Health Care Follies, III

By Steve Erbach on Monday, September 28, 2009 6:24 PM

Correct me if I err, but the Canadian health care system is usually lauded to the skies by the proponents of NAtionalized HEalth CAre administration (I'm going to call it NAHECA for short) in these United States. The Los Angeles Times posted an article on Sunday dealing with a possible move towards partial privatization in Canada! What on earth could be wrong with those people?

In Canada, a move toward a private healthcare option

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The Town Crank

Who thinks these things up?

By Steve Erbach on Friday, September 25, 2009 5:09 AM

On Facebook I generally make a daily post about some odd "holiday" or observance celebrated each day of the year. There are all kinds of them. From Teddy Bear Day to National Beheading Day...those are just this month.

But September 25th marks something different that made me take notice: Earth Overshoot Day. According to the web site:

Earth Overshoot Day marks an unfortunate milestone: the day when humanity begins living beyond its ecological means. Beyond that day, we move into the ecological equivalent of deficit spending, utilizing resources at a rate faster than what the planet can regenerate in a calendar year.

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The Town Crank

Recent commentary: how safe are we?

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, September 24, 2009 9:14 AM

How safe do you think we are from another terrorist attack?

(published 28-Sep-2009, Appleton Post-Crescent)

Weakening the economy by injecting a trillion dollars of a sadly debased currency; dismantling portions of the counter-terrorism apparatus; releasing prisoners from Guantanamo; changing security signals with our allies in Europe and the Middle East; the monomaniacal push for national health insurance; taking over a huge portion of the auto, banking, and insurance industries ... any kind of policy focus has been lost by trying to do everything at once. It all adds up to being less secure than we were under President Bush. In addition, the conciliatory and apologetic attitude in overseas visits to Arab magnat ... Read More »

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The Town Crank

Who has the power?

By Steve Erbach on Tuesday, September 22, 2009 8:44 AM

I've been following the developments in Honduras with some interest. Not that I've read everything there is to read about it, but I think I've got the main points.

The story today about ousted President Zelaya's stealthy return to Honduras and holing up in the Brazilian embassy puts a new spin on the saga:

Thousands of Zelaya supporters defied a curfew and spent the night surrounding Brazil's embassy, where the leader remained holed up Tuesday, a day after slipping back into the country. In exile since June 28, Zelaya said he had traveled for 15 hours overland in a series of vehicles to pull off the stealth homecoming.

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The Town Crank

Further commentary on honor rolls

By Steve Erbach on Monday, September 21, 2009 8:46 AM

I commented earlier about the A and B Honor Rolls at Neenah middle schools. That comment was published on the Appleton Post-Crescent site. Another reader wondered about my figures, saying,

If this is the case, why is the national average of high school drop outs so high. The city of Milwaukee is one of the leading cities for drop outs. Something doesn't add up.

My reply:

You're right. In 2000 I researched A and B Honor Rolls in Neenah middle schools, Shattuck and Horace Mann.

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The Town Crank

But, but...the Sun has nothing to do with global warming!

By Steve Erbach on Monday, September 21, 2009 7:55 AM

Read it and weep, you global warming johnnies:

Earth approaching sunspot records

BY COREY JONES
Updated September 21, 2009 at 12:50am

The average person may not associate coolness with the sun.

The sun releases energy through deep nuclear fusion reactions in its core and has surface temperatures as hot as 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit, according to NASA's Web site.

Not cool at all.

But the sun's recent activity, or lack thereof, may be linked to the pleasant summer temperatures the midwest has enjoyed this year, said Charlie Perry, a research hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Lawrence.

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The Town Crank

Recent commentary: teachers and evals

By Steve Erbach on Monday, September 21, 2009 7:35 AM

Should teacher reviews be tied to test scores?

(published on-line 21-Sep-2009: Appleton Post-Crescent)

Why, if that'll get those test scores up there, you bet! Give all the teachers glowing evals. Every kid ought to get at least a 'B' that way!

Of course, most kids in the public schools get A's and B's anyway. As an exercise for the student, first look at the published Honor Roll lists next time. You'll see the 'A' Honor Roll and the 'B' Honor Roll by grade. I'll bet you dollars to donuts that the 'A' list has more names than the 'B' list...and it doesn't matter which school you look at.

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The Town Crank

Contraception and climate change

By Steve Erbach on Friday, September 18, 2009 2:44 PM

This is a follow-on to a story I linked to the other day dealing with population control being one way to control climate change; that is, fewer people, less warming.

