Taking Advantage
I'm watching Gov. Bill Richardson on Larry King Live right now, talking about all things blackout.
Here's the funny thing: he seems to be stressing rather forcefully the need for the President to propose a massive energy bill, and is saying that it is absolutely critical for Congress to pass such a bill.
I will refrain, for the moment, from pointing out the sudden flood of drool issuing forth from the President's major financial backers at the prospect of massive national support for a comprehensive energy bill drafted by the current administration.
Instead, let us focus on the major soundbites Gov. Richardson has been desperately attempting to imprint on my mind. Our infrastructure is massively out of date. We're barely wheezing by. We need to massively overhaul our infrastructure. We have a woeful lack of capacity. We need to increase energy production and build all kinds of new modern production facilities. We need to fight the local utilities tooth and nail in favor of...well, that part isn't quite clear.
These seem reasonable enough. But something about his manner piqued my curiosity. He seemed far too eager to convince me to demand that Congress immediately pass massive legislation with huge potential ramifications (and massive payouts to various players in the energy business), the necessary public discussion of which could not possibly take place in any but the most superficial form were Congress to actually pass it as quickly as he seems to want.
So I decided to take a slightly closer look at Mr. Richardson.
Courtesy of Disinfopedia.org, I see that the Governor has some very interesting friends. When he ran for Governor of New Mexico, he resigned from a number of corporate boards, among them American Energy Group, Inc., Energy Investors Fund Group, Diamond Offshore, Valero Energy Group, TerraSolar (a solar power company), and Venoco (an oil and gas company).
Hmm. Interesting. But those were probably just honorary positions. No big deal.
So let's look at sources of income over $5,000 (the disclosure of which was required by New Mexico state law): Terra Solar, Intersate Natural Gas Association (trade association of the natural gas pipeline industry), EIF Management (Energy Investment Fund), Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc., and Valero Energy Corp. [among others]
Fucking shameless.
Thursday, August 14, 2003
Power Outage
So far, things seem to be going as well as can be expected given the situation. This is good.
But I'm curious. Every news report seems to stress the fact that it was not the result of a terrorist attack. Well, fair enough. I'll admit that that was the first thing I thought of, and it's good that they are trying to reassure the public.
When we think of a terrorist attack on a power plant or a power grid, we think "bomb." As in, somebody bombed a key chokepoint in the grid.
But here's my question: Am I the only one whose first thought was "computer attack"?
Here's why I think that a computer attack (not necessarily terrorist-related) is not completely outside the realm of possibility:
- 21 seperate power stations went down in a three minute period. That just seems strange to me. I know that everyone's talking about cascade reactions from an overload on the Mohawk grid, but that seems somewhat implausible. I mean, these places have safeguards to protect against this sort of thing. Right?
- Power demand could not have been at record levels- it's summer, and it's hot, but there aren't any major heatwaves anywhere. The temperature in New York today was in the low 90s; hot, yes. Unusual, no.
- No one has been able to point to a specific place and say "There! This is the power station/node/ relay station that started it all." I'm not saying that those in charge should already know the exact cause, but doesn't it seem unlikely that they don't at the very least know where the problem occurred?
Anyway, I don't claim to have any special knowledge here...in fact, it's because of my lack of knowledge that I'm asking questions.
As the internet grew in prominence during the late 90's, talk of securing our "electronic frontiers" grew more and more frequent; after 9/11, we heard about it a bit more, but the possibility of an electronic attack was largely glossed over in the media in favor of coverage of things that seemed more personally threatening (nukes, anthrax, dirty bombs, etc). But one of the primary focuses of any discussion about digital terrorism was the threat it posed to our power networks.
So why isn't anyone on any of the major networks at least raising the possibility, especially given the lack of any real information coming out of the government as to what actually caused this?
Edit: For the record, I'm not saying that I think that it is definitely an electronic attack of some sort (again, terrorist or no). I don't even know if it's at all likely. I'm just wondering why I haven't heard anyone even ask about the possibility, when this is a scenario that has been put forward before when discussing America's electronic vulnerabilities.
So far, things seem to be going as well as can be expected given the situation. This is good.
But I'm curious. Every news report seems to stress the fact that it was not the result of a terrorist attack. Well, fair enough. I'll admit that that was the first thing I thought of, and it's good that they are trying to reassure the public.
When we think of a terrorist attack on a power plant or a power grid, we think "bomb." As in, somebody bombed a key chokepoint in the grid.
But here's my question: Am I the only one whose first thought was "computer attack"?
Here's why I think that a computer attack (not necessarily terrorist-related) is not completely outside the realm of possibility:
- 21 seperate power stations went down in a three minute period. That just seems strange to me. I know that everyone's talking about cascade reactions from an overload on the Mohawk grid, but that seems somewhat implausible. I mean, these places have safeguards to protect against this sort of thing. Right?
