TEN! - 3/30/2014 SLO:
Wow! I agree with a Tribune Editorial! "...we support Cal Poly's new dorms"!
1) we wanted to live in SLO (after considering Morro Bay, Los Osos, and Baywood Park first) and
2) we wanted to live as far away from Cal Poly as possible - the reasons should be obvious: College life was fun for Sue and I, but it was over and we didn't want to re-live it by living close to campus. Period. Yes, we'd pay more for the same home, but it was worth being away from the assumed chaos of college students "just wanting to have fun!".
Fast forward to 2014: Cal Poly built massive new dorms some years back, to the benefit of both the students (on-campus housing) and the SLO residents (less students living among us and lower rents for us non-students). Those who bought next to campus, just like those purchasing a home next to an airport, surely got the "near campus" discount. Houses closer to Cal Poly went for less $$$ for obvious reasons (just like houses near a noisy airport). And just like those owners living near airports, its hard to justify buying nearby and then complaining about the noise AND demanding quieter jets and different runway configurations. I would know: I grew up in El Segundo just feet from one of the busiest airports of them all: LAX!
Similarly, those who bought in SLO next to Cal Poly knew what they were getting: a lower priced home, and student craziness (more than average number of parties, beer cans on the lawn, noise, burning rubber tires, etc.). I suppose those who never went to college or never saw "Animal House" might be excused for being confused.
Should the dorms built to house 1,475 more Cal Poly be built at the location proposed? Yes. Should the city of SLO and Cal Poly do all they can to mitigate whatever additional "damage" may occur? Yes again.
A few more notes on the subject:
1) the location proposed by Cal Poly is the most reasonable one for them, including the least expensive; lower cost for them means lower cost for taxpayers (that's us) and possibly lower dorm fees for students - all good.
2) More on-campus housing means less students living amongst us - that should be good for SLO, including the neighbors to Cal Poly who are complaining about the location of the new dorms.
3) To all you environmentalists out there: on campus housing REDUCES traffic, noise, pollution and congestion to the city of SLO as a whole - you should be in favor of it! If the EIR shows a few intersections near Cal Poly may be more crowded, it should also mean far fewer trips overall, because there will be less students living outside of campus and driving to and from campus. That's a good trade-off IMHO.
NINE - 3/28/2014 WORLD:
Let Russia Have the Crimea and Ukraine and any other Sh*t-Hole they want.
Ukraine is a desperately third world country, and they gave up their nukes in 1994 (see below) and abandoned their military as well - fools! What'd they expect would happen?Do I approve of Putin and his unidentified-solider thugs and their doings in the Ukraine? H*ll no! However, its time for the EU, with their puny military budgets, to patrol their own neighborhood. Unlike Obama, I would not pretend to be the bad-*ss of Europe to Putin. Instead, I would invite Europe to decide whether they want their own backyard to go to h*ll in a handbasket or not. Nope - not even a loan to Ukraine. Russia is the one to break the 1994 promise - not the US. If you are clueless and have no idea what I am talking about, git yerself educated by clicking here.
EIGHT - 3/28/2014 NATION:
Name-Calling, Racist, etc.
Did I say that I'm tired of being guilty simply because I'm white and male. I'm not gonna shoot myself, so you'll just have to deal with it - that's how I was born, and unlike Michael J., I'm not gonna try and change that (was that just a racist remark that I made? It depends on whether you are an R or a D, I suppose).
The latest is to call rich R's "Oligarchs", ala Putin. Likewise, Tea Party members (of which I am not) are "racists" (despite no evidence), and the religious right are "jihadists". The media plays along with the libs and mimics these lables, to the extent they can get away with it.
SEVEN - 3/27/2014 NATION:
NLRB rules that College Athletes on Scholarship at PRIVATE Universities can form a Union!
