America fat.
Boeing Plans
Alan Boyle reports on a speech from the CEO. And no, CST will not be the first private space vehicle to go to LEO.
NASA’s Aging Work Force
I talked to Haley Byrd about this yesterday, and she quoted me.