As noted in a earlier post, I have no great respect for Rick Perry. But, as a student of climate change, and a graduate engineer with coursework in both meteorology and ocean engineering, his take on climate change is spot-on. Most of those strongly advocating for climate-change legislation (and "wrenching" changes to the economy as a result) despise growth and commerce and reliance on fossil fuels, regardless of the correlation, if any, between those activities and climate change. And, having reviewed much of the climate change literature, I can rest assured that until someone makes and stands by verifiable predictions as to climate, and those predictions are then verified over the passage of time, I have no cause to worry about whether CO2 emissions are making the weather better or worse. The essence of the scientific method is making hypotheses that are testable. Climatologists refuse to do so.
By Father
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Amnesty by Presidential decree.
The white house has announced that illegal immigrants who meet certain criteria, i.e. are not openly committing crimes other than existing in our country illegally, will no longer be deported. This is a sad day for our country, the DREAM act failed twice in congress, the American people do not want amnesty and here it is being rammed down our throats with hardly a whimper. I am truly disgusted with our government.
P.S. the sad thing is, assuming Perry or Romney end up as the Republican nominee, this is unlikely to change. Perry has openly supported amnesty for many illegals, and Romney wouldn't dare jeopardize the votes of Hispanics by taking a tougher stance on the issue.
P.S. the sad thing is, assuming Perry or Romney end up as the Republican nominee, this is unlikely to change. Perry has openly supported amnesty for many illegals, and Romney wouldn't dare jeopardize the votes of Hispanics by taking a tougher stance on the issue.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
The Middle East
What happened to calls for the U.S. to completely withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan? It would appear that, with the election of Barack Obama, these calls have fallen sharply and received less attention in the media. I understood the original mission in Afghanistan, blood for blood. I also understood extending our involvement to Iraq where a repressive dictator who our then president's family held a grudge against was in control. I can no longer understand or justify continued substantial military involvement in either of these places, and that is ignoring the exercise in indecision that is Libya. The U.S. military estimates that we have given 360 million dollars in contract money to the Taliban in Afghanistan. Note that this is an estimate coming from the U.S. military, which has powerful motives to limit this figure as much as possible. Yet 360 million is nothing compared to the loss of men, in Iraq alone we lave lost more than 4400 men, and over 32,000 have sustained injuries. Perhaps, if someone could tell me a realistic and attainable goal that a military presence could achieve in these two countries, I would be more open to continuing our military actions. I think the most reasonable course of action at this point is flooding the governments we support in each country with money and resources to keep them from collapsing, continuing limited, but hopefully dramatic, raids that highlight the elitism of our country's military and take out key components of the opposition, and learning a lasting lesson about military involvement in Islamic countries.
Concealed handgun licenses
Yesterday, my wife, my 21-year-old daughter and I endured the ten-hour class that one must take in order to obtain a license to carry a concealed handgun in Texas. We all easily passed the shooting proficiency exam and the written exam. Frankly, we could have passed both exams at the beginning of the day and saved valuable time for each of us, and the instructor. That said, we would have missed out on the opportunity to spend the day together.
I agree generally in John Lott's thesis "More Guns, Less Crime" (see http://johnrlott.blogspot.com/), because the correlations between states' concealed-carry laws and rates of crime are impressive, but I have not spent enough time in his statistics to know whether he is using correlation to suggest causation without an adequate basis. Nonetheless, it seems natural to me that a person intent on shooting many people would be less inclined to choose a venue at which he knew there would be persons lawfully carrying concealed weapons.
As long as we are on the topic, our instructor pointed to statistics showing that the conviction rates for concealed-carry license holders are much lower than those for the population at large. This is, on its face good (the opposite would be terrible), but, it probably proves very little. My guess is that the universe of license holders will be more law-abiding for any number of reasons: (i) convicted felons (persons with a proclivity to commit crimes in the first place) are not eligible for concealed-carry licenses; (ii) applicants must submit themselves to fingerprinting and a background check; and (iii) applicants must pass a written exam and pay hundreds in fees. My guess is that the set of persons that have never been convicted of a felony, are willing to submit to fingerprinting and a background check, and who can afford to pay the fees and can pass the written exam, is likely to have a very low rate of convictions. In this sense, the low rate of convictions for concealed-carry licensees is a consequence of self-selection.
