Update from the
Heartland
No.690
2.3.15 – 8.3.15
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
The follow-up news items:
-- Former Director of Central Intelligence and Army General David
Petraeus [569,
570] signed court documents pleading
guilty to one count of removal and retention of classified material in exchange
for a plea deal that gives him probation and a fine. The final, closed agreement has not been made public, as
yet.
--The Justice Department investigation and report on the
Ferguson (Missouri) Police Department and the conduct of Officer Darren Wilson
in the death of Michael Brown [661] determined
Officer Wilson did not violate the law.
However, the report apparently, virtually indicts the Ferguson Police
Department for racially-biased conduct in its operations.
-- President Obama signed into law the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations
Act, 2015 [PL 114-xxx; H.R.240;
House: 257-167- 0-9(2); Senate 68-31-0-1(0); 129 Stat. xxxx; 4.March.2015] to fund the department for the rest of
the fiscal year, after the drama of congressional hostage efforts [689] in protest of the President’s
executive action regarding immigration reform [675].
Albert Einstein published his General
Theory of Relativity on 25.November.1915.
The first “proof” of Einstein’s theory came four years later with a
solar eclipse, gravitational lensing measurement. Last November, Professor Doctor Patrick L. Kelly of the
University of California, Berkley, discovered by happenstance in a Hubble image
the most dramatic example of Einstein’s gravitational lensing, yet seen. The image shows SuperNova Refsdal at
9.3B LY, as four simultaneous reflections by galaxy MACS J1149.6+2223 at 5.0B
LY. These are the little tidbits
of science that absolutely enthrall me.
For those so inclined:
The image:
The article:
http://www.sci-news.com/astronomy/science-sn-refsdal-hubble-four-magnified-images-same-supernova-02569.html
“SN Refsdal: Hubble Spots Four Magnified Images of Same Supernova”
“SN Refsdal: Hubble Spots Four Magnified Images of Same Supernova”
by Sci-News.com
Published: Mar 6, 2015
If we need more examples of governmental
over-reach, I will offer to small local example.
“Kansas bill would restrict strip-club hours, end alcohol sales”
by Bryan Lowry
Wichita
Eagle
Published: 02/17/2015 11:16 AM; updated: 02/17/2015 5:42 PM
More than a few Kansas legislators are apparently offended
by entertainment establishments that feature nudity, partial nudity or sexually
oriented facilities. Some of the
new legislators introduced Kansas Senate Bill 147 – Community Defense Act. The introduction of the bill states, “The
purpose of the community defense act is to regulate sexually oriented
businesses in order to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the
citizens of Kansas, and to establish reasonable and uniform regulations to
prevent the deleterious secondary effects of sexually oriented businesses
within the state. The provisions of this act have neither the purpose nor
effect of imposing a limitation or restriction on the content or reasonable access
to any communicative materials, including sexually oriented materials.” Sounds very noble and righteous,
doesn’t it. As Lowry reported “the
Kansas Republican Party’s platform opposes pornography in all forms.” Despite the noble purpose as stated by
SB 147, this bill has absolutely nothing to do with “the health, safety and
general welfare of the citizens of Kansas.” The intended and practical purpose of this bill is to squeeze
sexually oriented businesses sufficiently to put them out of business in the state. Now, to be clear, the bill defines a “sexually
oriented business” as “an adult arcade, an adult bookstore or adult video
store, an adult cabaret, an adult motion picture theater, a semi-nude model
studio, a sexual device shop or a sexual encounter center.” Please note the word “adult” in most of
the businesses identified in the definition. To be blunt, SB 147 is classic moral projection. These legislators are intent upon
imposition of their moral objection / offense to strip clubs and other sexually
oriented businesses. While these
misguided legislators have the right to introduce such moral projection bills,
we must hope wiser minds will kill this bill in committee. Bills like SB 147 are wrong in so many
ways and represent the basis for my broad resistance to the moral
projectionists who are bent upon imposing their moral values on all citizens. Some day, we will grow up and
acknowledge that freedom is freedom for all, not just those who weald power in
this Grand Republic.
News from the economic front:
-- The Reserve Bank of India reduced its main repurchase
rate from 7.75% to 7.5%, surprising markets for the second time this year. The action by the central bank of India
joins a worldwide trend of monetary easing that is driving global interest
rates to multiyear lows.
-- The Federal Reserve's “beige book” report illuminated the
broad expansion of the U.S. economy at the start of the year amid good general
hiring and rising consumer spending, though bad weather in the Northeast, lower
oil prices and a West Coast port dispute hurt some parts of the country.
