Presley's 'Pinions

Fantasy Land

2011-01-31T12:28:00.000-08:00

What do you think it will take for the Obama Administration to realize that we are actually at war? Not just with radical Islamist extremists either, but for the resources, and economic incentives we need to make us safe and capable of competing on the world stage. If we are going to be seen as the “sponsor of democracy” we are going to have to improve on our track record around the world. We profess concepts that we do not back up. We needn’t look just at Egypt with our pathetic patter, waffling back and forth from day to day, paying limited faint praise to Mubarak and his strong man government, and then encouraging the rioters with words, not action. The United States, as currently governed, is apparently incapable of looking at foreign policy, or domestic policy for that matter, that is in our own strategic best interest.

There is no certainty as to the outcome in Egypt or Tunisia for that matter, and chaos is often a fertile breeding ground for radical outcomes. Given our wimpy response when dissidents do, in fact, gain the courage to openly defy their governments. It is no wonder we are not trusted in volatile regions. We needn’t think this is a new phenomenon. There are plenty of people who can recall their shame at our lack of response to Hungarian Freedom Fighters or the pathetic inadequacy of our support with Iran’s democratic faction.

To our enemies, we have become the epitome of a Texas phrase, “All hat, no cattle.” You do not have to wear boots to understand what that means. Oh yes, we have military capability – we are usually unwilling to use it, but we have it. We have economic power in trade issues, but we almost never use it really. We hand out mega billions to regimes all over the world that are absolute antithesis of what we are suppose to be about, but get little in return. Let’s just say we are not very good at foreign affairs.

One might think that’s because this current administration is totally interested only in domestic affairs: ensuring that our economy is strong, jobs and educational opportunities are created, that the tax code encourages innovation and development, and that our energy supplies are adequate to our needs. Unfortunately, none of that is true, and perhaps you wonder why.

In the business world, you cannot have the top job until you have had experience in some of the lower jobs. Stuff happens, and if you don’t have experience with lesser crisis, you are not prepared to handle the biggies.

Since I don’t get Christmas cards from Sierra Club members anyway, let us drive once again into the energy melee. The entire world is scrambling to tie up energy resources and keep them FROM the United States. Even Venezuela has begun shipping more of their crude to Europe instead of the US to take advantage of the higher Brent oil price as opposed to WTI Crude.

We have become a country of words and no action. Obama declared the Gulf oil moratorium “over” in October, and then instructed two of his agencies, the EPA and the Successor to the Mineral Management Service who was the Cop of the Gulf to play hardball, and be slow in issuing new permits. Since October, that duplicity has had the following effects.

1. Since the Gulf supplies 30% of our domestic crude needs, the inability to put new wells on line has hurt reserves of several of the oil companies as reported in their recent financial reports. They need new oil to replace what you used in your Chevy last week.

2. The economic situation in Louisiana is significantly worse. Twenty times more people work for the energy industry in Louisiana than work in shrimping, and a few have had to declare bankruptcy due to the dearth of service work.

3. The price of gasoline has gone up, did you notice? We did not stop driving; we just bought more oil from our enemies.

4. The states did not collect the amount of severance taxes that would have come from the new production, and the federal government did not receive its 12.5% offshore royalty. Major money to solve critical problems at the state and national level did not happen.

5. We were able; however, to reward George Soros with additional money sent to help develop Brazilian oil.

6. In spite of the fact that since WWII over 50,000 wells have been drilled in the US Gulf, and by my count, there have been three blow outs, we have followed our anti carbon “newscasters” and refused to deal with the fact that we are hurting ourselves.

Oh well. There are other forms of energy. How about coal? Does anyone besides Investor’s Business Daily in their recent editorial, “Obama’s War on Coal” remember that, as a campaigner, he vowed to bankrupt and shut down the coal industry? Last month, the EPA actually revoked a permit for an approved, operating coal mine in West Virginia, forcibly laying off the workers and depriving West Virginia, the mine owners, and the buyers of the coal, the fruits of their energy based efforts. Instead, we dream about electric cars that run on……oh yeah, that is electricity that is produced by…….oh yeah, coal and gas and oil to a lesser extent.

We tout emerging technologies that are not at all economic, or for that matter efficient, as if there is no carbon used in their production, and they will run forever, and there will never be another problem on the planet. Young boys and girls use fantasies to prepare for adulthood. Adulthood should include a few less fantasies.

Well, at least there is gas. We found over another hundred years of usable supply in the last three years, and they are still drilling. There is massive Canadian gas as well as the now eight US shale gas plays.

1. It is totally North American, totally inside our monetary system so there are no balance of payments issues.

2. Totally taxed in the US, the payroll is in the US, the pipelines are produced by US steel mills – must be a good deal.

3. Did I mention that the gas price is at a multi-decade low?

It would seem that if one wanted to create increased employment and increased energy independence, maybe, just maybe, instead of throwing money to political cronies, you might, in fact, do a gas tax credit to encourage people to switch to more gas appliances or to develop other energy needs. It is after all, the cleanest fuel under the 1993 Clean Air Act, and it is infinitely cheaper, and therefore better for inflation, the cost of living, retirees, even for the federal government.

Boone Pickens idea of compressed natural gas long haul trucks and buses, and short haul delivery vehicles not belching diesel fumes is a good one, but unless he joins a union, his voice is unlikely to be heard.

This country is being run by a slick talking, socialist/communist/ward politics leaning crony, who is intent upon income redistribution and apologizing for America’s growth and prosperity. He is doing everything he can to make sure the next twenty years do not match the last twenty. I too thought the elections gave him a wakeup call, but apparently it was only an intermittent snooze alarm, and he has returned to his economic slumber. Perhaps we need to give him a wakeup call once again. We need the jobs. He cannot give enough money to the unions to make us whole.

He cannot appear weak and groveling to enough enemies to do him any good, potentially doing us great harm, and he can’t keep looking in the mirror thinking what a magnificent thinker he is, when he obviously does not know how to deal with these situations in a businesslike manner.

William Daley may or may not be a good addition to his staff. He certainly brings a greater understanding of business as opposed to anarchy, but with a nod to the last Chief of Staff, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” That works both ways. Obama could use the current crisis to rescind the ridiculous delays going on in offshore well permitting, to encourage the increased use of natural gas, and to learn a little global economic reality that 70% of the world’s electricity is made from coal, so it is probably not a good idea to kill it since it is a major export item to the rest of the world.

Maybe you should drop him a note to remind him of the real role of a leader who represents America first.

Brian Presley

----------------------------
A Guest Posting by Dr. Bob

What’s Really Happening in Egypt?
31 January, 2011
With all the hype and frenzy from the media concerning the demonstrations in Egypt, are we getting what might be the real background story. Lots of questions out there. We see endless video of marches in a specific part of Cairo and a few streets. We hear that millions are in the demonstrations. There is a little coverage of activity in Alexandria and a few other cities nearby. But what is going on in the rest of Egypt? If it is the middle class that fuels these demonstrations, as we are told, what does the rest of the country think of it all? I find little content about all of that.

But what really is behind these demonstrations and what appears to be a move to a new government or at least to a new leader of the government in Egypt? Look at the history over the last century.

