We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.
There have been a couple of aviation stories in the news recently. Here's a quick update.
Pic: Doc's lifelong dream of flight begins to take shape
As noted in The F-35 Debacle, perhaps the goofiest weapon of war the United States armed forces has ever commissioned was the fastest, sleekest, most modern fighter jet in history — while requiring that it also have the capabilities of a helicopter.
The mind reels.
But, even though they now cost about 10 times the original estimate, this isn't to say that our money's not being put to good use. Sure, there are bound to be a few little glitches, but that's expected when developing a new breed of aircraft.
Little glitches like, say, turning into a fireball of death when hit by lightning.
The production of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter – the world’s most sophisticated and expensive combat aircraft – has been derailed after engineers discovered that the jet’s fuel tank could explode if struck by lightning.
But at least they're watching every dollar and not frivolously wasting it on unnecessary weight:
Attempts to increase fuel efficiency by reducing the jet’s weight have also made it more vulnerable to enemy attack than the generation of aircraft it was supposed to replace.
Or scaring innocent civilians on the ground by flying too low:
A design fault in the fuel tank has also prevented the JSF being able to rapidly descend to low altitude.
What's so sobering is that, after more than a decade, this thing's still in the developmental stage. It hasn't even been put to use and field-tested yet.
Let's hope the bad guys don't live in an area protected by lots of thunderstorms.
Speaking of fireballs of death, below the fold we'll get an update on the Boeing 787 and how our ever-vigilant MSM has handled the story.
America is being run by a Made in Indonesia leader whose performance is as bad as any of the Made in Indonesia, Pakistan or China crap you'll find in Wal-Mart. And it doesn't matter because he's a brand. The savvier younger and urban voters don't care what he's made of, they care how he makes them feel. They may lose their job the next day and their prospects for paying off their college loans may be missing, but if it makes them feel good at the point of polling, then that's what matters.
This sentimental series could keep going on, but this is enough for now. I hope Moms are still cooking these simple, filling things for their kids, because kids (and Dads) appreciate them and the homey, loving, and pedestrian nature of the food.
Man cannot live on take-out alone. Even if Mom has no talent in the kitchen, hot and home-made (even with the help of Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup) means a lot, says a lot.
Here's Moussaka. Very quick and easy to make. I've had it with ground beef, lamb, venison, even African antelope. All plenty good enough.
That's what Maggie's Mom's Home Cookin' is all about - good enough, loving enough, and cheap enough for a hungry, growing family.
(I deliberately left out many good Mom items which take more time to prepare - like Lasagna - or cost more - like ribeye steaks. And a good roast chicken can be got at Costco for $3.99. I left out Stuffed Cabbage and Shrimp and Grits, but I'll add them to the summary post.)
That theoretical eruption of Mount Toba 74,000 years ago almost might have wiped us out. The Ice Ages sure put a damper on things too. Changes in climate determined much of mankind's history.
Barring another Mount Toba, and with the help of some much hoped-for global warming, humans might populate the entire globe with cozy bungalows.
But we'll have another Mount Toba, for certain, sometime.
Unless you are some sort of immature free spirit like Elizabeth Wurtzel (with a guardian angel) who meanders through life aimlessly, you will have goals and will plot a course to attempt to reach them in the endless effort to feel content or satisfied, or at least to survive independently. Odds are that we will not reach the goals, but we give it our best shot. Always have a Plan B and a Plan C.
It remains a lighthouse on the sea of life: How to Win Friends and Influence People. It's the first book in my syllabus of my course Life 101, A Sunday Series this semester at Maggie's College. It's good to learn how to connect with people, but it is not automatic for most of us.
More of the syllabus later. It's a one-semester seminar course, one book per week is all - 15 books. It's not for credit because people are supposed to know these basics of life already, but many bright people never learned them because we got the mistaken impression that we were just wonderful without even trying. Including me. We aren't wonderful.
As Dr. Bliss often says, the life you desire must be constructed deliberately, thoughfully, while always being alert to opportunities that arise. Opportunities do arise if we just "Suit up and show up."
Raise it to 75. Americans are not like lazy European slackers. We like to be useful and productive, and it helps us respect ourselves. Any 65 year-old American will tell you that they are in the prime of life and ready to do anything. 65 is the new 45. The vast majority of Americans who retire at 65 have incomes at or below $20,000 per year. That's a bad plan.