The NLRB ruled on 3/26/2014 that scholarship college athletes from PRIVATE Universities can unionize; i.e., meaning that they are employees of the school. The current situation excludes government (i.e. public) universities from this ruling. So now, student-athletes at Stanford are free to unionize, but their nemesis in the PAC 12, UCLA, will have no such burden. It's good to be king! You can read more about this just about anywhere. Its always convenient for the government to exclude themselves from their punitive laws and rulings: this is just one more example of "do what I say, not what I do".
SIX - 3/25/2014 NATION:
Private Pension Plans About to Receive 2 Setbacks.
Private Pension Plans About to Receive 2 Setbacks.
The 2 setbacks are:
(1) Employers face a 52% increase in 2016 in the regulatory cost of administering their pension plans. These are in the form of increased fees paid to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.
(2) The Society of Actuaries recently updated its mortality tables for the first time since 2000! The new numbers reflect longer life spans. The update expect the average man of 65 years old to live to 86.6 years old - up from the previous 82.6 years (a 5% increase). The average women of 65 years old is expected to live to 88.8 years, up from 85.2 (a 4% increase).
These 2 factors will increase costs to companies that offer pensions, thus increasing the under-funding of their pension programs - and should require them to contribute greater sums to their under-funded plans.
Because of these factors, corporations are racing to get out of the pension business, both by denying pensions to new employees and pawning off their pension liabilities to insurance companies to administer. Employer are shifting employees away from "defined benefit plans" (pays a monthly amount in retired tied to COLA) to defined contribution plans (i.e., 401k plans - the employee funds and controls their own retirement investments).
The bottom line is that this will be good for companies and bad for employees.
Because of these factors, corporations are racing to get out of the pension business, both by denying pensions to new employees and pawning off their pension liabilities to insurance companies to administer. Employer are shifting employees away from "defined benefit plans" (pays a monthly amount in retired tied to COLA) to defined contribution plans (i.e., 401k plans - the employee funds and controls their own retirement investments).
The bottom line is that this will be good for companies and bad for employees.
FIVE - 3/17/2014 NATION:
From Rubi. We were recently warned about Mexican Cartel Pot Growers in an area we were hiking. Here's what he threw into the mix (I thought it was both funny and had a ring of truth to it):
B: In a gunfight, the most important rule is ... HAVE A GUN!!!
C: Shooting Advice from various Concealed Carry Instructors.
D: If you own a gun, you will appreciate these rules...
E: If not, you should get one and learn how to use it and learn the rules:
RULES:
A: Guns have only two enemies: rust and politicians.
B: It's always better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6
C: Cops carry guns to protect themselves, not you.
D: Never let someone or something that threatens you get inside your arm's length.
E: Never say, "I've got a gun." If you need to use deadly force, the first sound they hear should be the safety clicking off.
F: The average response time of a 911 call is 23 minutes ; the response time of a .357 is 1400 feet per second.
G: The most important rule in a gunfight is: Aways win - there is no such thing as a fair fight. Always win - cheat if necessary.
H: Make your attacker advance through a hail of bullets ..You may get killed with your own gun, but he'll have to beat you to death with it, 'cause it will be empty.
I: If you're in a gun fight: If you're not shooting, you should be loading. If you're not loading, you should be moving. If you're not moving, you're dead.
J: In a life and death situation, do something ... it may be wrong, but do something!
K: If you carry a gun, people call you paranoid. Nonsense! If you have a gun, what do you have to be paranoid about?
L: You can say 'stop' or any other word, but a large bore muzzle pointed at someone's head is pretty much a universal language.
M: Never leave an enemy behind. If you have to shoot, shoot to kill. In court, yours will be the only testimony.
N: You cannot save the planet, but you may be able to save yourself and your family.
FOUR - 3/7/2014 CALIFORNIA:
Capturing Rainwater before it reaches the Ocean.
Southern California is still fat with water, despite the 3rd year of the drought - why? Because they've spent tons of political and actual capital to put water supply and infrastructure in place. I frequently stay with friends in Los Angeles, and nobody uses a restricted flow showerhead there - a restrictive appliance that has been in place in every shower I have ever used on the central coast since we moved here in 1992. The rest of California needs to invest in reservoirs and water storage systems, and will begin moving further in that direction, but - the greatest opposition? The environmentalists, of course. Let the lawsuits begin! (or continue!).