Chris (Father)
I agree generally in John Lott's thesis "More Guns, Less Crime" (see http://johnrlott.blogspot.com/), because the correlations between states' concealed-carry laws and rates of crime are impressive, but I have not spent enough time in his statistics to know whether he is using correlation to suggest causation without an adequate basis. Nonetheless, it seems natural to me that a person intent on shooting many people would be less inclined to choose a venue at which he knew there would be persons lawfully carrying concealed weapons.
As long as we are on the topic, our instructor pointed to statistics showing that the conviction rates for concealed-carry license holders are much lower than those for the population at large. This is, on its face good (the opposite would be terrible), but, it probably proves very little. My guess is that the universe of license holders will be more law-abiding for any number of reasons: (i) convicted felons (persons with a proclivity to commit crimes in the first place) are not eligible for concealed-carry licenses; (ii) applicants must submit themselves to fingerprinting and a background check; and (iii) applicants must pass a written exam and pay hundreds in fees. My guess is that the set of persons that have never been convicted of a felony, are willing to submit to fingerprinting and a background check, and who can afford to pay the fees and can pass the written exam, is likely to have a very low rate of convictions. In this sense, the low rate of convictions for concealed-carry licensees is a consequence of self-selection.
Chris (Father)
Monday, August 15, 2011
Response to Micah's "A Mormon President?"
Unlike Micah, I do not believe that Romney will--if nominated--find it impossible to overcome his Mormon faith.
He was elected governor of a very blue state, and the media will be reluctant to "go there."
Indeed, had someone asked me in 2004 whether we would first elect a president who was a Mormon, or an African American, my gut would have said a Mormon. And, had I been informed that the first African American to receive his party's nomination would be a member of Jeremiah Wright's congregation, I would have been confident that he would not win.
I am proud of my country for setting race aside for the 2008 election; but, the choice that the electorate made has proven to be a questionable one (I cannot bring myself to say it was obviously wrong when the alternative was John McCain).
Father (Chris)
He was elected governor of a very blue state, and the media will be reluctant to "go there."
Indeed, had someone asked me in 2004 whether we would first elect a president who was a Mormon, or an African American, my gut would have said a Mormon. And, had I been informed that the first African American to receive his party's nomination would be a member of Jeremiah Wright's congregation, I would have been confident that he would not win.
I am proud of my country for setting race aside for the 2008 election; but, the choice that the electorate made has proven to be a questionable one (I cannot bring myself to say it was obviously wrong when the alternative was John McCain).
Father (Chris)
Saturday, August 13, 2011
A Mormon President?
Perhaps it's just me, but I find it almost inconceivable that our country could elect a Mormon president (Mitt Romney or his doppelganger John Huntsman). Google tenets of mormonism, and you find almost nothing directly from the Mormon church, but several websites on the first page that are deeply critical of mormonism as a faith. As a Christian I understand how the writings of a faith can be misconstrued to paint a negative image of its teachings, but Mormonism seems, from all accounts, to run counter to several core teachings of Christianity, and the current values of our country. I feel that, if Huntsman or Romney end up as likely Republican nominees, pieces of the book of Mormon and quotes from Mormons with significant status in the church could be used in questions directed at them, with deleterious results. An example: I think the church's historical stance on intermarriage between races could result in some painfully interesting discussions for the two.
-Son
-Son
About Son
I am 19 years old and an Economics major at the University of Texas.
My politics occupy an area somewhere between Libertarianism and Conservatism, with significant outliers on a number of positions.
I like writing, appreciate the art of syntax, and enjoy literature of various styles.
I follow several right wing blogs, and am also a fairly active commenter on The Huffington Post.
I love spending time at the gym and could probably be considered an amateur body builder.
I am an assuredly saved Christian who believes the bible is absolute truth, but often questions man's interpretation of it.
I believe Liberalism is crippling America, and offer Britain, and the E.U. in general, as an example.
I believe there are genetic differences between races, which predetermine many of the resulting discrepancies.
