Posts Made By: George Blahun

One of the benefits of this exposure, is the ridicule and dismissiveness often associated with these reports is somewhat muted. It's always annoyed me that people feel obligated to make humorous remarks when even serious reports like this are submitted. I lived in Pensacola, FL for 5 years and knew more than a few Navy pilots. If they report something and it's backed up by radar and infra red, it should be taken seriously. I don't know what these objects are, but keeping it a secret is no longer an option.

Gilbert:
Funny is whatever makes you laugh. I always cringe when someone tries to say what I should or should not be laughing at. I think it's inaccurate to say that Dave's humor is "mostly" based on humiliating others. I've looked at each of the choices in this response, and they all make fun of someone in nearly every show. If you watch Letterman enough you'll see he also makes fun of himself. Obscene language alone may not be funny to me, but presented in context in can be funny, to me. If you look back at some of the arguably great comedians and compare their television appearances to their nightclub performances, there is a radical difference in their use of vulgarity.
This Gov. Spitzer thing, for example, is a tragic event for the governor and his family, but it's a hoot for those of us who love to make fun of hypocrites. I think some people deserve to be made fun of, in fact I laughed when I read your comments and I'll bet someone else is laughing at mine. It's all a good thing, we need to laugh more and worry less about whether we should or not.

This is one of the few surveys I can't enter. I hope the government never gets to the point where "they" say only one type of power is acceptable. The free market place will probably determine which of these or other technologies is the most efficient.

Don:
I appreciate your comments, however, to be candid I wasn't suggesting no regulation of automobiles. I only meant the way the survey was presented, there was only one choice, and I do believe the best technologies will prevail. In fact, I'm kind of a tree-hugger, but I don't fit into any nice neat political category, which is why I tend to annoy people in all parts of the political spectrum.

George

Richard:
My only real issue with what you have said is with your statement about the Prius battery. In Connecticut, California and a few other states, the warranty is 10 years or 150,000 miles. I can't speak about the first generation Prius, although I have not heard of any major battery problems in Japan where they were introduced 10 years ago, but the second generation Prius has not experienced any widespread battery problems here in the USA. The second gen Prius has three major cells which currently cost about 800 plus each. By the time my CT Prius reaches 150k miles, they will probably have the lithium ion or some other battery ready for a switch. I doubt, but obviously can't prove, that Toyota would agree to the 10 yr 150k warranty without feeling their batteries would last that long. The European Prius has an EV button which allows the Prius to run on electric alone up to about 39mph. The US version does not have this, and the feeling is that this is to lengthen the lifespan of the battery, but with a slight decrease in mpgs.

George

Ron:
The problem with layers of soot in "your" snow is that airborne particulate is stuff we in the northeast have to breathe. Maybe you think your jobs are more important than lung disease (primarily in children and the elderly) but that's not how I ordinate my values. The mismanagement of the auto industry was to blame for its demise more than any other factor. They designed and built crappy cars that fell apart and wasted gas while the Japanese (which were faced with similar regulation) adapted and surged ahead. Detroit has been playing catch-up ever since. Chrysler was already bailed out once and apparently didn't learn anything.
There are probably areas of this "bailout approach" with which I agree with you, but to dismiss environmental regulations as somehow bad is incredulous to me. If you have ever visited China, you would see first hand how much fun an unregulated environment can be.

Jeffrey:
Thanks for your comments, I hope you are correct about Ron's point of view. Perhaps it was hyperbole, but visible soot in the snow is in no way an acceptable by product of an active and healthy economy. You covered a lot of area in your response, but one which did catch my interest was the reference to unions. While I am in agreement that in today's world many unions have become corrupt and unreasonable, the days of no unions in this country meant for unbearable working conditions for men, women and children. Our history is replete with the Johns Manvilles proclaiming asbestos was harmless, coal dust could just be washed off the miners' skin and PCBs were safe to dump anywhere. When the Berlin Wall came down and we saw the demise of Totalitarian Communism many of us in the west thought this meant that Free Market Capitalism was the perfect solution for a world economy. It may be a very good way of running the planet, but it is not without major problems. Environmental and human rights issues are but two concerns. I think it's unfair to blame Al Gore's hype as the source of many problems. He was just the messenger not the source of the information. If we were to all sit back and let the unregulated people run things we'd still have slavery, women would not be able to vote, if your well was polluted with MTBE you'd just have to get water somewhere else, and the average person would still live to the ripe old age of 50. I'm sure there is room for compromise on both sides, but if it weren't for the New Deal and FDR, chances are you and I would still be slaves to the few wealthy men who ran everything.

