COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Was the White House talking about losing control in Syria or WalMart?

"I think the incident today makes clear that Assad is losing control," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters. "All of our partners internationally need to come together to support a transition.”





This happens on large and small scales every day in US cities. Have you heard much from the black man in the White House? Here is one honest man:


57 comments:

  1. Casualties?

    Property Damage?

    Or, a bunch of young people running around making noise, and laughing?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      From the HuPo,

      Youths who had their house party broken up by the cops quickly moved the rager to a nearby Jacksonville Walmart on Saturday night, creating a veritable flash mob, according to News 4JAX.

      A police report obtained by the station said the group of about 300 destroyed an electronic anti-shop lifting security scanner that costs about $1,500.

      The Florida Times Union reports that the youngsters also allegedly stole snacks and sodas from the store and that gunshots were fired into the air outside the Walmart, but no one was injured.

      Police are looking over video of the incident to determine if charges will be filed, and there was also a report that someone was shot at the preceding house party. Both incidents are under investigation, according to the Times Union..."



      Well, no one was killed so I guess we just write it off as a bunch of youths having fun.

      I'm glad. Initially, I was a little digusted.

      .

      Delete
    2. Yeah, don't get me wrong; they need to track'em down, and arrest'em. You can't have too much of this sort of thing (the operative phrase being "too much.")

      But, a National Emergency? I don' thin' so.

      Delete
    3. .

      Of course it's not a national emergancy, just a disgusting little incident in Jacksonville. Nothing really unexpected these days, quite banal, even expected. Nothing to see here. Unless you are a guy like Fearless (2nd video) who for some reason seems to take it personally.

      However,

      "...too much..."

      Sounds kind of like Obama. I'm still struggling to get the 'essence' of what it means given the context.

      .

      Delete
    4. It is not a little incident. I could put 100’s of these up. These are the ones that have been recorded. They have escalated in number and size because all the white guilt trippers are afraid to notice they are overwhelming black. The apologists are greater contortionists than the Ross sisters in trying to avoid addressing what is obvious to anyone that cares to take off the blinders.

      You have no chance of coming up with anything close to equivalency. Blacks make up 15% of the population. Black youths less than 6%. Black males 15-40 make up 3% and commit 65% of all violent crimes.

      They do it because they can and know that they will get away with it.

      Delete
    5. .

      Apologies, Deuce.

      I forgot to turn the sarcasm font on.

      .

      Delete
    6. They themselves cannot be blamed. After all, they are merely victims. It is Whitey's fault.

      Delete

  2. At present, some 95% of Morocco’s total energy demand is met by imports, primarily of oil, coal and natural gas, Mouline told CleanTechnica. That’s been a big drain on the country’s balance of trade and foreign exchange reserves, which has only surged higher with the run-up in petroleum prices that began around the mid-2000s. The social, political, and environmental ramifications associated with its dependence on fossil fuel imports compound the problems associated with fossil fuel dependence, he noted.


    On the other hand, the cost of electricity from renewables — wind and solar, in particular — is already at or very near parity with grid power from fossil fuel power plants. Newly installed wind power is already cost-competitive with conventional electricity from Morocco’s grid, and new solar power is nearly there, as costs have declined sharply in the past few years, Mouline pointed out, and that’s just looking at renewables from a purely hard and narrow dollars-and-cents perspective.



    Morocco going "Renewable"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Today The European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) has said that 2012 could be the best year ever for offshore wind energy in Europe. Just this year 532.2 megawatts (MW) or 132 offshore wind turbines have been connected to the grid in since January. This is a 50 percent increase compared to the first six months in 2011 when only 348.1 MW were installed.

    Christian Kjaer, CEO of EWEA noted that this feat was achieved despite global economic and financial turmoil. “Offshore wind power creates jobs in Europe, reduces our fuel import costs, and avoids the global and local health and environmental costs of extracting, transporting and burning fossil fuels. Offshore wind power is increasingly attracting investors, including pension funds and other institutional and corporate investors, but it would be good to see more activity in southern Europe where jobs, investments and growth are desperately needed.”

