Tilting At Windmills

The continuing saga.

A few years ago I observed that the real hardcore politicians were the people who never saw a constituent problem that couldn't be turned into a revenue enhancement, usually without fixing the problem. Last weeks shot was to the Littleton councilman who also reps Littleton to the DRCOG. James Taylor responded to my petition for assistance by suggesting that the HOV lane be turned into a HOT (High occupancy / Toll) lane.

Sure, if the taxpayers are inconvenienced by congestion and pollution while 1/3 of a roadway they paid for goes essentially unused, just charge them for the privilege of using it.

In Chicago it works like this:
A businessman is selling fruit from a pushcart when a stranger bumps the cart, spilling the merchandise. The businessman protests this, but the stranger has an easy solution. Simply pay him $20/day, and he guarantees that the inconvenience will never happen again. The merchant, of course, happily pays the tariff, secure in the knowledge that his problem is solved.

Right.

When most of us take a job, there is an underlying assumption of loyalty the whomever has his name on the bottom of our paychecks. We provide our services in the hope that the enterprise will succeed and our contribution will be recognized downstream. In the case of government workers, the loyalty too often goes to the agency whose name appears on the check rather than the people the agency is supposed to serve, and whose money is behind the check.

Perhaps government checks should be written from the people of (insert city, state, of country here) rather than just City of Springfield, to remind the recipients of who exactly they are working for.

Musical Interlude

I like good music, well blended harmonies, full, rich chording, and the image of Al Gore spending time in the joint with a couple of roommates who look like they may have been born there.


M4GW have several bits like this. Go here for a top lever look / listen.

When Things Go Wrong

Now I admit I've had things go wrong, once or twice. Usually it has to do with something completely unforeseen. I mean like I've never ever heard anyone suggest that "you could see that coming". At least not that I can remember.

Now this:



Was there ever any doubt? Whatsoever?

Found at Jawa Report.

Global Warming

Who knew that nuclear weapons were measured in Megabytes?

Science and Technology Marching Forward

Computer World is announcing that Intel is predicting that chips implanted into the human brain will soon be used to replace the keyboard and mouse as an interface at your computer. To me this sounds promising. Just think, a small implant, and I never misplace a tool again, or forget that last item on the grocery list.

With the addition of a small hole in the top center of the head, one of those camera memory cards can be dropped in to provide the recipient with spell check, XL and a dictionary, rendering high school grads employable for the first time in ages.

Some people worry that these chips might eventually extend to include processors, operating under government control, but given the slow reaction of government to the introduction of new technology, what would more likely happen is that enhanced cognitive abilities will render the Democratic party obsolete before they can mandate specific software.

Star Wars

Not that funkey movie, but the real thing. Boeing, who seems to have picked up a lot of the old laser-based programs, is working on the refinement of the concepts to forms that can be profitably used on todays battlefield.

Boeing leads the way in developing laser weapon systems for a variety of U.S. Air Force, Army and Navy applications. These systems include the Airborne Laser, Advanced Tactical Laser, Free Electron Laser, High Energy Laser Technology Demonstrator and Tactical Relay Mirror System.

Having worked on some of the Star Wars stuff back in the day, I can tell you that making it actually work as advertised was more of a timing challenge than a technological one.

The congress, dominated by Democrats, didn't want the Soviet Union to think we were acting too aggressively toward it. The President (Reagan) was industriously banging away at their foundations with any sledgehammer he could lay his hands on. The ground-based laser system decsribed at the link traces its ancestry back to the R2D2-like air defense systems now mounted on most Navy boats. The Armys version was a 40mm gun on a tracked vehicle with a radar to direct it, and a computer to prioritize targets called DAVID. The review of the DAVID systim I saw showed a very aggressive system that would find anything that moved in the air, point the gun at it, and demand that the operator either pull the trigger or designate the target as friendly. Operators were warned to fasten their seat belts securely, because the machine didn't waste time moving from one potential target to the next. When they said "neck-snapping speed" they weren't kidding.

Recent versions of this have been able to pick off targets down to small mortar shells and RPG rounds, as moving mirrors and prisms is easier than swinging a 40mm gun barrel. It would seem that the target acquisition system is about ready for showtime, and the laser is quickly catching up. It's not that big lasers are difficult to build, as such, but that the support systems for them are prohibitively bulky. Progress is being made here, too.

If Boeing wants to do a real-life test, they could park their system just north of the Gaza border with Israel, and take pot-shots at the Iranian rockets Hamas is launching. If this works, they will quickly be able to expand to shooting at the mortar shells Hamas will certainly be aiming at their test rig, too.

H/T to Bijou Renaissance Man, who has some further details and pictures.

Employment

Or lack of same. Go here to see a county-by-county map of the whole country as it changes from yellow to red to purple to black with the rising unemployment rate. Whoever put this together had plenty of time on his hands. Possibly he was unemployed.

The animation shows the country being overwhelmed as if by some fast-spreading plague.

In spite of the assurances of the powers that be wafting about my nether regions, I'll find it easier to believe that the recession is ending when the black tide shows signs of receding.

Postal Match

Last chance this year to "go postal" and win undying fame and glory. To find out what that's worth, go to the CBOT and search either one of those commodities.