-- The People’s Republic of China lowered its economic
growth forecast to about 7.0 %, after last year’s goal was actually 7.4%
against a forecast of “about 7.5%” – the slowest growth in more than two
decades.
-- The European Central Bank (ECB) kept its interest rates
unchanged and announced their intention to begin purchases of government bonds
under its program of quantitative easing on 9.March, to help boost economic
growth and return inflation to target levels.
-- The Federal Reserve reported the results of their annual financial
health ‘stress test’ of the biggest U.S. banks. All 31 banks passed.
They had sufficient capital to continue lending during a hypothetical
economic shock where corporate debt markets deteriorate, unemployment hits 10%,
and housing and stock prices plunge – a serious recession. This is the first time since the tests
began in 2009 that all banks maintained capital levels above what the Fed set
as minimum allowable levels.
-- The Labor Department reported U.S. employers added
295,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate fell to 5.5%, exceeding
forecasts in both metrics. This
was the 12th month in a row the U.S. economy added more than 200,000
jobs for the period.
Comments
and contributions from Update no.689:
Comment to the Blog:
“I have a strong impression that the general notion of Chris Kyle
comes from the popular movie about him. A more accurate picture may be derived
from his ‘autobiography,’ which involved not one but two ghost writers. Mr.
Kyle took an incredibly (but predictably) thoughtless risk in his attempt to
cure his fellow veteran, and he paid the price of that.
“The deadlock and irrationality in the current Congress goes back
to Republican statements the night of Obama's first election as President and
the following days. The Congressional majority has no interest in governance.
They focus only on defeating Obama.
“The Keystone pipeline carries major environmental issues. The
notion that they have been resolved is false. I will note here that Keystone XL
would exist for the purpose of exporting oil, not for use by Americans.
“The murder of Mr. Nemtsov remains unsolved and probably always
will. You seem to imply that Russian President Putin had something to do with
it and yet you are apparently indignant that he has yet to admit any such
thing. All political and other considerations aside, when did murderers begin
confessing their crimes to the world's news media? Duh.”
My response to the
Blog:
Re:
Kyle. Outside the sphere of
special ops, perhaps the movie is all they know. For those in that world, his reputation and accomplishments
place him in a rarified group of warriors. I was not there when he was killed. I have not seen an accurate portrayal
of exactly what happened, as the event was not in question . . . only Routh’s
conduct. We may not agree with
Kyle’s choice to help a troubled veteran, but at least he tried to do
something.
Re:
congressional majority. Frankly, I
agree. Congress appears to only
care about remaining in power, being re-elected, and of course “benefiting”
from their position.
Re:
Keystone pipeline. The part of the
pipeline not yet completed would in fact transport American crude oil from the
oil fields of the north central states.
Even the oil from Canada would go to the refineries of Port Arthur,
Texas, in addition to being available on the world market . . . as it should
be. Even U.S. crude is not
restricted to U.S. consumption.
Lastly, the operations of oil pipelines have been successful for
decades. The trans-Alaska pipeline
has operated successfully for decades in far harsher environmental conditions. The arguments against the completion of
the pipeline appear to be bogus and politically motivated, not rational.
Re:
Nemtsov. His assassination was not
a random act of violence. It was
well planned and executed by multiple assassins. Thus, who had a motive? I have zero expectation of Putin confessing his
complicity. None of this alters my
opinion of Putin. He is a ruthless
dictator, driven by megalomania.
While he is not yet to the depravity of his predecessors – Stalin,
Hitler, et al – he is more than a few steps down the same path.
. . . Round two:
“Kyle's ‘choice to help a troubled veteran’ is not in doubt. What
leaves me cold are his character as a whole and his refusal to consider whether
his action was sensible. Again, the movie is not an accurate picture. The
biography very likely is.
“The oil from that particular pipeline, Keystone XL, is destined
for international shipment per multiple sources. Pipelines are not safe. That
contradicts the facts of their large number of spills and other incidents, most
recently the Yellowstone River spill. ‘Successful’ is not an appropriate term. ‘Profitable’
fits so far, but not ‘successful.’
“Mr. Nemtsov's homicide was not random. However easy it is to
point to Putin, any number of players on the world stage could benefit from his
death, especially if Russian public opinion goes against Putin. The U.S. and
the EU top that list.”
. . . my response to round two:
Re:
Kyle. Apparently, you are better
informed than me. Please enlighten
us regarding the flaws in character and errors in judgment by Chris Kyle.
Re:
oil pipelines. We shall
respectfully disagree. Oil pipelines
are better than other forms of transport with moving vehicles and human
operators (trucks, rail, ships).