    In addition to what is currently operational, there are another 160 turbines, representing 647.4 MW of energy built and waiting to be connected to the grid. Factors affecting the speed of connection include weather conditions at sea and grid connection delays. Moving forward there are 13 offshore wind farms under construction and when completed will add another 3,762 MW of capacity.

    To date, there is a total of 4,336 MW offshore wind capacity up from 3,294 MW in June 2011. This is enough electricity to energize 4 million average sized homes.


    Offshore Wind in Europe

    ReplyDelete
  4. So, here we go. Europe and Japan are in Recession, and the U.S. is right on the knife's edge, but Louisiana Light Sweet Crude is back to $107.57.

    Bottom Line: There's enough oil production for Half of the World to grow (and, we're in the wrong half.)

    It's going to get worse.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
  5. Nat Gas Up 64% since the now-famous "Rufus Bottom." :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. btw, nat gas production in our top-producing state (Texas) was Down 20% YOY in the last month reported (April.)

    ReplyDelete
  7. The Energy Information Administration forecasts natural gas storage will reach a record-high 4.04 trillion cubic feet by October. It hit 2.5 trillion cubic feet last month, the highest March inventory since the agency started recording natural gas storage in 1994. The previous record was March 2006, when the country shouldered 1.9 trillion cubic feet.

    A smart baker will quit baking bread when he has loaves stacked high and wide.

    ReplyDelete
  8. The EIA is, to use a technical term, full of shit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nat gas in storage was 3,163 Bcuft as of last Friday. That was an increase of 28 Bcuft for the week. I figure we'll add, on average, about 30 Bcuft/wk for the next six or seven weeks. After that, maybe 6o Bcuft/wk into October. We'll probably be somewhere around 3,700 to 3,800 Bcuft when we level out at the start of Winter.

      The EIA is greatly overestimating Production (esp. in Texas,) and underestimating Demand from utilities that have switched over from coal to nat gas.

      Delete
    2. I expect to see $15.00 nat gas within a year (give or take a couple of months.)

      Delete
    3. The "trick," according to Wayne Gretzky - "Don't skate to where the puck Is; skate to where the puck is going."

      Delete
    4. Your numbers work out 6% different than EIA and you call them full of shit!? What's that make you?

      Delete
    5. It makes me "right," and them "wrong."

      Delete
    6. And, if you must know, I'm leaving myself a little "headroom" on the upside.

      Delete
    7. The EIA is, to use a technical term, full of shit.

      Of course they are, Rufus, they contradict what you say.

      Delete
    8. The important question isn't so much the amount of gas in storage in Oct., but the amount that's getting "Produced" in October. And, the EIA is Greatly Overestimating "Production" (and, in my estimation, Missing the trend toward FALLING Production.)

      Delete
    9. Here's the best ex. I can give: EIA has Texas production in April at 606.465 Bcuft.

      EIA Gas Production by State

      However, the definitive word from the Texas RR Commission is 505.775 Bcuft.

      TRRC Numbers

      The EIA "surveys" certain producers. The TRRC levies heavy fines, and in the case of "knowingly misreporting," jail time, for incorrect information.

      The EIA is off by 101 Bcuft in April in Texas, alone.

      Delete
    10. .

      Forget it, Gag.

      I started to get into it again on his post above regarding oil then pulled my comment. It's a waste of time. He used to talk about supply. Since no one is currently hurting for supply he talks about production. If you convinced him that production was down because of a worldwide recession and lack of demand, he would merely pick some other metric to try and prove his initial point.

      In the next year, there will likely be more harm done to the US by the drought and its effects than any shortage of NG.

      .

      Delete
    11. Read much, Q? I've stated before that nat gas production is starting to fall because the drilling rigs have left for the oil patch.

      Delete
    12. I was just explaining why I think nat gas still has a way to run.

      Delete
  9. Damn, it's a zombie that arises.
    A vamp to tough to die.

    Seems that the Russians will not let US hand Syria over to the Islamoids.
    Not yet, anyway.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      DR, while there is no doubt we need a central bank, I'm moving closer to your position that we need major reforms in the institution.

