Author:	Steve Erbach	Created:	Thursday, November 13, 2003 8:30 AM
Just shut yer yap, leave me alone, and stop raising my blankety-blank taxes!

Recent commentary: how about that Hope and Change?

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, October 29, 2009 2:22 PM

How far have we come in the past year?

(published 2-Nov-2009, Appleton Post-Crescent)

Most folks that voted for "Hope and Change" were simply happy that a Democrat became President. The fact that he's African-American is just icing on the cake. It doesn't matter what he accomplishes; his most endearing feature is that he isn't George W. Bush. But the government has horned in on the financial services industry, the automobile industry, and is trying its darnedest to horn in on the health insurance industry. Some people aren't too happy that we're not out of Iraq or Afghanistan yet, unemployment still hovers near 10%, and inflation will kick in from the huge amounts of money pumped into the economy from government printing presses. Looks like SSDD to me: Same Stuff, Different Day. Dennis Miller put it very succinctly, as usual: it isn't that Empe ... Read More »

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Meat and the sun

By Steve Erbach on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 3:20 AM

I read a story in the London Times Online about Lord Stern and his contention that we should all stop eating meat in order to stop global warming. As I, a confirmed carnivore, was chuckling over Lord Stern's hand-wringing (“I am not sure that people fully understand what we are talking about or the kind of changes that will be necessary”), I read some of the comments to the story.

One chap had it very right, I think. He posted links to two photos of the sun. This one shows the sun in 1997:

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Recent commentary: my favorite conspiracy

By Steve Erbach on Friday, October 23, 2009 10:44 AM

What is your favorite conspiracy theory (either due to its sheer outlandishness or one that you think may have truth behind it)?

(published 26-Oct-2009, Appleton Post-Crescent)

Oh, boy! Conspiracies, man! Neil Armstrong did NOT walk on the moon -- it was all faked. Roosevelt knew beforehand about Pearl Harbor and said nothing. Auto companies have squelched fuel efficiency inventions for decades. Commies put fluoride in our water supplies. Bill Clinton rubbed out dozens of his political opponents. So many to choose from! My favorite conspiracy: it wasn't a Boeing 757 that destroyed part of the Pentagon on 9/11. It was ... wait for it! ... the government!

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Normal human reaction

By Steve Erbach on Friday, October 16, 2009 5:02 AM

One of my family's favorite movies is "How to Steal a Million" with Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole. It centers around the theft of a valuable statuette from a highly secure museum. O'Toole is the thief and Hepburn is his willing accomplice. The theft is pulled off in large part because of what O'Toole's character refers to as "normal human reaction".

For example:

If a highly valuable statuette is guarded by a seemingly impenetrable alarm system, watch what happens when the alarm is set off: the guards all leave their guard room and go scurrying about trying to catch the thief.
If a very important political person calls the head guard to complain about the noise the alarm makes, then the head guard becomes more concerned for his job if the ... Read More »

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Don't know much about history

By Steve Erbach on Sunday, October 11, 2009 10:55 AM

Never before in human history has a single generation been asked to make such difficult and consequential decisions.

That's from erstwhile Vice President Al Gore's press conference in Madison two days ago. To what is he referring? Political action on human-induced climate change, aka "global warming".

You've heard of the phrase, "tipping point"? The point at which overall climate changes irreversibly. Well, it ain't about actual climate changes anymore:

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Recent commentary: what keeps Wisconsin going?

By Steve Erbach on Monday, October 05, 2009 10:34 AM

What are our area's economic strengths?

(published 5-Oct-2009, Appleton Post-Crescent on-line)

No volcanos, typhoons, or global warming. No mountains, canyons, or deserts either. We DO deal with tornados, flooding, humidity in the summer, lake flies, mosquitoes, snow shoveling, salted streets, potholes, plow damage, and ice storms...and snow. Yeah, we get snow sometimes.

We don't go in too much for ostentation. About the biggest extravagances we indulge in are sports stadiums. We don't got no steenking Picasso Plazas in Wisconsin ... though we DO have that Hadzi ... thing ... monument ... sculpture ... whatchamacallit in Appleton.

Local and state governments can be as bone-headed here as anyplace else, and businesses can find friendlier tax rates in many other states, too. As a result, some businesses have moved their headquarters elsewhere. K-C comes to mind. ... Read More »

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Global warming johnnies have to get their act together

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, October 01, 2009 9:00 AM

Early last year, in March, I think, I joined an Amazon discussion group on global climate change. I threw in my two cents worth from time to time and watched what others posted to get a feel for how serious was the belief that we were all going to perish from an excess of human-induced global warming.

The group is still going almost 400 posts and a year-and-a-half later. But two of the most recent posts (yesterday, as a matter of fact) showed me again that it's hard to take the global warming johnnies (GWJs) seriously.

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xkcd and Bizarro

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, October 01, 2009 8:14 AM

Today's xkcd.com cartoon reminded me of an old one by Bizarro (Dan Piraro). Here's the xkcd.com cartoon for today, October 1st:

Then there's this old Bizarro cartoon:

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Just having fun with my Packer backer friends

By Steve Erbach on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 6:28 AM

Brett Favre is featured in a banner ad for the "Sears Blue Electronics Crew" on the Drudge Report today:

Drudge Report banner ad

If you follow the link you can find an extended version of the recent Sears TV ad:

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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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.

TSA and Its Brethren

Going in a Bad Direction Without Wanting To

August 18, 2009

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Recent commentary: should we leave Afghanistan?

By Steve Erbach on Friday, August 28, 2009 10:43 AM

Should the U. S. pull out of Afghanistan?

(published 31-Aug-2009, Appleton Post-Crescent)

I decided to ask someone who's actually stationed there. My brother, a retired Marine, works with the Air Force as a civilian contractor in Kabul. He has worked in other dodgy places like Kazakhstan, Bosnia, and Iraq (three times). He made some interesting points: 1) The Karzai government is "despicably" corrupt and we need to cut off its connection with the poppy growers; 2) There's no way with its huge desertion rate (12-15%; unofficially closer to 30%) that the Afghan army can take over the country's security; 3) We should move away from supporting the central government and towards regional and local support to resist insurgents and warlords; 4) Forget nation-building; it never was a real nation. It's a money hole; 5) It's in our long-term interests to prevent de ... Read More »

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A superb letter from DownsizeDC.org

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, August 27, 2009 8:15 AM

I subscribe to Downsizer DIspatch, a publication of DownsizeDC.org. Today's issue is a rip-snorter:

D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h

Quote of the Day: The government called three accountants to testify. The defense asked each one, "What is the proper way to calculate income for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code if you are paid in a gold coin that has a $50 face value on it?"

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You can learn from books

By Steve Erbach on Thursday, August 27, 2009 6:37 AM

Anyone recognize the above quote? I'll give the answer at the end of this post.

I'm getting to the end of one of the best non-fiction books I've read in a long time: The Best Laid Plans: How Government Planning Harms Your Quality of Life, Your Pocketbook, and Your Future. The author, Randal O'Toole, is a lightning rod for government planning lovers across the fruited plain. Some of his staunchest critics include:

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What I'm For and Against

How far have we come in the past year?

What is your favorite conspiracy theory (either due to its sheer outlandishness or one that you think may have truth behind it)?

What are our area's economic strengths?

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

'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.

Healthcare-reform opponent says bit-off finger could not be re-attached

TSA and Its Brethren

Going in a Bad Direction Without Wanting To

Should the U. S. pull out of Afghanistan?

D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h

Miscellany

News & Commentary

What I'm For
and Against