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."

Monday, December 25, 2006

Little Peter and The Wolf.

The story of Little Peter and the Pooty Wolf takes place in Texas in a meadow behind Little Peter's pretend ranch. Little Peter was staying at his daddy’s house, and in his room he had a view of the wide dry fields that overlooked a decrepit forest. Early one morning as the first rays of light crept in the window of Little Peter's room, Little Peter woke up and got dressed as fast as he could. Little Peter was very energetic and couldn't wait to go outside and play. In his Daddy's backyard was a gigantic tree that Little Peter loved to climb and a tall stone wall with a strong metal gate that kept Little Peter out of the dangers that lurked in the forest beyond the meadow.

As soon as Little Peter was dressed he ran outside into the backyard to climb his favorite tree. The tree hung over the large meadow which Little Peter found tempting. In the middle of the meadow was a big pond, a pond beyond which Little Peter never much ventured. Little Peter thought that it would be lots of fun to run around and sing and play in the meadow. He was aware, however, of the numerous warnings from his Daddy not to go into the meadow. Little Peter wasn't afraid of the dangerous animals in the forest so he went anyway.

Little Peter opened the gate and ran into the meadow while singing a melody. After a while Little Peter heard someone else singing a song. It was a bird, chirping along while flying graciously through the sky. "Hello bird," Little Peter said. "Isn't it a lovely day outside?". The little bird sang Little Peter a seductive song and Little Peter was very happy to have someone to sing with. Little Peter and the bird sang together while approaching the cool pond in the middle of the meadow. At the pond they met a chubby, yellow duck. The duck and the bird immediately began to quarrel as they decided which one was a better bird. "What kind of bird are you if you can't fly?" chirped the bird, "what kind of bird are you if you can't swim?" quacked the duck. They continued to fight not paying attention to anything that was going on around them. Little Peter's Daddy was paying attention however and he heard his cat creeping out into the meadow, ever so quietly. The cat spotted the bird and couldn't wait to have lunch. The cat crept closer and closer to the bird, it was ready to pounce when, "look out!" cried Little Peter's Daddy to the bird, the bird quickly flew out of the reach of the cat and onto a limb of the tree in Little Peter's backyard.

"What are you doing out here in the meadow?" asked Little Peter's Daddy. "I have told you time and time again that it is no place for you to play. There are dangerous animals in the forest just beyond the meadow. Do you want them to eat you?" Little Peter wasn't afraid of any animals. He knew in his heart and soul they would not hurt anything, but his Daddy dragged him back behind the safety of the wall and locked the gate. He thought he hid the key, but Little Peter knew best.

Just as Little Peter got onto the other side of the gate a Pooty Wolf came lurking out of the forest. The cat was asleep on the ground for he knew it wasn't worth the trouble of climbing the tree to catch the bird because the bird would fly away before he could get there. The Pooty Wolf crept closer and closer. The bird quickly noticed the Pooty Wolf and chirped alarmingly at the cat and duck. The cat quickly awoke and climbed up into the safety of the tree. The duck however quacked so franticly with fear that she jumped out of the pond and started to run for Little Peter's backyard. The duck waddled as fast as she could but the Pooty Wolf was much faster. The Pooty Wolf came closer and closer and finally "gulp." The Pooty Wolf swallowed the duck whole.


The wolf will continue to swallow more and more ducks, and little Peter and his friends better start to notice. The Washington Post has. Read it The new threat to Europe here.



73 comments:

  1. Miztuh Habu say it be Christmas,when da little baby Jesus escaped get et by da Pooty Wolf.

    So dat calls fo a Merry Christmas to ALL,
    Luv,
    PossumTater

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  2. Here is one British company led by an officer who must have missed the course on the "Marquess of Queensberry Rules."

    ....Backed by tanks and armored personnel carriers, British troops conducted a raid in the city of Basra after receiving intelligence that a renegade group of Iraqi police might execute its prisoners at its station, the British military said. British troops have periodically conducted raids in an effort to root out corruption in the local police force, which has been infiltrated by Shiite militias.

