Seize BP's Assets

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America's Largest Environmental Disaster

BP and the finest minds of the government and the oil patch cannot manage to shut off the blown out oil well in the Gulf of Mexico. It is now by far the largest environmental disaster America has ever faced. Well so much for deregulation and self regulation. All these assholes who supported deregulation, and there are even a few so stupid that they still support it, need to get down on their knees and very sincerely beg for forgiveness.

In the next few months we will see if America and mankind are now completely doomed. Or are we capable of making rational decisions which will help mankind survive?

Until there is honest, open, and peer reviewed proof that new methods have been found which will make this absolutely not happen again, and if it does happen make us be able to shut off the flow, this deep water drilling needs to cease. Maybe all drilling under water. Don't forget that the original crisis in drilling under water occurred off the coast of Southern California in about 200 feet of water.

Oil and gas provided by these under water well heads is a fairly small part of what America is currently consuming. It is true that all the “easy” oil and gas has now been mined. Our options at this point are to either transfer all the national wealth to the lunatics in the middle east who hate us, or we cause intolerable environmental damage by continuing with this drilling under water.

So is there any answer which will work? Yes, there really is. For the last 4,000 miles my car has averaged more than 60 mpg. The air conditioner works great, and the car is safe and comfortable to drive. America uses several times more energy per person than other advanced countries like those in western Europe. We need to stop being so wasteful.

Or we can continue being wasteful. All of our wealth will gradually be transferred to the Arab sheiks in the middle east. We will become a second or third rate, poor country. Italy and Greece used to be great powers. Same with Turkey. Now look at them. The same thing will happen to us unless we cut our military-defense-intelligence spending by about 75%, and stop our wasteful life style. We can still have well air conditioned buildings and drive comfortable cars. We just need to do it more sensibly. Or not. It is up to this generation of young people.

Frankly I'm not at all impressed with this group of people who are just now getting out of college and starting their careers. Many of them are totally self centered, have little empathy, and don't like personal interaction. They prefer to communicate by texting and are more than a little spoiled and lazy. I rather doubt that they have what it will take to solve these important matters.



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T3

I watched the movie Terminator 3, Rise Of The Machines yesterday evening. I had purchased it for $3.00 at a flea market yesterday.

The reviews were only mediocre for this movie. I do not agree. My reaction was great. I think this is a superb movie!

LINK: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_3



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Interview of Bashar Al-Assad President of Syria

In this interview Charlie Rose comes across as far less bright than Bashar Al-Assad. Rose is arrogant, overbearing, and condescending. Worst of all he is rude.

I'm amazed at how open minded, smart, and well informed Doctor Al-Assad is.
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Nuclear Proliferation

I have supported Israel for many years. I'm not Jewish. In the 1960's I liked the ideas behind the Kibbutzes. After visiting Israel and several nearby Islamic countries I cemented my admiration of Israel.

We now have come to the point where the hypocrisy of America (and Israel) having nuclear weapons, but not wanting anyone else to have them just doesn't sell anymore. I agree that Iran is an unstable country with a sick addiction to an ignorant, cruel, and perverted religion. But Israel also has its share of religious fanatics, as does America.

I certainly don't want Iran to get the bomb. North Korea, Pakistan, and India are enough unstable nuclear countries already. But how can we in good faith tell Iran that it is OK for Israel to have the bomb, but not you dishonest Islamic rag heads?

Israel cannot use their nuclear weapons anymore than we can. They are expensive ego trips that you simply cannot consider using in real life. When everyone else realizes that too, your little nuclear bombs become a giant liability rather than an asset.

Israel should agree to join the NPT and completely disarm itself of all nuclear weaponry in return for all their neighbors doing the same.

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Stage IV CLL

I was hunting around the internet this morning to try and learn a little more about late stage CLL. I came across this 2006 post by David Arenson which is really good:
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http://clldiary.blogspot.com/2006/01/one-aim-of-treatment-is-to-not-treat.html

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We Are All Connected

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Guns and Ammo

I was visiting with a friend of mine today out in the West Texas desert. He told me that has been thinking about getting a .22 rifle because stray dogs kept wandering onto his property and taking a dump. I tried not to show it too much, but I was really horrified. So was my little doggie who was walking around sniffing and peeing and doing all that other essential dog stuff.

