Category Archives: Rants and Raves

If you pay any attention to what’s going on in the American political arena, you probably know that the term “earmark” doesn’t refer to “a small area on the surface of the organ of hearing and balance in humans having a different color from its surroundings.” No, it’s commonly considered synonymous with “pork barrel” legislation, the derogatory term referring to appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured to bring money into a politician’s district. Although the terms are not necessarily the same, they share two things in common: politicians love them (even when they vote against them), and they … Continue reading →

Much of the controversy over airport security procedures has evaporated as Americans accept the inevitable. Some do so because they believe that whatever TSA does is necessary to ensure their safety. Others because, in spite of their objections, they don’t have the option of not flying. In any case, it’s another example of government actions that ultimately become an unavoidable part of everyday life, in this case for anyone who travels by air. A letter to the editor in Monday’s Statesman typifies one of the main reasons Americans often resemble sheep. In it, the writer suggests that anyone who doesn’t … Continue reading →

Earlier this week on the national news you might have seen New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaking at a press conference in support of passing the James Zadroga 9/11 Health Bill to benefit rescue workers. His message: the time for debate and procrastination is over and Congress should pass the bill without further delay. A news item this morning indicates that the bill was defeated, but the underlying problem persists. Let’s acknowledge that of all the topics touching the core of America’s conscience, “doing right” by first responders who risked their lives on that tragic day and in its … Continue reading →

Apolitical: not interested in or involved in politics. Anti-politician: opposed to or against those professionally involved in politics. On any given day, either or both of the above terms could apply to yours truly. The most accurate description is probably to say that the first applies because of the second. If asked to pick, hypothetically speaking, I’d have to choose the right of center as a more comfortable place to exist. That said, not for a moment do I trust Republicans any more than Democrats (or independents, for that matter) to remain unsullied by the power inherent in political office. … Continue reading →

I’ve been trying to follow recent developments in the government’s struggle to pass a spending bill and came across an article by David Rogers of Politico, who noted that Senate Democrats rolled out a year-end, government-wide, 1900-page, $1.1 trillion spending bill Tuesday that cuts more than $26 billion from President Barack Obama’s 2011 requests even as it holds firm to thousands of the appropriations earmarks so adamantly opposed by critics of Congress. It’s only an increase of about 2 percent in annual spending, but it includes a last stand by the Senate’s old bulls before the tea party takeover. As … Continue reading →

A common definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing and expect a different result. By that criteria, America’s longest war in history is truly certifiable. What is so hard about understanding the difficulty of defeating a determined insurgency within a country 7,411 miles away? Afghanistan has been invaded by foreigners too many times to count, and in every case the intruders have been sent packing. If you listen to SecDef Robert Gates, it’s different for us because we aren’t invaders. Well, maybe not to the Afghan government, such as it is, but the Taliban probably wouldn’t agree. … Continue reading →

Here is a perfect example of why we can’t get any new weapons systems bought for the military in an efficient, timely, and cost-effective manner. From Congressional Quarterly‘s John M. Connelly: The Littoral Combat Ship, or LCS, is a new vessel designed to fight closer to shore than most U.S. warships. The Navy has worked with two shipyards — Austal USA in Alabama and Marinette Marine in Wisconsin — each of which has delivered one ship and is building another. The Navy is currently authorized to select between the two companies and have the winner build 10 ships, after which … Continue reading →

History tells us that early consideration of using the airplane as an instrument of war had to deal with the question of whether the recoil of a weapon being fired would result in destruction of the airplane. If that seems ludicrous by today’s standards, let’s remember that the first shot fired from an airplane occurred on Aug. 20, 1910, a mere 6 years, 8 months, and 3 days after the first recorded controlled powered airplane flight. At Sheepshead Bay race track near New York City, with Mr. Glenn Curtiss piloting, Lt. Jacob E. Fickel fired a rifle at a 3-foot-by-5-foot … Continue reading →

Unless you’ve been living on Mars, you can’t have missed the uproar over the new TSA screening procedures. Maybe it’s something you personally don’t care much about, because you think it’s a necessary intrusion on your privacy to protect us all, or you don’t fly on airliners very much, or you’ve decided you won’t ever again just to avoid the aggravation and hassle. In the meantime, each day brings new examples of an issue whose lives will invariably make a cat jealous. To wit: AVweb: TSA Administrator John Pistole said Sunday there are no plans to change controversial security procedures … Continue reading →

Reference an article in the Wall Street Journal of November 13, 2010 by Holman Jenkins, Jr., titled, “Al Qaeda Discovers the Mail Bomb: How about not overreacting for a change?,” I recently published four related posts in the Rants and Raves Logbook that deal with the key issues addressed in this article: 1) our overreaction to the changing nature of the threat of terrorism, and 2) the underlying success realized by terrorists every time we succumb to a knee-jerk compulsion to do something. These posts are: “Airport Security Out of Control,” “Airport Security Update,” “Airport Security – The Hidden Highway,” … Continue reading →