Obama’s postelection arrogance and intransigence can put you in a fighting mood. I sympathize. But I’m tending toward the realist view: Don’t force the issue when you don’t have the power.
The irony is that over the last 30 years, the U.S. homicide rate has declined by 50 percent. Gun murders as well. We’re living not through an epidemic of gun violence but through a historic decline.
2:1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.
2:2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.
2:3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine."
2:4 And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come."
2:5 His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
2:6 Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
2:7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim.
2:8 He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward." So they took it.
2:9 When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom
2:10 and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now."
2:11 Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
It's not an Italian dish (it's an invention of Italian-Americans, poor immigrants from southern Italy who found they could afford meat in America), and it gives adults heartburn, but American kids seem to love it and it's easy to make.
I loved it as a kid, but now I feel it's an unpleasant meal. At least, we have evolved beyond Chef Boyardee. Here's Easiest Spaghetti and Meatballs.
One genuine Italian touch: Crazy Martha says to throw the drained pasta into the meat and sauce in the saucepan. That's the right way to do it. Pasta in the sauce, not the sauce on top of the pasta.
Yale is offering a course on bartending. I'm surprised, because I thought Yale College now specialized in the fun of sex toys and at the same time, in some sort of straddle, in combatting the evil and politically-incorrect male sexual interest in females. Not in alcohol. Maybe Yale is trying to compete with Dartmouth in the drinks category. Yale will lose that competition hands-down.
Is the reality of this economy sinking in yet? Admittedly, making a Perfect Manhattan is not child's play.
Readers know my views. I am in favor of grabbing the firearms of violent criminals and loonies. Start with the violent crims in gun-controlled Chicago, please. Bill Bratton knew how to do that in NYC.
Law-abiding people ought to have all the firearms they desire. Lethal hammers and knives, too. They do not need a reason. This is America.
The irony is that over the last 30 years, the U.S. homicide rate has declined by 50 percent. Gun murders as well. We’re living not through an epidemic of gun violence but through a historic decline.
For the convenience of readers, I collected two posters which you anti-gun nuts might wish to enlarge and display to advertise your virtue, if you have any cojones:
Here's an alternative yard sign for those who believe that evil exists, but know they are probably not it:
Court ruling in Prop. 30 case limits use of 'spot bills' in budget: "The opinion does not affect the passage of Proposition 30 but could limit the Legislature's future use of so-called "spot bills," placeholder bills included in budget packages and passed as urgency measures only after they are filled with language later. Such budget-related bills are useful to lawmakers because they require only a majority vote and take effect immediately."
Black Bean Soup. Good stuff. I like it with a big spoonful of mashed potatoes in the middle of the bowl. Don't be afraid to use instant mashed taters for it: it's cheap and easy, consistent with our theme.
Red Beans and Rice. It doesn't really need the ham hocks as long as you use some bacon. I lived on this when I was in college. I miss it. Need to make some.
Each of these dishes is not harmed by some hot sauce or hot pepper flakes.
The fact that millions of college graduates are unemployed or wait tables is not a temporary aberration; it is an inexorable result of rational incentives.
and
Consider the essential qualifications of a good employee (and I offer this account as someone who once owned and ran a business). He or she must be punctual, honest, be able to complete tasks on time, first time around and as specified. Employees must politely pay attention when spoken to and are not excessively argumentative; they must dress appropriately for the job, have good hygiene (look “clean cut”), speak distinctly and, with few exceptions, possess adequate writing skills as well as being able to perform tasks without explicit detailed instructions.
Such workers get along with co-workers or customers. They show up even under adverse circumstances and if unable to work that day, take necessary steps to minimize their absence. They give a full hour’s work for an hour’s pay and willingly volunteer for extra work if necessary. They also know that work is also not the place to socialize on the firm’s nickel.
