This piece on the economic ignorance and irrationality of consumers reminds me of my old piece, “Three Cheers For Price Gougers.”
More IRS Smidgens Show Up
It gets more implausible by the day:
Who knows how many of her colleagues and allies are breathing a sigh of relief upon learning that their e-mails to Lerner were destroyed and their instant messages not recorded? I think Lerner must have a sizable silent cheering section in Washington; people who are rooting for her to hang tough in pleading the Fifth and hoping that she does not go wobbly on them. I’ll bet her government retirement check is one check that never gets lost in the mail or delayed.
It gets even better. In another disclosure, Lerner’s attorney said that previous emphatic statements he had made declaring that Lerner did not print hard copies of her e-mails were not lies, just a “misunderstanding.” In this case, it is obvious what happened. When Team Lerner discovered that not keeping hard copies of some e-mails – which are considered government records – would in itself violate the law, it changed its story. It’s as simple as that.
The coordination among the Democrats and Lerner is remarkably brazen, even by today’s standards. While she lies low taking the Fifth, her mouthpieces in the Democratic caucus recite talking points that only she could approve. For example, during House oversight hearings on the scandal, Democrats seem to recite with great precision what Lerner did or did not do, what she knew and when she knew it. So while she hides the truth, protects her gang and stays clear of a perjury charge or worse, elected members of the Democratic party declare her innocence and tell her self-serving story.
Good thing there’s no one like that around here.
Hiring Famous Climate Scientists
Those who did so regretted it.
The Big Fat Surprise
Another review of the book:
The book’s subtitle is Why Butter, Meat & Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet, which gave me the impression I was about to start reading a hefty science book. There’s plenty of science in The Big Fat Surprise, but it’s more of a history book. It’s the story of how lousy science conducted by arrogant scientists and adopted by equally arrogant policymakers led to lousy decisions that produced lousy consequences. I doubt any Fat Heads out there still believe nutrition science is conducted by impartial researchers who aren’t already wedded to an outcome, but if so, reading this book will disabuse you of that notion. It’s all laid out here in a richly detailed story that runs 340 pages … the egos, the arrogance, the obsession with pursuing and (ahem) proving a single hypothesis, the scientific bullying, the corruption, and of course the ham-handed interference by the 900-pound gorilla known as the federal government.
Gee, in what other field have we seen that sort of thing?
The Missing Light
It’s a mystery:
As one participating scientist points out, to miss the mark by so much means what we understand about the universe is fundamentally wrong. The universe continues to be exciting, a little scary, but mostly—a mystery.
And yet some have the hubris to tell us they can predict the temperature of the planet and level of the seas decades from now.
SLS Figures Of Merit
In response to this:
The @NASA_SLS boosters burn 1.5M pounds of propellant in 2 minutes – an average 6.25 tons of propellant every second! #FactFriday
— Explore Deep Space (@XploreDeepSpace) July 11, 2014
I tweeted this:
If total ascent burn time's ten minutes, @NASA_SLS burns about $10M taxpayer dollars per second. @XploreDeepSpace
— Rand Simberg (@Rand_Simberg) July 11, 2014
The Heartland Climate Conference
An attempt to educate a reporter at Slate. It’s actually sort of a fisking by email.
A True Dystopia
The new Planet of the Apes movie appears to be quite disturbing. [Warning: Spoilers]
Skylab
It entered 35 years ago today.
Lois Lerner
“Hey, if we do this in IM, can we hide it from Congress?”
“Sure”
“Great!”
[Thursday-afternoon update]
And finally, it’s off to the pokey for Lois:
Resolved, That the Speaker issue his warrant, directed to the Sergeant-at-Arms, or his deputy, commanding him to arrest and take into custody forthwith, wherever to be found, the body of Lois G. Lerner, and bring her to the bar of the House without delay to answer to the charge of contempt of its authority, breach of its privileges, and gross and wanton insult to the integrity of its proceedings, and in the meantime keep the body of Lerner in his custody in the common jail of the District of Columbia, subject to the further order of the House. While in custody, Lerner shall enjoy no special privileges beyond those extended to her fellow inmates, shall not access any computer or telephone, and shall not be visited by anyone other than her counsel, clergy, physician, or family.
Boo hoo. Should have happened months ago.
[Bumped]
[Friday-morning update]
“That was false…that was false…that was false…”
[Bumped]
[Update early afternoon]
A second judge has demanded that the IRS explain the “lost” emails. Maybe the persecuted groups and the judicial branch will get the goods on them.