The Internal Combustion Engine is Here to Stay

Share

A Yahoo article today on Gasoline powered cars told the entire story. In it, the CEO of Daimler had the following to say about that technology:

The internal-combustion engine "will likely remain the backbone of mobility for the foreseeable future," said Daimler AG Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche. He said his company has been able to improve the efficiency of gas and diesel engines by about 23% and "there is still further to go."

He didn't tout solar or hydrogen or anything else the no-growth environmental Marxists advocate. He told us where the market is driving sales, what the people want, and where automakers are and should be vesting their efforts- in the internal combustion engine. Personally, the more I learn about this, the more I feel awe for those who came up with it. Today Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) announced a $4500 rebate for old gas guzzlers will go before the Senate. Considering my car is worth tops $1500, that's a killer for me once I finally give up on my 1995 Saturn SL1.

If gas were on the way out, they would not be vesting money developing a more efficient and more powerful engine that uses it as a fuel. It's still the most efficient and effective mode per capita of moving people around. What are the practical applications? Drill, drill, drill...if Daimler-Chrysler's CEO says this, we'd better listen or else the USA will be left in the dust.

What I Want From Obama

Share

I really want this guy to write my campaign speeches.

From the Big Hollywood Blog

Update on Governor's Plan

Share

When I returned from my trip to DC, my boss gave me the latest news on the governor's proposed actions to reduce spending. Since my job hangs on the chopping block depending on the level of reduction the governor requires and since buying a home and so many other things hang on whether I get to keep this job or not, everyone is anxious to find out if they're going to have to do without me.

The governor's new plan calls for a 14-15% reduction, which was the lowest level I believe coupled to a 6% salary reduction. This essentially rolls me back to before my merit increase or eliminates the COLA I've received thus far, to the tune of $150-200/month reduction in pay. Some people out there say that nobody in government is cutting back; to them I point their attention to our unpopular governor who I appreciate for having kept his promise not to raise taxes. I disagree with his plan, as I told him this morning:

Sir-

Much as I appreciate your efforts to forestall layoffs through a proposed 6% pay cut to state employees, I have to say I differ in my opinion on this. That being said, I have been notified by CSN that depending on the reduction for which you ask I may myself be laid off, and if I acquiesced to this new strategy it would protect my job. I want to keep my job, but I feel that the government has become bloated in every sector- that we could always do with fewer people, however surgically they might need to be excised. I know there are people at CSN we do not need despite what President Richards says and despite the fact that my department can't do without me in particular. The tenure system protects people without whom we would be better off, and connections protect others, but I will not get into the politics of that. I have no connections on which to hang my hat; I rest on my laurels and my ethics and trust that God will deliver me. For my own part, I prefer a permanent reduction if possible in the number of people on the public payroll. I have been laid off in the private sector and survived just fine, despite the so-called Bush recession. I prefer to risk my own job security for the greater good of reducing the state work force over your payroll deduction, which would cost me $200/month.

I appreciate as heretofore that you have decided not to raise taxes to solve the crisis. I know you take lots of flak for this. Whatever other faults you have, I salute you sir for this resolute refusal to run the same race as Republicans around the country. They say nobody's doing what is right as a steward. They have apparently not heard about you. May God bless you in your personal pursuits for acting in good faith as a steward of the fruits of our labor. Godspeed.

When the chair notified me that my name was on the list, he told me that there were people with whom he preferred to dispense, but the tenure system renders them safe. Other people are protected by connections, and other people are being paid on administrative leave. If we have gotten along without them for the entire time I've been here, why do we need their positions? I say cut them, but by all means stop paying them to do no work. Have we already forgotten former judge Halverson who never heard a case in her term but still collected full pay? At least she lost the election...

Why Drilling Matters Most

Share

Now that gas prices have fallen, we hear very little about new energy sources or windfall profit taxes. The problem is that our supply remains the same, so if there's a sudden surge in demand, prices will return to previous levels and some suppliers like OPEC are cutting supply in order to bolster prices, further exacerbating the problem.

These countries have, by their actions, declared where their loyalties lie- in profits. Despite the altruistic rhetoric of politicians around the world, they care only about money same as "evil corporations" in America seem so to do allegedly. The recession has hurt the ability of these nations, many of which hate America, to wage war against us, either through terrorism or through diplomatic means. They're so busy dealing with problems at home they can't deal with us.

If, as Mark Levin said, the low price of oil hurts our enemies, one of the most patriotic things we could and should be doing is driving the price of oil into the ground, thereby putting them out of business. Terrorists depend on oil profits to fund their schemes. We need to deny them access to a steady state specie circular and in so doing bleed them dry of any power to exert authority and fear over us. Go explore for oil wherever we can and stop sending those who let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth any more money with which to wage a war of annihilation against us.