I told him that if I were in a store or the bank and someone came in and robbed it I would be concerned. I don't believe in stealing money, but these corporations have insurance to cover these things and I sure didn't see much value in risking my life to save some rich company a few thousand dollars or maybe even far less.

But if the robber threatened any innocent human being (including myself) he had crossed the line. I always carry a concealed, loaded handgun to protect myself just in case this sort of thing should ever take place. I would not hesitate even one millisecond to do what needed to be done to protect other people or myself.

So I am a proud liberal/progressive environmentalist who also believes in the 2nd amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Lets says that a bit differently: I am an honorably discharged veteran and I am fairly patriotic. Of course I respect and believe in the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Duh! This is a picture I just took comparing some of the various sizes of pistol ammunition I have at the moment.

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Juarez, Mexico Murder Rate

I live in El Paso, Texas less than 10 miles north of Juarez, Mexico. El Paso is hot, dry, and very poor - but it has historically also been one of the safest cities in the USA. This is beginning to change as the lawlessness and disrespect for rule-of-law moves north.

In America the most dangerous city is New Orleans. Juarez currently has a murder rate four times higher than that in NOLA. The Juarez carnage is 8 times that of Newark, New Jersey.

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Lightweight Handguns for Concealed Carry

I have a Taurus .38 special + p, titanium alloy, 5 shot revolver with a Crimson Trace laser grip installed. Loaded weight is a very reasonable 487 grams.

My 2 shot .38 special derringer weighs in at 416 grams loaded.

My new six shot .380 Ruger LCP semiautomatic pistol with a Crimson Trace laser mounted on it, and 5 shots loaded in the magazine, comes in at an incredible 338 grams. This is the pistol that Texas Governor Perry used to sadly kill a coyote which was threatening his dog while he was out in the wilds getting some exercise early in the morning.
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My doggie and I were out in the desert and we were stalked by three coyotes. I was armed at the time, but fortunately I was able to scare the coyotes away without having to kill one of them.

When you are carrying a gun concealed in a holster behind your waistband or in your pocket, 150 grams (5.3 ounces) is a very noticeable weight difference.

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Interest Rates

I am one of those retired people who carefully saved their money, intending to have a respectable retirement. I don't use credit cards; only my debit card. My house and car are paid for, and in actual fact I owe no money to anyone.

At the moment if one invests $100,000 in an FDIC government guaranteed certificate of deposit, the bank pays me an interest rate of around 1% or 1.5% . If you put your money into some sort of investment that is not insured and which carries significantly more risk they might pay you a rate of 3%.

I was looking at my online bank statement this morning and happened to notice the information on an old credit card that I do not ever use. If I loan the bank some money they pay me 1% or 1.5% interest. If I borrow money from the bank instead of lending money to them I pay them a rate of 24.24% Wow! Talk about a license to steal.

Anyway, this outrageous imbalance sure shows the fallacy of the Republican wish to privatize social security. Ignorant right wing bozos.

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Time Warp

I was diagnosed with leukemia in 2002 during some blood tests at the hospital because I had a bad lung infection. But looking back on it I can remember having night sweats and other symptoms of CLL long before then. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia often tends to progress very slowly, and mine certainly has. I have been really fortunate.

In 2006 I got tested for the prognosis of my disease by one of the top CLL doctors in the world. I am now statistically well beyond my “best before date.” Amazingly just all of a sudden many different parts of the body seem to be giving out simultaneously. I checked my old and new blood test results this morning. The ineffective cancerous white blood cells have multiplied unbelievably. Just like my lymph nodes have rather suddenly grown amazingly large. The red blood cells, hemoglobin, platelets, and neutrophils have all declined considerably now. All are now well below the normal minimum. My hemoglobin is now about 40% lower than it was when I left Europe, and the platelets (which previously were very stable) have declined even more.

I'm constantly out of breath now due to low hemoglobin. I have bruises all over me, and the dentist will no longer even consider extraction of a tooth due to the low platelet level in my blood. The immunodeficiency is seen in a variety of ways, but probably most visibly in rampant tooth decay even though I no longer eat any sugar and brush my teeth 5 or more times each day.

