The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Economy
Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi said political leaders discussing idea of closing world’s financial markets while they ‘rewrite the rules of international finance’.
And This…
Brigade homeland tours start Oct. 1
The 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team has spent 35 of the last 60 months in Iraq patrolling in full battle rattle, helping restore essential services and [...]
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Economy, Election 08’
Could it be that the markets are reacting to the strong possibility of an Obama presidency?
Maybe the ‘fear’ that is spreading is a realization that Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi are committed socialists who will do too much taxation, too much regulation, too much punishment of the productive members of society on behalf of [...]
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Economy
Mr. Dodd hasn’t yet released his copies of the mortgage documents, though he promised to do so more than two months ago. His office told us this week they’d get back to us on that. Meanwhile, presumably the Justice Department can have Mr. Feinberg’s Countrywide documents, if it’s interested.
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Political Quote of the Day
“The Declaration of Independence is two pages; the Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, is about a dozen pages. The sellout bill is 451 pages. Proves that if you can’t dazzle them with brilliance you baffle them with bovine manure. Then again, it doesn’t take much to baffle the mental midgets in Washington. Thomas Jefferson [...]
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Need to Know
Amid the constant turmoil and angst boiling over in Israel and the West Bank, at the center of the Middle East, lies the Dead Sea. [3] This salt-laden desert sea is rapidly diminishing in size as its source, the Jordan River, dries up: the Syrians (via the Yarmuk, a source for the Jordan), Israelis and Jordanians all draw an ever-increasing amount of water from this biblical tributary. [1]
We think of the Dead Sea as a tourist haven for spa treatments and beauty products, as a relief for psoriasis sufferers; we know about its amazing buoyancy and the factories mining its esoteric salts (its salt concentration is about 33%, compared to 3% in the Mediterranean).
What we don’t know is that this area of dangerously diminishing returns may very well provide a synergistic solution to the region’s major political, economic and environmental problems. A number of large-scale infrastructure projects - including the construction of a canal and nuclear power and desalinization plants - have the potential to transform this “dead” area into a source of life and an inspiration to all mankind. Though daunting, big problems generally require big solutions.
Cutting a 112 mile-long canal north from the Red Sea - starting at Israel’s and Jordan’s southernmost ports - to the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, has long been cast as a fanciful project, considered either too expensive or too fraught with insurmountable political barriers. Yet it is in reality eminently practical, feasible and cost effective, and there is plenty of private and governmental financing around if the will of decision-makers in both Jordan and Israel can be joined. [2] [5]
Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism, formalized the idea of a hydropower canal connecting the Mediterranean to the Dead Sea in his 1920 book The Old New Land (Altneuland), writing already then that the 1300 foot drop would generate critical hydroelectric power. [4]
The Red Sea canal is a decades-old idea that has been recently reinvigorated by one of the world’s richest people, Israeli real estate mogul Yitzhak Tshuva, the current owner of New York’s Plaza Hotel. He describes a strip of blue water flowing 100 miles through the desert, alongside high speed trains, with waterfalls surrounded by parks and luxury hotels, bringing Israelis and Arabs together in a thriving free-trade zone. If built, this “Valley of Peace” will be the most dramatic single change ever made to the landscape of the Holy Land, employing hundreds of thousands on both sides of the border, in the bargain. [7]
The introduction of substantial quantities of (albeit salt) water into this arid area would allow additional water to percolate slowly down into its depleted aquifers, losing much of its salinity in the process. Ground water resources for the West Bank, Jordan and Israel would be crucially replenished, as well as substantial quantities of fresh water for agriculture, a source of much argument and bickering between the parties. What’s more, the diminishing Dead Sea would refill, sustaining its healing powers and its natural bounty.
The height difference between the Red and the Dead Seas could be utilized hydrostatically to further desalinate the incoming seawater as well as creating enough hydroelectric power not only to drive all the pumping stations needed for the project, but also to supply electricity to the surrounding urban and industrial areas.
As an essential complement to this project, nuclear power plants should be built as a joint-venture between Jordan and Israel, including multiple concrete and steel shells sufficiently hardened to withstand any missiles, rockets or targeted bombs. The technology exists to build just such a safe and impermeable facility, which could draw on ample supplies of saltwater for its cooling requirements.
Based far from major population centers, modern nuclear power could safely supply enough electricity to cover much of the power needs of Jordan, the West Bank, and Israel, thereby ensuring the region’s strong and permanent commitment to this project’s enduring success. With such a powerful asset on hand, mutual self-interest would cut through politics and promote the safety, security and longevity of the project. No-one apart from renegade terrorists would attempt to kill the goose that lays these golden eggs. And Israel and Jordan are both well capable of cooperatively securing the area.
Finally, huge desalinization plants for fresh water should be built on the shores of the then-full Dead Sea, drawing on cheap excess electricity (especially at night) from the nuclear power plants. The primary water resources of the region - namely The Sea of Galilee and the Yarmuk and Jordan Rivers - are mostly depleted, and the area is desperately short of water for its growing urban populations, its industries and its agriculture. Fish ponds, recreational areas, luxury hotels and artificial lakes would be developed. With shared Israeli technology, the desert could bloom again, uplifting the whole region and improving dramatically the standard of living for all its peoples, ushering in peace, stability and an economic miracle as all parties develop an irrefutable stake in and support for the success of this project. [8]
This is the glue that will bind these warring and antagonistic parties.
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Culture of Corruption, Election 08’
The media alone are not alone in keeping the facts from the public. Republicans, for reasons unknown, don’t seem to know what it is to counter-attack. They deserve to lose.
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Culture of Corruption, Economy
Now that the bubble has burst and the “systemic risk” is apparent to all, Frank blithely declares: “The private sector got us into this mess.” Well, give the congressman points for gall.
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Election 08’
“My sources claim that he was adopted and that the Indonesian government is aware of this - so are Obama’s people who cut a deal with the Indonesian government to have the records suppressed.”
[...]
According to Martin’s post, U.S. Congressman Eni Faleomavaega, an outspoken critic of Indonesia’s oppression of Papua and a Barack Obama supporter (and [...]
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Election 08’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l46t_nrySg4
The Bear on Oct 10 2008 | Filed under: Energy Policy, Polls
Fifty-four percent (54%) of Americans believe it is possible to drill offshore for oil without harming the environment, but nearly as many (48%) also acknowledge that there is a conflict between economic growth and environmental protection.
Twenty-eight percent (28%) believe it is not possible to drill without hurting the environment, and 18% are undecided. Men are [...]
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