      What I didn't know was that when the FED lends the government money by buying T-bills, under current law, the transaction has to be handled through a commercial bank. That means that the government doesn't get to pay the FED overnight rate, instead they have to pay that rate plus the spread. So at say a 3% spread, the government would be paying an extra $30 billion in interest charges to the 12 federal reserve banks.

      If this is the way it works, the law should be changed so that the US doesn't pay any kind of spread or the FED should be nationalized. IMO.

      .

      Delete
  10. It's getting good...

    Palestinians now siding with the rebels in syria, 130k of them.... this after decades of support for them..

    Hezbollah supporting Assad in Lebanon...

    Gots to love the Arabs love hate relationship with each other....

    I gots popcorn, I gots sodi-pop...

    I gots a ring side seat...

    Cant wait for the palestinians of lebanon to have another mass kick in the ass (by the sunni)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Let's teach Rufus to make a sandwich -

    http://houseofsunny.tv/2012/07/19/new-sunny-tv-yall/#comments

    (but wait, did he make it himself?)

    b

    ReplyDelete
  12. Assad is going to get a trip out of there on a Russian destroyer.

    Pendleton, Oregon has a super stadium for rodeo and roundup. I have a new cowboy hat and boots. You are jealous.

    The Wildhorse Casino has living dealers.

    We saw 20 elk on the outskirts of Walla Walla.

    I saw one row crop, onions.

    I saw grapes a growing all over the place.

    You could throw on a great drunk just by going to the wine tastings in Walla Walla, the are so many wineries now.

    I didn't see any stoop laborers. They all went back to Mexico.

    Deuce did not build this blog. Somebody else did if for him.

    This is the argumentation used before the argument that comes next which is - you don't own your business, or your farm, or your factory, somebody else does.

    We do!!

    Hoohoocaboo! You don't own it, we do!

    b

    ReplyDelete
  13. Another taxpayer funded solar start up went bellies up in Las Vegas recently but I won't mention to so as not to make anyone feel bad. They have lots and lots of sun in Las Vegas, and really don't need to heat their homes there anyway so what difference does it really make? It was only many, many $millions.

    b

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. An added benefit is nobody will be arguing about who owns the company.

      b

      Delete
    2. It was a relatively small company that was trying to manufacture a "Concentrating" Solar Panel - a pretty tough sell. It wasn't much money. A few million.

      Delete
  14. Obama made a really stupid statement there. But way down deep it does have some truth lurking down there. No one is self sufficient. There is no such thing as a self sufficient farmer, for instance. My objection is along the line of it being a kind of opening argumentation to going whole hog expropriation.
    .......


    Well, a few million here, a few million there, pretty soon you are talking some real money.

    b

    ReplyDelete
  15. Since I look so good now
    At the top and the toes
    It's around the sagging middle
    I need some new clothes

    b

    ReplyDelete
  16. Discord among the Syrian opposition arises largely from differences between the Brotherhood and secular liberal groups, a senior Western diplomat said.

    The emergence of al Qaeda-affiliated groups has added a menacing dimension.

    ...

    Dmitri Simes, a former adviser to President Richard Nixon who heads the Center for the National Interest in Washington, said Moscow is "concerned that Muslim fundamentalists, not just the Muslim Brotherhood, but people more extreme, might come to power and it would be destabilizing for the region."

    ReplyDelete
  17. "All the border points between Iraq and Syria are under the control of the Free Syrian Army (FSA)," Iraq's Deputy Interior Minister, Adnan al-Assadi, told Agence France-Presse. There were also unconfirmed reports that posts along the border with Turkey had been seized by FSA forces.

    ...

    Still, the results of the Syrian army's renewed pledge to crush the "terrorists" were just becoming clear yesterday. Reports emerged that 92 people were killed as troops shelled a funeral in the Damascus suburb of Sayeda Zaineb.

    Videos purporting to show the aftermath pictured mangled bodies lined up in a local mosque, where activists said they had been taken for identification and final prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  18. For many Americans Mormons are scary, or weird, or at least not the sort of folk you’d want marrying your first lady. Last year a Gallup poll found that 22 percent of the country would not support a Mormon candidate for president.

    ...

