Rational Thought » General

Hard Facts – An Energy Primer

technologist — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:47:21 +0000

“Policymakers should take time to understand the facts about energy and the obstacles to making it affordable and reliable given its critical role in our lives and our economy. America is home to vast natural resources, but many of our energy policies are built on the notion that energy is scarce and becoming more scarce. The reality is that we have more combined oil, coal, and natural gas resources than any other country on the planet. We have enough energy resources to provide reliable and affordable energy for decades, even centuries to come. The only real question is whether we will have access to our abundant energy resources, not whether sufficient resources exist.”

http://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/hardfacts-uploads/NJI_IER_HardFacts_ALLpages_20120423_v8.pdf

Reuters on “thoughtful conversation”

technologist — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 00:01:14 +0000

“Once you’ve reached a certain number of points, you become a recognized user. Congratulations: your comments will be published instantly from now on. Our editors will still review your comments after they’ve been published and will remove them if they don’t meet our standards. When that happens, you’ll lose points. Lose enough points and you’ll revert to new user status.” Or banned. I imagine they left that part out for a reason. What could it be? I recommend you read the whole post and match your distillation with mine.

http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/

So, correct thinking, from the moderator’s perspective, is rewarded and the inverse is punished. Neat.

“Sorry, but this account has been banned from posting comments”

Apparently I’ve been banned from posting on Reuters articles/blogs for reasons unknown and uncommunicated with no recourse. For context, I”ve participated actively online since 1986 and have never been banned/restricted in any forum. None.

One might conclude that “thoughtful conversation” represents speech that comports with a moderator’s worldview. If that’s the case, I’m proud not to have earned Reuters approbation.

Steve Jobs 1955-2011, requiescat in pace

technologist — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 04:59:00 +0000

Digging

technologist — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 21:41:18 +0000

Economic Freedom & Quality of Life

technologist — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 02:00:50 +0000

Egypt: Won’t Get Fooled Again?

technologist — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 19:07:54 +0000

I’ll tip my hat to the new constitution

Take a bow for the new revolution…

Meet the new boss

Same as the old boss

Decision Points vs. He Points

technologist — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:38:08 +0000

Force Fed Up

technologist — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 04:45:17 +0000

vox populi

technologist — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:04:49 +0000

A timely observation. Make your voice heard.

“Because half a dozen grasshoppers under a fern make the field ring with their importunate chink, whilst thousands of great cattle, reposed beneath the shadow of the British oak, chew the cud and are silent, pray, to not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field; that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little, shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome insects of the hour.” – Edmund Burke

Swiss Health Care

technologist — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:38:40 +0000

“The law [in Switzerland], finally approved in a 1994 national referendum, guaranteed health care for everyone by requiring everyone to have insurance. It amounted to a law recognizing health care as a human right…. They choose their own doctors and their own insurance company, and the whole country is covered. True to its national reputation, Switzerland devised a health care system that’s been praised as efficient and neutral. Basic insurance is the same price for everyone. Also true to the Swiss reputation, it’s turned out to be expensive. … Given an aging population and high-tech medicine, some say costs are bound to rise three percent or four percent a year. Health care reform [in Switzerland] has been more expensive than reformers predicted.” –CBS’s Richard Roth