Nice...

Way to Go American... we are number 1! (crikey bush sucks)

------
Also: A good rant on the priorities of mainstream media from Wil Wheaton's Blog. Good stuff man.

------
High oil prices? Bush says it's India's fault.

President George Bush said India must develop an alternative to oil for its energy needs, saying surging demand for fuel in China and India contributed to the price increase. "It's in our economic interest and our national interest to help countries like India and China become more efficient users of oil," Bush said at a Virginia processing plant that makes "biodiesel" fuel out of soybeans. "That would help take the pressure off global oil supply, take the pressure off prices here at home," he said.

FYI:
American consumption: 21 million barrels per day
China consumption: 7.4 million barrels per day
Indian consumption: 2.8 million barrels per day

Lowering a tiny % of our oil consumption would help everybody considerably. But Bush thinks it's everybody else's fault. Jeeze, no wonder the world thinks we are idiots!!!

Homeland Security - not exactly effective in this case

So we went down to a federal building in a major city today... (I'll save the exact building the embarrassment, and save me from an FBI visit) Of course like most fed buildings it has a security staff, screening for dangerous items, etc.

The baggage/purse xray checker was broken (not uncommon I hear). Not a big issue, I thought, they'll just hand screen everyone. I had a messenger bag with paperwork and my wife had a large purse with paperwork for our business there.

The screener/officers took our keys, shoes, belt buckles, etc into the little pans for metal items, we walked through the "walking" scanner. They asked several times about camera phones. They didn't check my bag, but made me go back to my car with my camera phone. THEY DIDN'T CHECK EITHER OF OUR BAGS, the bags didn't go through metal detectors, they didn't go thru the x-ray machine, but they asked several times about CAMERA PHONES.

I can't figure out why a camera phone would be a bigger security issue than some other dangerous item??? Anything could have been in my bag. Presumably, a camera phone could be used to capture photos that could help plan some sort of attack on the facility... but I could have had a freakin' Nikon with a flash and foldable tripod in my bag... they didn't check. Much less something more dangerous.

These guys really need to get their priorities straight. Security isn't just a word, it's not just a bunch of rules to follow, it's strict procedures, it's thinking on your feet, it's combing through anything that could be a danger. These guys really need to think about how important their job is and focus on helping people not just following rules.

Am I the only concerned American with a freakin' brain seeing this? Any similar experiences?

sad... PR Spin at it's worst.

"Pat had high ideals about the country; that's why he did what he did," Mary Tillman said in her first lengthy interview since her son's death. "The military let him down. The administration let him down. It was a sign of disrespect. The fact that he was the ultimate team player and he watched his own men kill him is absolutely heartbreaking and tragic. The fact that they lied about it afterward is disgusting."

"If this is what happens when someone high profile dies, I can only imagine what happens with everyone else."
---
So all the troops on the ground and the commanders and politicians know it was friendly fire, they changed the story, used the PR, then quietly told the family weeks later. A pretty pathetic showing, dishonoring this man's memory and dishonoring this country.

Almost Unnoticed, Bipartisan Budget Anxiety

The timing could not have been more apt. On the eve of a titanic partisan clash in the Senate, eggheads of the left and right got together yesterday to warn both parties that they are ignoring the country's most pressing problem: that the United States is turning into Argentina.

(Conservative economists, left-leaning economists and the US Comptroller gathered recently to agree and...) to bemoan what they jointly called the budget "nightmare." ...what the three spoke about will have greater consequences than the current fuss over filibusters and Tom DeLay's travel.

Walker put U.S. debt and obligations at $45 trillion in current dollars -- almost as much as the total net worth of all Americans, or $150,000 per person. Balancing the budget in 2040, he said, could require cutting total federal spending as much as 60 percent or raising taxes to 2 1/2 times today's levels.

But such haggling seems premature when both parties still deny the problem. "I don't think we're there yet," Walker said. "The American people have to understand where we are and where we're headed."

And where is that? "No republic in the history of the world lasted more than 300 years," Walker said. "Eventually, the crunch comes."