    Leaders of the police station's serious crimes unit were suspected of involvement with local death squads, and seven were apprehended three days ago in raids, said Lt. Jenny Saleh of the British Royal Navy in Basra.

    "We had intelligence to indicate that the serious crimes unit would execute its prisoners in the coming days, so we decided to intervene," Saleh said without elaborating.

    British troops were fired on as they approached the station and killed seven gunmen, said Maj. Charlie Burbridge, a British military spokesman.

    British and Iraqi forces transferred all 76 prisoners at the police station to another detention facility in downtown Basra, he said. Once the station was evacuated, British forces destroyed it with explosives."... AP

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  3. Say hello to the Three Spirits of Christmas for me, 'tater: Gin, Brandy & Bourbon.

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  4. Bourbon? Proof of the cultural inferiority of the american imperialists. *hic*

    Christmas greetings to all american cultural imperialist blog commenters.

    There is no such thing as single malt bourbon.

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  5. Then there's all those Rats, and Habus, and Allens, and 2164's, and Whits, and Rufuses, and T's, and Bobs, and Rems, and Pabs, and others out there who woke up on their ninth Christmas and found a 410 Shotgun under the tree, and whose fathers took them out back to the meadow and said, "Son, if you see a wolf you aim down the barrel like this, and you pull the trigger until he's stone cold dead.

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  6. Peacekeeper, there's also no such thing as a "Single" Bourbon.

    *hic*

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  7. Ah ... wolfs.

    Wonderfull animals. Best viewed from behind a chain link fence, or through a gunsight. But the eyes, the eyes! Shine yellow like halogen fog lights. Met a girl with eyes like that once. Terrifying.

    Of course, not having wolves makes for piss weak children. No fear and no threat makes for no valor and a bunch a little hippies.

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  8. Peacekeeper, there's also no such thing as a "Single" Bourbon.

    You may well be right - assuming the first one can be choked down aginst the order of nature decreed - theres no point in stopping at that.

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  9. It was a Savage .410 and 22 magnum, over/under.
    One round in each tube.
    Reloading was slow, do not miss with that first, usually only, shot.

    Peace thru superior firepower.

    Happy New Year

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  10. It was a Savage .410 and 22 magnum, over/under.
    One round in each tube.
    Reloading was slow, do not miss with that first, usually only, shot.


    That is nay no gun for wolf, who come in six packs.

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  11. I'll bet on the farm kid with that gun, Peaceable one; You wanna take the Wolf?

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  12. True indeed, f.p. that the little Savage was not suited for hunting wolves, but neither was the nine year old that recieved it.

    Forty plus years later, we can run down the wolves, a horseback, and shoot 'em in the head, with handguns, for sport.

    But there are few wolves left in our neck of the woods. Just an occasional lobo, migrating north out of Mexico.

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  13. Rufus,

    I too will bet the farm on the kid with the gun, but only if it is "a wolf" of even " The Wolf".

    The point being : not often one sees a wolf in the singular. Figure the 410 nails one (or more with double aught if bunched and close), but the 22 mag may merely make Mr Wolf angry.

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  14. Peaceman, the old-timers would have a shell between their third and fourth fingers. This would allow them to get off two shots in less than 3 seconds.

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  15. Too bad DR.

    Hunting wolves on horseback with a six iron, now that sounds like sport indeed.

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  16. Wolves live in the US, today, because they make interesting pets. Otherwise they've all been identified and killed.
    With debate about "reestablishing" a "range" for them, here and there in the wild parts of the US.

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  17. Anyway, it's all moot to start with, isn't it. Wolves don't operate that way. They are as a general rule scared to death of humans, even small ones, with guns. They ain't dumb.

    Anyway, Merry Christmas, everyone.

    :)

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  18. Anyway, it's all moot to start with, isn't it. Wolves don't operate that way. They are as a general rule scared to death of humans, even small ones, with guns. They ain't dumb.

    Agreed, agreed.

    With debate about "reestablishing" a "range" for them, here and there in the wild parts of the US

    Cool. They are increasing by leaps and bounds in Latvia all by themselves, and theres been a spate of bears wandering around apparently. Grand stuff. Must take a bourbon and cigar, sit on the patio tonight and just listen.