Re:
Putin. OK. I’ll bite. Are you arguing that Putin is the innocent victim in some
great smear campaign, attempting to besmirch his reputation as a world
leader? So, perhaps the CIA killed
Nemtsov? Or, the Ukraine is
attacking itself and giving away its territory to make it look like the
Russians? Or, MI6 is flying Bear
bombers in airspace violations of other sovereign nations? All of this conspiracy to make Putin
look bad? Wow!
. . . Round three:
“Chris Kyle was a sniper, which is a necessary job if war is
necessary. Most snipers, however, would not kill people were it not necessary
in their perception in order to defend their nation, their fellows, or
themselves. In the book, Kyle details that he gloried in killing people,
running up his numbers of targets for fun, feeling no remorse and claiming to
put no thought into much of anything. That last part is what got him killed.
PTSD can make people dangerous under the circumstances he set up, and people
with PTSD should receive therapy from trained professionals, not from
well-meaning amateurs who refuse to even consider their own methods. I can see
his death as either suicide or death by misadventure.
“I will not dispute your statement that pipelines are less
dangerous than other means of transporting crude or refined oil. They are not,
however, safe. We continue to experience spills of thousands or tens of
thousands of gallons of oil from pipelines. There is no safe method, and society
needs to defend itself by stringent controls on any transportation of any
dangerous substances. That, unfortunately, is in decline. Road transportation
is gradually being de-regulated. We must not allow pipelines to go the same
way. Pipeline incidents may be less common than road or rail accidents, but the
spill sizes are enormous.
“I am not arguing that Putin is innocent or guilty. I am stating
that we have no way of making even a guess about what has happened in this
homicide case. Speculation in a public forum only serves whatever is the
killers' goal.”
. . . my response to round three:
Re:
Kyle. I did not know Chris
Kyle. However, I certainly know
enough folks like him. As
aviators, we often had a distant, sterile perspective of the work we did. Snipers had to take a very impersonal
view of their work. Successful
snipers also tend to take a very clinical, mechanical view of their work, like
any professional. To the sniper,
it is just a target, not a human being.
I did not interpret his efforts to help Routh as an attempt at
professional therapy; he was simply trying to help a troubled veteran in the
best way he knew how. I suppose
his other choice was to do nothing.
Regardless of Kyle’s intentions, Routh committed murder, not Kyle.
Re:
pipeline. How is a pipeline
unsafe? What does it do to be
unsafe? The construction and
maintenance of pipelines should be and are regulated. Welds have to be certified and recorded. No leaks are acceptable. It is my understanding all leaks are
investigated like transport accidents.
Re:
Putin. Interesting
perspective. Dictators, with the
power of the State at their disposal, are extraordinarily difficult to pin
down, e.g., Stalin, Pol Pot, Hitler, Mussolini, Putin, et al. The best we can do is take the
facts. The facts speak.
. . . Round four:
“Pipelines leak and sometimes they break. Since the Yellowstone
incident a few weeks ago, another break has occurred in Alaska, polluting
38,000 acres. How could you not be aware of that?
“The facts speak only if we know the facts. Speculation and
opinion are not facts.”
. . . my response to round four:
I
can find no reference to a recent oil pipeline leak in Alaska. The last Alyeska pipeline leak I can
find occurred in 2011. I have
looked at every combination of markers I can think of. Leaks due to sabotage are hardly a
fault of the design. So, let us
stick to the facts. I need some
help to catch up with your facts.
I am clearly not as well informed as you are. To this point, I am not seeing the evidence that pipelines
are worse than any other vehicle transportation means. A little help please.
. . . Round five:
“Please note that I never said that pipelines were less safe than
other means of oil transport. I said they were not safe enough.
“For a little more background, here's a link to a wikipedia list
of pipeline incidents in the 21st Century.
“Here is a link to the wikipedia article on the Yellowstone River.
Note Paragraph 4, ‘2015 Oil Spill,’ especially the discrepancy in company
versus state estimates of the amount spilled.
“That list is only updated to February 25, 2015. Here is a link an
article from the Houston Business Journal concerning a February 28, 2015 leak
in northern Alaska. (I doubt I could find a more oil-industry-favoring media
source than this one. Expect understatement of the spill and the damage.)
“All of that resulted from a quick search of ‘pipeline incidents
2015.’ No problem.
“Yes, let us stick to facts.”
. . . my response to round five:
I
acknowledge pipeline leaks have occurred – drunks firing rifles into the pipe,
complacency in welding and operation, et al. I have not yet
found proper, impartial, independent efficiency and safety effectiveness
numbers for each of oil transportation means. It is my opinion only . . . that pipelines are the safest
per quantity of oil moved over a distance. Can they be improved . . . yes. So, if your argument is pipelines are not safe enough, then
what do you propose as an alternative?
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
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