Anyway this months match is for the James Bond fans. Here's the target:
The complete rules are here. The fun part is that there's an advantage if you can name all six Bond movies for which an image is pictured. All five vehicles, and the girl. I have three ID'd, but I haven't been to a Bond flick since he wrecked the Aston Martin, so think of this as a bit of an online trivia contest.

First person to correctly name all six flicks, will get credit for having named them when I send in the targets. This is recognition second only to not finishing last in the match, so give it your best guess. I'm going out this weekend to prove that I can hit an 8-1/2 x 11 sheet of paper at 11 yards without using a scope, and at 25 yards with one.

Term Limits

Senator Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) is floating a bill to amend the constitution to limit members of congress to 12 years in either house. This legislation is sorely needed, as has been painfully obvious since forever.

Take a minute and drop your Senator a note asking for support on this. Two thirds of both the House and Senate and three quarters of the states would need to approve the amendment for it to take effect, which is mighty steep odds. Still, a vote would serve to smoke out the members most in need of retirement.

Appeal to the Pols self-interest. When writing to your Reps, point out that this would free up that Senate seat they've been eying, possibly before they themselves die of old age, their childhood dream unrealized.

The Future of Transportation

The Aptera is at the point at which it will either shortly enter production, or the dustbin.
It seems that the financial powers that be have come to the point that the founders of the company have been let go.

At this point in a company's life, someone has decided that the beta test unit has developed about all the buzz its going to and it's time to either produce a production device and sell it, or call it quits. The idea people get annoyed when this happens as there is always something else that can be refined and added. The money people like to point out that R&D does not bring anything in until some of it goes out to the customer.

When it gets cold around here, I get to appreciate an enclosed vehicle with a heater. I'm sure the Aptera gets some astronomical number of miles to the gallon, and even reaches freeway speeds eventually.

I'm looking foreword to seeing the first one with a Hyabusa or V-max engine. 200 hp in that? Yowza!

Cafe Scientifique

This is an organization that presents lecturers on varied topics, open to the public, and frequently held at drinking establishments. Tonight's lecture was

– Gravity's Fatal Attraction: How Black Holes Rule the Universe–
As the Universe evolves, could it be the ultimate fate of all matter to be "swallowed" by black holes?Mitch Begelman, Professor of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, JILA Fellow, University of Colorado, Boulder.

The problem with lecturing on the topic of black holes, is that there is really very little that can actually be known about them as such. Mass and spin are about it. The interesting stuff comes when you consider what goes on just outside one of them.

Having taken college physics myself, a lot of the lecture was a bit old hat, still there was some new stuff discussed. The packed house seemed to be quite enthralled however, so don't mind me. I was just a bit disappointed that the Dr. didn't bring one along to demonstrate with.

Death

Over at Volokh, there's a discussion of it, mostly as relates to applying it to overly exuberant miscreants of the type who believe in making up in quantity, for example, what their deeds lack in quality. Also brought up is the subject of physician-assisted suicide.

This is a touchy area, and peoples opinions vary greatly depending on how the question is phrased.

Folks, if you're looking for help in shuffling off the mortal coil, you probably shouldn't be consulting with a physician in the first place. Doctors, after all, get paid to keep you alive. Talk to an Engineer. One who has had to sit through weekly production planning meetings will probably sympathize with you.

Engineers actually get paid good money to come up with devices specifically designed to hasten the demise of humanity, sometimes in wholesale quantities. They are also the ones who understand some of the "undocumented features" of otherwise innocuous devices you can find almost anywhere.

Just remember to ask discretely, as this sort of service is not always looked on favorably by the local authorities, and expect to have to pay in advance.

Zombies!

It's beginning already! in Las Vegas!

LAS VEGAS (AP) - For the second time in three days a home invasion suspect has been shot and killed by a Las Vegas homeowner.

Third time's the charm fellah, just make sure you don't run low on ammo.

Remember, zombie defense is a valid reason to own a gun.

And lots of ammo.

Middle East Diplomacy

Mark:"Is this a game of chance?"
W.C.Fields:"Not the way I play it, no."

It's how they play it in that part of the world, as Omar reports.

Thirty Mahdi Army commanders assasinated in Damascus

Unknown gunmen assassinated 30 Mahdi Army commanders in the Syrian capital Damascus. The killings, made in the past few weeks, were all made "quietly, inside the victims apartments",

All the usual suspects (everybody) are being blamed. The survivors are beating feet to Iran, and probably to whatever other places look less dangerous at the moment. Mookie Al-Sadr may miss them. Nobody else will.

Speaking of danger in the middle east, it also seems that Egypt and Algeria are on the verge of an impromptu war in the streets of Cairo. Fatalities are widely expected. Of course since it's only over a soccer game, the governments seem relatively unconcerned. Soccer hooligans, hah! There's plenty more where those came from.

Gun Sales

Looking at the graphs of U.S. gun manufacturing from the VPCs lamentation, I notice that manufacturing, and presumably sales, trend upwards when the Democrats hold the legislature, and peak when they also hold the presidency.

Additionally, sales decline when Republicans hold the legislature, and reach a minimum when they hold the presidency as well.

Noting only a small blip following 9/11, I have to conclude that the American people fear the Democrats far more than the armies of Allah.