When the Egyptian royal family was overthrown in 1954 and King Farouk fled to exile in Italy, the Egyptian Military took control of the government. Within a very short time, Nasser, a man from the Military leadership, stepped up. He ruled for many years, working for Arab nationalism, and during that time a man named Sadat, also in the Military, became one of President Nasser’s chief deputies. When Nasser died in 1970, Sadat became President of Egypt. Again this President of Egypt had a good tenure, and Sadat was murdered in 1981. At Sadat’s death, Mubarak, his vice president and a Military man, took the office and has held it ever since.

But Mubarak did not and until this week would not name a deputy in the military or establish a vice president. Instead of following the recently established pattern of succession through the Military leadership, Mubarak was clear in his intent to put his own son in power when he stepped down. This could not have been very popular with the top Military leaders, at least some of whom must have had the normal ambitions for themselves and at least some of whom must have thought that the next President of Egypt---after the very long 30 year tenure of Mubarak (lots of time to nurse one’s ambitions)-- would be a leader from the Military.

We hear just now and then of the stress that the succession pattern has been causing between Mubarak and his Generals. The Generals were not pleased with the Mubarak family pattern, and a few reports in recent years even hinted at the push from the Military for Mubarak to step down. Obviously, Mubarak is not quick to accept a “why don’t you resign?” invitation. He has relied on his national police forces to support him, even in the face of moderate opposition from the Military.

Could it be that the current demonstrations by the middle class are linked in some way to the Military’s preference that Mubarak give way to a new leader from the Military? Could it be that the very soft military response to the street demonstrations stems from the Generals’ hope that this is a way to force out Mubarak short of an official military coup (or a repeat of the method of removing Sadat)? The Egyptian Military are extremely close to the U.S. Armed Forces as to leadership (our country basically funds the Egyptian army and keeps it modern). Does that explain why the U.S. response to the demonstrations in Cairo is what it is—and not more forceful or specific?

Most commentaries this week speak of the determining factor of the Egyptian Military in what happens next. Nobody is talking about the possibility of the Egyptian Military as the root of the action and what happened first.
Robert L. Burns, PhD

The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational

2011-01-19T20:04:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Jodi for passing this along.

The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational once again invited readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.

Here are the winners:

1. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period of time.

2 Ignoranus : A person who's both stupid and an asshole.

3. Intaxicaton : Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.

4. Reintarnation : Coming back to life as a hillbilly.

5. Bozone ( n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

6. Foreploy : Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid.

7. Giraffiti : Vandalism spray-painted very, very high

8. Sarchasm : The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.

9. Inoculatte : To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

10. Osteopornosis : A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

11. Karmageddon : It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

12. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.

13. Glibido : All talk and no action.

14. Dopeler Effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

15. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

16. Caterpallor ( n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you're eating.

The Washington Post has also published the winning submissions to its yearly contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words.

And the winners are:
1. Coffee, n. The person upon whom one coughs.

2. Flabbergasted, adj. Appalled by discovering how much weight one has gained.

3. Abdicate, v. To give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.

4. Esplanade, v. To attempt an explanation while drunk.

5. Willy-nilly, adj. Impotent.

6. Negligent, adj. Absentmindedly answering the door when wearing only a nightgown.

7. Lymph, v. To walk with a lisp.

8. Gargoyle, n. Olive-flavored mouthwash.

9. Flatulence, n. Emergency vehicle that picks up someone who has been run over by a steamroller.

10. Balderdash, n. A rapidly receding hairline.

11. Testicle, n. A humorous question on an exam.

12. Rectitude, n. The formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.

13. Pokemon, n. A Rastafarian proctologist.

14. Oyster, n. A person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.

15. Frisbeetarianism, n. The belief that, after death, the soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.

Maxine and Obamacare

2011-01-18T20:22:00.000-08:00

Another classic from Dr. Bob...

This is the best ever!!

Let me get this straight . . . .
We're going to be "gifted" with a health care
plan we are forced to purchase and
fined if we don't,
Which purportedly covers at least
ten million more people,
without adding a single new doctor,
but provides for 16,000 new IRS agents,
written by a committee whose chairman
says he doesn't understand it,
passed by a Congress that didn't read it but
exempted themselves from it,
and signed by a President who smokes,
with funding administered by a treasury chief who
didn't pay his taxes,
for which we'll be taxed for four years before any
benefits take effect,
by a government which has
already bankrupted Social Security and Medicare,
all to be overseen by a surgeon general
who is obese,
and financed by a country that's broke!!!!!
'What the hell could
possibly go wrong?'

Crowd Saves 8 Year-Old's Anthem Performance!

2011-01-17T20:11:00.000-08:00

There's still a lot good about America too, and it need not be regulated by some" hall monitor minded" bureaucrat.

Video: Hockey crowd sings after 8-year-old's national anthem glitch

A Schizophrenic Administration

2011-01-10T20:01:00.000-08:00

Read these two pieces together and see if you begin to feel as schizophrenic as our economics and energy-deprived current administration.

In Louisiana alone, the job damage is 10 times any "shrimp related impairment."

Customers face huge bill for wind farms that don't work in the cold

By TOM MCGHIE
Last updated at 1:20 AM on 9th January 2011

The failure of Britain’s wind farms to produce electricity in the extreme cold will cost billions of pounds, create an economic crisis and lead to blackouts, leading industrialists have warned.

To cover up the ineffectiveness of wind farms the Government will be forced to build emergency back-up power plants, the cost of which will be paid by industry and consumers.

Jeremy Nicholson, director of the Energy Intensive Users Group, which represents major companies employing hundreds of thousands of workers in the steel, glass, pottery, paper and chemical industries, said the failure of wind power had profound implications.

Read more here.

Obama's Oil War

Posted 01/05/2011 08:46 PM ETEnergy Policy: Oil prices are surging to levels that will soon crimp economic growth. And what's our government doing about it? Just making it worse.

Since President Obama took office in January 2009, the price of oil has rocketed 117% to $90.41 a barrel and gasoline has jumped 67% to $3.07 a gallon. In the 34 industrialized nations, oil imports have surged 34% in the last year to $790 billion. The U.S. alone has seen a $72 billion jump.

All this imperils a fragile recovery from the financial crisis. "Oil prices are entering a dangerous zone for the global economy," says Fatih Birol, chief economist at the International Energy Agency.

Read more here.

It's Time We Read the Owner's Manual

2011-01-06T20:03:00.000-08:00

Der Feuhrer's Coffee

2011-01-04T14:45:00.000-08:00

Commodities, or the withholding thereof, has always been a tool of conquest or war.

Maybe the current federal "governors of the Gulf" should spend a little time on history - like the time the German Panzer division ground to a halt from a lack of diesel fuel delivered in a timely manner.

Delaying legitimate drilling or completion permits to further hurt the oil companies, costs jobs, strengthens our enemies, raises the cost of living beyond what would otherwise occur, hurts our balance of payments, and weakens our national security - otherwise it's probably okay.

Happy 2011

2011-01-01T19:47:00.000-08:00

May you always make the right moves.

May your cup runneth over with love.

May you always find shelter from any storm.

May you remain good looking and looking good!

May you find the perfect diet for your soul.

May you find perfect balance in the company you keep.

May you have as much fun as you can before someone makes you stop.

May the worst thing that happens to you come in slobbery pink and furry tan.

May you manage to make time for siesta.

May all the new folks you meet be interesting and kind.

May your accessories always harmonize with your natural beauty!

Should your mouth be bigger than your stomach, may you have a chewing good time!