It's a Choice

Share

This morning I noticed on the Yahoo news feed that Obama has narrowed down the choice of dog to one of two breeds. I'm so glad that he found time for that in his busy schedule because I need a president who understands the canine crisis. I believe that we elected men who know and understand what really matters- pets, not the economy, the Somali pirates, unemployment, or anything else. Way to see to your priorities.

During my trip to DC last week, I grew quickly tired of all the Obama merchandise and the scaffolding that obfuscated the view of the capitol building. I saw some of you fawning over him for his "hotness" in the smithsonian and talking about how he's so much better than Bush. While I'm no Bush fan, I think that Obama is destined to be the worst president we ever had, which is saying something. For the better part of my life, I've said that I was born in the darkest part of American history- the Carter Administration. As for all of you who think that he will heal the land, you have another thing coming. A friend of mine told me today that someone asked him:

why are you tired of hearing about Obama? does the fact that the world will be perfect in a few weeks bother you because you won't have anything to complain about?

There was a protestor at the Chinatown subway stop in DC (who was himself a black man for the record) who among other criticisms reminded any who heard that Obama will not make their lives better. Only they can make their lives better.

A good friend of mine once put up as her status message somewhere online these profound words: It's a choice. The choice is up to you. The power is yours. If your life isn't what you want it to be, make it better. And when you make decisions, put first things first.

Obama would do well to remember that a presidential pooch is not part of his responsibilities- but protecting this country is.

Like a Criminal in My Own Country

Share

After I returned from Washington DC, a friend of mine asked me about the crime there. It was ironic that he asked because I felt more like a criminal at times than that I was surrounded by them, and so I thought it relevant to explain my feelings here.



As we passed from building to building, I suppose new DHS laws required them to at least look through our bags. Some places exerted more scrutiny, scanning us with a metal detector or asking for ID, etc., while others let us in without too much fuss. When exiting the Customs building as I looked at all the guards frisking people, I felt like a criminal in my own country, but I remembered as we walked toward the White House that in most places you can't get that close to the King, Emperor, Dictator, etc. no matter who you are.



Only at one point did I see any crime. Well, everyone drove like a maniac, and there was some jaywalking, but this person tried to steal a camera. Otherwise, you couldn't tell it was a major metropolitan area at all. That being said, 95% of all crime in DC occurs on the floor of Congress, and since they wouldn't let me in with water bottles in my backpack, I was kept safely away from that section of town.



Maybe I felt completely safe because of the company, but I have not been so at ease in a long time. True, at the beginning, I wondered about my wallet and my backpack in the crowds, but eventually I just had a good time.

Good Advice

Share

Ed Rollins offered some good and funny advice in his column today that I wanted to pass on.

First to the Democrats:

Remember the game is now all yours. If you get the problems solved, the glory is all yours, too. If you fail, you don't have Bush and Cheney to blame anymore -- or any other Republican, for that matter.

Don't be rushed by current events. Do something Congress has never done before. Plan. Read the bills that you are passing. And think of the kids who are going to have to pay for all this in the future.

To my Republican friends in the House and Senate:

Be a real opposition party. Articulate what you stand for and stand up to the president and the Democrats with ideas that can counter the direction they will be taking the country.

Realize you are going to be in the wilderness for a time. The country needs an opposition party and you're it. Along with the Republican governors, you are going to have to cobble together the concepts and solutions that will attract voters back to our party.

To the president-elect:

Beware of your own party. Republicans are not your problem. Each member of Congress will think they are your constitutional equal. The more senior they are, the more they will test you.

You will have to remind them from time to time that if they want to be the constitutional equal, they need to bring the other 434 members over to your office.

Either that or they can go get another 66 million or so votes to add to their congressional total to be your equal. Many will have their own agendas and some of their ideas will be good ideas. Many more will be disastrous.

I thought the references to planning for the senate were funny. Also, they constantly point to doing things for the children all the while saddling them with debt before they're ever born. You think you have debt? Your unborn children have not even begun to pay.

For the Republicans, McCain's campaign pointed out that appeasement doesn't work for them. The Rockefellers got exactly what they wanted in a candidate and lost their shirts.

I also found it telling that Rollins points out that Obama's biggest problems will come from his own side. With basic majorities in both houses, he can get most of his agenda passed as long as he can convince his party to adopt his agenda as their own. He's young and inexperienced, and they know that. They will try to assert the Congress over the Executive and put him in his place.

Turn Up the Heat

Share

I read this article on Yahoo about the caloric implications on regular metabolism when you start the day with vigorous exercise. I particularly like it because it affirms my own ideas and validates the pattern of behavior I adopted for myself.

According to the article, if you start the day with some kind of exercise, you can jump-start your basal metabolic rate for the rest of the day. In the example given, simply light preparations prior to Christmas dinner can raise the metabolic rate by 20% (clearing tables, setting out cutlery, etc.), but if the woman started the day with a vigorous 45 minute jog for example can raise her total metabolic output by 70%.

