[ Posted Monday, March 19th, 2012 – 16:16 UTC ]
An entirely different kind of rare earth is in the news these days: the kind that actually comes out of the ground. A whole group of elements (which aren't actually all that rare) are classified as "rare earth" minerals. Their importance in the modern world is growing by leaps and bounds, because they are a key component of most high-tech devices (such as cell phones, computers, and electric car batteries). Even more critically, they are a key component of high-tech military hardware such as night-vision goggles, guided missiles, and Aegis warships.
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[ Posted Friday, March 16th, 2012 – 17:46 UTC ]
Sometimes I'm just astonished at the inability of political campaigns to do a simple web search. Case in point: the story about Mitt Romney's dog Seamus.
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[ Posted Thursday, March 15th, 2012 – 16:28 UTC ]
I realize I'm a wee bit early for a Saint Patrick's Day column, but tomorrow is our regularly-scheduled Friday Talking Points, and Saturday I will be hoisting a pint of Sir Arthur Guinness' fine product, so we'll just have to make do with today.
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[ Posted Friday, March 9th, 2012 – 16:43 UTC ]
OK, quite obviously, I had to put that subtitle in quote marks, since I do not actually possess a uterus. The quote marks indicate I'm just suggesting it as a slogan for others (those of the female persuasion, of course) to utilize. Just to clear that up, in case you were wondering. But we'll get to all of that in a moment, because first we must attend to our primary chores.
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[ Posted Monday, February 27th, 2012 – 17:44 UTC ]
While everyone knew that the Republican primary candidates would all be displaying plenty of "Obama Derangement Syndrome" during the campaign, this week the rhetoric took a bizarre tangent which might be called "Apology Derangement Syndrome." The concept is not only laughable, it is easy to prove what rampant and stinking hypocrisy those espousing it are truly guilty of displaying.
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[ Posted Friday, January 27th, 2012 – 17:27 UTC ]
Well, that was an eventful week in politics, wasn't it?
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[ Posted Thursday, January 26th, 2012 – 17:54 UTC ]
Newt Gingrich may win the Florida Republican primary.
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[ Posted Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 – 22:43 UTC ]
I haven't written one of these snap-judgment reactions to a speech in a while, so forgive me if this is a bit choppy and disorganized. As always, I am writing this before looking at other opinions of President Obama's just-completed State Of The Union speech. I feel this keeps my opinion unsullied by any sort of "groupthink" effect. Sometimes I read other speech reviews the next day and find I agree with them, sometimes not, but this way at least you know I'm not just regurgitating others' thoughts.
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[ Posted Thursday, January 19th, 2012 – 17:19 UTC ]
It's still early days to even know if the economy is truly about to enter a strong recovery or not. A few data points on a graph do not always a trend line make, to put it another way. But from what I have personally seen in previous recessions, there always seems to be a real "tipping point" where American businesses collectively decide that things are going to be better soon -- and then they start hiring people and fulfilling their own prophecy. This could indeed be such a turning point.
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[ Posted Tuesday, January 17th, 2012 – 17:50 UTC ]
O'Malley makes a good point. President Obama's re-election team should heed it.
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