    Merry Christmas y'all.

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  19. They are increasing by leaps and bounds in Latvia all by themselves,

    I guess with the Communists losing control people are eating more beef, and less wolf and bear meat, huh?

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  20. I will say it again and again...

    energy, oil & gas... that is the issue...

    I now buy my soy/fryer oil from sysco, 35 pounds (or 5 gallons) for about 15 bucks...

    i blend in the tank of my diesel benz with 10% diesel

    and guess what.... unless it's 8 degrees it works fine

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  21. There's no saving These Muzzie Mo******ers.

    It's time to boogie.

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  22. lst time i checked the greater the CUSTOMER the greater the power...

    now in this oil world the supplier holds the cards...

    how about trade tariffs on all products exported to all opec members of let's say 700%?

    how about a manhattan project to reduce oil from the middle east?

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  23. "Occupation," we will spend $260,000,000,000.00 This Year on Imported Oil.

    We will spend $170,000,000,000.00 In the ME, keeping the oil flowing.

    That's $430 BILLION.

    Any Questions?

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  24. I'm telling you, there's not a Living Thing on this Planet that can't be turned into Automobile Fuel for less than $60.00 a barrel.

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  25. Let's face it folks, the Saudi Princes, the Mad Mullahs, and Hugo Chavez like the Present Set-up pretty good. So do the fine folks at Exxon, BP, Shell, and Vladimir Putin.

    As for the rest of us; We're getting played like Idiots.

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  26. An Odd Christmas Story from a Friend:

    "So, we were at midnight mass tonight, as before the services even started, a man in the pew in front of us starting having cunvulsions. The women next to him, whom we think was his sister with his niece, started screaming for help. His eyes rolled back in his head as he started to vomit and passed out. As several other parishoners closed in on him, quite a few people were shouting out tips until three people took control of the situation: two doctors and a nurse. About half the parish was on their cell phones calling for an ambulance.

    He stopped breathing, and the nurse couldn't find a pulse, so she actually started doing CPR. Luckily, they were able to resucitate him. His family was talking to people around them, and it turned out he wasn't feeling very well beforehand and almost stayed home. If he had, he certainly would have died. Also, had they decided to show up closer to the time mass started, he might have been behind the wheel when this happened, and who knows what would have happened then. He came to pretty quickly, and was fairly aware of where he was, though he seemed really embarassed about having done this in church. The paramedics came and asked him questions, and it turns out he was diabetic and hadn't been paying attention to what he was eating or drinking that day, which could have been what triggered the seizure and the subsequent (and thankfully brief) diabetic coma.

    They wheeled him away, and took him to the hospital, and it looked like he was going to be just fine, but honestly, the ony reason he was even alive right now is because he made the choice to go to church at EXACTLY the right time. Like I said, if he stayed home, or had been behind the wheel of a car just minutes before, there'd be a family out there having possibly the worst Christmas ever.

    The moral of this story? Going to church saved this man's life. Honestly, who saw THAT coming? I guess crawling out of bed on Sunday mornings just got a little easier for me tonight...

    Merry Christmas."

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  27. Rufuster said, "I'm telling you, there's not a Living Thing on this Planet that can't be turned into Automobile Fuel for less than $60.00 a barrel."

    Except caviar, truffles, and escargot.

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  28. OKAY, Blue Fin Tuna might be Problematic, also, but your aunt Martha is still, very much, in the game.

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  29. T, I bet myself a million dollars that you would be the one to post that exact post.

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  30. Merry Christmas to you all!

    This blog is something strange, like an organism that fascinatingly breaks all the rules.

    If I survive all the fallout and Mad Max mayhem, I'll tell others of these gathering places and all that a man could learn just by listening. It will be a new hour of wolves, fellowship having fallen to fashions of the day, a setup for a biblical reckoning. They'll probably think I'm crazy. No such place as here and the BC could exist, they'd be sure.

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  31. Pab, places like this have been with us, always.

