Charles Grassley, [R] of IA, Adopts my Anti-trust Mantra

Posted on September 20, 2016 by markinaustin

Of course, considering who are the players, it is no wonder why.

see: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/15/business/dealbook/monsanto-bayer-deal.html?emc=edit_dk_20160920&nl=dealbook&nlid=55859017&te=1&_r=0

 

Filed under: Economy, Open Thread | 36 Comments »

Evening Report 8/30/16

Posted on August 30, 2016 by markinaustin

Syracuse, ostensibly an FBS football program in a P5 conference, opens against Colgate, an FCS team.

Michigan State, not to be outdone, opens against Furman, which may be in a lower division than even Colgate.

There are some good games scheduled this weekend – real intersectional clashes. ‘Bama is playing USC in Jerryworld. K St. goes to Stanford. UT plays ND Sunday night. Oklahoma is at UH; not a true old fashioned intersectional game, but it does pit preseason #3 against preseason #15. UNC v. UGA, Mizzou at WVa and LSU traveling to Lambeau to play Wiscy round out the potentially good games, I think, except for this one.  UCLA is traveling to College Station to play the benighted Aggies.  Here is UCLA’s take on Aggie “traditions”:

http://www.bruinsnation.com/2016/8/28/12685880/a-bruin-field-guide-to-game-day-strangeness-in-college-station?_ga=1.233849438.1963087941.1472559008

In other news, Turkey needs the west and the west needs Turkey, according to this article:

http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21705828-how-manage-relations-natos-most-awkward-member-dont-lose-plot

The EC wants to fine Apple more than a billion Euros for something.

https://espresso.economist.com/5133aa1d673894d5a05b9d83809b9dbe

What Texas state employees earn:

https://salaries.texastribune.org/

And piston engine airplanes are the last major source of lead in the atmosphere.

http://news.mit.edu/2016/unfriendly-skies-piston-engine-aircraft-pose-significant-health-threat-0826

 

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Football, Open Thread | 8 Comments »

Missing Morning Report Open Thread 5/18/16

Posted on May 18, 2016 by ScottC

Figured after 5 days it was time to open up a new post.

Filed under: Open Thread | 4 Comments »

BLS Report for April 5/6/16

Posted on May 6, 2016 by markinaustin

Payroll employment increases by 160,000 in April; unemployment rate unchanged at 5.0%

05/06/2016

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 160,000 in April, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.0 percent. Employment increased in professional and business services, health care, and financial activities. Job losses continued in mining.

Filed under: Economic data, Open Thread | 20 Comments »

A Real, Honest-to-God, Bipartisan Issue! 5/2/16

Posted on May 2, 2016 by markinaustin

http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21697826-how-cost-benefit-analysis-might-save-americas-criminal-justice-system-when-economists-turn

It seems that prison reform, especially reduction of incarcerations, is widely agreed to be a worthy goal.

In passing, we read here that prison costs Americans $80B annually, that 1/5th of the world’s prison population is in the USA, and 70M Americans have criminal records.

Filed under: Open Thread, prisons | 20 Comments »

Just in Case Brent Doesn’t do his Thing 4/4/16

Posted on April 4, 2016 by markinaustin

This group actually survives because of Morning Report.  Here is an Open Thread, just in case Brent doesn’t make it in to work for us this morning.

 

Propulsion at significant fractions of the speed of light:

http://www.gizmag.com/laser-light-propulsion/41980/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=3fcf87e838-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-3fcf87e838-90358962

 

Supremes uphold one-man one-vote based on population.

http://www.texastribune.org/2016/04/04/texas-case-supreme-court-upholds-one-person-one-vo/

 

The Economist weighs in against a merger of the German and London Exchanges.

http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21695928-bigger-may-not-be-better-when-it-comes-clearing-houses-double-crossed

 

A good compilation of links on the Kurds.

http://www.fpa.org/great_decisions/index.cfm?act=topic_detail&topic_id=52

The Kurds still revere GWB for liberating them, but it seems we are back into the morass of petty local reasons why other groups want them marginalized.  Meanwhile, they are the only dependable force against ISIS on the ground.  There’s a lot of stuff there a new Administration might want to consider.

 

 

 

 

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Open Thread | 27 Comments »

A Modest Gun Regulation Proposal

Posted on March 4, 2016 by markinaustin

A state could require that all guns sold in the state be tested for ballistics and that the ballistics files be kept in a central registry, along with the names and addresses of the seller and purchaser.  The state would nominate the NRA as its trustee to hold the registry, which would be private, and could only be opened for comparison analysis on a warrant issued to a police agency that has obtained ballistics from a crime scene it wishes to match to the registry.

 

This would grow into an effective crime clue generating tool over time, without infringing on any citizen’s 2d A rights.

 

It would reach peak effectiveness when every state adopted the plan and all the unregistered Saturday Night Specials that are on the streets of Baltimore, Chicago, NewOrleans, Philly, etc.,  break down and are replaced by registered guns whose ballistics have been tested.

 

This would not stop crazy shooters or even ordinary criminals.  It would make it easier to track them down after the fact.

