WITH VERNOR VINGE: Singularity 101.
Archive for 2009
April 24, 2009
IN THE MAIL: From Roger von Oech, of Ball of Whacks fame, the new X-Ball. He’s actually originally famous for his book, A Whack On the Side Of the Head: How To Be More Creative.
WELL, GOOD: Sen. Jim Webb is open to legalizing pot.
ABC NEWS: Welcome to the Airport For Nobody:
You’ve heard of the Bridge to Nowhere. You might call this the Airport for Nobody. The John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport has an impressive $18 million runway made of reinforced concrete that’s big enough to land any airplane in North America. The airport also has a $7 million air traffic control tower, a $14 million hanger and $8 million radar. Most of the time, the only thing the airport doesn’t have is airplanes. . . .
The federal government provides a subsidy for every flight into the Murtha Airport of about $100 dollars per passenger, but even with the subsidy, there are plenty of empty seats. On a visit to the airport, ABC News found it virtually deserted, with an empty restaurant, vacant lounges and empty runways. An air traffic controller was twiddling his thumbs.
The airport manager, though, speaks well of the funding that provides his job, so that’s something.
Plus, from CNN: Remote Murtha airport lands big bucks from Washington:
The airport offers three commercial flights. In between the arrivals and departures, airport officials admit there are few faces around the facility.
“When the flights are coming in, there are people. Other than that, it’s empty,” said Scott Voelker, manager of the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport.
But one face is everywhere. Rep. John Murtha, the airport’s namesake, is hard to miss.
So where’s that earmark reform we were promised before the election?
PROGRESS ON REPEALING “DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL?” Don’t ask!
RETURN OF THE WHIGS? Reader Brian Staley writes:
I couldn’t help but notice your note about going the way of the Whigs. You may not be aware, but some veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan refounded the Whigs last year as the Modern Whig Party.
Since then, we have attracted members from the Democratic, Republican, and Libertarian parties. We currently have nearly 30,000 members. We try to be practical about politics and are generally open on social issues and prudent on fiscal issues.
I stand corrected.
THE SCHATZI TOY COMPANY NEEDS A NEW PRESIDENT: Nancy Pelosi as Sgt. Schultz. “Sounds like someone’s getting sensitive. What with all the calls for prosecution. Hey, I can get on board with that. Prosecutions all around!”
FORTUNE: STEVEN RATTNER’S NEXT HEADACHE. “President Obama’s Car Czar left his old private equity shop in a pickle, and there’s also a potential conflict between his auto industry investments and his role overseeing the bailout.” (Via NewsAlert).
UPDATE: Related: “There’s an appearance of pay-to-play.”
WELL, YES: Congressional Ethics Still Lacking:
The FBI is again investigating the link between campaign contributions and spending earmarks. But you don’t need a federal probe to determine that Congress isn’t sufficiently serious about the abuse.
The FBI probe is reportedly concentrating on a lobbying group, PMA, and its flamboyant head, Paul Magliochetti, a former aide to Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., chairman of the defense appropriations subcommittee in the House. . . .
Rep. Murtha is hardly the sole beneficiary. Remember Alan Mollohan? He’s the West Virginia Democratic congressman whose cozy relationship with some campaign donors attracted FBI attention in 2006. According to press reports at the time, investigators were looking into allegations that he steered congressional appropriations to organizations that employed some of his major campaign contributors. Mr. Mollohan still represents West Virginia in the House. And according to a list of defense spending earmarks and campaign contributions compiled by the Seattle Times, as of last year he was still earmarking funds and receiving campaign contributions from the recipients. . . .
Meanwhile, the new Office of Congressional Ethics announced Wednesday it has launched six probes that could result in referrals to the House Ethics Committee. It is known to be looking into allegations that fundraisers for Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., offered to raise money for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich if he would appoint Jackson to the U.S. Senate.
Plus, the irresistible allure of “reciprocal pork.”
FOR GOD AND COUNTRY FAMILY AND PARTY!
As they get set today to square off in their second debate in Hampton, all three Democratic candidates in Virginia’s closely watched gubernatorial primary can claim high-profile supporters among those who walk — or used to walk — the halls of Congress.
The most obvious, of course, is Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.), who has funneled $125,000 over the past year from his Congressional campaign account to the gubernatorial efforts of his younger brother, former state Del. Brian Moran (D).
But while Moran’s familial ties may run deepest, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe can claim the widest selection of supporters with Capitol Hill ties. . . . The influx of out-of-state money to McAuliffe’s campaign has been widely criticized by his opponents. In their first gubernatorial debate, which took place Sunday, state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D), who raised $730,000 during the first quarter, questioned the high-dollar donations that McAuliffe has received from big-name donors who don’t live in Virginia. That list includes real-estate mogul Donald Trump, venerable Washington, D.C., lobbyist Tommy Boggs and former California Gov. Gray Davis (D).
But, then, that’s how it usually works.
DANIEL LARISON: Obama Is No Apologist. “Critics have been belittling President Obama’s recent visit to Latin America as a ‘contrition’ and ‘apology’ tour. But a more accurate tag would be ‘accountability’ tour, and it’s long overdue.”
IT’S THE 19TH ANNIVERSARY of the Hubble Space Telescope. The story of the Hubble’s creation, told by Robert Zimmerman in his The Universe in a Mirror, is very cool. I wrote a review of that book for the Wall Street Journal and enjoyed it very much.
STEPHEN DUBNER: The True Cause of College Tuition Inflation? More support staff and administrators. . . .
MORE ON PROGRESS WITH space-based solar power. It’s the ultimate in sustainable, greenhouse-friendly power.
HARD TO BELIEVE: California Politicians, to Citizens: It’s Too Difficult to Tax You. “It is an article of faith among the state’s political class that the two biggest impediments to governability are Proposition 13 (which caps property-tax hikes) and the supermajority rule. To even point out the state’s hysterical government and spending growth, which has not come with any noticeable improvement in services, is to initiate a conversation that many people (journalists, especially) have never held.”
“GREEN” POLITICS: To Get Votes, Waxman Offers Cap-and-Trade Breaks.
DAN RIEHL: Why is Blue State Digital in Iraq?
HOPE AND CHANGE: Government Watchdogs Warn of Lack of Oversight For Trillions in President’s New Spending Programs. The followup prosecutions and lawsuits should keep the coming years lively.
STILL UP THERE: Mark Levin’s Liberty and Tyranny is now #2 on Amazon. It’s been pushed down by Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code sequel.
AUSTAN GOOLSBEE, vindicated. “Three cheers for President Obama’s decision, announced quietly on Monday, to repudiate a campaign promise and not press for new labor and environmental regulations in the North American Free Trade Agreement. The last thing the Western Hemisphere needs are more trade barriers that would snarl supply chains and damage commerce. Perhaps we should call this Austan Goolsbee’s revenge.”
INTRODUCING THE “SAVE THE REDNECK” MOVEMENT.
DEMOCRAT MIKE MCWHERTER IS RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR IN TENNESSEE. I served on a commission with his dad, Ned Ray McWherter, who was governor some years ago, but I don’t know Mike at all.
MORE ON THE RATTNER SCANDALS from Mickey Kaus.