    We used to call them, "Insane Asylums." :)

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  32. Or, in less polite (my) circles, "Nut Houses."

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  33. Well, nature has some bottlenecks when it comes to making blue fin tuna, truffles and caviar.

    All those bottlenecks can be widened, if we choose to do so.

    What I'm waiting for is USDA prime thats grown in a lab - or something that's a quality unattainable by the whole kit and kaboodle of grappling and intertwined organ systems.

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  34. we choose to be held at bay...

    the brilliance of the Sharon plan is divorce

    the brilliance of my plan is to make our enemies irrelevant

    We MUST make all who holds sway over us irrelevant.

    From an abusive ex-spouse or friend, to the middle east, to other faiths that seek our changing...

    this is not for anyone group of people but for all!

    we should not have an UN United Nations, but rather a UN of similar ethical peoples and practices.

    What good does it do to give autocrats and mass murderers a MORE than equal say of the free peoples of the world?

    1st step, private citizens need to step up to the plate.

    It is happening, not as a hippy left wing movement, but rather as an a secure supply chain issue, sustainable business plan, R/I issue & others. Using waste oil burners for selected factories instead of diesel, recycling plastics from trash dumps to be turned into petro-burning pellets, we have all the resources we need. Using solar, bio-fuels, tidal & water generation, nuclear power and wind can be used in conjuction with more traditional methods to wean ourselves off autocratic/facist oil & natural gas supplies.

    The combustion engine is one of the least changed mechanical devices in the last 100 years. That same piston based engine burns at about a rate of 20%


    3. Ratings of Efficiency

    There are many different ways to find the efficiency of an engine, and many different parts of an engine that you can rate the efficiency.

    Thermal efficiency is the percentage of energy taken from the combustion which is actually converted to mechanical work. In a typical low compression engine, the thermal efficiency is only about 26%. In a highly modified engine, such as a race engine, the thermal efficiency is about 34%.

    Mechanical efficiency is the percentage of energy that the engine puts out after subtracting mechanical losses such as friction, compared to what the engine would put out with no power loss. Most engines are about 94% mechanically efficient.

    This means that for a stock engine, only 20% of the power in fuel combustion is effective.

    http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/102spring2002_Web_projects/Z.Yates/Zach's%20Web%20Project%20Folder/EICE%20-%20Main.htm

    so think of it....

    if we went from 20% to 40% how much oil would we need from russia? saudia arabia? opec? Disputed oil fields in AK?

    technology is where it's at....

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  35. One good thing about those grappling and intertwined organ systems is, They're really good at turning grass into Methane;" and, methane is a better automotive fuel than petroleum, ethanol, or even "Aunt Martha."

    Although, MY Aunt Louise was pretty good at producing "Methane," her damned self.

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  36. "Occupation," probably the most efficient set-up we'll have for awhile (of course, like all science/technology this is subject to Rapid Change) is an electric engine running off of Solar Generated Electricity.

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  37. Considering how most people don't drive more than forty miles/day, at least half of our population could be traveling this way in ten years.

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  38. I think the new Stirling Co/S Cal Edison Solar Farm opening in the Spring in Southern California is going to open some eyes.

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  39. Of course, as I am SO fond of saying, . . . . .wait for it . . . . Half of all the Scientists that have ever lived are working, Today.

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  40. Rufuster said, "T, I bet myself a million dollars that you would be the one to post that exact post."

    Well, gosh Rufus, you should have bet yourself a million liters of petrol, unless you have a way to turn your sudden windfall of a million bucks into alt.energy

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  41. Rufus,

    You're right - you gotta respect the cows gut - pigs too. But we can probably mechanize that - scale it up so the input is cheaper than feed and the whole operation isn't constrained by life cycles of those blessed metabolic processes.

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  42. Ah, myself didn't take the bet. Myself was afraid that I would actually want to get paid in cash, or kernels of corn, or something. And, Myself ain't got a million of "Nuthin."