May you always know when to walk away and know when to run.

And may your friends always bring you joy!

MAY YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR

FILLED WITH LOVE, HAPPINESS, AND HOPE.

A Discussion of Income Inequality, Between Friends

2010-12-08T19:21:00.000-08:00

From: ford
To: Brian Presley
Sent: Wednesday, October 20, 2010 8:19 PM
Subject: Fwd: Income Inequality: Too Big to Ignore

Brian,

There are many studies showing the increasing concentration of wealth in the hands of the most wealthy and the stagnation of middle class and lower class income over the past three decades despite the vast increase in productivity brought on in large part by the extraordinary progress in IT. What it means is that the most wealthy have reaped the entire benefits of productivity increases. CEOs who thirty or 40 years ago were satisfied with an average of 15 or 20 times the income of the average worker are now getting 400 or 500 times the average salary. So that is why I have to laugh when I hear the dark accusations of "class warfare" attributed to Obama's modest tax adjustment plans (or hopes). The real class warfare that has been running unchecked over the past 30 years or so is the concentration of wealth at the very top, as indicated in this article: the share of the top 1 percent of income earners rising from 8.9% in 1976 to 23.5 % in 2007, with the average hourly wage declining in real terms by 7% over the same period.

But I really have to hand it to the Republican politicos, the Limbaugh/Hannity/Beck talk shows and the Tea party movement. They seem to have convinced maybe even a majority of the electorate that we need to do more to protect that top five or ten percent! Well done, fellows! Meanwhile, the third-worldization of the U.S. into a few haves and many have nots continues apace, apparently with the strong support of many of the have-nots!

At least I won a bet this year that the Tampa Bay Rays would beat out the Yankees in the American League East.

Warm regards, differing political perspectives notwithstanding!

Ford

October 16, 2010

Income Inequality: Too Big to Ignore

By ROBERT H. FRANK

PEOPLE often remember the past with exaggerated fondness. Sometimes, however, important aspects of life really were better in the old days.

During the three decades after World War II, for example, incomes in the United States rose rapidly and at about the same rate — almost 3 percent a year — for people at all income levels. America had an economically vibrant middle class. Roads and bridges were well maintained, and impressive new infrastructure was being built. People were optimistic.

By contrast, during the last three decades the economy has grown much more slowly, and our infrastructure has fallen into grave disrepair. Most troubling, all significant income growth has been concentrated at the top of the scale. The share of total income going to the top 1 percent of earners, which stood at 8.9 percent in 1976, rose to 23.5 percent by 2007, but during the same period, the average inflation-adjusted hourly wage declined by more than 7 percent.

Yet many economists are reluctant to confront rising income inequality directly, saying that whether this trend is good or bad requires a value judgment that is best left to philosophers. But that disclaimer rings hollow. Economics, after all, was founded by moral philosophers, and links between the disciplines remain strong. So economists are well positioned to address this question, and the answer is very clear.

Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, was a professor of moral philosophy at the University of Glasgow. His first book, “A Theory of Moral Sentiments,” was published more than 25 years before his celebrated “Wealth of Nations,” which was itself peppered with trenchant moral analysis.

Some moral philosophers address inequality by invoking principles of justice and fairness. But because they have been unable to forge broad agreement about what these abstract principles mean in practice, they’ve made little progress. The more pragmatic cost-benefit approach favored by Smith has proved more fruitful, for it turns out that rising inequality has created enormous losses and few gains, even for its ostensible beneficiaries.

Recent research on psychological well-being has taught us that beyond a certain point, across-the-board spending increases often do little more than raise the bar for what is considered enough. A C.E.O. may think he needs a 30,000-square-foot mansion, for example, just because each of his peers has one. Although they might all be just as happy in more modest dwellings, few would be willing to downsize on their own.

People do not exist in a social vacuum. Community norms define clear expectations about what people should spend on interview suits and birthday parties. Rising inequality has thus spawned a multitude of “expenditure cascades,” whose first step is increased spending by top earners.

The rich have been spending more simply because they have so much extra money. Their spending shifts the frame of reference that shapes the demands of those just below them, who travel in overlapping social circles. So this second group, too, spends more, which shifts the frame of reference for the group just below it, and so on, all the way down the income ladder. These cascades have made it substantially more expensive for middle-class families to achieve basic financial goals.

In a recent working paper based on census data for the 100 most populous counties in the United States, Adam Seth Levine (a postdoctoral researcher in political science at Vanderbilt University), Oege Dijk (an economics Ph.D. student at the European University Institute) and I found that the counties where income inequality grew fastest also showed the biggest increases in symptoms of financial distress.

For example, even after controlling for other factors, these counties had the largest increases in bankruptcy filings.

Divorce rates are another reliable indicator of financial distress, as marriage counselors report that a high proportion of couples they see are experiencing significant financial problems. The counties with the biggest increases in inequality also reported the largest increases in divorce rates.

Another footprint of financial distress is long commute times, because families who are short on cash often try to make ends meet by moving to where housing is cheaper — in many cases, farther from work. The counties where long commute times had grown the most were again those with the largest increases in inequality.

The middle-class squeeze has also reduced voters’ willingness to support even basic public services. Rich and poor alike endure crumbling roads, weak bridges, an unreliable rail system, and cargo containers that enter our ports without scrutiny. And many Americans live in the shadow of poorly maintained dams that could collapse at any moment.

ECONOMISTS who say we should relegate questions about inequality to philosophers often advocate policies, like tax cuts for the wealthy, that increase inequality substantially. That greater inequality causes real harm is beyond doubt.

But are there offsetting benefits?

There is no persuasive evidence that greater inequality bolsters economic growth or enhances anyone’s well-being. Yes, the rich can now buy bigger mansions and host more expensive parties. But this appears to have made them no happier. And in our winner-take-all economy, one effect of the growing inequality has been to lure our most talented graduates to the largely unproductive chase for financial bonanzas on Wall Street.

In short, the economist’s cost-benefit approach — itself long an important arrow in the moral philosopher’s quiver — has much to say about the effects of rising inequality. We need not reach agreement on all philosophical principles of fairness to recognize that it has imposed considerable harm across the income scale without generating significant offsetting benefits.

No one dares to argue that rising inequality is required in the name of fairness. So maybe we should just agree that it’s a bad thing — and try to do something about it.

Robert H. Frank is an economics professor at the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University.

----------------

From: Brian Presley
To: fordcooper
Sent: Thu, Nov 25, 2010 10:03 am
Subject: Re: Income Inequality: Too Big to Ignore

Happy Thanksgiving from your slow -synapse- conservative friend.

We need to discuss this in some depth. Reported income growth for the top quintile grew at twice the rate of the bottom quintile over the past 20 years.

It is not true .however, that purchasing power stagnated. First REPORTED INCOME went up 25% for blacks during that period, somewhere in the very low thirties for Hispanics, the high thirties for whites, and off the charts for Asian techies.

Secondly transfer payments, NOT REPORTED IN THE INCOME STATISTICS, soared for the bottom 40%, to the point that 47% of tax paying "units" don't even pay any payroll tax, after refunds and income credits. Even a turkey stuffed liberal like you would have to admit that those redistributive transfers more than close the kinds of gaps in the paragraph above.

