Links and Minifeatures 09 19 Monday

Well, today marks three months since I started this thing. Seems to be working out okay.

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Shakedown successful: North Korea Pledges to Drop Nuclear Program. This is one small reason why we want to deal with Iran now before they get the technology.



Scrappleface has the correct take on the issue.



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I don't know enough about German politics to comment intelligently about their chances for a coalition, but I'm thinking this whole situation can't be good news for Schroeder.



HT to Dean's World for linking Peaktalk (who hails from the area originally) about the German elections, and David's Medienkritik who comments on the likely coalitions.



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RINO Sightings is up!



Carnival of The Capitalists is up.



So is Carnival of Personal Finance



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I'm as big a space buff as anyone, and bigger than most. But if this article on US to send four astronauts to moon in 2018 and this one about a cost of $104 Billion are correct, I'm not impressed given the advances since Apollo was designed in the late 1950s and early 1960s. We've had a resuable craft for the last twenty years, and going to "Apollo on steroids" is going backwards. Although the end of the cost article hints at reusable compenents, the way to do it is likely what the original plan was for going to the moon: assemble the thing in orbit. Put up a real space station and assemble the pieces there. Then use the station as a base (Orbit is halfway to anywhere in the system, enerygy-wise). Trying to blast off from earth direct to lunar touch down and back is kind of like trying to use the same vessel as a locomotive and a sailing yacht. If I had my way, we'd forget about the moon until we had orbital catapult or orbital tower technology down, and go straight to the asteroids, which is what is most likely to best fuel The Third Industrial Revolution. Moon and Mars can wait. Once space is shown to be profitable there will be demand for them as destination. Let's go to the asteroids. The round trip is easier (although longer time-wise than the Moon), and likely to be more productive.



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Jawa Report makes some good points about both sides of the political spectrum in regards to Katrina response.



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Peter Porcupine tells us of the likelihood of disaster on Cape Cod. I agree with him that far. However, when he starts talking about spreading the risk that Cape Cod's homeowners to all policy holders of the state's FAIR plan, that's where I disagree with him. These people have voluntarily bought property on Cape Cod. Nobody held a gun to their heads (most of them are pretty well off, too, but that's a different argument). They voluntarily assumed the risk that a Hurricane will demolish their property in ways that an inland property holder has not - and they want the increase shared among those who bypassed that risk, also? I don't think so. That's a violation of the principles on insurance, which is based not only upon the law of large numbers, but also upon the risks you choose to take.



And with any other company, the raise would be disastrous. Underpriced insurance seems like a wonderful idea - until the time comes to make a claim. In this case, the taxpayers of Massachusetts would be on the line for claims that would break a regular insurance company, and he wants to hold the line on price increases?



If Insurance issues cause a lowering of home values in the area, well I'm sorry for the people who lose out, but better that than what happens if the price of the insurance is not adequate to pay the claims.



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Professor Bainbridge links to a lengthy article about the consequences of Fannie Mae and/or Freddie Mac failing. It does fly under most people's radar, but with both Fannie and Freddie under indictment from the SEC among others for poor disclosure, and some of the froth in the housing markets around the country, it's one more factor turning the whole real estate value sector in the United States into a house of cards.



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Armies of Liberation has another article up on Yemeni corruption.



(So why does it sound so much like New Orleans?)

(For the rhetorically challenged, the answer is "extended period of one party rule")



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Beldar baits one of the Miscreants from Massachusetts.



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No Angst Zone has an excellent article on BRAC (i.e. Base closings). Okay, Clinton may have started it but the current BRAC has only itself to blame for its gutlessness. As he says:

I must be confused, I was under the impression that the purpose of the United States Armed Forces was to defend this country, not to sustain the economy of tiny towns in the middle of the desert. Apparently, the BRAC Commissioners felt otherwise:

Problem is, there's lots of people watching after preserving a few jobs here and an cash cow there, but nobody watching after the overall interests on the United States.