U.S. Presidential Elections in Perspective | Stratfor:
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Life takes us in many strange directions and wonderful discoveries. It never turns out the way we thought it would.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Halla'en
Today is a day that we call Halloween. My mind goes back 52 years to the time when I was a 6th grade student at Louisa May Alcott Elementary School. My teacher was a wonderful lady named Mrs. Margaret Hall. She had been born in Fort Worth. She was stocky and had black hair. She was "40 something" all of those years ago. One of her claims to fame was that the movie actress Martha Hyer had been one of her students. She was a great teacher who makes a good lasting impression on all who pass through her class. She was a tough Texas woman but also a lady who never raised her voice or used bad language, She instilled in all of us the importance of the work ethic and high standards of performance in life. Like all teachers she graded each of us on conduct and academic performance. She also would mark students on the basis of diligence and good use of time. If you liked to "goof off" or waste time, she would mark you as "idle."
She was also insistent that the correct way to pronounce this day was Halla'en. (I suspect this is the Gaelic word where we got the name from.) She was a purist on language. This wonderful lady made a big impact on my life.
She was also insistent that the correct way to pronounce this day was Halla'en. (I suspect this is the Gaelic word where we got the name from.) She was a purist on language. This wonderful lady made a big impact on my life.
JacksMars: Mars Soil Similar To Volcanic Sand On Hawaii's Mau...
JacksMars: Mars Soil Similar To Volcanic Sand On Hawaii's Mau...: Mars Soil Similar To Volcanic Sand On Hawaii's Mauna Kea, NASA Curiosity Rover Finds
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Jack's South America: Brazil gripped by anti-corruption battle - FT.com
Jack's South America: Brazil gripped by anti-corruption battle - FT.com: Brazil gripped by anti-corruption battle - FT.com : 'via Blog this'
Monday, October 29, 2012
Jack's Africa: A New Pilot Makes A Big Mistake With A Jet Airline...
Jack's Africa: A New Pilot Makes A Big Mistake With A Jet Airline...: Mens moet versigtig wees wanneer jy in 'n vliegtuig klim! SOUTH AFRICA : PROBABLY ...
The San Francisco Giants Won The World Series!!!
What a historical night it was last night! Elena got a recommendation from a patient for an Italian Restaurant named Buon Gusto. We watched the World Series game until inning 6. We then got in the car and drove to South San Francisco. We found parking. We went to the restaurant. As we walked through the door we knew that it was going to be a warm and a special place. We were promptly seated without a reservation. We had a wonderful Italian dinner while listening to Frank Sinatra songs and watching San Francisco battle Detroit. We finished our meal and had a dessert. The game was still going on. The owner of the restaurant, Julian, came to our table and invited us to stay. He was such a nice and gracious man. He even offered us free drinks. We were surprised to see none other than Grace Lee from CBS Channel 5 walk in with her date and go to the bar. As the game continued I broke out in a sweat despite the cool weather. What I saw was some brilliant coaching and game strategy. One SF Giants player was on first base. A second player bunted knowing that he would be put out at first. However the first SF Giants player made it to second base. A subsequent base hit drove a run in and we had won the World Series. I could not believe it for the first few minutes. Elena and I thanked Julian for his wonderful hospitality. We drove home in the cold weather happy and relieved. Luah had also heard the good news and she was excited. Poor Copernicus was frightened because of all of the fire crackers going off. I never can get enough of that Tony Bennett song: "I Left My Heart In San Francisco."
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Jack's South America: More On David Chapman's Adventures In Argentina
Jack's South America: More On David Chapman's Adventures In Argentina: October 27, 2012 Salta, Argentina Hola from Salta. Well maybe it was inevitable. My netbook was knocked on...
Friday, October 26, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
JacksMars: Water On Mars? Dark Streaks On Red Planet Stem Fro...
JacksMars: Water On Mars? Dark Streaks On Red Planet Stem Fro...: Water On Mars? Dark Streaks On Red Planet Stem From Briny Flows, Research Suggests
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Jack's Africa: Court fire: Extinguishers were broken | News24/Thi...
