tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post3439939340556850851..comments2024-03-26T05:18:53.709-04:00Comments on Pen and Sword: Let Them Eat SandJeff Huberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-80077924154237302472008-10-15T05:02:00.000-04:002008-10-15T05:02:00.000-04:00JP, My take on Libertarians: Neal Boortz is one, s...JP, <BR/><BR/>My take on Libertarians: Neal Boortz is one, so beware. ;=)<BR/><BR/>JeffJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-23363135624970402342008-10-15T02:58:00.000-04:002008-10-15T02:58:00.000-04:00I remember that before the invasion of Iraq a lot ...I remember that before the invasion of Iraq a lot of people (esp. libertarians) argued that the oil companies did not want the war, because geopolitical turmoil would cause instability in the markets, and this instability would wreck their business. Funny, it doesn't seem to have hurt the poor dears one bit.<BR/><BR/>I also remember one guy suggesting that the Saudis and other rich Gulf nations should pull their assets out of U.S. banks, and quit buying U.S. treasury paper. A financial crisis in the U.S. would make an invasion less likely, by his reckoning. I was never clear on how the creation of millions of unemployed, pissed-off Americans was supposed to make a war less likely. It seems like it would be just the ticket, as a matter of fact (and we may be about to finally find out).<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the encouragement on what I wrote, and maybe I will develop it further, but it's really nothing that others (smarter and better informed) have been saying for a long time. It's been rather depressing for those of us who've been following the energy thing for years to see how people are reacting now that it's finally in their faces. I've been especially disappointed in libertarians, whom I generally admire. They seem to have opted for some combination of: "This isn't happening!"/"An alternative energy source is just around the corner!"/"Let the market work, damn you!"/"What the (bleep) do scientists know, anyway?"<BR/><BR/>And, of course, "drill, drill, drill!" (Which sounds a bit rude, actually). I quit reading one (very popular) libertarian site when some of the writers there started flogging "abiotic oil," which is petroleum geology's answer to creation science.<BR/><BR/>Their attitude reminds me of the scene in <I>Erik the Viking</I> where Atlantis is sinking below the waves. The Vikings try to convince the inhabitants to save themselves, but they are in complete denial. "None of this is actually happening!" their Leader proclaims. Sounds like a certain North American country of my acquaintance.jpwhitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17975430453557627368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-23524638998246455192008-10-13T19:59:00.000-04:002008-10-13T19:59:00.000-04:00Stiglitz may be right, but I'm not sure all his as...Stiglitz may be right, but I'm not sure all his asumptions are sound. The Virginia/McCain thing doesn't surprise me at all. <BR/><BR/>JJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-37539384549876617022008-10-13T19:24:00.000-04:002008-10-13T19:24:00.000-04:00Yeah, I get that the 612 billion is 2009 defense b...Yeah, I get that the 612 billion is 2009 defense budget. You don't agree with Stiglitz?<BR/><BR/>http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=87801279<BR/><BR/>Did you hear anything about this?<BR/><BR/> <A HREF="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-feldman/mccain-volunteers-being-t_b_133980.html" REL="nofollow">According to Time, McCain campaign staffers in Virginia are teaching volunteers to see Barack Obama as having terrorist 'friends,' </A> and then providing these volunteers with arguments for persuading voters that Sen. Obama, like Osama Bin Laden, shares responsibility for bombings of the Pentagon.nunyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08833886980442919570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-4445448636722106972008-10-13T18:48:00.000-04:002008-10-13T18:48:00.000-04:00612b is the total defense budget. the Iraq cost h...612b is the total defense budget. the Iraq cost has typically been quoted at 100b per year. <BR/><BR/>JeffJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-55985763679057145982008-10-13T18:44:00.000-04:002008-10-13T18:44:00.000-04:00Most of us would vote for "none at all." Whoever...Most of us would vote for "none at all." Whoever set up this house of cards arrogantly assumed that if military force was all there was to prop up said house of cards, that it would be sufficient. <BR/><BR/>And uh, Jeff, <A HREF="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=87801279" REL="nofollow"> a hundred billion </A> might be low. Didn't they just pass a <A HREF="http://www.cdi.org/program/document.cfm?DocumentID=4199" REL="nofollow"> 612 billion dollar defense bill last month?