- Power demand could not have been at record levels- it's summer, and it's hot, but there aren't any major heatwaves anywhere. The temperature in New York today was in the low 90s; hot, yes. Unusual, no.
- No one has been able to point to a specific place and say "There! This is the power station/node/ relay station that started it all." I'm not saying that those in charge should already know the exact cause, but doesn't it seem unlikely that they don't at the very least know where the problem occurred?
Anyway, I don't claim to have any special knowledge here...in fact, it's because of my lack of knowledge that I'm asking questions.
As the internet grew in prominence during the late 90's, talk of securing our "electronic frontiers" grew more and more frequent; after 9/11, we heard about it a bit more, but the possibility of an electronic attack was largely glossed over in the media in favor of coverage of things that seemed more personally threatening (nukes, anthrax, dirty bombs, etc). But one of the primary focuses of any discussion about digital terrorism was the threat it posed to our power networks.
So why isn't anyone on any of the major networks at least raising the possibility, especially given the lack of any real information coming out of the government as to what actually caused this?
Edit: For the record, I'm not saying that I think that it is definitely an electronic attack of some sort (again, terrorist or no). I don't even know if it's at all likely. I'm just wondering why I haven't heard anyone even ask about the possibility, when this is a scenario that has been put forward before when discussing America's electronic vulnerabilities.
The End Of The Line
After reading a certain Freeper thread, I got into a bit of a groove. The need to mock foolish people was like a primal urge...I just had to keep coming back to the computer, interrupting a damn fine viewing of "Field of Dreams." I'm better now. To fully appreciate the last two hour's worth of posting, I suggest you start here and scroll up. Chronological order and all.
Jesus, Freepers suck.
After reading a certain Freeper thread, I got into a bit of a groove. The need to mock foolish people was like a primal urge...I just had to keep coming back to the computer, interrupting a damn fine viewing of "Field of Dreams." I'm better now. To fully appreciate the last two hour's worth of posting, I suggest you start here and scroll up. Chronological order and all.
Jesus, Freepers suck.
Drunken Messages On God's Answering Machine
Sometimes it's best to just let it ring...
"I will literally be on my knees praying tonight that people learn about this neo-socialist being appointed by the Bloomberg Candidate."
Sometimes it's best to just let it ring...
"I will literally be on my knees praying tonight that people learn about this neo-socialist being appointed by the Bloomberg Candidate."
Doesn't Iran Have Enough Weapons?
Freeper advice for handling life's little problems:
"WWRD (What Would Reagan Do)"
Freeper advice for handling life's little problems:
"WWRD (What Would Reagan Do)"
"Round" Two: "Fight"!
Freepers v. History:
"The U.S.S.R. had plenty of "Rich" guys that endorsed the "system", they were protected."
Freepers v. History:
"The U.S.S.R. had plenty of "Rich" guys that endorsed the "system", they were protected."
The Horror
"People should know that most of [Buffett's] wealth doesn't come from shrewd investing, but cleverly avoiding taxes and as I said, those insider connections into government and business."
Irony slashes Freepers' tires on the way out of the stadium.
"People should know that most of [Buffett's] wealth doesn't come from shrewd investing, but cleverly avoiding taxes and as I said, those insider connections into government and business."
Irony slashes Freepers' tires on the way out of the stadium.
Round One: Fight!
Freepers v. History:
"I would compare Buffett to the industrialists of WWII Germany...getting rich by means of capitalism, but utterly owned by the socialists and their ideology."
Freepers v. History:
"I would compare Buffett to the industrialists of WWII Germany...getting rich by means of capitalism, but utterly owned by the socialists and their ideology."
Instant Campaign Commercial
"Maybe I could get behind Arnold. I love his movies, and one never knows what can happen once someone gets in office."
"Maybe I could get behind Arnold. I love his movies, and one never knows what can happen once someone gets in office."
Shit! They're Breeding!
"Okay. I hereby revoke any positive statement made regarding Ahnold. Warren Buffett is a socialist. WTF is going through that guy's head?" [emphasis mine]
"Okay. I hereby revoke any positive statement made regarding Ahnold. Warren Buffett is a socialist. WTF is going through that guy's head?" [emphasis mine]
If God Loved Me, He Would Grant This Man's Wish
"At least its not Jimmy Buffett, although that would be cool, we could all get drunk, listen to music and forget about it." [emphasis mine]
(Help me, I can't stop...)
"At least its not Jimmy Buffett, although that would be cool, we could all get drunk, listen to music and forget about it." [emphasis mine]
(Help me, I can't stop...)
Game, Set, Match
"Wonder how [Buffett] weathered the Enron debacle."
Irony leaps over net, smashes Freepers with racket, runs into stands to wild cheers of adoring crowd, walks off with supermodel on each arm.