Jack's Africa: Court fire: Extinguishers were broken | News24/Thi...: Court fire: Extinguishers were broken | News24 : 'via Blog this'
Monday, October 22, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
My Prediction For The 2012 Election
My dear friends Facebook is not a political forum. But this morning I am going to predict the outcome of the presidential election. This election has many aspects of my first presidential election in 1948. President Harry Truman ran against Thomas E. Dewey of New York. Harry pulled an incredible upset and beat Dewey even after a New York Times front page headline saying that Dewey had won. The first possible outcome is that Romney wins the popular vote and Obama wins the electoral vote.
My 'wild card" prediction is that the pollsters have not correctly identified and counted potential Hispanic voters who are going to turn out. If this is the case, Obama will win both the popular vote and electoral vote but certainly not like he did in 2008.
The Democrats will retain control of the US Senate. The Republicans will lose some seats in Congress but still retain control there.
Please do not get mad at me or think that I m crazy. I correctly predicted the Supreme Court vote on Obamacare, even down to Judge Roberts casting the decisive vote in favor.
My 'wild card" prediction is that the pollsters have not correctly identified and counted potential Hispanic voters who are going to turn out. If this is the case, Obama will win both the popular vote and electoral vote but certainly not like he did in 2008.
The Democrats will retain control of the US Senate. The Republicans will lose some seats in Congress but still retain control there.
Please do not get mad at me or think that I m crazy. I correctly predicted the Supreme Court vote on Obamacare, even down to Judge Roberts casting the decisive vote in favor.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Friday, October 19, 2012
Sweat Equity
Yesterday was a beautiful day with temperatures hitting the 80's. I worked very hard on getting the study in order. I worked up quite a sweat! Our pest control man,James Carr, came at four in the afternoon and made sure that we were protected against rats. Luah took a surplus desk from the study and it fits beautiful in her room. I cooked dinner for Elena and I. Today is warm and overcast. I worked very hard on the study; even hauling books out of the attic. This is truly what you would call "sweat equity."
Jack's South America: Chile’s Cencosud in $2.5bn Carrefour deal - FT.com...
Jack's South America: Chile’s Cencosud in $2.5bn Carrefour deal - FT.com...: Chile’s Cencosud in $2.5bn Carrefour deal - FT.com
Thursday, October 18, 2012
JacksMars: Genome Hunters Go after Martian DNA - Technology R...
JacksMars: Genome Hunters Go after Martian DNA - Technology R...: Genome Hunters Go after Martian DNA - Technology Review
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
The Cuban Missile Crisis Started 50 Years Ago Today
50 years ago today President Kennedy was given photographic evidence of the presence of Soviet medium Range ballistic missiles in Cuba. His first instinct was to launch an immediate strike against the missile emplacements in Cuba. His cabinet urged him to attack. He even drafted a speech announcing an attack. He and his brother Robert Kennedy then started to have big doubts. They decided to open communications channels with Premier Khruschev to work out a diplomatic solution.
Had Kennedy attacked, the missiles in Cuba would not have been fired to targets int he US. But a number of tactical nuclear weapons were on the island. The Soviets might have retaliated by invading West Berlin. A nuclear war would have been the inevitable outcome.
Despite all of the talk about a missile gap and US military inferiority, the Americans actually had more and better nuclear war heads. Their delivery systems were far better than what the Soviets had. In an all
Had Kennedy attacked, the missiles in Cuba would not have been fired to targets int he US. But a number of tactical nuclear weapons were on the island. The Soviets might have retaliated by invading West Berlin. A nuclear war would have been the inevitable outcome.
Despite all of the talk about a missile gap and US military inferiority, the Americans actually had more and better nuclear war heads. Their delivery systems were far better than what the Soviets had. In an all
out attack Russia would have been literally obliterated. Some Soviet weapons would have hit US cities. I estimate Soviet casualties would have been 70 million and US casualties would have been 20 million.