Whether I am surfing the internet, reading a good book, or watching an exciting new episode of Dr. Who, I constantly nod off. I have to be very cautious when driving. The possibility of my choosing to “put myself down” is popping into my head as a viable alternative more and more frequently now. But it really isn't nearly that bad yet. I do notice that it has become very important to me to keep my dog's water bowl topped up. Just in case. And my financial affairs and my last will and testament are both in good shape and up-t0-date.

It just occurred to me how pleasant it would be to merely go to sleep and not ever wake up. I have tremendous admiration for the people who have managed to pull this off. And I don't mean a drug overdose, or barbiturates, or some sort of suicide. No, honestly, just naturally taking a little nap and then choosing to never wake up. From this perspective that seems like a wonderful way to go.

Nature is so wonderful. I find that it has a way of preparing one for the inevitable. I've led a far more interesting and successful life than I ever could have imagined while growing up. If learning new things, seeing new things, and having new experiences means anything then I certainly will reincarnate at a much higher level. Of course I don't believe in reincarnation or any of that organized religion nonsense.

But I do remember what took place a few weeks after my father died. He was an amazing guy. Maybe what I experienced was real. I sure thought it was at the time, and 33 and one-half years later it still seems like it took place yesterday. Maybe I will get lucky enough to be chosen to move on to a higher plane of existence. Or maybe it all just ends. Either way is OK. Really.

I've led a great life and that's enough. Honest. But what a wonder it would be if.....


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Rand Paul

Fecal Incontinence

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) is not curable. It is a blood cancer where unusable white blood cells refuse to die and begin to grow and grow and grow. They eventually begin to crowd out the red blood cells and hemoglobin which carry oxygen to all the body's tissues (like the leg muscles, the heart, and the brain), the platelets which are rather useful in clotting, and all the various types of blood cells which help fight disease. So the CLL patient gradually becomes highly immunodeficient.

I am now well into this late stage process where the platelets and hemoglobin decrease well below normal ranges.

This afternoon I thought I let a really good fart. A bit later I realized that in fact I had shat myself. How humiliating. Thank heavens I was at home at the time, and no one other than me or my little doggie were aware it or saw me in the mortifying act of washing out my underwear.

This leukemia situation is getting rather tiresome.

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Mr. Calderon Has Forgotten His Manners

Mexican President Felipe Calderon has been lecturing the president and members of congress about what America is doing wrong. He doesn't like it when our law enforcement personnel actually enforce rule-of-law. Calderon apparently sees nothing wrong with his citizens entering the U.S.A. surreptitiously and then working or getting government benefits on a fraudulent basis.

He thinks that just because he is the elected leader of the failed country directly to the south of America, he has some right to try and dictate to our state and federal government elected officials what they need to do. What they need to do about illegal immigration; the U.S. constitution and what it guarantees about the right to bear arms, etc. How horribly ill-mannered.

The reason that Mr. Calderon's country is well along on the road to complete chaos and lawlessness is that for many years they have tolerated bribery, lying, and corruption. They have generally laughed at the idea of rule-of-law. Their judiciary is a sick joke. The Mexicans thus have a difficult time accepting it when America decides to finally begin enforcing our long existing immigration laws.

I have known many Mexicans and also many immigrant Mexican-Americans over the years. In general I find them to be people, just like the rest of us immigrants. The one exception I see when looking at their wave of immigration compared with the Polish, German, Chinese, and others is that immigrants used to realize that in order to be successful they had to become Americans. Fully and completely. Linguistically and culturally.

But a great many of these Mexican immigrants think that they can refuse to become proficient in speaking and reading English, yet still be successful in their new country. They are badly deluded, and so is President Calderon.

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The Rolling Stones

Robert A. Heinlein wrote a great many books. I just finished his 1952 book called The Rolling Stones.

There has been some terrific change in technology and communication in the last 60 years, but this book does not seem at all dated. I have found only a few science fiction authors who were good enough scientists that they could pull this off. Arthur C. Clark was another.

