Diggapedia

Those that have been reading this blog have noted several postings regarding what it’s like to be in the middle.   Well, I can tell you there is enough BS flying out there to give you whiplash while you’re trying to keep your head down.   This posting will focus on energy.   President Obama has said on numerous occasions that he supports an all of the above energy policy.   A policy that includes: nuclear, natural gas, clean coal, shale oil, deep well drilling, solar, wind, geothermal, etc.   Immediately the right attacks the renewable sources of solar and wind as too expensive and the left attacks nuclear, gas, and oil as enemies of the environment.   I guess that leaves, well nothing. Let me start by saying that natural gas is the most critical component of our long term energy strategy.   Why?   It’s plentiful, it’s cheap, it’s versatile, it’s relatively clean, and we have a shit load of it.   Yes we have 8 trillion cubic meters, projecte...

Once again the media cannot get beyond the headline of “Jobs numbers disappoint”.   Now I expect politicians to stick to Twitter-like talking point political sound bites.   Pundits will dig slightly deeper.   But the fact that the print and broadcast media can’t even spend the time to understand why only 120k jobs were created versus the 200k forecasted is lame.   Instead, they focused on the impact on the president’s reelection chances.   So, if no one else will do it, I guess I will. For starters, the February job gains totaled 240k, but the March gains dropped to 120k.   So the key questions are: ·          Were jobs lost in certain sectors in March that weren’t previously lost in February? and/or ·          Were gains in certain sectors in March lower than the February gains? Of course there will always be ‘puts and takes’, that is some increases and some decreases, but ...

This weekend we are at the nexus of Christianity’s Easter and Judaism’s Passover, which isn’t too surprising considering the Last Supper was actually a Seder; I did lean something on my tour of Jerusalem.   This weekend Christians observe the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus while Jews celebrate the Moses led exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land, meaning this weekend we can expect Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments, The Robe, The Greatest Story Ever Told, and many other films to be broadcast.   So on this weekend where the Judeo-Christian faiths observe very important holidays, I ask: What is a good Jew?   What is the Christian thing to do?   These are not flippant or frivolous questions.   Do people practice what they preach?   Does going to a place of worship make you a better person?   Is Deepak Chopra correct when he says “All religions are cults with many followers.”? Full disclosure, I was raised Jewish, was Bat Mitzvah’d at 13, attended Frid...

Forty four years ago, Martin Luther King was gunned down in Memphis.   A sad tragic event that will be forever tied to April 4 th .   In the immediate wake of this horror there was widespread rioting in major US cites; all except one.   One city did not riot: Indianapolis.   You see Indianapolis was a campaign stop for the liberal fire brand and upstart presidential candidate Robert Kennedy.   Kennedy had been campaigning in the Hoosier state and was aware that King had been shot and black communities were already on edge.   When he arrived in Indianapolis the campaign was told that King had died from the gunshot wound.   Further, law enforcement officials could not guarantee Kennedy’s safety   and his campaign staff thought it would be best to cancel the campaign stop. Instead, the New York Senator who was known for saying what was on his mind and never backing down, took the stage.   He went on to tell the crowd that their hero, their lea...

10.    50 words have been banned in New York City’s standardized test scores because they could be insensitive.   The words include such disparaging nouns and verbs such as: dinosaur, dancing, Halloween, birthdays, and junk food. We are now entering ridiculous. 9.        According to Time magazine, the U.S. now incarcerates 6 million people which exceeds the number imprisoned by Stalin in the gulag archipelago.   Why build schools, when we can build prisons. 8.        “The truth will set you free.   But first it will piss you off.” – Gloria Steinem 7.        According to The New York Times, the top 1% of U.S. taxpayers reaped 93% of the $288Billion in new income generated in 2010.   The other 99% had their personal income increase by an average of $80 over 2009. 6.        According to the Wall Street Journal, outstanding student loan debt...

Now it’s time for my closing argument regarding the Affordable Care Act. ·          I am neither a lawyer nor a judge.   I have never argued before a court and I haven’t read every page of the Affordable Care Act.   I have not studied case law extensively, other than the Business Law class I took as part of my MBA.   But I have one simple question/observation: The only matter the Supreme Court can actually rule on is whether the individual mandate violates the commerce clause.   It does not have the power to strike down the law in total.   To do so would establish precedent that Congress has no power to create laws, which would be unconstitutional.   If the mandate is ruled unconstitutional, it is likely the court will tell Congress to come up with another solution that accomplishes the same result without mandating. ·          The above notwithstanding, citizens cannot avoid ...

On his weekly show on CNN, GPS: The Global Public Square, Fareed Zakaria has a segment titled ‘What in the world?’ that explores an unusual or unexpected series of events or a unique situation.   It is often amusing, usually entertaining, and always educational.   I am borrowing from Fareed’s staple and will ask: What the hell is going on in America?   Our 235 year old country isn’t at a crossroads as much as it is in new territory.   A territory that is filled with economic and geopolitical threats but also great opportunity.   The question is whether America can adapt to this new world order and accept its new leadership position. Over the course of those 235 years, America has been engaged in large scale wars, police actions, skirmishes, a cold war, regional conflicts, and at times imperialistic conquest.   Domestically, we have had our own rebellions and fought a bloody civil war to save our precious union.   We have had riots, domestic terror, il...