He wasn't talking about filibusters.

What a mess... Ask your congressman what he/she will do about it... Let's spread this word, don't bankrupt our country. I'll be in my early-seventies in 2040, and my children will be in the prime of their life... what will they have? What will the world be like? What about you and your children?

Charlie

Top 10 Filibuster Falsehoods

This article by Media Matters for America is a must-read by anybody who argues with their neocon friends over the judicial nominee fracas. It argues, point for point, against every right-wing conservative talking point available.
Nothing like backing up rhetoric with fact, I tell you.

TSA wasting money on non-security building

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration has not upgraded equipment at many airports because it can't afford it all. The TSA says that's why its screeners sometimes miss guns, knives and other items passengers carry through security checkpoints.
Yet TSA employees at a new operations center in Herndon, Va., spent $500,000 on artwork and silk plants for their offices, a government auditor says.
The building and its furnishings, which houses just 79 employees, cost $19 million, including a $350,000 gym, seven kitchens with restaurant-grade appliances, and $63,099 worth of cable-fed TVs. Even "low level" employees have large private offices. David Stone, the center's manager, says the new building and its decorations are "worth every dollar spent." (Washington Post) ...To whom?

Heading back to Austin Today

Hey All,
We have some great photos of Iguazu Falls (Cataratas Iguazu) in Argentina and Brasil... we went last weekend. It was truly a stunning place. I'll have some posted soon.

We are heading back to Austin today, going to be in tomorrow... it'll be good to feel the heat again! 8-) According to weather, it should be mid-80's F and partially sunny. Of course, Marcela and I have brought rain to nearly every place we've visited recently, and Austin probably won't be any different. Saturday and Sunday say rain.... ugh. At least I hope I'll be able to watch some tv, I missed Stargate SG1 and Atlantis season finales, Lost and almost everything else good the past 2.5 months.. 8-)

Of course, it will also give me a chance to install the new Mac Tiger Operating System on my desktop and ibook... should be super fun. I also have lots of video to catch up on... Nearly 12 hours of DV tapes to digitize and edit.... ek. nice stuff, but I don't even have a newer machine that can handle it... YET. 8-) G5 here I come... anyone know any good deals out there? Used maybe?

I have a few contracts to help with the cost of a new mac, and it should be tax deductable this year too... 8-) If you need any legal advice, check out Taylor & Dunham, or any health insurance, check out ASAPQuotes.com. [end of work search engine work plug]

Hope to see you all in Austin soon!
Charlie and Marcela
Buenos Aires, Argentina

How to fix US Social Security?

Here's a great animation that shows a great way (and REALISTIC WAY) for the US to fix social security. Sorry Bush, you are wrong on this one.

Charlie

Papers Please

This Tuesday, the US Senate is scheduled to vote on the implementation of a national ID card system. The Real ID Act is nothing less than a Real National ID Act. The only thing left to the individual states is to decide which pretty picture they will choose to put on the card: everything else will be controlled by Washington DC bureaucrats.

The Real ID Act has never been debated on the US Senate floor. They've never talked about it in any committee. Heck, most of them haven't even read it! Yet they're planning to vote on it on Tuesday, no questions asked.

In order to make a single irresponsible Congressman with totalitarian leanings happy, the Senate leadership let him write the bill and then slipped it into a another bill, one that would keep our fighting men and women taken care of in Iraq and Afghanistan. Supporting our troops means making sure they come home to a free nation, not a surveillance state.

Click here to take action now! Write your Senator now! Time is running out!

BA Update: Ushuaia & Tierra del Fuego - WOW!!!

Here they are, a few shots from "The End of the World" Ushuaia, in Tierra del Fuego, the southern most tip of South America, the jumping off point for most Antartica expeditions. Marcela and I had a great time, it's really an amazing place. I'd really like to go back, there is so much to see... all cold, but beautiful but rich in amazing things, everywhere you look!


Ushuaia Photos Part One
Ushuaia Photos Part Two

BTW, our guide Bismark is quoted in this BBC News article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4490517.stm

Enjoy!

Charlie & Marcela