</A>nunyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08833886980442919570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-72263212396814216242008-10-13T16:55:00.000-04:002008-10-13T16:55:00.000-04:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-50645608063080627332008-10-13T14:09:00.000-04:002008-10-13T14:09:00.000-04:00Thanks, Arthur. Catch you over there. JeffThanks, Arthur. Catch you over there. <BR/><BR/>JeffJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-15747787002322853362008-10-13T12:59:00.000-04:002008-10-13T12:59:00.000-04:00Hello Jeff...I just posted a response to this fine...Hello Jeff...<BR/><BR/>I just posted a response to this fine piece at My Left Wing and Booman Tribune. Thought you might want <BR/>to read it. <BR/><BR/><B>But...what if the whole BARREL is rotten? The fruits of usury.</B><BR/><BR/>(http://myleftwing.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=23302)<BR/><BR/>Later...<BR/><BR/>Arthur GilroyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-9312156170683982242008-10-13T11:04:00.000-04:002008-10-13T11:04:00.000-04:00Bruce, Yep, out of the ME and tell Big Oil no to o...Bruce, <BR/><BR/>Yep, out of the ME and tell Big Oil no to offshore and ANWR.Jeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-8846212876815516452008-10-13T10:55:00.000-04:002008-10-13T10:55:00.000-04:00Great piece, again. New look at McCain's thought p...Great piece, again. New look at McCain's thought processes -- doesn't use organs above his waist.<BR/>And you're right -- nothing won't happen until we the heck out of the Middle east/Afghanistan.The Other Sitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17709123282650863997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-75145377391038499062008-10-11T16:51:00.000-04:002008-10-11T16:51:00.000-04:00Wow, thanks for the link, Jeg. Yeah, I'll have a ...Wow, thanks for the link, Jeg. Yeah, I'll have a thing or two to say about this. <BR/><BR/>JeffJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-61182808900303545092008-10-11T16:44:00.000-04:002008-10-11T16:44:00.000-04:00Commander,Here's a link to a little economic boost...Commander,<BR/>Here's a link to a little economic boost to military spending that you're sure to have comments about:<BR/>http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docid=news-000002973555<BR/>Looking forward to reading same.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-37218631205672085902008-10-11T11:53:00.000-04:002008-10-11T11:53:00.000-04:00IMO the rest of the world only cares about our eco...IMO the rest of the world only cares about our economy because it can drag theirs down the tank. <BR/><BR/>JeffJeff Huberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14146644937683409726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12796551.post-50161191913624437622008-10-11T10:45:00.000-04:002008-10-11T10:45:00.000-04:00Oh Heck!We have yet again worn out our welcome.Off...Oh Heck!<BR/><BR/>We have yet again worn out our welcome.<BR/><BR/>Off topic:<BR/>I went back yesterday and tried to catch up on some of your "musings" that I had missed, while dealing with the "no power" aftermath of Ike.<BR/><BR/>The Tina Fey/Sarah Palin comparison was interesting, in light of the release of the investigative report yesterday from Anchorage. <BR/><BR/>Hard to believe, I know, but the good Governor does indeed abuse the power of her office. <BR/><BR/>Dick Cheney, George W., Karl, in drag. Pick one. <BR/><BR/>Any book on how much longer the McCain/Palin ticket will continue to go on campaigning?<BR/><BR/>Also, given how badly we have worn out our welcome in the Bananastans, and how shabbily we have treated even our friends, do you think anybody in the world, really cares if we have to declare bankruptcy -- kind of like Iceland?Elderladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02268520056042293783noreply@blogger.com