Let’s start with the answer: no. He's a very smart, accomplished guy who might or might not make a good President. Smarts and accomplishments for sure, but not terribly inspiring in his public persona, and it can be pretty hard to tell where he stands much, if not most, of the time. He will probably … Continue reading Is Mitt a Moonie?
Category: Public Affairs
Be Still, My Traveling Heart
I was back in the security line at the Seattle airport last week. An odd place for inspiration, but I’ll take what I can get. Seattle now has full-body scanners. This is the first time I’ve encountered them. Here is my story: Before the first checkpoint (ID and boarding pass), a recorded voice on the … Continue reading Be Still, My Traveling Heart
Pain In The Ass -Ism
I was in Seattle on election day and happened to see this display at the 5 Spot restaurant on Queen Anne hill. Elephant on the right, donkey on the left. Note the elephant’s salacious leer and the donkey’s defiant-yet-submissive posture. Looks to me like the Democrats had a pretty good idea what was about to … Continue reading Pain In The Ass -Ism
Angels and Pinheads
Today, the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the recession that began in December of 2007 officially ended in June of 2009, some 14 months ago. I’m sure relieved to hear that. I’ll bet you are too. According to the Wall Street Journal, the NBER goes on to “warn” that any future downturn would … Continue reading Angels and Pinheads
Canada – Part Deux
OK, I used the Part Deux thing once before. A little latitude, please. The Canadians speak French. On our way back from the family road trip, we spent another very enjoyable day in Canada. Here are three more observations from the trip: 1) We crossed the border four times – twice out and twice back … Continue reading Canada – Part Deux
Healthcare – Part Deux
The other day, my friend Scott McMillan posted a comment about the opening sentence of my (now ancient) last post. He said, “I’d like you to comment on this statement: ‘It’s starting to look like we’re going to get some sort of healthcare reform.’” Well, Scott, here you go. It’s often been said of the … Continue reading Healthcare – Part Deux
A Plague on Both Our Houses
OK, I’ll admit that I’m stumped on this one. It’s starting to look like we’re actually going to get some sort of healthcare reform which, at least in general terms, I believe is a good idea. If you think what we’re doing now is working, read the first paragraph of this article. We spend more … Continue reading A Plague on Both Our Houses
Taming the Beast
Imagine that you have a life insurance policy that you no longer need. You could let it lapse or cash it in. You also could choose to sell it, perhaps to me. I’ll pay you a lump sum for the policy and agree to pay any remaining premiums. In exchange, I’ll get the payout when … Continue reading Taming the Beast
Next Up – OOEC?
A recent article in the New York Times says that environmental groups have started paying Brazilian farmers to not cut down trees in the rainforest. The article says that deforestation accounts for 20% of CO2 emissions, so stopping deforestation will help fight global warming. But there's more to it than that. Why? Because the flip … Continue reading Next Up – OOEC?
Does Waterboarding Work?
I heard on the radio this morning that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded 183 times during the month of March 2003. That's an average of 6 times a day. 8 times a day if they gave him weekends off. I can't work up much sympathy for him because I think he's a really … Continue reading Does Waterboarding Work?
Carp Diem 