Now to the people MSNBC and the NYT love to hate (except for their overpaid media brethren) You have drunk the KOOL-AID

Of course the top quintile outran the herd- REPORTED INCOME FOR THE MEGA-HAVES IS MADE UP OF AT LEAST FOUR KINDS OF REVENUE, AND IS CHIEFLY NOT PAYROLL. Their reported income is wages;interest,dividends, and capital gains from invested capital; paydown of debt principal on any leverage in their companies(principal paydown is income to the IRS..)

Without the existence of risk taking investors their would be next to no job growth. Don't tell me they could work for governments-they have no money of their own, unless they are monarchies,or empires who confiscate all the means of production.

Nope, you don't gotta be an" ignorant, racist tea bagger" to get that it takes a rich guy to build the plant, buy the tools and inventory, and hire the poor guy and HAVE LAWS THAT PROTECT HIS RIGHT TO THE FRUITS OF HIS LABOR AND CAPITAL Take that away and you have Haiti or ten others your State Dept experience could quickly conjure up.

How do you feel about Soros,Chavez,and Putin and their paths to richdom?----- Give me a Bill and Melinda Gates any day!!!

It's not just pilgrims for whom we should be thankful.

Sincerely,

Brian

----------------

From: fordcooper
To: Brian Presley
Sent: Thursday, December 02, 2010 5:24 PM
Subject: Re: Income Inequality: Too Big to Ignore

Brian,

Thanks for taking the time to do some research to rebut the position I cited that income distribution in the U.S. is dramatically concentrated in the hands of a few, particularly the top 1%, and that this concentration has been growing over the past 30-40 years from where it was in the 1960s-1970s. You have made some valid points, particularly that the raw data in the U.S. census statistics is PRE-TAX and PRE-TRANSFERS and therefore does not accurately reflect the true ratios of income distribution. I came across a study which can be found at the web site http://www.econlib/Enc/Distributionof Income which doesn't seem to be coming up as a web site so I will send it to you separately. That study essentially confirms the existenceof dramatic and growing income distribution disparity but adds a table (Table 2) that shows for one year (2001) the effect of moving to an adjusted definition that includes the estimated effect of capital gains, taxes, the earned income tax credit, and the monetary value of private and government non money benefits. According to this analysis, "The result is a substantial reduction in inequality, with the ratio between incomes in the top and bottom quintiles falling from $14.01:$1.00 to $10.41:$1.00." So I take your point: government policies can and do in fact affect the distribution of income, in this case in the direction of less unequal balance. The analysis asserts (without showing statistics) that a similar post-tax, post-transfer analysis would also in other years show a similar ameliorating effect on income distribution distortions. The article concludes that point, however, by observing that "Even under the adjusted definition, though, the trend toward increasing inequality in the 1980s and 1990s remains, but at a slower pace." I would like to see a study that uses the post-tax, post-transfer concept over the entire period: it would undoubtedly prove the point that, under whatever consistent measurement is used, income concentration in the U.S. has been growing steadily over the past 30-40 years and that government taxes and transfers can and have to some degree ameliorated that process. I would also like to see a comparison not just of deciles or quintiles but of the top 1-5% income earners compared to everyone else. Why should we 95-99% be at an increasing disadvantage compared to the top 1-5%, most of whom apparently depend on the source of their "gains" pay a lesser rate than the middle class?

Now, why is such a trend unhealthy, not just for those on the short end of the stick, but for the nation? This is where political and philosophical differences come into play and where, as you and I seem to agree, honest men can disagree. This is precisely the debate--fruitless to be sure: should the wealthiest among us return to the 39% tax rate on all earned income over $250,000, adding $700 billion to our deficit? Should unemployment be extended for the 2 million who can't find work after 99 weeks at a $19 billion cost to the deficit? What is fair? What works economically? There is strong pressure to undo the ameliorating programs by which government has attempted to redress however marginally the disparities. I have seen how it works in Northern Europe where much highter tax rates prevail but where there are incomparably better income balances, public education, transportation and public services. (They of course are currently having to deal with scaling back because of their own demographics and the flat world). I think a good common position for both the U.S. and Europe should be that neither of us is willing to see our workers reduced to the lease common denominator of Chinese or Burmese coolies through the mechanism of some New World Trade Order. But that seems to be where we are headed.

Brian, I know that you work (and work hard) for a living and don't have time to deal with every liberal in the IYC (on the other hand we are very few)! But thanks for the exchange. I will be separate email send you a couple of other articles or web sites for your information.

Warm regards,
Ford

Thank God for the Veterans

2010-11-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

I know Veterans' Day has passed again this year, but if we can have national blah-blah month, and 12 days of Christmas, then we can spend more than 24 hours on respectful remembrance of the men and women who make the other celebrations possible.

It is the

VETERAN,

not the preacher,

who has given us freedom of religion.

It is

the VETERAN,

not the reporter,

who has given us freedom of the press.

It is

the VETERAN,

not the poet,

who has given us freedom of speech.

It is

the VETERAN,

not the campus organizer,

who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is

the VETERAN,

not the lawyer,

who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is

the VETERAN,

not the politician,

Who has given us the right to vote.

IN GOD WE TRUST & BELIEVE

2010-11-11T15:58:00.000-08:00

Even if not totally correct, it's totally right!!!

Cemetery Watchman .....

I just wanted to get the day over with and go down to Smokey's. Sneaking a look at my watch, I saw the time, 1655. Five minutes to go before the cemetery gates are closed for the day. Full dress was hot in the August sun. Oklahoma summertime was as bad as ever--the heat and humidity at the same level--both too high.

I saw the car pull into the drive, '69 or '70 model Cadillac Deville, looked factory-new. It pulled into the parking lot at a snail's pace.. An old woman got out so slow I thought she was paralyzed; she had a cane and a sheaf of flowers--about four or five bunches as best I could tell.

I couldn't help myself. The thought came unwanted, and left a slightly bitter taste: 'She's going to spend an hour, and for this old soldier, my hip hurts like hell and I'm ready to get out of here right now!' But for this day, my duty was to assist anyone coming in.

Kevin would lock the 'In' gate and if I could hurry the old biddy along, we might make it to Smokey's in time.

I broke post attention. My hip made gritty noises when I took the first step and the pain went up a notch. I must have made a real military sight: middle-aged man with a small pot gut and half a limp, in marine full-dress uniform, which had lost its razor crease about thirty minutes after I began the watch at the cemetery.

I stopped in front of her, halfway up the walk. She looked up at me with an old woman's squint.

'Ma'am,may I assist you in any way?'

She took long enough to answer.

'Yes, son. Can you carry these flowers? I seem to be moving a tad slow these days.'

'My pleasure, ma'am.' Well, it wasn't too much of a lie.

She looked again. 'Marine, where were you stationed?'

' Vietnam, ma'am.. Ground-pounder. '69 to '71.'

She looked at me closer. 'Wounded in action, I see. Well done, Marine. I'll be as quick as I can.'

I lied a little bigger: 'No hurry, ma'am.'

She smiled and winked at me. 'Son, I'm 85-years-old and I can tell a lie from a long way off.. Let's get this done. Might be the last time I can do this. My name's Joanne Wieserman, and I've a few Marines I'd like to see one more time.'

'Yes, ma 'am. At your service.'

She headed for the World War I section, stopping at a stone. She picked one of the flowers out of my arm and laid it on top of the stone. She murmured something I couldn't quite make out.. The name on the marble was Donald S. Davidson, USMC: France 1918.