So, on days when I get up and exercise, I raise the morning metabolic rate and trick my body into thinking it needs to maintain that energetic level for the rest of the day. As actual demand wanes, the total output peters out towards evening, but having been elevated for much of the morning I burn far more calories than I would otherwise sitting at my desk. The reason why this is less effective at night is that as soon as you go to sleep, REM metabolism drops to about a third of daytime metabolism, ablating much of the additive advantage.

Contrary then to popular belief and to comfort as well, it’s most important to exercise as vigorously as possible on the morning of holidays when we normally gorge ourselves on not only rich foods but also on higher levels of foods we regularly consume. Most American holidays revolve around food, yet we just sit around together and eat and store fat, truth be told. My grandparents thought I was crazy for running 4 miles on Christmas morning, but that’s why I managed to get through the holidays without gaining any weight.

Taking Control of Your Destiny

Share

My friends know I aspire to be a do-it-myselfer. Everything I control I like to control, and everything I can do myself for less money than someone else will charge me puts money in my pocket. In this time of economic crisis, the ability to take control separates the survivors from the scared.

Since I'm still at least 30 years from retirement, I'm not terribly worried about the economy. I'm mostly worried about what other people will do politically that will affect the economy's ability to recover. Every time politicians meddle, they tip the scale too far and prohibit its ability to recover as quickly as would be preferable. I hear that the federal government intends to raise gasoline taxes to compensate for lost revenues with a decrease in total gallons sold. This comes as the price per gallon is once again on the rise. Smart, very smart.

While our politicians may not be smart, it doesn't mean we can't be. Here are a few things I found that other people suggested that put you in control and cut costs on things you may do anyway.

• Buy a bread maker. You can buy one for $55. If it saves you just $4 a week on store-bought bread, that's $208 a year. A 280% return.
• Get a credit card with a great sign-up bonus. Like the AirTran Visa card. Cost: The $40 annual fee. After your first purchase you get enough reward miles for a free flight, saving maybe $250. Then cancel the card. Return: 525%.
• Take out a local library card. Cost: Nothing. If it saves you $10 a month on books, that's $120 a year. Return: Infinite. Note: Some libraries now let you borrow electronic books over the Internet as well.
• Order a packet of seeds and plant them in a window box or garden. Growing your own herbs, spices, and even vegetables – depending on the amount of space you have – is a great investment. If you spent just $10 on seeds and saved a mere $50 in the year, that's a 400% ROI.
• Switch to a prepaid cellphone. Cost: $20 for the phone, and maybe $100 a year for minutes. Move the rest of your talk-time to free Internet calls, and stop hemorrhaging $60 a month on a cellular plan. ROI: 500%
• Start making your own coffee to take to work each morning. Cost: $20 for a Thermos, $10 for a filter and papers, and $60 a year for ground coffee. Then skip the $4 a day drive-thru. If that saves you $1,000 a year, the return is more than 1,000 %.

I have a friend whose parents pay exorbitant amounts of money for common car repairs because their passions and interests lie elsewhere. For things you do anyway, doesn't it make sense to shop around? I did when I bought my first home, and it saved me $200/month on the mortgage.

Take control of things you control. Then the things you don't control won't loom so large.

New Year Analysis

Share

Unlike most people I know, 2008 was actually a very good year for me.

With one exception, I finished every goal I set for myself by August. Granted, I didn’t set goals that depended on the agency of others, like I have to some degree this year, but I felt really pleased with myself in August when I had done all those things.

Vocationally: I finally got a job in my field, managed to get promoted in a budget crisis and obtained an adjunct teaching slot over people with longer histories with the state.

Educationally: I found out about opportunities to get the education I want and need to advance myself and my career. I also read, thanks to a good friend, over 50 books this year, including DeTocqueville, von Mises, and others, which are arguably difficult and long works.

Fiscally: I am worth more today than at any point in my life heretofore except one, and that despite the Panic of 2008

Socially: I tried to go out more and go on some dates. The fact that it didn’t go over well isn’t my fault entirely because I got better at it at least in frequency.

Spiritually: I came to peace with myself and God this year and undertook some writing projects that will affirm and confirm my beliefs and leave something for my descendants, if I ever get any.

Physically: I lost 32 pounds this year, even after gaining muscle mass obtained through my exercise regimen. I only had one migraine, didn’t get sick more than periodic diarrhea, and I had only two Charlie horses all year. Also, my back seems to have recovered. I try to weekly: run 5 miles 3 days per week, bike 15 miles 3 days per week, and either lift weights or swim ¾ mile twice per week.

I also came up with a list of reasons why girls should date me. I won’t share that. I know what I’m worth, and it’s their loss.

Do I have regrets? Yes. Am I sad about some things? Yes. Am I better than I was last year? YES, YES, YES! Not many people I know would or could say that. The year of our Lord 2008 was a good year for me, and I thank God for the myriad of blessings He found fit to shower on me. God never lets me down, even if he forces me to wait longer than I want for what I know I deserve.