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"My God! How little do my countrymen know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy!"
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Saturday, July 04, 2009
In Friday's WSJ, Stephanie Simon writes on the ultimate big bang that amateur fireworks enthusiasts have pursued for years. For when it comes to illegal 'works, the M-80 is the Holy Grail:
The famously potent M-80 has been banned for amateur use since 1966, classified by the federal government as a dangerous explosive. Every year, the Consumer Product Safety Commission stages a gruesome public demonstration in which M-80s and other fireworks obliterate melons and blow the heads off mannequins. That has hardly diminished their appeal. In fact, I imagine that seeing such explosive displays would tend to enhance their appeal. Developed by the U.S. military a century ago to simulate artillery fire, the M-80 doesn?t send up fizzy sparkles or wash the sky in color. Instead, it makes noise: a brain-rattling, ear-scorching, gut-slamming ka-BOOM that makes an ordinary firecracker sound like a kazoo tweet. By law, a firecracker sold for on-the-ground consumer use can contain no more than 50 mg of explosives. An M-80 has at least 3,000 mg. (Contrary to urban legend, that is not equivalent to a quarter-stick of dynamite, which typically contains at least 20,000 mg.) In all our years of fireworks forays, JB and I were never able to lay our hands on the coveted explosive prize. However, I do recall at least one occasion when we were able to witness an M-80 in action (and on the streets of St. Paul no less). And yes, it was real and it was spectacular. Labels: Misspent Youth
Belated recognition of the passing of Chaplain (Major) Henry Timothy Vakoc:
Chaplain (Major) Henry Timothy Vakoc, retired, 49, a Roman Catholic priest who lived for five years after being severely wounded in Iraq in 2004, died June 20 at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale. Vakoc (pronounced VAH-kitch), a native of Robbinsdale, had been living at St. Therese Care Center in New Hope since December 2006, until he was taken to the hospital the day he died. According to Vakoc's CaringBridge website, he died "surrounded by family and friends who prayed him into heaven." Vakoc had celebrated the 17th anniversary of his ordination at a special Mass June 10 at St. Therese Care Center. Archbishop John Nienstedt of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, issued a statement on June 21 which said: "All of us in this Catholic Archdiocese are grieving with the family of Father Vakoc, who died last night after surviving terrible wounds in the Iraq War five long years ago. We are joined in that grieving, to be sure, by the men and women whom he served as chaplain in Iraq and those who witnessed his extraordinary courage and faith at Walter Reed Hospital and here at our Veteran's Hospital." Calling Vakoc "a man of peace," Nienstedt said, "He chose to endure the horror of war in order to bring the peace of Christ to America's fighting men and women. He has been an inspiration to us all and we will miss him. We ask everyone to remember him in prayer. " Vakoc was a man who served God, his country and his fellow soldiers. R.I.P. Labels: Obit
The July 6th edition of National Review contains Ross Douthat's review of the movie "Away We Go." One line in the review perfectly summarizes everything you need to know about the flick.
This is a movie with the soul of a "mean people suck" bumper sticker. Labels: Movies Friday, July 03, 2009
Special Fourth of July edition of Beer of the Week brought to you as always by the fine folks at Glen Lake Wine & Spirits in Minnetonka. We'll review a very American brew and offer up some recommendations for the perfect beer to celebrate the Independence Day weekend.
