mahalo, CT

I just said Bye Bye Baby… to my better half as she heads off to LA…!

Aloha, wigwam…! Congrats on the zed…! How’s things with you tonite…?

I just finished watching George Clooney’s “Descendants.” Which left me not knowing which way I’m doing. Sigh.

No Woman No Cry…

Good movie…? This really has me fuming today… SAS SET UP SAFE CAMPS IN SYRIA…

…SAS troops and MI6 agents are in the country ready to help rebels if civil war breaks out as ­expected this weekend.

And if civil war breaks out the crack troops are on hand to help with fighting, said the ­insider…

The character group are real charmers as is this terrific animation. One of the best late nite picks for my taste. All the action what kid would not enjoy. The beach setting with surfer Goofy (may be where goofy foot came from as in right foot lead ) The year I was born my dad had hitchiked from Denver a few years before to worka as an animator for Disney. They later threw him out for forming a union so he went to Florida to work for Max Fliesher. He loved drawing Betty Boop. He morphed into a JB. And a car dealer.

If Suzanne stops by, I hope the healing process is proceeding forthwith and that the situation with Token has been taken care of.

I’m probably going to try to turn this into a myfdl posting, but this afternoon I got this link from a mathematician/economist friend, who knows that I pay attention to the MMTers, whom other economists disparagingly call “The Kansas City School.” It is one of the best articles I’ve read on financiers and academic economics, comparable to the brutal job that Charles Ferguson did on them in his documentary “Inside Job,” and the shit that Matt Taibbi heaps on them every few weeks.

What’s different is that this article is in the current Playboy alongside of standard Playboy joke lines like: “And on the seventh day God created another woman, like Eve, only hotter … just to mess with Adam’s head.”

Anyway, it’s one of the best articles I’ve ever read on economics.

Definitely need some more Marley… Buffalo Soldier…

My somewhat paranoid friends from Lebanon fear that Assad will try to make this mess a regional matter to try to take the focus off of himself. I hate what’s happening in Syria, but it would be far worse if it spills over into Lebanon.

Aloha, BP…! Suz is toobless until Wednesday or so, esconced in her brand new Hale, and Token will be joining her shortly…! ;-)

Aloha, bb…! That must’ve been pretty cool to have a Disney animator for a Dad…! ;-)

Ooh, I’ll definitely read the article and your probable myFDL diary…! ;-)

I think people will enjoy it, since we have so much discussion of MMT here.

Al Jazerra has a great article on income equality and how it is depressing the USA economy. here http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/05/201252971912913797.html

It already has spilled somewhat into Lebanon… Lebanon clashes raise fear of ‘spillover’ in Syria violence

At least 10 are killed in sectarian street battles in Tripoli, Lebanon, resulting from tension related to the Syrian conflict. U.N. envoy Kofi Annan warns of a possible ‘regional spillover.’

And it’s not just Lebanon, but, Jordan, Iraq and even Turkey…! 8-(

Three Little Birds…

He split the nest early on so not much parenting but plenty of discipline. As animators have to draw a scene dozens of time. But the art part was amazing. When we met he did a lot of drawings one on Santa in a jet with a bag of presents flying over snow covered roofs. Another of me hooking a big trout trout fishing in the rapids of the South Fork White River rapids. And fishing was one of those great avocations on a Rocky Mountain Ranch at 8,000 feet.

Into the Mystic…

Read Juan Cole’s article on Syria. http://www.juancole.com/2012/06/top-ten-reasons-romney-shouldnt-arm-syrian-rebels.html

Hi Wigwam what’s your take on the status quo?

We are already arming them, bb…! Btw, I never thought I’d see the day when Kissinger was ever right… Henry Kissinger: Intervening in Syria risks upsetting global order…

Days Like This…

A good open discussion on Book Salon by Medea Benjamin on the subject of drones. New US base in Chile to control the native population some say. More carriers in Asia the extension of MIC influence grows and grows as does the MIC budget.

Hi CT,

So I finally posted it over at myFDL

Can’t forget the massive militarization of our ‘Civilian’ Police depts too…! 8-(

That’s very sad. I have a colleague and many former students from Lebanon, and they are of all persuasions: Muslim, Orthodox Christian, Druze, Roman Catholic. And they all get along here and respect each other.