A quick quote from this book:

“What's your real reason? Why do you want to go?”
“Why? Why does anybody want to go anywhere? Why did the bear go round the mountain? To see what he could see! I've never seen the Rings. That's reason enough to go anywhere. The race has been doing it for all time. The dull ones stay home – and the bright ones stir around and try to see what trouble they can dig up. It's a human pattern. It doesn't need a reason.”

I really enjoyed this little book, and I recommend it to others.

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Steve Jobs Offers Freedom From Porn

The Apple co-founder is engaged in lots of fights at the moment. They insist upon doing everything their own personal and largely secret way, so they find companies like Adobe to be a real annoyance. Apple has always been more than a bit arrogant and vastly overpriced.

Now Steve Jobs has made the dubious claim that Apple can offer users of the internet “freedom from porn.” Frankly I don't want Mr. Jobs to become the censor of what I see or don't see. What supreme arrogance on his part.

I don't look at much porn frankly. I take about as much interest in this subject as I do in hearing self absorbed homosexuals or gay cross dressers go on about their sexual fantasies. I would be far more interested if some computer company were to offer users a guarantee of freedom from hidden marketing tracking cookies, theft of my private or personal information, pop-ups, viruses, and all the various types of con artists and malware that one runs into daily on the internet.

Apples are still overrated and horribly overpriced. They are like the Toyota Lexus. Both are for people with severe ego deficiencies who are so demented that they enjoy wasting their money just to try and appear to be more successful than the Joneses.

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Offshore Oil Drilling

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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The Death of the Euro

I was living in Europe when the European common currency, called the Euro, was implemented. It was great for me since I lived in the southern Netherlands, and both Germany and Belgium were less than 20 minutes away on the freeway. It meant that all of a sudden going out to eat, or going shopping in these “foreign” countries became far more practical. After the introduction of the Euro I did very little shopping in Holland. I did almost all my shopping in Germany or Belgium.

But even back then it was clear to anyone who had any academic foundation in Economics that the concept of the common currency couldn't possibly work over the long term. Closer political integration via the European Union was a political idea, and probably a very good idea at that. But establishing a common currency, and then letting all the little individual countries keep full control of their own national budgets (and borrowing) meant that the Euro was built on a very shaky foundation indeed. A house of cards. Nothing but an illusion or a big con game.

This morning when I got up my email in-box contained a note from a dear friend of mine who still lives in Europe. I have known this guy for almost 20 years, and he was even the best man at my third and final wedding. The massive financial fraud perpetrated by the Greeks has made many smart and powerful people worldwide wake up to the basic weakness in the Euro common currency. This is causing very real turmoil and problems for my friends in Europe. Unfortunately this is only the beginning.

Deleting all the parts of his email related to personal things, this is what he had to say about the financial situation:


“Over here there is great turmoil and fear has struck due to the problems with Greece and fears for Spain and Portugal. When the German Secretary of Economy outed his doubts about the salvation plan (the 750 billion euros) the stock went down sharply. Funny that a small sized economy as the Greek can cause so many problems. Kinda of an indication how "carefully" the EU was planned. I sense this uncertainty in meetings with managers. It seems as if the economy is improving slightly but companies are still very careful in hiring new personnel.

Funny that this could lead to a situation where one could go broke after 22 years of hard labour. The attitude of the banks sucks. First they take irresponsible risks, go broke, become rescued by tax money that was payed by companies and citizens and then they refuse to lend money. Absurd situation.”


I have recently begun seeing more forecasts that Europe will suffer a double-dip recession. When (not if) the Euro currency union finally falls apart, there is going to be real chaos in Europe. This will cause horrible suffering. As integrated as the world's major economies are, I doubt that America will escape from the effects of this financial chaos.

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James Bond Movies

There have been twenty two of Ian Fleming's James Bond stories made into movies. I'm gradually watching all of them. I began with the first movie, and I just finished number fifteen. It is called The Living Daylights.

All of these are a little hokey, involve some high tech weaponry, the Aston Martin, some accurate shooting, good guys eventually winning over against the bad guys, and of course at least one very beautiful woman.

Some of these James Bond movies are quite good, others just barely fair. No doubt a lot has to do with one's own attitude when you are watching the movie. Number 15, The Living Daylights, really is very very good. Maybe the best one so far.

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