For better or worse, Budweiser has become the iconic American beer. Even though it's now owned by a global consortium of Belgians and Brazilians, the brand is quintessentially American and--like Coca Cola--it's distinctive red, white, & blue design on cans and bottles has come to represent the United States around the world. After all, when you watch a movie about the Vietnam War you won't see choppers dropping cases of Miller to the thirsty GIs. So when red-blooded American beer drinkers hear that Budweiser has a product out designed not to taste like the mass-produced swill that we usually associate with the brand, we can't help but take notice. Wouldn't it be great if there was a version of "America's beer" that actually tasted like...beer? You can hardly come up with a name that says U.S.A. more than Budweiser American Ale. The brown bottle is well-designed and its shape aesthetically pleasing. The label is gloriously American with a dark red background, classic Budweiser font, and an eagle. And it's got a real paper feel to it that adds up to a great package.  Beer Style: Red Ale Alcohol by Volume: 5.1% COLOR (0-2): Nice dark amber. 2 AROMA (0-2): Strong malt smell. 1 HEAD (0-2): Rich and full. Good lacing. 2 TASTE (0-5): More malty than hoppy. Not much depth or complexity and what flavor there is comes off uneven. 2 AFTERTASTE (0-2): Overall the follow through is faint, but there's a lingering metallic aftertaste that's not pleasing. 0 OVERALL (0-6): Great bottle and label. Beer looks delicious in the glass, which raised my hopes. But it fails to meet those expectations with its taste, especially the aftertaste. Although I was a little skeptical going in, after the pour I really wanted to like this beer. Alas, it was not to be. While it's far superior product compared to regular Bud, it's not a beer that I would recommend. 2 TOTAL SCORE (0-19): 9 On to some beers that I do recommend for drinking over the Fourth of July weekend. My favorite summer beer style for taste and refreshment is hefe weizen. If you're a fellow hefe fan and can get your hands on Two Brother's Ebel's Weiss or Widmer Brothers Hefe Weizen, you won't be disappointed. The true king of the hefe class is Paulaner and you should be able to find it almost anywhere. I've personally enjoyed it in the mountains of Bavaria and on the bank of the Huangpu River in Shanghai. It might cost a bit more ($9-$10 a six pack), but it's well worth it. Don't forget the slice of lemon. You'll also want a good brew to go with your grilling this weekend. When it comes to beer and barbecue, you're goin' to want to get hoppy. Three local beers can help fill that bill. Brau Brothers' Sheephead Ale is a limited release that I've really been digging lately. Rush River Brewing's Unforgiven Amber Ale is not your traditional amber. It's much hoppier and goes great with grill fare. Last but certainly not least, we have Surly's Furious. Like Paulaner, you're going to have to pay more for the pleasure of enjoying Furious, but again it's well worth it. Your mouth will be in hop heaven. Have a great Fourth. Labels: Beer Thursday, July 02, 2009
The bad news? The U.S. unemployment rate continues to rise and will almost certainly hit double digits soon.
The good news? Historically, high unemployment has served to keep inflation in check: A rule of thumb is that inflation doesn't become sticky until the unemployment rate dips below 5%. Since 2001, the Nonaccelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment, or NAIRU, the rate at which economists estimate the labor market can trigger inflation, has stood at 4.8% unemployment, according to the Congressional Budget Office. In the first quarter, the spread between the NAIRU and the actual unemployment rate averaged 3.3 percentage points, the widest spread since 1983, when unemployment hovered around 10%. A high spread suggests the labor market needs to get stronger before inflation is a concern. So for the moment at least inflation doesn't seem to be something that Americans should be too worried about. As long as they have a job. Labels: Economics
The pride of St. Louis Park MN, Thomas Friedman of the New York Times on the opposition to the Democrats recent carbon credit cap and trade bill:
What are Republicans thinking? It is not as if they put forward a different strategy, like a carbon tax. Does the G.O.P. want to be the party of sex scandals and polluters or does it want to be a partner in helping America dominate the next great global industry: E.T. -- energy technology? How could Republicans become so anti-environment, just when the country is going green?And the Western suburbs weep. Awaiting former St. Louis Park resident Chad The Elder's statement on this disturbing incident. The Elder Adds: I'll cede my time to another rich and famous writer whose work is actually deserving of said fame and fortune. George Will's words are from a piece on health care reform, but I think they're fitting for cap and trade as well: Regarding reform, conservatives are accused of being a party of "no." Fine. That is an indispensable word in politics because most new ideas are false and mischievous. Furthermore, the First Amendment's lovely first five words ("Congress shall make no law") set the negative tone of the Bill of Rights, which is a list of government behaviors, from establishing religion to conducting unreasonable searches, to which the Constitution says: No. Labels: Global warming, Media-National (07-09)
To follow up on Saint Paul's post on Mark Sanford's loose lips and on behalf of married men everywhere I'd like to take this opportunity to call on Governor Sanford to kindly shut the hell up. It was bad enough when he destroyed the sanctity of two of our favorite innocent activities forever.