I believe the U.S. political system is flawed on a level that makes it incompatible with good government.
I'm pretty sure "good government" is an oxymoron.
Currently, Lawrence Auster is the blogger I am influenced by most.
My politics occupy an area somewhere between Libertarianism and Conservatism, with significant outliers on a number of positions.
I like writing, appreciate the art of syntax, and enjoy literature of various styles.
I follow several right wing blogs, and am also a fairly active commenter on The Huffington Post.
I love spending time at the gym and could probably be considered an amateur body builder.
I am an assuredly saved Christian who believes the bible is absolute truth, but often questions man's interpretation of it.
I believe Liberalism is crippling America, and offer Britain, and the E.U. in general, as an example.
I believe there are genetic differences between races, which predetermine many of the resulting discrepancies.
I believe the U.S. political system is flawed on a level that makes it incompatible with good government.
I'm pretty sure "good government" is an oxymoron.
Currently, Lawrence Auster is the blogger I am influenced by most.
Rick Perry
I am a lifelong Texan. Thus, something that I heard Will Cain (http://www.cainandtable.com/about) say while he was hosting "Stand-up with Pete Dominick" struck me: "Rick Perry is far more popular with Republicans outside the state of Texas than he is with Texas Republicans." I could not agree more. But, I will give him this: he knows how to run winning campaigns.
Friday, August 12, 2011
About Father
1. I am 52 years old.
2. I have been married for more that 22 years.
3. I have two children, both of whom are in college and doing quite well.
4. I enjoy reading most of what Hemingway wrote.
5. My son and I love to read about politics.
6. Like my mother, I love numbers, and doing math in my head.
7. I used to love baseball, but do not now much care for the game.
8. I like chardonnay, especially Newton Unfiltered and Chapellet.
9. My wife loves red Zins, especially Rombauer.
10. I am a Christian.
11. I enjoy watching golf, and hope that no one ever breaks Nicklaus' record for major championship victories.
12. I have zero tolerance for discriminating on the basis of race, thus, I am a vigorous opponent of racial preferences in hiring, college admissions, contracting, etc.
13. I believe universities routinely discriminate against Asian students.
14. I love astrophysics, and especially enjoy reading everything I can about the expanding universe, the search for ways to unify the four forces, and Einstein.
15. I believe you can learn a great deal about a man's ethics by watching him play a round of golf.
16. I believe nearly all government programs and initiatives do more harm than good.
17. I believe efforts to make citizens dependent on government programs and payments border on criminal.
18. I agree with those who proclaim that the government has adequate revenue, and that its problems are on the spending side.
19. I believe that there are real differences between the inate abilities of men (as a group) and women (as a group), but that these differences say nothing about any particular man or woman.
20. I believe that outcomes for individuals more closely correlate with IQ than with other factors.
2. I have been married for more that 22 years.
3. I have two children, both of whom are in college and doing quite well.
4. I enjoy reading most of what Hemingway wrote.
5. My son and I love to read about politics.
6. Like my mother, I love numbers, and doing math in my head.
7. I used to love baseball, but do not now much care for the game.
8. I like chardonnay, especially Newton Unfiltered and Chapellet.
9. My wife loves red Zins, especially Rombauer.
10. I am a Christian.
11. I enjoy watching golf, and hope that no one ever breaks Nicklaus' record for major championship victories.
12. I have zero tolerance for discriminating on the basis of race, thus, I am a vigorous opponent of racial preferences in hiring, college admissions, contracting, etc.
13. I believe universities routinely discriminate against Asian students.
14. I love astrophysics, and especially enjoy reading everything I can about the expanding universe, the search for ways to unify the four forces, and Einstein.
15. I believe you can learn a great deal about a man's ethics by watching him play a round of golf.
16. I believe nearly all government programs and initiatives do more harm than good.
17. I believe efforts to make citizens dependent on government programs and payments border on criminal.
18. I agree with those who proclaim that the government has adequate revenue, and that its problems are on the spending side.
19. I believe that there are real differences between the inate abilities of men (as a group) and women (as a group), but that these differences say nothing about any particular man or woman.
20. I believe that outcomes for individuals more closely correlate with IQ than with other factors.
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