Then we would have had nuclear winter and radiation poisoning. For those who survived the life would have been hard and primitive. It might still be that way today.
One of my most treasured possessions is a bust of John F. Kennedy that sits near my computer. Thanks to his intelligence, humanity, and compassion we are all here today. He was such a special man who suffered so much to be a public servant. May we always appreciate him and never forget him.
Then we would have had nuclear winter and radiation poisoning. For those who survived the life would have been hard and primitive. It might still be that way today.
One of my most treasured possessions is a bust of John F. Kennedy that sits near my computer. Thanks to his intelligence, humanity, and compassion we are all here today. He was such a special man who suffered so much to be a public servant. May we always appreciate him and never forget him.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Elena And I Return From Boston
Elena and I returned from Boston yesterday. Our dog walker was at the house when we arrived. She was cleaning up Copernicus after he got sprayed by a skunk. She is such a wonderful lady! We spent the afternoon playing catch up
Yesterday I took a tour of Harvard and it was a humbling experience. What an incredible education institution!! It was started in 605. I imagined what it was like for John F. Kennedy to study there.
After Elena finished her conference, we took a ride up to New Hampshire. We got off the interstate and rode on some charming country roads. New Hampshire is a charming and a wealthy little state, We saw a lot of beautiful country but few real fall leaves.
Yesterday I took a tour of Harvard and it was a humbling experience. What an incredible education institution!! It was started in 605. I imagined what it was like for John F. Kennedy to study there.
After Elena finished her conference, we took a ride up to New Hampshire. We got off the interstate and rode on some charming country roads. New Hampshire is a charming and a wealthy little state, We saw a lot of beautiful country but few real fall leaves.
Jack's South America: Hola De Mendoza
Jack's South America: Hola De Mendoza: to dchapman October 13, 2012 Mendoza, Argentina Hola from Mendoza. Our journey started a week ago when it ...
Saturday, October 13, 2012
The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
Yesterday I took a tour of the John F. Kennedy presidential library. It was an awesome and a positive experience. The presidential library is located on the campus of the University of Mass. It is a tall and impressive white building. When I went inside I got a feeling of great warmth and hope. I felt that John F. Kennedy's spirit was there. Everyone was warm and friendly. I went to the book store and got the usual magnets and shot glasses (for Luah). I also found an incredible book about John Kennedy. I have always wondered what would have happened in Vietnam had Kennedy lived. Three scholars from Cornell University have written an excellent book on the subject: Vietnam Had Kennedy Lived. They had the benefit of all sorts of archives recently opened and other disclosures. They also conducted hundreds of hours of oral interviews. Their conclusion was that Kennedy would have pulled out of Vietnam and we would not have had the tragedy where 58,000 Americans, 4,000 Koreans, 500 Australians, and some 2,000,000 Vietnamese died. It really gave me a lot of peace. This presidential library is uplifting and illuminating. It was a morning well spent!
Friday, October 12, 2012
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Friday, October 5, 2012
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Spain Is In A Great Depression
Yesterday CBS News ran a segment on the current problems in Spain. Scott Pelley reported that the official unemployment rate was 25%. (As in all of these official measures, they do not list all of the people who have given up and dropped out of the labor market as well as all of the under employed people.. The probable actual unemployment rate is above 33%.)
CBS also commented that the youth unemployment rate in Spain is above 50% This means a whole bunch of young school leavers (including college graduates) have little or no prospect of finding work.
CBS went on to show an outdoor market in the relatively prosperous city of Barcelona. On the surface all looked well. People appeared to be well fed and content. But when one looked deeper one saw a sad story. The shop owners disposed of a lot of food products they could not sell at the end of each work day. Desperate and hungry people took the food from the garbage bins and ate it. Food banks in the Barcelona area are overwhelmed with the demand for food.
My readers by any definition this unemployment rate is "A Great Depression."
All of this came about because the Spanish banking sector acted in an irresponsible manner as did banks here in the USA. They made massive real estate loans without any serious underwriting or thought. A property bubble followed. This created a false sense of prosperity. The government went out and borrowed hundreds of billions of dollars to fund social programs and pensions that were not sustainable.
