Are They Reading The Same Piece As Me?

Several people, including Instantman and the Vodka guy, have linked to this TechCentral piece by Pejman, saying that it shows that we’re gearing up for war with Iraq.

I don’t see anywhere that it makes such a case. There is some evidence presented that we are not, and some (perhaps) wishful thinking expressed that there’s more going on than we see, but he provides no actual evidence of it, and that only in the second graf.

Mostly, it’s a description (with which I mostly agree) of why we should be doing so, but I see little here to persuade me that we actually are.

Things Heating Up Again In Venezuela

Sounds like things are getting ripe for another coup, far bloodier than the last one.

Chavez is purging the armed forces.

But Chavez has removed so many generals and admirals since the coup that he has been obliged to appoint some lower-ranking colonels in their place, causing resentment among senior officers.

“Meritocracy is being replaced by unconditional commitment and loyalty to the president,” said Vice Adm. Rafael Huizi Clavier, president of the Institutional Military Front, a group of retired senior officers critical of Chavez. “The fundamental values of the armed forces are being lost and the military is becoming a praetorian guard.”

Temporary Outage

For anyone who tried to view the site in the last few hours, you may have noticed a blank page. I had a disk allocation problem that didn’t allow the index to update. If you’re reading this, it’s fixed.

SecHomeSec

OK, I couldn’t find it with Google. Everyone inside the Beltway has to use a shorthand name for the various officials. It’s the law.

Let me be the first to declare the DC shorthand for the Secretary of the new department (assuming that it passes Congress, with the proposed name).

It’s based on the same principle as SecDef for the Secretary of Defense.

There will also be UnderSecHomeSecs.

(By the way, the dental work went OK, for anyone who cares. Light posting this weekend, back to normal on Monday.)

Semi-Hiatus

Posting will be light/non-existent today, at least until much later. I’ve got some major dental work scheduled this morning. Hopefully the painkillers will make for some interesting posts this evening…

Not A Rocket Scientist

Veteran space reporter Beth Dickey has a long and comprehensive look at Sean O’Keefe and NASA’s problems in Government Executive magazine.

O?Keefe is in a better position than any administrator since Webb to prime NASA for spectacular achievements. ?O?Keefe may not particularly dream at night of sending astronauts to Mars. But he may leave NASA structured in such a way so that, at a time and circumstance in which the country can support that, we actually will be able to accomplish such a goal…?

More Commencement Speaker Outrage

It’s going to be a wonderful day in the Dartmouth neighborhood–Mr. Rogers is going to give the commencement speech.

Not all the students are happy about it.

“It’s like Barney the dinosaur speaking at our graduation,” said history major Michael Weiss. “We’re 22 years old and we’re getting lectured by a guy who plays with puppets for a living.”

Biting Commentary about Infinity…and Beyond!