North Korea is finally turning to the free market? I don’t understand why. I was under the impression that the government was indifferent to starvation.
Category Archives: Political Commentary
Advice For The Administration
…in which it has no interest: how to waive the Jones Act.
I’ve got a better idea, for which there will be even less appetite in this administration — repeal it. It’s a protectionist relic of the last century. Along with Davis-Bacon (which is also racist in intent). Not to mention the Wagner Act.
“Vladimir Obama”
They told me if I voted for John McCain, the special relationship with the Britain would deteriorate. Man, the Brits aren’t happy.
The vitriol has a xenophobic edge: witness the venomous references to “British Petroleum”, a name BP dropped in 1998 (just as well that it dispensed with the name Anglo-Iranian Oil Company even longer ago). Vilifying BP also gets in the way of identifying other culprits, one of which is the government. BP operates in one of the most regulated industries on earth with some of the most perverse rules, subsidies and incentives. Shoddy oversight clearly contributed to the spill, and an energy policy which reduced the demand for oil would do more to avert future environmental horrors than fierce retribution.
Mr Obama is not the socialist the right claims he is (see article). He went out of his way, meeting BP executives on June 16th, to insist that he has no interest in undermining the company’s financial stability. But his reaction is cementing business leaders’ impression that he is indifferent to their concerns. If he sees any impropriety in politicians ordering executives about, upstaging the courts and threatening confiscation, he has not said so. The collapse in BP’s share price suggests that he has convinced the markets that he is an American version of Vladimir Putin, willing to harry firms into doing his bidding.
Guess that relationship will have to be on hold until 2013.
[Updatea early afternoon]
Barack Obama, most unpopular man in Britain. Glad we have that “smart diplomacy.”
Good Luck With That
This lunatic DoJ really is going to sue the state of Arizona for enforcing federal immigration law. Hope they read the bill first.
Why Space?
Some thoughts from Trent Waddington.
Most reasons for space are rationalizations. Until it becomes affordable for people who are intrinsically interested, it will continue to be a political football and make little progress.
Dunkirk Evacuation Delayed For Safety
June 1, 1940
DOVER (Routers) The evacuation of British and French troops from the besieged French city of Dunkirk was halted today, over concerns that many of the private vessels that had been deployed for the task were unsafe for troop transport.
Government officials ordered all soldiers to hold their places on the harbour waterfront and beaches, and those in the water were told to hold up boarding as well, until the various fishing and pleasure vessels could be inspected by the Home Guard, to ensure that there were sufficient life vests, fire extinguishers and other safety devices on each one. Each boat will also have to be tested for leaks before it will be deemed safe for the passage across the Channel.
“We can’t risk our soldiers’ lives on these cheap boats,” explained one official. “The Germans are firing on our ships, and we’ve already lost six destroyers to submarines and aerial bombardments, three of them just today. If all those non-military boats don’t have the proper safety gear, they won’t stand a chance,” he shouted over the din of incoming mortar fire from German troops only two miles away.
Many of the troops agreed. One of them, standing chest deep in the surf, holding his weapon out of the water, said “The Home Guard always knows best, that’s what I always say.” Ducking down at the sound of a nearby artillery shell hitting the beach, he came back up for air. “We can’t be expected to risk our lives on those floating death traps. The colonel said that some of those fishing boats have exposed hooks on the deck. We could stab ourselves something nasty if they go through our boots. And look at that rickety dinghy there. We’d probably spend half the trip to old Blighty bailing it. And think of the splinter danger.”
In response to concerns that the troops might be in danger if they remained much longer, the notion was pooh poohed. “Jerry knows how dangerous those boats are. That’s probably why they’ve held up on the final assault. It will only be a couple more weeks until we can get a shipment of life preservers and fire extinguishers in from Southampton. Nothing comes before the safety of our troops.”
[Copyright 2010 by Rand Simberg]
The Lesson Of McCain-Feingold
Some thoughts on the NRA and the DISCLOSE Act (which looks like it may be dying or dead, thankfully):
The lesson of McCain-Feingold fight is that if you see legislation that fundamentally violates constitutional rights, kill it. Do not try to minimize the damage. Do not try to get the best deal you can. Do not count on even a John Roberts-led court to do the unpopular work and strike it down. Do not count on any other part of our political or judicial system to step in. Do not collect “Go” or pass 200 dollars. Kill it, kill it, kill it before it can put down roots.
Because we have a governing class that literally “doesn’t care” about the Constitution. As far as they’re concerned, the Commerce Clause ensures that Congress can pass any idea that pops into its members’ heads if the votes are there. Ben Stein tells how the White House press office told him that no enumerated power in the Constitution or federal law was required for Obama to fire the head of GM. This crew thinks that the Constitution ensure the government’s right to require citizens to purchase health insurance. As Charles Kesler noted, “TARP, for example, was an unprecedented delegation of legislative power to the Treasury secretary, of all people. It was a desperate, essentially lawless grant resembling the ancient Roman dictatorship, except that the Romans wisely confined their dictators to six-month terms.”
Up against a crew like this, for whom the Constitution is a dusty museum relic, you don’t take the best deal available.
As I’ve often said, I think that George Bush should have been impeached for signing McCain-Feingold. In doing so, he blatantly violated his oath of office.
Europe’s Future?
The PIIGS who fell to earth.
The Democrat War On Science
Expect this to be a recurring theme. The latest incident:
Needless to say, there is something ugly and hypocritical about glorifying the absolute authority of scientists and sanctimoniously preening about your bravery in “restoring” that authority — and then ignoring the scientists when politically expedient.
But it is bordering on the grotesque to handpick scientists to give you an opinion and then lie about what they actually said and implement a policy they don’t endorse. (According to the Journal, the Interior Department has apologized to the scientists. But the administration refuses to publicly acknowledge it did anything wrong.)
Of course it does. Not just hypocrites, but incompetent ones, who are compounding the damage to the Gulf economy from the oil leak by wiping out the local oil industry. Oh, and speaking of incompetence, how about this?
Against Governor Jindal’s wishes the federal government blocked oil-sucking barges today because they needed to confirm that there were fire extinguishers and life vests on board and were having trouble contacting the owners.
We don’t have elections often enough.
So Publish The Damn Iowahawk Book Already
Go sign the petition. The background is that Dave was in negotiations with a publisher, but they decided not to go for it, because they didn’t think it would sell ten thousand copies.
[Friday morning update]
If you go to the petition site, DO NOT DONATE any money, at least with the intent of getting it to Burge, because he won’t get a dime. That’s the petition site’s business model.
[Update mid morning]
Iowahawk has shut down the petition, lest anyone else get fooled.
It’s still a good idea, though. Maybe I should set one up here. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a market test of a space policy book.