From Rubi. We were recently warned about Mexican Cartel Pot Growers in an area we were hiking. Here's what he threw into the mix (I thought it was both funny and had a ring of truth to it):
A: "History is written by the victors" ---Winston Churchill
C: Shooting Advice from various Concealed Carry Instructors.
D: If you own a gun, you will appreciate these rules...
E: If not, you should get one and learn how to use it and learn the rules:
RULES:
A: Guns have only two enemies: rust and politicians.
B: It's always better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6
C: Cops carry guns to protect themselves, not you.
D: Never let someone or something that threatens you get inside your arm's length.
E: Never say, "I've got a gun." If you need to use deadly force, the first sound they hear should be the safety clicking off.
F: The average response time of a 911 call is 23 minutes ; the response time of a .357 is 1400 feet per second.
G: The most important rule in a gunfight is: Aways win - there is no such thing as a fair fight. Always win - cheat if necessary.
H: Make your attacker advance through a hail of bullets ..You may get killed with your own gun, but he'll have to beat you to death with it, 'cause it will be empty.
I: If you're in a gun fight: If you're not shooting, you should be loading. If you're not loading, you should be moving. If you're not moving, you're dead.
J: In a life and death situation, do something ... it may be wrong, but do something!
K: If you carry a gun, people call you paranoid. Nonsense! If you have a gun, what do you have to be paranoid about?
L: You can say 'stop' or any other word, but a large bore muzzle pointed at someone's head is pretty much a universal language.
M: Never leave an enemy behind. If you have to shoot, shoot to kill. In court, yours will be the only testimony.
N: You cannot save the planet, but you may be able to save yourself and your family.
FOUR - 3/7/2014 CALIFORNIA:
Capturing Rainwater before it reaches the Ocean.
Southern California is still fat with water, despite the 3rd year of the drought - why? Because they've spent tons of political and actual capital to put water supply and infrastructure in place. I frequently stay with friends in Los Angeles, and nobody uses a restricted flow showerhead there - a restrictive appliance that has been in place in every shower I have ever used on the central coast since we moved here in 1992. The rest of California needs to invest in reservoirs and water storage systems, and will begin moving further in that direction, but - the greatest opposition? The environmentalists, of course. Let the lawsuits begin! (or continue!).
THREE - 3/7/2014 NATION:
Race to Ban E-Cigarettes.
Banning them is ridiculous - its water vapor, folks. Its another tool for smokers to use to try and quit - give them a break. Race to Ban E-Cigarettes.
TWO - 3/7/2014 NATION:
Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey.
Bridgegate may not be fatal for Christie, but if he goes up against Hilary in the Presidential race, he will be toast. The media will promote the image of "Christie the Bully" and it will be all over for him (don't believe it? Dan Quayle spelled potatoe with 1 of 2 accepted spellings, and was labelled an imbecile from that time on in the media).
The media is drooling for Hilary as the first woman president, and if she runs, I believe she will be. I am luke warm on Christie, and believe that Hilary would have been better than Obama. Who will the Republican candidate for Prez be? Who knows - the race will be a free-for-all, all the R's will beat each other up, and HRC will cruise to victory (if she runs).
Hilary is truly on the fence about running, as she is getting older and her gas tank is low, and with her experience, she knows that winning is only the beginning...does she want to put herself through it all again? I know if I were her, I would not want to run again. She can instead be an elder statesman like Bill, and have fun and be treated like royalty...
Putin and the Ukraine.
3/7/2014: Crimea Moves to Secede and Join Russia - wow, I bet Texas is trying to figure out how they can do that - maybe an invasion from Mexico?
Putin is sending in Russian troops to the Crimean Peninsula with no military insignias (that would indicate they are Russian troops) and masks over their face - an outrageous international move. Putin denies they are Russian troops at all, but merely local militias - a bald-faced lie. Putin has Obama's number, and they both know it. American has a dog in this race, but our dog has no teeth.
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