Let's face it: many of the effete urban elites are just plain askeered of guns. Afraid to touch one, but no problem driving their lethal Volvos to their vacation homes or hiding behind armed security guards or bodyguards in their hotels, banks, office buildings, private roads, and private schools. Guns go "boom," and make holes in things. However, I shoot with many of the non-effete elite, and they are all quite comfortable with guns. They run businesses, or are heirs to fortunes, or are doctors and lawyers. They are outdoor people, know how to protect themselves and their families, and they read books, too. These guys I know tend to have lots of firearms. Some gals too, but they tend to rely on guys for their protection.
I know it is not PC, but married women do, statistically, tend to rely on masculine guys for lots of things.
Firearms are not just for criminals. They are basic life tools, like hammers. Who wants to be killed by a scumbag, or eaten by a Cougar?
Breakthroughs have recently been made in two computer areas, so I figured I'd catch y'all up to date.
First, voice recognition, which I've been following for decades. One of my pet fantasies is to run a business converting everything in a client's home to voice operation.
"Dim the lights, Hal."
"Yes, master."
"A little more."
"Yes, my lord."
I'd actually program some 'character' into it, like every 23rd time you tell it to dim the lights, it makes you say 'please' first. If anyone out there has some moolah and thinks this would be a fun business venture, let's do it.
But I stray.
While Google might be a little unethical and/or greedy in certain areas, it also remains a fact that Google Maps blew the doors off MapQuest, Google Translator blew the doors off every translation program in existence, Google, itself, blew the doors off the other search engines of the day, and nothing even compares to Google Earth, Google Images and Google Street View.
I feel they mightily dropped the ball with their Chrome browser, though, since it's only the ugliest, most ill-equipped browser in history. You can't even load a local page into it, last time I checked. But eventually they should get things sorted out (it says here).
It does, however, now incorporate what appears to be a quantum leap in voice recognition. If you've ever wasted hours upon hours on programs like 'Dragon Naturally Speaking', then you'll see what I mean.
Although it's a brief video, it still provides three key moments. Note (1) how it capitalizes the first word of the line after he says "New paragraph", (2) how it first thinks he says "notes", then changes it to "no" when "notes" doesn't make sense in context, and how it converts the word "exclamation" into an exclamation mark after it hears the whole phrase. Very smart.
As a small aside, that's not quite the truth up above. It's not Chrome, the browser, that's doing this, but an add-on program. We'll most likely see a conversion of the add-on for IE and FF soon enough. Google's just saying that to fluff Chrome's feathers.
Next up is controlling a computer with just one's hands. Below the fold we'll examine a 'magic box' called Leap Motion. As these things go, it's pretty amazing. Whether or not it's practical is the question at hand — both literally and figuratively.
A rule of the modern age: all confident, reelected presidents trip up in the second term. LBJ was sunk by Vietnam. Reagan faced Iran-Contra. Bill Clinton had his comeuppance with Monica. George W. Bush was overwhelmed with the Iraqi insurgency and Katrina. And Obama will have his as well, obsequious media or not.
Supposedly fundamental partisan swings of an era usually prove transitory: LBJ’s landside led to Nixon four years later, whose landslide then led to Carter in 1980, whose supposed new politics of humility and apology led to Reagan, whose small government-paradigm shift nonetheless by 1992 gave us Clinton, whose “middle way” after only eight years gave us Bush, whose “compassionate conservative realignment” ended with Obama. And so on until the end of the republic.
Bird Dog is off somewhere or other, so you are stuck with what is on my spindle for today and tomorrow. Today there is a lot piled on my spindle. (Please notify Guinness) Tomorrow should be a shorter stack.
We went after the eating fish (Spanish Mackeral), not the big game fish. More practical.
It's like a zoo. With the Humpback Whales all around peering at your boat, the Frigatebirds stealing your bait, and the Sea Lions stealing either your bait or your catch, it was a bit of an obstacle course. But how bad is that?
When you go, make sure to sup at our friend Roberto's shrimp joint, and at Mi Casa for traditional Mexican food and jollity. Good fun. To cook the fish you catch, bring them to Solomon's Landing and ask them to make some wonderful dishes with it for suppertime. They will amaze you.
The article is here. Of course a shorter summer "vacation" would help kids with continuity.
However, I think it's time that the entire structure of public K-12 education ought to be reinvented.