"So what are you going to do this weekend when I'm out of town with the kids, honey?" "Nothing much. Thought I might take a long solo hike on the Appalachian Trail." And... "So what are you going to do this weekend when I'm out of town with the kids, honey?" "Nothing much. Thought I might fly down to Argentina, drive along the coast, and do some deep thinking." Now he's forever soiled yet another of our traditional weekend getaways. How do you think this is going to go over from now on? "So what are you going to do this weekend when I'm out of town with the kids, honey?" "Nothing much. Thought I might get together with some friends and blow off steam." Thanks for nothing Governor. When it comes to Sanfords, Mark should heed the advice of Fred and "Shut up, dummy!" If the whole sordid Sanford scandal has any positive side at all it may be the new sexual euphemisms that come out of it. "I'd like to hike through her Appalachian Trail." And... "Looking forward to your date, dude?" "Oh yeah. Definitely goin' to be some crying in Argentina tonight." "Blowing off steam" however sounds a bit too literal to qualify. Labels: Politics-National Wednesday, July 01, 2009
For some reason, Gov. Mark Sanford sat down with the Associated Press over two days to give even more details on his romantic conquests. This part stood out: He acknowledged that he had casual encounters with other women while he was married but before he met Chapur, on trips outside the country to "blow off steam" with male friends. Pundits nationwide are perplexed as to why he insists on unnecessarily confessing these details to the press, to the further detriment of his career and reputation. I think his motivation can best be found in this classic Borscht Belt quality joke:
Labels: Politics-National
George Newman has an excellent piece in today's WSJ in which he Parses the Health Reform Arguments and concludes by picking apart one of the most oft-heard rationales:
- "We need a public plan to keep the private plans honest." The 1,500 or so private plans don't produce enough competition? Making it 1,501 will do the trick? But then why stop there? Eating is even more important than health care, so shouldn't we have government-run supermarkets "to keep the private ones honest"? After all, supermarkets clearly put profits ahead of feeding people. And we can't run around naked, so we should have government-run clothing stores to keep the private ones honest. And shelter is just as important, so we should start public housing to keep private builders honest. Oops, we already have that. And that is exactly the point. Think of everything you know about public housing, the image the term conjures up in your mind. If you like public housing you will love public health care. Labels: Health care
In yesterday's WSJ Roger Altman--former deputy secretary of the Treasury in the first Clinton administration--wrote that it's not a matter of if President Obama will raise taxes but when. And he thinks that in order to get a grip on the growing budget deficits, it will be soon:
Only five months after Inauguration Day, the focus of Washington's economic and domestic policy is already shifting. This reflects the emergence of much larger budget deficits than anyone expected. Indeed, federal deficits may average a stunning $1 trillion annually over the next 10 years. This worsened outlook is stirring unease on Main Street and beginning to reorder priorities for President Barack Obama and the Democratic congressional leadership. By 2010, reducing the deficit will become their primary focus. Why has the deficit outlook changed? Two main reasons: The burst of spending in recent years and the growing likelihood of a weak economic recovery. The latter would mean considerably lower federal revenues, the compiling of more interest on our growing debt, and thus higher deficits. Yes, the President's Council of Economic Advisors is still forecasting a traditional cyclical recovery -- i.e., real growth of 3.2% next year and 4% in 2011. But the latest data suggests that we're on a much slower path. Probably along the lines of the most recent Goldman Sachs and International Monetary Fund forecasts, whose growth rates average about 2% for 2010-2011. A speedy recovery is highly unlikely given the financial condition of American households, whose spending represents 70% of GDP. Household net worth has fallen more than 20% since its mid-2007 peak. This drop began just when household debt reached 130% of income, a modern record. This lethal combination has forced households to lower their spending to reduce their debt. So far, however, they have just begun to pay it down. This implies subdued spending and weak national growth for some time. Altman goes on to suggest that some form of VAT will be considered and acknowledges that getting it passed will be an immense challenge for President Obama especially in light of his oft-repeated campaign promise to not increase taxes on those earning less than $250K a year. The first President Bush's infamous "read my lips, no new taxes" pledge ended up being a millstone around his political neck that helped sink his chances for reelection to a second term. Could a breaking of President Obama's promise not to raise taxes on "middle-class" Americans have the same impact? Labels: Obama, Politics-National Tuesday, June 30, 2009
While environmentalists like to spin the fantasy that "alternative energy" could replace our current conventional sources in the not so distant future, the reality is that alternative energy could have a more important impact in the larger energy picture by helping make those current carbon-based sources more efficient. Case in point is an article in Monday's WSJ on how Valero Harnesses Wind Energy to Fuel Its Oil-Refining Process:
In this windswept corner of the high plains, a big oil refiner is embracing new green technology in order to make more money producing old-fashioned fossil fuels. Valero Energy Corp., which has the capacity to process more crude than any other U.S. refiner, recently installed 33 windmills to supply a refinery here with green electricity to produce gasoline and diesel. The marriage is one of convenience, Valero executives say. "We didn't build the wind farm so we could get into the wind-energy business," notes Tom Shetina, the refinery's manager, who expresses awe at the windmills' size. "We built the wind farm so we could support the refinery and run it more economically." The company hopes to lock in fluctuating electricity prices by developing its own source of power, rather than relying on the grid, and to cut the $1.4-million-a-month electricity bill at the seven-decade-old refinery. The $115 million wind farm, which will be ready to operate at full capacity in August, will pay for itself in about 10 years at current electricity prices, company officials said. Using wind power to help an oil refinery run more efficiently? That's the smart way to go "green." Labels: Energy Monday, June 29, 2009
Long week of not working begins today. My employer has decided to shut the facilities down this week to save money and mandate that people use up their vacation time. Any and all complaints about the situation are directed to the department of "You're Lucky To Have A Job." The way things are now with the economy if companies asked workers to come to work in frilly dresses with silly hats riding unicycles, the only response from employees would be "How frilly?"