And, despite what the Isrealis say, I think that Lebanon may be the true democracy in that area of the world.

It doesn’t seem to be improving.

Medea rocks.

Yeah Occupy has felt that up close and personal. The fencing technique is aggressive as is the pre event spying. The right to peaceful assembly is challenged by presidents. The courts have not consistent in defending us from abuse of police powers. While our international policy is to promote democracy. Seems convoluted and dishonest.

I just recc’d it, wigwam…! ;-)

Oh, boy. Does Obama have true balls?

Florida will defy a federal warning to stop purging people the state suspects aren’t U.S. citizens from voter registration rolls.

He has been called out by Rick Scott. Now what’s he going to do?

Hey CT. Thanks. It is one of the best articles about economics (i.e., the sociology of the profession) that I’ve every read.

This friend I mentioned loves gossiping about economists. He knows way too much about their personal lives. ;-)

Medea rocks… so does BevW putting salon after great Salon together. Really love these afternoon discussions.

I wouldn’t worry about Voldermort’s hollow words, as Dday noted today… Florida Elections Supervisors Shut Down Rick Scott’s Voter Purge…

More from ProPublica via Juan Cole on drones over USA http://www.juancole.com/2012/06/top-ten-reasons-romney-shouldnt-arm-syrian-rebels.html As you point out a growing intrusion into privacy.

Some old school blues… It Takes Time…

Agreed. It’s amazing how good those Salons are: the caliber of the book, the authors, the hosts, and the discussions.

Usually, I just go back and read them after the fact. But I’ve got a perverse, puerile fascination with drones.

Twenty years ago, I was sitting in a DARPA briefing when the lady who was MC had to kill some time while the main speaker was stuck in traffic. At one point, she asked: “Who here would like to make 50 million dollars?” More than a few hands went up. And then she said: “All you need to do is invent a mechanical humming bird.” I turned to my colleague and said: “She needs to talk to Paul McCready.”

Paul was something of a legend in aeronautics:
* As a boy he won many competitions with indoor model airplanes, which are powered by rubber bands and the objective so to stay up as long as possible, which involves not hitting walls, which requires flying a slowly as possible.
* As a young man he dominated sailplane competition, and I’ve heard that he after getting his license, he only flew in competition — comparable to Tiger Woods never practicing.
* To pull his company, Aerovironment, out of debt, he won the Kemper prize for the first human-powered flight.
* To make more money, he won the second Kemper prize for the first human-powered flight across the English channel.
* To follow that up, he built the Solar Challenger. Per the Wikipedia: “On July 7, 1981, the aircraft flew 163 miles from Pontoise – Cormeilles Aerodrome, north of Paris, France to Manston Royal Air Force Base in Manston, United Kingdom, staying aloft 5 hours and 23 minutes, with pilot Stephen Ptacek at the controls.”
* Then, for the Smithsonian, he built a full-scale working model of a pterodactyl.

Paul has since passed away, but when a working model of a humming bird was demonstrated a couple months ago, it had been developed by the company he founded, AeroVironment, which is now a big player in the small drone market.

Hey BigBro. An excellent Juan Cole article. Thanks for that link.

DARPA, eh…? ;-) That’s quite the resume Paul had…!

Roll’ N’ Roll…

One final toob tonite… The Healing Game…

Mahalo, for the great company, I shall bid ya’ll a fond adieu…!

Aloha Oe…! *g*

12 videos of the following at Bilderberg (May 31, 2012):

1. Tony Blair (10am)
2. Lawrence O’Donnell (11am)
3. Alan Greenspan (12pm)
4. George Pataki (1pm)
5. Charlie Rose (2pm)
6. Ted Turner (3pm)
7. Henry Kissinger (4pm)
8. Jill Abramson (5pm)
9. Vernon Jordan (6pm)
10. Paul Wolfensohn (7pm)
11. Lou Dobbs and Paula Zahn (8pm)
12. Lord Jacob Rothschild (9pm)

Now is the time to form a new political party. Call it the FDL party. We’ll rally around the principles of FDR. He brought the country out of the last “depression”, which is what we’re in right now; they just keep it hidden.

There are so many people who ask, “Why didn’t Barack Obama look to FDR for inspiration”?