Now the party is over and the bill has come due. The US survived a similar situation because they have the power to print money and attract foreign capital. Spain does not have these abilities. The government in Madrid has bailed out the banks. But it does not have the possible trillions of dollars required to bail out the rest of the economy. The European Union does not have the political will nor the money to bail out Spain fully.
Sadly Spain is facing years or a decade of human misery.
If you are sitting in the US or some other large and prosperous country, do not just relax and say that "it cannot happen here." We have seen small countries like Iceland, Greece, and Argentina default. Now we are going to see a much larger country in a great depression. Such great depressions are like a contagious virus and will spread to other countries.
En Espanol:
Ayer CBS News publicó un segmento sobre los problemas actuales en España. Scott Pelley informó que la tasa oficial de desempleo era del 25%. (Al igual que en todas estas medidas oficiales, no una lista de todas las personas que han dado y nos dejó fuera del mercado laboral, asà como todos los archivos. Personas empleadas bajo .. La tasa de desempleo real es probable por encima del 33%)
CBS también comentó que la tasa de desempleo juvenil en España es superior al 50% Esto significa que una gran cantidad de jóvenes que abandonan la escuela (incluidos los graduados universitarios) tienen pocas posibilidades o ninguna de encontrar trabajo.
CBS pasó a mostrar un mercado al aire libre en la ciudad relativamente próspera de Barcelona. En la superficie todo parecÃa estar bien. La gente parecÃa estar bien alimentados y contentos. Pero cuando uno se veÃa más profundo se veÃa una historia triste. Los dueños de las tiendas dispuestas de una gran cantidad de productos alimenticios que no podÃan vender al final de cada jornada de trabajo. La gente desesperada y hambrienta tomó la comida de los contenedores de basura y se lo comió. Los bancos de alimentos en el área de Barcelona están abrumados por la demanda de alimentos.
Mis lectores por cualquier definición, este tipo de desempleo es "Un Gran Depresión".
Todo esto se produjo debido a que el sector bancario español actuó de manera irresponsable al igual que los bancos aquà en los EE.UU.. Ellos hicieron grandes préstamos de bienes raÃces sin suscripción grave o pensamiento. Una burbuja inmobiliaria siguió. Esto creó una falsa sensación de prosperidad. El gobierno salió y pidió prestado cientos de miles de millones de dólares para financiar programas sociales y de las pensiones que no son sostenibles.
Ahora la fiesta ha terminado y el proyecto de ley se vencen. Los EE.UU. sobrevivió a una situación similar, ya que tienen el poder de imprimir dinero y atraer capital extranjero. España no cuenta con estas habilidades. El gobierno de Madrid ha sacado de apuros a los bancos. Pero no tiene los miles de millones de dólares necesarios posibles para rescatar al resto de la economÃa. La Unión Europea no tiene la voluntad polÃtica ni el dinero para rescatar a España en su totalidad.
Lamentablemente España se enfrenta a años o una década de la miseria humana.
Si usted está sentado en los EE.UU. o en algún otro paÃs grande y próspero, no sólo relajarse y decir que "no puede suceder aquÃ". Hemos visto a los pequeños paÃses como Islandia, Grecia y Argentina por defecto. Ahora vamos a ver un paÃs mucho más grande en una gran depresión. Estas grandes depresiones son como un virus contagioso y se extenderá a otros paÃses.
CBS also commented that the youth unemployment rate in Spain is above 50% This means a whole bunch of young school leavers (including college graduates) have little or no prospect of finding work.
CBS went on to show an outdoor market in the relatively prosperous city of Barcelona. On the surface all looked well. People appeared to be well fed and content. But when one looked deeper one saw a sad story. The shop owners disposed of a lot of food products they could not sell at the end of each work day. Desperate and hungry people took the food from the garbage bins and ate it. Food banks in the Barcelona area are overwhelmed with the demand for food.