This video was made at the end of July this year. It's an interview with a mucky-muck from the Optimum Population Trust, Roger Martin:

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The Town Crank

I couldn't resist

By Steve Erbach on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 1:36 PM

From the Onion News Network, this still is from its story, "U.S. Condemned for Pre-emptive Use of Hillary Clinton Against Pakistan":

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The Town Crank

Singing to stop global warming...that'll work!

By Steve Erbach on Monday, September 14, 2009 10:53 AM

Well, I guess there is some precedent for it: native American rain dances, for instance. But sheesh! Another insipid song written by committee to "draw attention to the global warming crisis". It ought to be just as effective as World Jump Day.

World celebrities sing to stop global warming

GENEVA (AFP) — British rock group Duran Duran and heavy metal band Scorpions are among 55 world celebrities who have joined in recording a song to draw attention to the global warming crisis, organisers said on Monday.

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The Town Crank

Fed Follies

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, September 10, 2009 9:18 AM

This song deserves wide play: the first Federal Reserve protest song, "Brother, Can You Spare a F.R.A.U.D.?"

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The Town Crank

Lots of good stuff today, III

By Steve Erbach on Wednesday, September 09, 2009 11:11 AM

The following article from the UK Telegraph doesn't really need any comment, other than to ask how else we might save money on global warming. This article should satisfy the zero-population-growth crowd, the Earth First crowd, and the global warmists all at the same time:

'Contraception cheapest way to combat climate change'

Contraception is almost five times cheaper as a means of preventing climate change than conventional green technologies, according to research by the London School of Economics.

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The Town Crank

Lots of good stuff today, II

By Steve Erbach on Wednesday, September 09, 2009 10:59 AM

Camille Paglia unfortunately writes only monthly for Salon.com. A great pity since she's one of the most original thinkers writing today.

Her latest Salon piece takes the Democrats to task for ruining their position on universal heath care:

By foolishly trying to reduce all objections to healthcare reform to the malevolence of obstructionist Republicans, Democrats have managed to destroy the national coalition that elected Obama and that is unlikely to be repaired. If Obama fails to win reelection, let the blame be first laid at the door of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who at a pivotal point threw gasoline on the flames by comparing angry American citizens to Nazis.

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The Town Crank

Lots of good stuff today, I

By Steve Erbach on Wednesday, September 09, 2009 9:56 AM

Mark Steyn has written an interesting perspective of President Obama's speech to schoolchildren this week. Personally, I had no problem with the speech, but I thought it odd that he wanted to make it at all.

I've read the President's speech as it was posted on the whitehouse.gov web site. Nothing too remarkable. But why make it?

Steyn makes a comparison between Read More »

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The Town Crank

Health Care Follies, II

By Steve Erbach on Friday, September 04, 2009 2:48 PM

Another humdinger from the latest issue of The Liberator Online. Have you been uncomfortable with the debate over whether health care is a right or a privilege? Michael Cloud sets your mind at rest:

False Alternatives: "Is Health Care a Right or a Privilege?"

by Michael Cloud

"Do you believe health care is a right or a privilege?"

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The Town Crank

For those who want to pay more taxes

By Steve Erbach on Friday, September 04, 2009 2:41 PM

The Liberator Online, the news organ for the Advocates for Self-Government, had a very helpful piece in its latest issue. If you've ever felt that the federal government doesn't get enough of your income, guilt relief is at hand:

The New Robber Barons

"Please tax us more!"

A few of America's richest people are begging President Obama to raise their taxes...

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The Town Crank

Health Care Follies, I

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, September 03, 2009 3:45 PM

You may have heard of this story: Obamacare supporter bites off finger of protester. Turns out that a guy who was on the scene found the bitten off finger and took it to the hospital where the amputeee was being cared for. Unfortunately, the finger could not be re-attached:

Healthcare-reform opponent says bit-off finger could not be re-attached
By Adam Foxman
Updated 01:35 p.m., September 3, 2009

A healthcare-reform opponent whose finger was partially bitten off Wednesday during a Thousand Oaks rally said today that doctors could not re-attach the severed section.

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The Town Crank

This could be The Town Crank's manifesto

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, September 03, 2009 9:25 AM

One commentator I keep coming back to is Fred Reed. Think Hunter S. Thompson without the drugs, paranoia, and the drugs but with the wit, incisiveness, and punch.

This is the first part of his most recent column (he doesn't write as much as formerly) and it deals with government intrusiveness. The whole column can be found here. He says it much better than I could: people don't like the way that government has moved into peoples' lives.