Links and Minifeatures 01 26 Friday

Carnival of Investing

**********



U.S. troops may protect selves from Iranians



I wasn't aware that there was any doubt. If there was, shame on the entire chain of command, but particularly Mr. Bush.

He spoke after The Washington Post reported that U.S. forces have the authority to capture or kill Iranian agents active in attacking American soldiers inside Iraq, a story Bush and other U.S. officials did not deny.



"It makes sense that if somebody is trying to harm our troops or stop us from achieving our goals or killing innocent citizens in Iraq, that we will stop them," Bush said. "It's an obligation we all have to protect our folks and achieve our goals."

All well and good, but

U.S. troops would not go into Iran.

I understand the political situation that leads to this, but don't be surprised if the opposition uses this rule against our troops. If Iran doesn't want incursions, and they shouldn't unless they are co-operating with the rebels - which they unfortunately are - they should have troops on the border ready to contest entry.



**********



People Unclear On The Concept Department: ElBaradei calls for timeout on Iran nuclear program

International Atomic Energy Agency head Mohammed ElBaradei said Friday he was calling for a timeout regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, hoping that talks on the matter can resume.



ElBaradei told CNN International that the timeout would mean Iran would freeze its nuclear program, while the United Nations would temporarily suspend the sanctions package against Iran that took effect last month.

Dear Mr. Clueless IAEA Honcho:



Time is precisely what Iran wants. They may even say that they will freeze their program, but whether they actually do so is another matter entirely. See both their president and religious ruler's stated goals. Such a "Time Out" has a very high probability of giving Iran exactly what it really wants: the time and opportunity to develop nuclear weapons at a much lower economic cost.



**********



Sanctions for hiring illegals worry firms

Under the provision, offered by Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., companies caught hiring illegal workers while on a federal contract would be banned from government work for 10 years. Other companies discovered with illegal workers would be prohibited from getting federal contracts for seven years.



The ban would not be subject to appeal in court, but the federal government could waive it for national security reasons. Companies that use a pilot electronic employment verification system would be exempt from the sanctions. Business groups complain the verification system is flawed.

Hurray!



Let's get real here. If businesses were really worried about sanctions being unjustly applied, they have an easily available safe harbor. All they have to do is use the verification system and they are in the clear. But if what they really want is to be able to hire illegal aliens without sanctions, which is the present system, then they would be doing, well, precisely what they are doing. Complaining and trying to get the proposed law changed.



Just as I have no patience for people in authority not enforcing the laws on the books, neither do I have any for corporations who actively work to frustrate the will of the electorate so that they can take advantage of people who have no avenue of complaint, and they want to keep making money from the very government they are defying.



In short, business as usual. (deleted expletive)



**********



Flight delays hint at troubled system



I think there should be a bid system for the right to depart and land at impacted airports when traffic levels exceed certain targets. Yes, it will raise the price of tickets. But I've seen afternoon air traffic in the LA Basin too many times, and it's worse now than it was twenty years ago. AOPA opposes it because it'll mean that the pilot of a four seat single engine aircraft would have to bid against 747s for the right to land at LAX at 5 PM Friday, while I think that pilot should probably just plan to use any of the dozen or so airports in the area that are functionally equivalent for general aviation, or arrive and depart when the airport isn't quite so busy. If you want an idea what it's like, imagine that you were driving a Mini at freeway speed down a one lane road on which there is a continuous traffic of tractor rigs doing over twice your speed, and they don't even have to actually hit you to wipe you out due to wake turbulence. That's general aviation on final for LAX when it's busy.