She turned away and made a straight line for the World War II section, stopping at one stone. I saw a tear slowly tracking its way down her cheek. She put a bunch on a stone; the name was Stephen X.Davidson, USMC, 1943.

She went up the row a ways and laid another bunch on a stone, Stanley J. Wieserman, USMC, 1944..

She paused for a second. 'Two more, son, and we'll be done'

I almost didn't say anything, but, 'Yes, ma'am. Take your time.'

She looked confused.. 'Where's the Vietnam section, son? I seem to have lost my way.'

I pointed with my chin. 'That way, ma'am.'

'Oh!' she chuckled quietly. 'Son, me and old age ain't too friendly.'

She headed down the walk I'd pointed at. She stopped at a couple of stones before she found the ones she wanted. She placed a bunch onLarry Wieserman, USMC, 1968, and the last on Darrel Wieserman, USMC, 1970. She stood there and murmured a few words I still couldn't make out.

'OK, son, I'm finished. Get me back to my car and you can go home.'

Yes, ma'am. If I may ask, were those your kinfolk?'

She paused. 'Yes, Donald Davidsonwas my father, Stephen was my uncle, Stanley was my husband,Larry and Darrel were our sons. All killed in action, all marines.'

She stopped. Whether she had finished, or couldn't finish, I don't know. She made her way to her car, slowly and painfully.

I waited for a polite distance to come between us and then double-timed it over to Kevin, waiting by the car.

'Get to the 'Out' gate quick.. I have something I've got to do.'

Kevin started to say something, but saw the look I gave him. He broke the rules to get us there down the service road. We beat her. She hadn't made it around the rotunda yet.

'Kevin, stand at attention next to the gatepost. Follow my lead.' I humped it across the drive to the other post.

When the Cadillac came puttering around from the hedges and began the short straight traverse to the gate, I called in my best gunny's voice: 'TehenHut! Present Haaaarms!'

I have to hand it to Kevin; he never blinked an eye--full dress attention and a salute that would make his DI proud.

She drove through that gate with two old worn-out soldiers giving her a send-off she deserved, for service rendered to her country, and for knowing duty, honor and sacrifice.

I am not sure, but I think I saw a salute returned from that Cadillac.

Instead of 'The End,' just think of 'Taps.'

As a final thought on my part, let me share a favorite prayer: 'Lord, keep our servicemen and women safe, whether they serve at home or overseas. Hold them in your loving hands and protect them as they protect us.'

Let's all keep those currently serving and those who have gone before in our thoughts. They are the reason for the many freedoms we enjoy.

Shovel Ready Enough Now?

2010-10-14T09:44:00.000-07:00

Apparently people dying on bridges, that was once such a priority, is less so compared to" stimulus" $2,000,000 let's pretend jobs. What was I thinking-real jobs with long lasting,society serving construction. Must not have been high enough in the administrations HOPEY/CHANGEY/DOPEY/SLEEPY agenda.

Read paragraphs from the past, first written for The Charlotte Sun on Aug, 2007.

New taxes with no bridges is the likely outcome of the disingenuous attempt to raise highway taxes in the aftermath of the Minnesota bridge disaster. Let’s establish at the outset that it was a real tragedy where real people lost real lives and the bridge was not okay.

The problem is that Congress is not okay either. It is equally rotted. It is equally degraded. It is equally unreliable. It does not matter whether they are blue or red. It seems as if many in Congress have succumbed to the “you scratch my vote; I’ll scratch yours” way of life.

Many, many bridges in America need replacing. In Lee County, the drawbridge on Highway 31 was pointed out as being substandard. The amounts bandied about to correct the situation nationally, some $250 Billion over twenty years, sounds insurmountable to someone who makes $400 a week. In point of fact, it could easily be handled as a governmental expenditure over twenty years in the multi trillion dollar economy we enjoy. It could be handled even faster with bonding out the projects, as was done during the Eisenhower administration when the interstate highway system got its first big boost.

The other thing they fail to tell you is that all that construction, all the materials, and all that labor is taxable activity, and the very building of the roads will create additional tax revenues. Economic activity creates tax revenues. Whether you like Bush or not, the tax revenue growth from our rapidly expanding economy has done a yeoman’s job of knocking down the deficit. If you don’t want to talk about it, fine. It you want to concentrate on all the negatives and why America is a terrible place, fine. But, the fact is any kind of economic activity generates taxes. When you slow that activity down, whether it is through rules, restraints, etc. there are less taxes.

The problem with the trust is that they are stealing so much money from the highway trust fund now for projects that are not highway or bridge infrastructure, or are outright ridiculous earmarks, that there is not enough money to keep up with our deteriorating infrastructure, and that is all you will hear about.

If you could trust these people to walk the talk on anything long term, there would be enough money. In a time when our economy is less robust and energy prices are up (largely because of unrealistic legislative constraints). I don’t think we need another five cent tax for roads, because it will not go to the bridges, and it will not go to the roads. A substantial portion of the current money is spent on mass transit for buses and subsidies, job programs and a myriad of other things that are not permanent in nature and are not what the tax is meant to pay for. Why in the world would we trust them to handle the next five cents any better.

No, the problem with the roads is that, even in their deteriorated condition, they are substantially more reliable than the people who vote to fund them. I will tell you the kind of five cents we should send to Congress; does anyone have a plug nickel?

'Twas the Night Before Elections

2010-09-23T09:42:00.000-07:00

'Twas the night before elections

And all through the town

Tempers were flaring

Emotions all up and down!

I, in my bathrobe

With a cat in my lap

Had cut off the TV

Tired of political cr__.

When all of a sudden

There arose such a noise

I peered out of my window

Saw Obama and his boys

They had come for my wallet

They wanted my pay

To give to the others

Who had not worked a day!

He snatched up my money

And quick as a wink

Jumped back on his bandwagon

As I gagged from the stink

He then rallied his henchmen

Who were pulling his cart

I could tell they were out

To tear my country apart!

' On Fannie, on Freddie,

On Biden and Ayers!

On Acorn, On Pelosi'

He screamed at the pairs!

They took off for his cause

And as he flew out of sight

I heard him laugh at the nation

Who wouldn't stand up and fight!

So I leave you to think

On this one final note-

IF YOU DONT WANT SOCIALISM

GET OUT AND VOTE!!!!

Amen

CHANGE

2010-08-21T09:40:00.000-07:00

Dr. Bob's "2 Bits" for the week

2010-08-02T09:28:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Dr. Bob for this great piece.

My 2 Bits for the week:

1) A writer for the Toronto Star has encouraged her countrymen/women to get real in dealing with the many hazards related to the so-called "Canada Goose." Evidently the birds are hazards to water quality, residential area health, aviation safety, and I'm not certain what else--and as their numbers grow so do the threats they pose. Air safety issues aside, the health risks associated with the geese are linked primarily to their excrement, to put it gently. The Toronto writer asserts that "a single adult goose defecates once very seven minutes and can unload more than 2 pounds of poop in a single day." You can do the math to realize the problem when the geese gather in a gaggle. She urges us to stop using the name "Canada Goose" and to switch back to an earlier tag, "cackling goose," so that Canadians will be less hesitant to kill or otherwise control the numbers of what many think is their official national bird (it isn't). This might bring Canadian efforts at goose control more on a par with those of other territories which lengthened the hunting season, increased the bag limit, trained dogs to chase the geese, or even used portable gas chambers to thin the numbers in parks (I don't much care for that last method).