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  43. Shoot, shovel, and shut-up is the slogan about wolves around here, out here in the wilds. With a little help from the Feds, the Nez Perce Tribe and the always f-d up Idaho Fish and Game, we now have wolves coming out our ears. And Elk sinking to their knees by the hundreds. All predictable. You reintroduce the wolves, make it illegal to kill them, they explode in population, run the Elk to exhaustion, and turn on the cattle. Now we are in the de-listing phase of this experiment, and the cattlemen are fighting back. Guy I know heard some howling one night, went outside, shined a big flashlight around, and there's six or eight huge yellow eyes shining back at him. Kind of spooky he said. Fired his gun in the air, they all took off, but I wouldn't let your little six year old Annie play far from the farm, alone, after dark these days.

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  44. Pab, see my two oclock link.

    As per Cow's guts, and stuff

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  45. Rufus,

    Its plenty exciting. If we can achieve energy independence, we'll need some triumphant ceremony, like nuking a city or landing on the moon. Something indisputable and for the history books.

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  46. I got a couple of cities in mind, in case they're interested.

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  47. Gotta love the Aussies. Laying on the Beach in Red Bikinis, and wearing Santa Clause Hats. Some even brought Christmas Trees.

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  48. God bless you all - I've gotta attend to the relatives.

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  49. Regarding Deuce's post: There is really quite a lot being done that the Post, being a Mainstream Moron source didn't notice.

    There are about 7,000 small communities in Germany and Austria, as Elephant Bar patrons know, that are supplying their own gas through gassification of bio sources.

    MSM, always the LAST to the Story.

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  50. I think I stated that wrong. I think what I read was that there are 7,000 small projects producing biogas there, not seven thousand small communities. Anyway, they're making a good start of it, and I've gotta go over to Doyle's Room and play a Poker Tournament.

    See ya, later; much later, I hope! and, again, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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  51. What is occupation said, "if we went from 20% to 40% how much oil would we need from russia? saudia arabia? opec? Disputed oil fields in AK?"

    You make the common error of assuming that all variables except thermal efficiency will remain constant. If engines suddenly doubled in efficiency, people would suddenly find them cost-effective for a host of applications we are not currently using them for. There would be gas-powered table saws, gas powered doghouse air-conditioners, and gas powered banana straighteners. There would be a new equilibrium, and as always, demand for fossil fuels would reach stasis with the supply.

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  52. WC, I don't believe that's necessarily the way it works. We've seen huge swings in the price of energy over the last few years, but they seemed to have virtually no affect on demand for fuel.

    Be honest; have your driving habits changed much over the last year, or so? Would they change much if your automobile suddenly became considerably more fuel efficient?

    As for gas powered table saws, well that would just lessen the demand for electricity then, wouldn't it?

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  53. From the "On The Road To Victory In Iraq" thread:

    "It's just too damn bad for a lot of folks that there's not a roadmap or playbook they could consult daily to give comfort that a CONFLICT is going along the right timetable.

    Those same folks are the ones that want an EXIT strategy outlined BEFORE the conflict begins.

    Well ya know, in wars and conflicts it just doesn't work that way. That doesn't diminish an iota their constant bellyaching about how it should have been done this wat or that.
    Of course they have no humint,elint,ECHELON, or any other intel but the do have mouthy opionions on just what should happen."

    And thank you for all YOUR patience and forbearance, Gen. LeMay.

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  54. Rufus said, "We've seen huge swings in the price of energy over the last few years, but they seemed to have virtually no affect on demand for fuel."

    Affluent countries like the USA can afford to maintain a constant demand in the face of higher prices, but oil is a global commodity so the equation needs to take into account the demand of all countries.

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  55. Again, WC, Global demand has held very steady at about 84 million gallons/day. Now, I'm not saying it wouldn't have increased a little bit if prices hadn't surged, but, then again, they have come down in the last few months, but demand seems more or less, the same.

    Remember, a LOT of the poorer countries subsidize the snot out of gasoline, and Europe taxes the crap out of it. These are both market-distorting mechanisms.

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  56. Look, all I'm saying is that in reality, gasoline/oil demand doesn't seem to be quite as elastic as one might theorize it would be.

