Our position on energy reminds me of what (Winston) Churchill said about America when we took so long to get into World War II. He said, ‘America always does the right thing after exhausting every other alternative.’
A bigdamn interview with Bill Clinton from finance asia. I know he did many MANY things wrong, but he’s still got a better batting average than the current administration. MUCH better. (via mefi)
Ok, so we went to the hill country with some friends this weekend for a collision of culture. First up: The vineyards. I’d never been out to tour and taste before and it was excellent times. You meet some interesting people, and you drink some good wine. Inevitably these places are found off back roads, well away from the main highway, so the scenery i also quite nice.
Next up: The Spicewood Demolition derby. Redneck FUN!!! This was almost unbelievable. The Volunteer fire department holds this every year as a fundraiser, and they now bring in about 3000 people. They even have vegetarian fare. All pics.
This is the coolest thing ever. I found it to be a little intimidating at first, but the idea of web based bookmarks, organized by tags and shareable with others is a pretty cool deal.
Amazingly dumb things people have said about the hurricane. And by people we mean your quasi-elected officals.
This guy has been screaming from the rooftops trying to get things done. Good for him.
When we’re seeing the masses stranded in New Orleans, a common refrain I’ve heard is ‘Why didn’t they leave when they had the chance?’ The answer: they couldn’t. In 2002, the Times-Picayune published a series entitled “Washed Away,” describing the repercussions of a major hurricane.
“100,000 people without transportation will be especially threatened,” the newspaper wrote. “A large population of low-income residents do not own cars and would have to depend on an untested emergency public transportation system to evacuate them.”
Our insane addiction to cars in this country has finally left us with a publicly visible scar. If this had occurred in a European country (or really anywhere with a sizable rail system), more than likely a multitude of transportation options would have been available to citizens of an endangered metropolis. Those with means would drive or fly out, those without, could take the state operated railway out. But, again and again we’ve refused to build these systems in this country, relying instead on an over burdened interstate system that regularly receives failing grades from the ASCE.
How have we waited this long to develop these systems ?
The Port of Southern Louisiana is the fifth largest port in the world according to wikipedia. Between that and I-10 looking like somebody went after it with a ginsu knife, the economic impacts of this thing could be far reaching (the human toll is already horrid). Some are speculating that the loss in import capacity could make $3/Gallon gas look like the good old days.
Again, the real concern is the people affected, but what happens when the economy takes a beating, and the +1million storm victims have to pick up the pieces in the middle of a recession. The economy wasn’t that good to begin with.