A recent piece on NPR described one woman's environmental and financial success in dealing with overpopulation of cackling geese in this country. Wrapped in tree-hugging verbiage, the woman hires out to stalk the geese to discover their nests when they are most likely to be filled with goose eggs. Then, using a completely environmentally safe, special, and expensive (to her clients) oil, she carefully lifts each egg out of the nest, gently coats its surface with her oil, and replaces each of the clutch to its place in the parent nest. The result is that the developing gosling suffocates inside the egg shell. The professional's voice is soft and reassuring, but what she is doing is murdering the unborn geese. If she were an honest hunter/gatherer she would collect the eggs from the nests and give them to somebody to eat--thereby being just as effective in population control but less wasteful of the eggs.

Could this basic need to respond to the problems of nuisance geese inspire a new area of commerce in these hard times with so many unemployed and underemployed people casting about for ways to survive, even prosper? The Romans, we are told, used geese as burglar alarms. We know that they will strip an area bare of grass and other vegetation--and now we are informed of their prodigious poop production. So, is there a way to establish a blending of urban security concerns, landscaping chores, and natural recycling to nourish the environment?

I think you should experiment with a small flock of cackling geese (8 or 10 as a start) and begin to market them as providing a variety of useful services. On delivery to the consumer's property and on a one fee covers all basis the geese immediately will establish a natural burglar/intruder alarm and enforcement system that requires no electronic connection to the local police. Simultaneously the same birds will remove every trace of weeds in the garden and lawn (up to the client to protect the vegetation that actually is desirable and/or was planted on purpose). And in a very short time (average of 7 minutes, I guess) the birds will begin to fertilize the lawn and garden with a volume of quality guano that not only is regular (no pun intended) but also voluminous.

And every bit of this industriousness is totally "green" (this pun is intended). Once your contract with the property owner has been satisfied you are able to retrieve your geese--all of them well-fed, healthy, happy and ready for the next location. You can avoid negative and unintended consequences of increased threats to air safety (produced by growing populations of geese), for example, using my Grandmother's method of clipping the wing feathers of her parakeet to deter its tendency to fly high and wide.

No, really, this is worth your consideration. It is the American way and will put you directly in league with our Founding Fathers and their entrepreneurial talents. How do you think they amassed those "personal fortunes" they risked in signing the Declaration of Independence?

2) I am certain of my memories of childhood back-to-school preparations that included buying new corduroy pants and wool sweaters, but these days many schools seem to be gearing up for mid-August starts. The academic atmosphere was enhanced last week by an ad I read that offers a course entitled "The Medieval World." Available in DVD for $99.95 and in Audio CD for only $69.95, the course is in thirty-six 30-minute lectures and reminds me of my undergraduate days in the listed scope of the presentations: "Daily Life in a Noble Household," "Daily Life in a Medieval Village," "Medieval City Life," "Music and Entertainment," "Art and Artisans," "Science and Technology," and the rest of the list. I think it is a fascinating subject area, the price is reasonable, and there are no exams! The sponsoring company, The Teaching Company, has any number of such "courses" in every academic discipline I have heard of at good prices and many of them seeming to be worth my attention.

The same operation includes a course, "The English Novel," that offers 24 lectures by DVD or CD at a price even more of a bargain than the package that first caught my eye. I scanned through a list in chemistry, math, sociology, psychology, philosophy, music, history and on and on.

But in looking through the online catalog I was reminded of the other opportunities out there if I want to spend time with continuing education for personal enrichment. Almost every higher education institution offers a full schedule of regular and online courses, some of them open to seniors at a modest fee (or free). Most colleges have an arm for community education as well--non-credit offerings mostly. And with computer access, one can graze through a sweeping meadow of free lectures--even entire courses--offered by Stanford, Berkeley, MIT, Yale, and many others. Think about Yale's "English 310, Modern Poetry." Here Yale's Professor Langston Hammer moves from Frost to Yeats (three lectures) to Eliot and so on. It seems it would be worth the time to download just those lectures that are of special interest or are on a favorite poet--if nothing else. With a computer in front of you there is no other cost for the experience. Would you miss the interaction of the classroom atmosphere and population? OK, bring your book club or lunch group together to fill those voids as all of you take and compare notes on the lectures---all free except for the fruit salad, muffins and tea somebody will provide.

Regardless of your own academic major(s), in spite of your career's focus, going beyond your usual curiosity about subjects near and far, these sources and others, especially those online, can bring you more information and stimulation than you can handle. It's convenient and available no matter where you are located. It is almost limitless in topic and approach. It is open entirely to whatever happens to be your schedule at work, with errands, with family, with travel. It is a valuable use of available time and effort. It comes at a very reasonable price----very often it is free. Hmm, I might have a hard time finding good reasons not to take advantage.

"I Am America" Krista Branch

2010-07-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

FYI: Krista Branch was also a contestant on American Idol season 7.

The Art of the Possible

2010-07-28T08:26:00.000-07:00

My mother is 96 today, and like most mothers, dearly loved and fiercely protected her two spastic boys with the sole goal of having them survive childhood, without all the adults having a nervous breakdown in the process.

We were typical boys who never passed a puddle, never noticed the dirt, and generally tried more than we should for our age and experience.

Education was always a big deal at our house. “There were only three grades – A, B, & F.” We were required to show our report card every six weeks to every relative and neighbor we had. The subtlety of that potential gauntlet was enough to keep you doing your homework without other additional coercion. No grade school student could stand the abuse of thirty people telling you how disappointed they were that you made a bad grade.

The education was invaluable, but as I look back at a time when it’s mother who needs the nurture and protection, and my brother and I who are now the providers, you wonder about the things that really made a difference. In our parent’s case, it was guiding with the art of the possible.

Most children, indeed most adults, encounter far more “You can’t do that, you’re not old enough, you don’t have the skills to be successful at that, you’re not good enough for that,” and even though I was undoubtedly the worst left fielder to ever go out for little league baseball, it did not keep my parents from getting me a left-handed fielder’s glove the night before my disastrous debut in little league. My career that lasted somewhere between 11 and 12am the first morning, involved a recognition that I had little talent in that area, but the magic was that I discovered it myself after trying and like most humans, gravitated toward things that I could do well and did know about. They could have easily said that I had the coordination of a three toed sloth and the speed of a Galapagos tortoise, but they didn’t. They let me find out that baseball was not my bag, or bat, or ball.

They could have told me that, as a 12 year old, I had no business going into the junk business. It’s nasty, dirty, you can cut yourself, get infections, you’re not old enough to drive, what are you going to put all the stuff, but they didn’t. I developed an entire little company that collected junk, and I made a lot of money doing it (relatively, it was the 50’s you know.)

They gave us ground rules. My dad would drive the material to the junk yard, but he said if it is a business, you have to run it like a business. I had to pay my uncle $1 to use his truck from the grocery store and fill up the gas at $.24/gallon. I had to pay my brother $1 a day, because my father knew how much money I was making, and since he did not get paid, it was fair to pay my brother more.

They could have said you can’t do that, but they didn’t. I was good at it, and it created the money that allowed me to buy my first investments, which potentially changed my path forever.

They let us explore and try and fail and succeed, and it may be that at 96, one of her best lessons is or was anything is possible if you want it badly enough, and you pay the dues.