Jeffrey:
You're not really suggesting that Unions only have the right to impose safe working conditions are you? Making a wage and receiving benefits that provide for a reasonable standard of living not only benefits the workers, but the entire economy. I acknowledged in my original statement that many unions have gone beyond the reasonable but that doesn't negate their importance to individuals and our economic system. After 8 years of college and my initial work in a NY City ad agency, I hitch hiked and hopped freight trains, traveling all over the US. I had more jobs in more places of every conceivable type than anyone I know. The working conditions (at least during the 1970s and early 80s) were in many places like something out of a third world country. I don't know what your background is, but I have much more compassion for the average hardworking person after that period in my life than I did when I first graduated from college.
I think only Obama can tell you why he chose Jeff Immelt. BTW, I am one of the few who voted for Ralph Nader, so I am not blindly following the Obama program. I am however, one of those who did call the Bush administration fascist. That's only an admission since you brought it up, I don't want to turn this discussion into the worn out arguments about the last eight years.
Your reference to Reid, Pelosi and Obama brings up another point. This country would be far better off with more independents and third party members in Congress. Too many people think I must be a democrat when listening to my rhetoric. I have much to disagree with in both political parties, not the least of which is corruption, ignorance and arrogance.

George

What appears obvious at this point is we can debate facts but all those facts are filtered through the basic philosophy you and I, and of course everyone else, has developed since we were born. This is why we have either a bias for the worker or the corporate structure. What interests me ultimately, is how each individual develops these biases and prejudices. We all have them I've never met anyone who was truly objective. The one thing I have learned over the years is these opinions are in no way related to intelligence, or the inherent morality of the individuals espousing them. Perhaps my definition of fascism is different than yours, and there are certainly degrees to any political philosophy. For me, Bush wasn't exactly the same ruthless guy that Benito was, but that doesn't mean he hasn't crossed into the realm of fascism. The use of torture, (the extent of which we don't know), the adherence to a policy of belligerent nationalism, etc. Those are the factors which which enable me to use the terminology I do. As long as you are not on the receiving end of the violence, then it doesn't seem so bad. However, I also don't get upset when people on the other side of the political spectrum call me an atheist commie. Actually I see myself as more of an agnostic, socially compassionate environmentalist.
I enjoy these types of discourses when time permits and I don't really expect to convince anyone on the "other" side. It's one of the reasons I really miss Bill Buckley and Firing Line.
I rarely agreed with him but always felt it was better to know what my political adversaries were up to and why they thought the way they do. While I'm certain that you and I will probably never agree completely on many of these important issues, I feel I gain something from hearing why you others see things so differently than I do. As I said earlier, I don't follow the Obama movement blindly, but some of the changes from the previous administration are encouraging. it is, however, much easier for me to deal with criticism now than it was to tolerate the stress and frustration I felt while Bush and Cheney were running things. Anyhow, I feel your pain and wish you no ill will.

As a former media planner for an ad agency, I am well aware of how difficult it is to word a survey in such a way as to obtain the answers you want. As the numbers for "Obama doing worse ..." begin to rise, I suspect those voting this way are not really answering the question. If you thought he would suck and you think he is doing just that then he's doing just what you thought he'd do, not worse. Geez Louise, he's only been in a few weeks, if Bush had a third term then I'm willing to wager the Obama Bashers would be saying, "Hey give him a chance, it only hit the fan a few months ago and everything will happen in good time". BTW I voted for neither Bush, Mac nor Obama. For the record, when Bush was elected he did exactly what I thought he'd do, well ok maybe a little worse, but I didn't know that until after a few months.

George