 

I think it is a modest proposal, that keeps government out of handling the records, that puts an organization that can be trusted to keep privacy absent a warrant in charge of maintaining the registry.  But it would eventually be useful in catching criminals, and perhaps would cause some persons to think twice before shooting.  Or not.

 

 

 

Filed under: guns, Open Thread | 40 Comments »

Super Bowl Rant and Open Thread

Posted on February 7, 2016 by ScottC

I’m watching the pre-game show and naturally CBS cuts to an interview with the Obamas. Sigh. Is there no occasion in this country that can pass without the precious thoughts of a fucking politician being foisted on us?

Newsflash: The president (any president) is a mere politician, not a monarch anointed by the hand of God. We have no need to hear him pontificate on every event, big or small, that takes place in the nation. The guest list for his party is completely unimportant to me. I don’t give a rat’s ass what kind of food he is serving. I couldn’t care less which team he is rooting for. Doubly so for the First Lady, for goodness sake. And I think anyone who does care is a moron.

It is actually quite baffling. The opinion of the ordinary person towards politicians in general is usually one of overwhelming contempt, and rightly so. Yet when a politician is so “good” at all the vile things that politicians do and are that they rise to the highest political office in the country, suddenly we are supposed to wait with bated breath for his sage thoughts on all things big and small. What does he think of the Super Bowl? What does his March Madness bracket look like? What is he saying about the latest tragedy in a small town in the middle of nowhere?

Someone stop the madness, please.

Rant over…open thread.

Filed under: Open Thread | 21 Comments »

Refuse to Go Red for Women

Posted on February 2, 2016 by ScottC

According to the American Heart Association, the prevalence of heart disease among men is greater than among women in every age demographic. In the 60-79 age bracket, the prevalence among men is more than twice what it is among women. More than 1.4 times as many men as women have had a diagnosed heart attack or fatal coronary disease across all age groups.

In light of those statistics, it makes perfect sense, of course, that this Friday is Go Red For Women Day, during which the American Heart Association encourages people to wear red in order to “help support educational programs to increase women’s awareness and critical research to discover scientific knowledge about cardiovascular health.”

According to the AHA:

In 2003, the American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute took action against a disease that was claiming the lives of nearly 500,000 American women each year – a disease that women weren’t paying attention to. A disease they truly believed, and many still believe to this day, affects more men than women.

Um…it does affect more men than women. It is rather unbelievable that the AHA is attempting to disabuse women of a plain and simple fact.

This is all of a piece with our increasingly female-centric culture which attempts to instruct us that whatever problems exist, they are inevitably worse for women. (Climate change to hit women hardest!) It is bad enough we have to suffer through sports seasons in which players, coaches and officials are pressured to where pink in order to “raise awareness” for breast cancer several times a year. At least women do in fact suffer from breast cancer more than men do, even if the “awareness” of the disease far outweighs its dangers relative to other women-killers. But this is just taking things to an absurd level.

Whatever this says about the AHA in particular or our screwed up society more generally, I highly encourage everyone to refuse to wear red this Friday, to protest this sexist denial of reality. Don’t believe it and don’t accept it. And keep your eye out….if, on Friday, you see more people without red on than with it, know we are winning the battle!

(BTW, I found out about this Red Day foolishness because my HR department, in that cloying way that only HR departments can achieve, sent around a circular encouraging all employees to wear red on Friday. When I presented them with the statistics on heart disease and wondered if they had ever promoted to employees a “men’s awareness” movement of any kind whatsoever, they replied, again in typical HR manner, “We are always looking for volunteers to promote important causes across a wide range of missions.” I’m taking that as a firm “No”.)

Filed under: Open Thread, Politically Correct Bedtime Stories | 17 Comments »

Blizzard Saturday Open Thread 1/23/16

Posted on January 23, 2016 by ScottC

Starting to snow and blow pretty hard here in the northeast.  Not too much on the ground yet, but it is coming down.  Feel free to add any pictures if you want.

 

image

image

image

This was the back deck at 8 am.

image

This is the back deck at 4pm.

image

Only 10 inches at 6:15.  Looks like the mid-Atlantic got it worse.  See yello’s photos below.

 

My (yellokt) photos:

IMG_8093

My dog Sushi loves running through the snow.

IMG_8072

And chasing snow plows.

IMG_8068

We had about ten plows come down our road in about a half hour. We must be on a route.

IMG_8051

No telling there is a sidewalk under there. Judging from shoveling half my driveway, we had about 18 inches overnight and it is still falling.

Michi’s pics

Snowzilla at 1000
Snowzilla at 1000
Snowzilla at 1600
Snowzilla at 1600
Snowzilla at 1600--my front porch
Snowzilla at 1600–my front porch

From left to right, Snowzilla at 1000, 1600, and my (covered) front porch at 1600

The Morning After: I couldn’t open the screen door to take a picture any more. My street–at least the plow had been through! I was the first person out there. The view of the front of my house and my car before I started digging.

Filed under: Open Thread | 24 Comments »

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