A (Late) Update on the Gulf - Interesting Perspective

2010-07-07T07:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Jodi for forwarding this interesting info.

I know many of you are curious as to what is going on in the Gulf, as I am sure you are aware the politicians and press are not well informed and have no interest in being well informed. Below is a sketch of the two relief wells which are being drilled as fast as they can to "kill" the blowout well - Macondo #1. It is a good status of the two wells, one of which is closing in on the blowout. Also, let me share some statistics and personal thoughts which can put this well into perspective.

a. The U.S. has more than 525,000 producing oil wells in the country. With about 5 million barrels per day produced in the U.S., this means that the average well in the U.S. produces less than 10 barrels per day and included in that average are prolific wells in Alaska and the Gulf which are capable of producing much more. I would bet the median oil rate of a U.S. well is less than 3 barrels per day. More than 31% of the oil wells in the U.S. according to the DOE produce less than one barrel per day!

b. With the Macondo well belching an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 barrels per day means the Macondo well is capable of flowing more than 4,000 to 5,000 average wells in the U.S! Is there no surprise that fields like this one are the prize being sought after by the industry which cannot drill in shallow waters or much of anywhere in the U.S. anymore? This one well produces about 1% of the entire U.S. production rate and is most likely the most productive well in the country! And probably one of the most productive wells in the world. It is too bad that this field will most likely never be produced following shutting and abandoning the Macondo #1 blowout.

c. The only way the Macondo well can be stopped is by intersecting the well with the relief wells being drilled now. If the "junk shot" or "top kill" method would have stopped the flow or the blowout preventer finally closed, the pressured oil would have just ruptured the shallow geological formations and oil would have been coming up in geysers all over the place for miles and then the only way to stop the flow would have been to allow the reservoir to deplete. And this could have been years! Thus, it is a "good" thing that the "top kill" failed.

d. This next statistic is not to bash our president; but to put things into perspective: When Air Force One is in the air, it consumes jet fuel (which incidentally comes from the Gulf of Mexico) at the rate of 5 gallons per mile as indicated in data released by the govt. And anywhere the pres goes, there are at least two jets of equal size carrying his cars, golf carts, secret service, guests, press, etc. If you make the calculations, this means that when the president takes a junket in Air Force One, he and his entourage are consuming the entire oil production of approximate 450 average oil wells in the U.S.!

e. Tony Hayward, the beaten down CEO of BP, is a friend of mine who I worked with on our project in Colombia in 1994-1997. He was the Exploration Manager for BP's Bogota office. He has a phD in geoscience with highest honors and has more 28 years experience in technical and management positions with BP, which is a heck of a lot more applicable to his job than community organizing. It would be impossible for him to know the level of detail of what happened on that rig; and Rep. Waxman's questioning just revealed the U.S. government's requirement to place personal blame and focus on something other than the administrations failings on a number of fronts. I contend that the pollution in the Gulf is horrific; but the Gulf will recover. However, the government's overreach into the oil industry as a result of the incident will do more harm to the country in the long run. Waxman et. al. will deal more harm to the country which will never be cleaned up. My advice to Tony Hayward when he met with the congressional panel, and his other public appearances, would have been to have a good speech writer and use a teleprompter. That way he could have kept his foot out of his mouth and look more like a competent chief executive.

f. The blowout was clearly caused by human error and an unintentional accident and combination of unforeseen failures of protective devises which all have levels of redundancy. It is very analogous to the loss of the space shuttle Challenger which was destroyed because of seal failure of the solid fuel rocket booster. When that happened, in spite of engineer in Morton Thiokol (manufacturer of the solid fuel booster) pleading to stop the launch following freezing weather at the launch pad; I did not see the head of NASA butchered in front of Congress and asked to jump on a sword. BP has assured everybody that all legitimate claims will be honored; but I heard today that a homeowner was asking reimbursement for loss of home value as surely his failure to sell his home is the fault of BP. Am sure the hookers in New Orleans will charge BP for the loss of income from the rig workers who will be unemployed for six months. How much of the $20 billion will go to ACORN? Will be interesting to follow this money trail........

Should a moratorium on drilling be considered?

2010-06-24T07:13:00.000-07:00

Devastation to the Oil Industry

2010-06-03T15:16:00.000-07:00

One big mistake by BP creating another...

LOUISIANA MID-CONTINENT

OIL AND GAS ASSOCIATION

730 NORTH BOULEVARD, BATON ROUGE, LA 70802

TELEPHONE (225) 387-3205 FAX (225) 344-5502

E-MAIL CHRIS.JOHN@lmoga.com

Impacts of

President Obama’s Order Halting Work on 33 Exploratory Wells

in the Deepwater Gulf of Mexico

The Presidential Order does not affect the 4,515 shallow-water wells, and it does not affect 591 producing deepwater Gulf wells.

Roughly 33% of nation’s domestically produced oil comes from the Gulf of Mexico, and 10% of the nation’s natural gas.

80% of the Gulf’s oil, and 45% of its natural gas comes from operations in more than 1000 feet of water – the deepwater (2009 data).

Suspension of operations means roughly 33 floating drilling rigs – typically leased for hundreds of thousands of dollars per day – will be idled for six months or longer.

$250,000 to $500,000 per day, per rig – results in roughly $8,250,000 to $16,500,000 per day in costs for idle rigs;

Secondary impacts include:

Supply boats – 2 boats per rig with day rates of $15,000/day per boat - $30,000/day for 33 rigs – nearly $1 million/day

Impacts to other supplies and related support services (i.e., welders, divers, caterers, transportation, etc.)

Jobs –

Each drilling platform averages 90 to 140 employees at any one time (2 shifts per day), and 180 to 280 for 2 2-week shifts

Each E&P job supports 4 other positions

Therefore, 800 to 1400 jobs per idle rig platform are at risk

Wages for those jobs average $1,804/weekly; potential for lost wages is huge, over $5 to $10 million for 1 month – per platform.

Wages lost could be over $165 to $330 million/month for all 33 platforms

Secondary impacts: Many offshore workers live in Louisiana. The state is going to see a decrease in income taxes and sales taxes that would normally be paid by those employees. (The state does not collect a sales tax on oilfield supplies and equipment used offshore.)

Companies Impacted:

Oil Companies Impacted -

Shell has seven (7) exploratory wells that will be impacted

Others include:

Chevron (4)

Anadarko (3)

Marathon (2)

Noble Energy (2)

Eni US Operating Co. (2)

ATP Oil & Gas (2)

Statoil (2)

ExxonMobil (1)

Petrobras America (1)

BHP (1)

BP (1)

Kerr McGee (1)

Murphy (1)

LLOG (1)

Newfield (1)

Hess (1)

The 33 gulf wells where operations are suspended were the ones inspected immediately after the Deepwater Horizon blowout (per Interior Secretary Ken Salazar); in those inspections, “only minor problems were found on a couple of rigs”. Salazar believes “additional safety measures can be taken including dealing with cementing and casing of wells and significant enhancements and redundancies of blowout prevention mechanisms. Although these rigs passed the inspections, we will look at standards that

are in place.”

Longer term impacts include -

Idle drilling rigs in the Gulf could mean that they will be contracted overseas for work in other locations, and if/when the halt is lifted, rigs will not be available for completing the work in the Gulf.