We started out with home-schooling, with tutors for the wealthy, then neighborhood one-room schoolhouses supported and controlled by the parents of the kids, then we went to the tax-supported, age-cohorted Prussian (yes, our public schools were based on the then-modern Prussian schools) factory model for the poor which we still use today in the US, while the prosperous (and the Catholics) used private schools. One size does not fit any, much less all.
Nobody cares what I think, but I do have plenty of ideas.
One of the first things I would do would be to eliminate the age-cohort system and, with that, those talented and gifted programs. Proceed at your own pace after demonstrating mastery of modules of study. The highly-motivated and bright move faster, the rest more slowly - or never. So what? Most kids cannot handle integral calculus but some kids are eager to tackle it.
Another would be to eliminate the huge summer vacation. It's obsolete. Give them August off, if need be. Why should kids have life easier than the grown-ups who take so little time away from their work and pay the bills for the supposed professional education?
Third, I would reintroduce technical training. The fancy private schools my kids attended have more technical training than the public schools have. Schools can take their pick: wood shop, metal shop, music shop, forestry shop, computer shop, kitchen shop, farm shop, garden shop, car and engine shop, construction and architecture shop, art and graphics shop, electrical shop, stone shop, ceramics shop, gun shop, etc. Few parents can teach all of these things, and the opportunities to integrate book learning - math, history, etc into real life tasks can be inspiring. If we had stone shop today, we might find another Michelangelo. Our kids' Kitchen Shop ultimately produced a Cordon Bleu four-star chef whose first task in Kitchen Shop was to understand sanitary dish-washing and the workings of a commercial dishwashing machine. Because private schools are non-union, the Kitchen Shop kids work in the school kitchen and take orders from the chef.
Fourth, I would get rid of the costly educational edifice complex. The building doesn't contribute anything. Any old empty mill building or vacant factory would be fine.
Fifth, I would bring back Civics. Every American needs to be taught how to be a citizen of a free republic. It's not easy to be one; it's all about man and God and law. Not all parents explain this plainly, or even by example.
Sixth: Sports. Every kid ought to do some team or individual sports as part of school or outside of school. Not just the athletically-gifted. America is a sports country. Builds character even if you are a spaz. Mens sana in corpore sano.
Seventh: Get rid of the unions. Teaching is a calling, not a factory job and definitely should not be a government job.
Eighth: Abolish the Federal dept. of Education. It's not their yob, and they are mostly idiots who could not change the oil in their car or hammer a nail straight into a 2X4, much less diagram a sentence.
Being Yankees, we are attached to exotic American Indian foods like winter squash, cranberries, corn meal, baked beans (and hot Thai curries).
A friend asked me about squash pie. It's really the same thing as pumpkin pie, but made with winter squash (of which the pumpkin is just one type).
The winter squashes were discovered and genetically-engineered by clever American Indians - as was corn (maize), the potato, and the tomato. Modern Western cuisine owes a lot to the Indian gourmets.
This recipe for Butternut Squash Pie works for any type of winter squash including pumpkin. Squash pies (as in photo) have a more subtle flavor than pumpkin.
Pumpkin or winter squash ravioli is a fine dish too. We have become convinced, by a Cordon Bleu chef friend, that using supermarket wontons is perfectly fine for making ravioli. We will never bother to make our own homemade ravioli pasta again, because it's too darn much work and it's the inside that counts. (My Woodcock ravioli recipe will be posted one of these days).
I am fond of baked Acorn Squash with some butter and Maple syrup inside, but you can use any winter squash. Simple, and tasty:
There have been a couple of aviation stories in the news recently. Here's a quick update.
Figuring How To 
This sentimental series could keep going on, but this is enough for now. I hope Moms are still cooking these simple, filling things for their kids, because kids (and Dads) appreciate them and the homey, loving, and pedestrian nature of the food.
A hearty Coors Light toast to Assistant Village Idiot in 
National Geographic Links Snow And Cold To Globull Warming
Mayor Of Gun Violence Capitol Of America 
John 2:1-11
It's not an Italian dish (it's an invention of Italian-Americans, poor immigrants from southern Italy who found they could afford meat in America), and it gives adults heartburn, but American kids seem to love it and it's easy to make. 
Black Bean Soup
The article is 
Being Yankees, we are attached to exotic American Indian foods like winter squash, cranberries, corn meal, baked beans (and hot Thai curries).