My readers by any definition this unemployment rate is "A Great Depression."
All of this came about because the Spanish banking sector acted in an irresponsible manner as did banks here in the USA. They made massive real estate loans without any serious underwriting or thought. A property bubble followed. This created a false sense of prosperity. The government went out and borrowed hundreds of billions of dollars to fund social programs and pensions that were not sustainable.
Now the party is over and the bill has come due. The US survived a similar situation because they have the power to print money and attract foreign capital. Spain does not have these abilities. The government in Madrid has bailed out the banks. But it does not have the possible trillions of dollars required to bail out the rest of the economy. The European Union does not have the political will nor the money to bail out Spain fully.
Sadly Spain is facing years or a decade of human misery.
If you are sitting in the US or some other large and prosperous country, do not just relax and say that "it cannot happen here." We have seen small countries like Iceland, Greece, and Argentina default. Now we are going to see a much larger country in a great depression. Such great depressions are like a contagious virus and will spread to other countries.
En Espanol:
Ayer CBS News publicó un segmento sobre los problemas actuales en España. Scott Pelley informó que la tasa oficial de desempleo era del 25%. (Al igual que en todas estas medidas oficiales, no una lista de todas las personas que han dado y nos dejó fuera del mercado laboral, asà como todos los archivos. Personas empleadas bajo .. La tasa de desempleo real es probable por encima del 33%)
CBS también comentó que la tasa de desempleo juvenil en España es superior al 50% Esto significa que una gran cantidad de jóvenes que abandonan la escuela (incluidos los graduados universitarios) tienen pocas posibilidades o ninguna de encontrar trabajo.
CBS pasó a mostrar un mercado al aire libre en la ciudad relativamente próspera de Barcelona. En la superficie todo parecÃa estar bien. La gente parecÃa estar bien alimentados y contentos. Pero cuando uno se veÃa más profundo se veÃa una historia triste. Los dueños de las tiendas dispuestas de una gran cantidad de productos alimenticios que no podÃan vender al final de cada jornada de trabajo. La gente desesperada y hambrienta tomó la comida de los contenedores de basura y se lo comió. Los bancos de alimentos en el área de Barcelona están abrumados por la demanda de alimentos.
Mis lectores por cualquier definición, este tipo de desempleo es "Un Gran Depresión".
Todo esto se produjo debido a que el sector bancario español actuó de manera irresponsable al igual que los bancos aquà en los EE.UU.. Ellos hicieron grandes préstamos de bienes raÃces sin suscripción grave o pensamiento. Una burbuja inmobiliaria siguió. Esto creó una falsa sensación de prosperidad. El gobierno salió y pidió prestado cientos de miles de millones de dólares para financiar programas sociales y de las pensiones que no son sostenibles.
Ahora la fiesta ha terminado y el proyecto de ley se vencen. Los EE.UU. sobrevivió a una situación similar, ya que tienen el poder de imprimir dinero y atraer capital extranjero. España no cuenta con estas habilidades. El gobierno de Madrid ha sacado de apuros a los bancos. Pero no tiene los miles de millones de dólares necesarios posibles para rescatar al resto de la economÃa. La Unión Europea no tiene la voluntad polÃtica ni el dinero para rescatar a España en su totalidad.
Lamentablemente España se enfrenta a años o una década de la miseria humana.
Si usted está sentado en los EE.UU. o en algún otro paÃs grande y próspero, no sólo relajarse y decir que "no puede suceder aquÃ". Hemos visto a los pequeños paÃses como Islandia, Grecia y Argentina por defecto. Ahora vamos a ver un paÃs mucho más grande en una gran depresión. Estas grandes depresiones son como un virus contagioso y se extenderá a otros paÃses.
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Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Monday, October 1, 2012
Jack's South America: Ranking de robos: la Argentina, en el primer lugar...
Jack's South America: Ranking de robos: la Argentina, en el primer lugar...: Ranking de robos: la Argentina, en el primer lugar - 01.10.2012 - lanacion.com
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