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  57. Sorry to cut in, but reading the last paragraphs of this article in todays JPOST gave me a good chuckle,..


    Exclusive: Bethlehem fears terror by Nativity gunmen

    Reports that Israel is considering allowing a group of gunmen who were deported in 2002 after hiding inside the Church of the Nativity to return home have left some Christian residents here seriously concerned for their safety.

    Thirteen of the gunmen were deported to different European countries, while another 26 were expelled to the Gaza Strip.
    .
    .

    "They used to take cigarettes and other goods for free from my neighbors," he recalled. "When they were deported from the city, there was a sigh of relief not only among Christians, but some Muslims as well. Let's hope that when they come back, they will return to normal life."

    The few Christians who agreed to go on the record had only words of praise for the gunmen.

    "They are heroes," said Bishara Hazboun, a 22-year-old university student. "There's no difference between Christians and Muslims and we are all one people. Some people have been trying to defame the fighters by spreading all kinds of lies against them. I never saw them do any harm."

    http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1164881976518&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

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  58. Sorry to cut in, but reading the last paragraphs of this article in todays JPOST gave me a good chuckle,..


    Exclusive: Bethlehem fears terror by Nativity gunmen

    Reports that Israel is considering allowing a group of gunmen who were deported in 2002 after hiding inside the Church of the Nativity to return home have left some Christian residents here seriously concerned for their safety.

    Thirteen of the gunmen were deported to different European countries, while another 26 were expelled to the Gaza Strip.
    .
    .

    "They used to take cigarettes and other goods for free from my neighbors," he recalled. "When they were deported from the city, there was a sigh of relief not only among Christians, but some Muslims as well. Let's hope that when they come back, they will return to normal life."

    The few Christians who agreed to go on the record had only words of praise for the gunmen.

    "They are heroes," said Bishara Hazboun, a 22-year-old university student. "There's no difference between Christians and Muslims and we are all one people. Some people have been trying to defame the fighters by spreading all kinds of lies against them. I never saw them do any harm."

    http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1164881976518&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

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  59. Yep, their only crime was in selecting the wrong PR agency.

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  60. Two of the Iranians were found and detained at an al Hakim, SCIRI compound, not a Sadrite one.
    Some confusion on that point up thread.
    Mr al-Hakim, if you recall, wisited with Mr Bush at the White House. One of the "Allies" in the "reconstructed" Maliki Government. The one that Mr Sistani killed yesterday, before it was born

    Remember, there is little difference 'tween SCIRI and the Mahdi Army, except for individuals, the ideology is mirrored in each.

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  61. Looks like another FUBAR Moment, Rat.

    The talking points seem to have gotten all snarled up, again.

    There is not one chance on God's Green Earth that that bunch is ever going to pull of anything within a thousand miles of "Democracy."

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  62. Rufus,
    How bout a cost estimate, ballpark like, of how much it would have cost to electrify Baghdad at today's measly levels with solar setups?
    No central power stations to blow up, no need to store gas at home for generators, no noise, no power lines to blow up or steal, and virtually no cost after initial outlay.
    Be a good demo of how totally lacking in vision we've become in our addicted state.

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  63. Doug, what we gotta do here is some Manhattan project type thinking. Not of what we have, but what we CAN have.

    For instance, a solar panel/system that would fulfill the needs of the typical Baghdad dwelling (there's, I guess, about a million of them) which is much less square ft than an American house would probably be about (I'm really going to guess here) $10,000 - $15,000 if we called up our local slick-talking solar salesman to come out and stick it to us.

    HOWEVER, if an order for one million solar systems were put out for bid, what would it cost?

    I'll betcha Five Thousand Smackeroos per house would get the job done. Fifty days of Iraqi oil revenue, or probably 40 days of Total revenue (oil, plus taxes,) or TWO FUCKING WEEKS OF OUR INVOLVEMENT.

    Of course, we could underwrite/guarantee a Bond for them in which case the Debt Service would be about $350 Million/year which would be about three and a half days of oil revenue.