    Our story starts in the early 19th century, a spiritually rambunctious period now known the Second Great Awakening. Big camp meetings drew thousands of Americans to multiday festivals of prayer, with worshippers falling into trances and speaking in tongues.

    ...

    When Mormons clustered in a single location, the fear that they might steal Christian bodies and souls through kidnapping and conversion was joined by another anxiety: the fear that they would steal American institutions by voting en masse, installing a government that would replace the republic with a theocracy. And since you couldn’t expect such a subversive menace to limit its efforts to the ballot box, another story began to take hold as well: that the church commanded an army of assassins, dubbed the Danites, to inflict its will by force.

    ReplyDelete
  19. "The Three Stooges could do a better job" -- could do a better job than Obama at throwing money away.

    But, it was only a paltry 21 million this time.

    http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2012/07/another_solar_bust_for_obama.html

    ....

    Unconfirmed rumor has it that Mrs. Assad may have boogied on to Russia ahead of hubby. She would be smarter to take her cut somehow and high-tail it back to England, cause the game appears to be nearly up, and it's cold, cold, cold in Russia and even English rain is better than that.

    If she were really smart she'd disappear into Australia and start over, though she may be a little old for it.

    b

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wu Xinfang, a 43-year old stay-at-home mother of two, said her sister called her excitedly at 4 p.m. Thursday once she got confirmation she could purchase an iPad. From Datong in Shanxi province but visiting Beijing for the summer with her children, Ms. Wu said that she would pick up the iPad for her sister and bring it back to Datong in August.

    Ms. Wu said she arrived early because she was worried about the crowds. Still, it was more out of duty to her sister than love for the product that she came out.

    “I like things that are more practical,” she said, flashing her old-style keypad phone. “The iPad is for playing, watching TV and playing video games, but I don’t like to spend more than a few hundred yuan on products.”

    ReplyDelete
  21. Barmates!!!!

    Here is the correct attitude to take to the goings on in Syria....


    Politics

    `In our time the destiny of man presents its meanings in
    political terms' - Thomas Mann

    HOW can I, that girl standing there,
    My attention fix
    On Roman or on Russian
    Or on Spanish politics?
    Yet here's a travelled man that knows
    What he talks about,
    And there's a politician
    That has read and thought,
    And maybe what they say is true
    Of war and war's alarms,
    But O that I were young again
    And held her in my arms!


    :)

    b

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Forgot to say that's by William Butler Yeats.

      b

      Delete
  22. Was the choomer married in college? Photos tell some kind of tale, but what?

    http://www.wnd.com/2012/07/was-barack-obama-married-in-college/

    Maybe he was just faking it for some reason or other, like most everything else.

    But why?

    Look at that smart ass piece of crap we've elected President.

    b

    ReplyDelete
  23. Replies
    1. From the looks of that, one of those Z-hos could limber that stop sign up a bit, attach you to it, Quirk, and flip you all the way back to Detroit.

      Impressive.

      b

      Delete
    2. .

      On another subject, on the cable show Flight of the Concords, the two singers from New Zealand are always insinuating that people from Australia and New Zealand don't like each other. Any truth to that?

      .

      Delete
    3. I can't remember a war, but that's not saying much. The New Zealanders have backed out of that Anzus treaty have they not?

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANZUS

      gnite

      b

      Delete
    4. There is some really good trout fishing in New Zealand. Maybe they don't like Aussies coming over and fishing their waters. I wouldn't.

      b

      Delete
  24. Unfortunately, no. No stop sign pole pole dancers. Them crazy kiwis.

    No, aussies and kiwis get along o.k. It may have been like that some time ago but it's a.o.k. now. We do have great sport rivalries. Cricket and rugby and what-not.

    Although, aussies do look down on kiwis as dumb sheep fuckers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's no reason not to like a man!

      b

      Delete
  25. Yeah, New Zealand has basically banned US from it's waters because of their anti-nuclear stance.

    ReplyDelete
  26. How do Kiwis find sheep in tall grass?

    Delightfull!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Yeah, there fishing is supposed to be great there. I've never been there. I would like to go. Supposed to be spectacular.

    ReplyDelete