Oh well. If you have to take an unplanned vacation the week of the Fourth of July is probably the best time to do it. On tap for today is a trip to the Minnesota Zoo with the kids. Haven't been there for many a moon, but can still recall referring to it as the "New Zoo" for years after it opened. I do look forward to hitting the petting zoo with the children before a big meaty lunch. Labels: Children Friday, June 26, 2009
 My wife's uncle Cliff died last Saturday at the age of eighty-nine. Today is his funeral. He served in the Army Air Corps in World War II. After the war, he came home to Hutchinson, Minnesota, took a job that he would work at until retirement, got married, and never ventured far from the area again. He and his wife moved into a house that they lived in until last year. Visiting it was like entering a time machine set to 1962 or thereabouts. Very few things in the always clean house were acquired after that, although since everything was in such good shape you could almost understand the couple's reluctance to change. The coffee pot may be forty years old, but if it still works why get a new one? Not surprisingly my favorite room in their house was their basement "recreation" area. The prominent feature in this room was Cliff's basement bar. I've long held a theory the basement bar boom was the product of WWII. Vets returning from overseas had the desire and opportunity to settle down in the wave of new homes built after the war. And after having served far flung tours of duty, they also wanted to have the comforts of life close at hand. Thus the birth of the basement bar. I think the whole sociology of the basement bar would make for an interesting study, one that I'd like to pursue some day. In order to have a basement bar, you obviously need a basement. Which means there are certain geographic restrictions to where they appeared. However, it's amazing how prevalent they were in homes here in the Upper Midwest built during particular time periods (40s-60s). When we were in the market for a home in late 2007 and 2008, we looked at many that had basement bars. The house that we live in now has one, although its not really the classic version. Cliff's was. It's hard to appreciate the pure glory of his bar and the entire room for that matter without actually experiencing it in person, but since that's no longer possible, pictures (taken a few years ago) will have to suffice.  The first thing that you notice is the knotty-pine panelling, pretty much a standard in these parts for the basement rec room.  Over the years, you can build up quite a collection behind the bar.  Glasses, knick-knacks, and bottles.  Ciao!  Interestingly enough, I have this same Florida souvenir bottle in my bar.  No bar is complete without a beer light (or several of them). What really sets it apart though is the little things.  Anything that plays on words is popular.  Another classic: the drunk hanging on the street lamp.  It was always happy hour at Cliff's.  Flavor of the South Seas. Why? Because.  A family of Old Crows and another beer light. Of course, not everything works.  Gee, thanks for the hand-crafted poodle. Another must have in any classic Midwest bar--whether on Main Street or in a basement--is a collection of wall signs. Use of off color language and adult humor is strongly encouraged.   As are cracks about sex.  ("Sex" It's the most fun you can have without laughing)  (I don't ask for much out of life Just a little beer money Just a little food money and every now and then JUST A LITTLE) As I said, it wasn't just the bar either. Check out this corner of the room.  Teal colored walls. Checkerboard floor tiles. Vintage chair and ottoman. Cool light. And the girly calender.  Yup, that is indeed a Grain Belt calender from 1977.  In this corner, we find another chair and more to appreciate on the walls.  Another must-have for a Minnesota basement bar, a Hamm's sign. What's that underneath the speaker?  Yes James, that is the work of one Art Frahm.  PBR me.  These wicker bar stools now seat people in our basement bar. One sure way that the memory of Cliff's bar will live on.  Here's a toast to you Cliff. R.I.P. Labels: Obit
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