Loss of tolls on LA Highway 1 resulting from loss of traffic related to deepwater operations; tolls go directly to retiring the bond debt for construction of LA Highway 1 improvements, and if those tolls are lost, the

state of Louisiana – as the other responsible party on the bonds - will have to pay to retire that debt, meaning loss of funding for some other programs in the state’s budget.

A 6-month halt in new drilling would defer 80,000 barrels/day, or 4% of 2011 deepwater Gulf of Mexico production. (Wood MacKenzie)

Higher drilling costs might jeopardize exploration in frontier areas. More immediately, estimates are that seven current discoveries could be rendered sub-economic, putting U.S. $7.6 billion in future government revenues at risk. Proposals to increase the cap on oil companies’ liability for oil spill damages to U.S. $10 billion could exclude U.S. independents from offshore Gulf of Mexico activities. (Wood MacKenzie)

Since these wells are not yet producing, there is no decrease in the available oil supply. However, it could lead to a decrease in the availability of domestic oil, and it is hard to tell how commodity speculators are going to respond over the next six months; there is the possibility for driving oil prices to levels well over $100 per barrel.

Prepared May 28, 2010, based on most recent data available; will be updated as needed.

Other Voices: Real Truth

2010-06-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

"Humanity is not yet ready for real truth or real harmony."

~Will Rogers

What have we learned in 2,064 years?

2010-04-30T08:56:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Rich for passing this along.

"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled,
public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be
tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should
be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to
work, instead of living on public assistance."

- Cicero - 55 BC

So, evidently nothing.

Charlotte Community Foundation Announcement in Harbor Style!

2010-04-28T08:51:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Harbor Style magazine for the kudos on pg. 16 of their May issue!

(Click on the image below to zoom in).

A danger in search for higher yields

2010-04-13T13:30:00.000-07:00

A danger in search for higher yields

By Michael Pollick

Published: Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 1:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Monday, April 12, 2010 at 11:22 p.m.

In an era of money market funds yielding next to nothing, Southwest Florida's growing crowd of income-seeking retirees may be setting themselves up for a fall by committing their money to longer-term bonds or certificates of deposit in order to maximize their yield.

In 1980, less than a year after Susan Moseley began working as a stock analyst, she saw first-hand what a spike in interest rates can do to a bond portfolio.

Buying a newly issued 10-year U.S. Treasury note in the fall of 1979 would have felt smart at the time, with its annual yield of 9.33 percent. But by the end of 1980, that bond would have been a disaster -- at least on paper -- because yields on new bonds ended that year at 12.84 percent. Thirty-year bonds followed a similar pattern.

Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. If investors begin demanding a higher rate of return on newly issued bonds, the prices on existing ones almost automatically decline to match the new expected yields.

"If you bought newly issued 30-year Treasuries at the beginning of that year and sold them at the end, you would have lost 25 percent of your principal," said Moseley, whose Moseley Investment Management Inc. in Bradenton handles millions of dollars of other people's money. "I never forgot that."

In the last two weeks, the Federal Reserve made it clear it would stop soaking up mortgage-backed securities. Even though the nation's central bank still has more than $1 trillion worth, the announcement sent 10-year Treasuries and 30-year mortgages, which are roughly connected, into a mild tizzy.

The rate on 10-year Treasury notes scurried north of 4 percent for the first time since last summer, before settling back down to 3.89 percent. Similarly, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages shot up from 5 percent to 5.3 percent in days, before finding equilibrium at 5.2 percent.

Brian Presley, a Punta Gorda-based financial adviser, sees risks.

"All it would take to move rates off what is essentially the low point of the last 100 years is some change in demand for money, and a fear that if we don't do the deal today, it will cost more tomorrow," Presley said. "If that kicks in, say, in six months, there will still be excess money but its rent will go up disproportionately to the change because of their fear of what is next."

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Flap flies in Haiti over U.S. flag absence - USA Today

2010-04-13T08:38:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Rich for passing this along, and to Garrett for the follow-up.

Flap flies in Haiti over U.S. flag absence

By Alan Gomez and Oren Dorell - USA Today
Posted : Monday Mar 15, 2010 9:22:17 EDT

The many nations helping Haiti recover from the devastating earthquake that struck there have set up their own military compounds and fly their flags at the entrances.

France's tricolor, Britain's Union Jack and even Croatia's coat of arms flap in the breeze.

But the country whose contributions dwarf the rest of the world's — the United States — has no flag at its main installation near the Port-au-Prince airport.

The lack of the Stars and Stripes does not sit well with some veterans and servicemembers who say the U.S. government should be proud to fly the flag in Haiti, given the amount of money and manpower the U.S. is donating to help the country recover from the Jan. 12 quake.

The Obama administration says flying the flag could give Haiti the wrong idea.

"We are not here as an occupation force, but as an international partner committed to supporting the government of Haiti on the road to recovery," the U.S. government's Haiti Joint Information Center said in response to a query about the flag.

The absence of the American flag bothers former Navy man Arthur Herriford, national president of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association.

"It's very improper," Herriford said. "Our military people always engage and function under the American colors — always have and always will."

The U.S. flag has flown in Haiti under circumstances that were not always friendly.

In 1915, Marines invaded Haiti to restore stability after several coups. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan pressured dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier to renounce his rule and leave. In 1994, President Bill Clinton sent troops to prop up President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. In 2004, President George W. Bush's administration eased Aristide out of office amid a brutal civil war.

France, the former colonizer of the country, has its flag up at its base in Port-au-Prince. The Haiti flag is based on the French flag, turned on its side with the white stripped out.

Army Col. Billy Buckner, spokesman for Joint Task Force-Haiti, a group representing various Obama administration agency heads, said the decision not to fly the American flag was made out of respect as guests of the government of Haiti.

"It is no mystery that U.S. forces are on the ground, and we proudly wear an American flag on our right sleeve," he said.

U.S. Air Force air operations specialists and FAA air-traffic controllers manage air traffic at Haiti's main airport, where millions of dollars in aid from the United States has been arriving for weeks. More than 12,000 U.S. military personnel support relief operations.

"Our commanders are smart and intuitively understand their mission here in Haiti, and clearly the sensitivities that come with supporting the mission," Buckner said.A U.S. flag went up at a temporary consular station set up in the first few days on the airport tarmac, according to Charles Luoma-Overstreet, a State Department spokesman in Haiti.

"Apparently, the prime minister (Jean-Max Bellerive) saw this" and thought it appeared as if the United States were taking over the airport, Luoma-Overstreet said.

He said Bellerive said something to U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Merten, who agreed that flying the flag wasn't a good idea and told the consular officials to take it down.

The decision is not unprecedented, noted Joe Davis, spokesman for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, who says he is not bothered by the flag's absence.

During the Gulf War in 1991, U.S. forces took control of the main airport in Kuwait and briefly flew the American flag over their installation, Davis said, but higher-ups ordered it taken down to avoid an impression that U.S. forces were conquerors.

The missing American colors at Port-au-Prince airport were no problem to Don Hollenbaugh, a former Army Delta Force operator who received the Distinguished Service Cross for actions in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004.

"Everybody in the world knows the U.S. is there," Hollenbaugh said. "So by not flying the flag, we're not changing anyone's mind about anything."

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"I like that France, the former colonizer of Haiti, and creditor to Haiti's eternal detriment, shows their colors, but we don't. Fantastic." -Garrett, 'Pinions reader