    Of course it would have to be set up where the homeowner had some skin in the game which would mean that he would have to pay a nominal fee; let's say $15.00/mo. That would cut the Government's debt service down to $170 Million/yr, or less than two days oil revenue.

    If the homeowner maintained the system, and made his payments he would get ownership of his system on a date certain, say 10 yr.s

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  64. To get it done in a year you would need at least 4000 installation crews which would put 15 to 20 thousand young men to work. Probably another 10 thousand jobs would be created in ancillary jobs (training, shipping, warehousing, etc.)

    Plus, it would KICK-START THE HELL out of our Solar Industry, here. Those Five Billion Dollar Orders have a tendency to do that.

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  65. There's a heck of a show coming up in thirty minutes on the Science Channel. "The Real Eve" Using DNA to track the migration out of Africa.

    In the end they test the DNA of 5 people in Chicago, and find a common ancestor for a Greek woman, and a Native American Cree Indian. A woman in Russia (Probably) 30,000 years, ago.

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  66. Someday they'll find the common ancestor to all the stained dresses in the 1970-2006 Primeevil Epic.

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  67. Thanks for the Solar Baghdad Ballpark,
    some things would just be too easy.
    ---
    Us Beta Bloggers don't have trashcans anymore:
    My other link for this thread is mistakenly stuck in the
    Karaoke Thread Sorry
    ---
    They Toil to keep us safe.

    ...in which top F.B.I. officials drew blanks when asked basic questions about Islam. One of the bemused officials was Gary Bald, then the bureau’s counterterrorism chief. Such expertise, Mr. Bald maintained, wasn’t as important as being a good manager.

    A few months later, I asked the F.B.I.’s spokesman, John Miller, about Mr. Bald’s comments. “A leader needs to drive the organization forward,” Mr. Miller told me. “If he is the executive in a counterterrorism operation in the post-9/11 world, he does not need to memorize the collected statements of Osama bin Laden, or be able to read Urdu to be effective. ... Playing ‘Islamic Trivial Pursuit’ was a cheap shot for the lawyers and a cheaper shot for the journalist. It’s just a gimmick.”
    ---
    Representative Jo Ann Davis, a Virginia Republican who heads a House intelligence subcommittee charged with overseeing the C.I.A.’s performance in recruiting Islamic spies and analyzing information, was similarly dumbfounded when I asked her if she knew the difference between Sunnis and Shiites.
    “Do I?”
    she asked me.
    A look of concentration came over her face. “You know, I should.” She took a stab at it: “It’s a difference in their fundamental religious beliefs. The Sunni are more radical than the Shia. Or vice versa. But I think it’s the Sunnis who’re more radical than the Shia.”

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  68. Crap!
    Now I need to trash that one that was for pasting at BC!
    Whit and Deuce will leave me twisting in the breeze.

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  69. Bipartisan Effort to Draft Immigration Bill
    Now all the Bush-loving "Conservatives" Can Tell us that Ted Kennedy and John McCain have just the ticket for what's good for America.
    Odd "Conservatives," indeed.

    WASHINGTON, Dec. 25 — Counting on the support of the new Democratic majority in Congress, Democratic lawmakers and their Republican allies are working on measures that could place millions of illegal immigrants on a more direct path to citizenship than would a bill that the Senate passed in the spring.

    The lawmakers are also considering denying financing for 700 miles of fencing along the border with Mexico, a law championed by Republicans that passed with significant Democratic support.

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  70. wc: You make the common error of assuming that all variables except thermal efficiency will remain constant. If engines suddenly doubled in efficiency, people would suddenly find them cost-effective for a host of applications we are not currently using them for. There would be gas-powered table saws, gas powered doghouse air-conditioners, and gas powered banana straighteners. There would be a new equilibrium, and as always, demand for fossil fuels would reach stasis with the supply.

    That in a sentence is crap logic.. So we might as well do nothing?... There are uses for that new solar cell that is exactly as you say, but in the SHORT term, the doubling of effectiviness of the internal combustion engine would be to allow us to get along without ME oil. and if the ME oil was DESTROYED, or made radioactive, then our increase would BALANCE out those increases we will see when the ME supplies are no longer available.

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