"Wonder how [Buffett] weathered the Enron debacle."
Irony leaps over net, smashes Freepers with racket, runs into stands to wild cheers of adoring crowd, walks off with supermodel on each arm.
Thank God Arnold Can't Be President!
"The other consideration is that he will use Buffett's extensive knowledge of the electric ultility industry (and monopoly in the West) to try to turn around California's energy mess. I sure hope this isn't going to lead to firesales whereby [Berkshire Hathaway] gets first dibs..."
Irony 1, Freepers 0.
"The other consideration is that he will use Buffett's extensive knowledge of the electric ultility industry (and monopoly in the West) to try to turn around California's energy mess. I sure hope this isn't going to lead to firesales whereby [Berkshire Hathaway] gets first dibs..."
Irony 1, Freepers 0.
Like A Burning Bush, But With Commercials
God confirms the Freepers' fears:
"This is also being reported on Fox. I don't think it is a rumor."
God confirms the Freepers' fears:
"This is also being reported on Fox. I don't think it is a rumor."
Free Blow For All!
Sayeth the Freepers:
"Milton Freidman, Larry Kudlow and other supply siders know how to fix California. It is no big secret what to do." [bold mine]
Sayeth the Freepers:
"Milton Freidman, Larry Kudlow and other supply siders know how to fix California. It is no big secret what to do." [bold mine]
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Warren Buffet + Freepers = Fun
"Warren Buffett is the greatest single enemy of the unborn in the world today."
So, what, did Satan get demoted?
(Couldn't help it...I could blog for a month with this material. Priceless, I tell you, priceless!)
"Warren Buffett is the greatest single enemy of the unborn in the world today."
So, what, did Satan get demoted?
(Couldn't help it...I could blog for a month with this material. Priceless, I tell you, priceless!)
Embarrassingly Easy
Yeah, I know, making fun of Freepers is like shooting fish on the sidewalk, but I'm afraid I may suffer an aneurysm if I do nothing about this response to the news that Warren Buffet has signed on to be Arnold's economic advisor in his attempt to become California's top dog:
"Buffett is a frickin' socialist."
Go ahead. Read it again.
No, you aren't hallucinating.
The man who has arguably benefited more than anyone else in history from the free market is a socialist.
Seriously, though, I wonder how liquored up I would have to be to say something as mindbogglingly stupid as that. I think my liver would just leap out of my abdomen and run away first.
(link to this wonderful thread via Atrios)
Yeah, I know, making fun of Freepers is like shooting fish on the sidewalk, but I'm afraid I may suffer an aneurysm if I do nothing about this response to the news that Warren Buffet has signed on to be Arnold's economic advisor in his attempt to become California's top dog:
"Buffett is a frickin' socialist."
Go ahead. Read it again.
No, you aren't hallucinating.
The man who has arguably benefited more than anyone else in history from the free market is a socialist.
Seriously, though, I wonder how liquored up I would have to be to say something as mindbogglingly stupid as that. I think my liver would just leap out of my abdomen and run away first.
(link to this wonderful thread via Atrios)
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Fair And Balanced
VeryVeryHappy: Fair and Balanced in the presentation of the fact that Fox News sucks and is making your children dumb and that Fox News is teaching your children that it is okay to steal, as long as you do not get caught.
VeryVeryHappy: Fair and Balanced in the presentation of the fact that Fox News sucks and is making your children dumb and that Fox News is teaching your children that it is okay to steal, as long as you do not get caught.
Monday, August 11, 2003
If The Almighty Ever Decides To Grant Me All Of His Powers, I Shall Drop A Big Rock On Brett Favre
~In which we discover The Mighty Reason Man's hometown~
As some of you may have noticed, I have been rather cagey here on VVH about disclosing where it is, exactly, that I'm from. A handful of alert readers have probably figured it out based upon a few references here and there, but for the most part, my origin -- like Batman's -- is shrouded in mystery.
The reason behind my reluctance to disclose this information is somewhat unclear, even to me. It just seems like bad policy to give out all sorts of random information about yourself online. Most of us, I think, would be surprised by how much information can be pieced together about any given person just by performing a few google searches - and as any William Gibson/Bruce Sterling reader knows, there are all sorts of nefarious ends towards which even the most innocuous-seeming digital information can be used.
If that sounds excessively paranoid, don't worry; my varied and murky reasons for geographical anonymity had more to do with allowing everyone to think that I'm from their own state -- and therefore somewhat more interesting than some guy half a continent away -- than with fears of having my dog killed by vengeful Republicans.
But with the commencement of the NFL preseason, I feel it is both necessary and proper to inform anyone who happens across VeryVeryHappy that they are going to get their asses stomped by My Boys this year- and that certainly wouldn't be any fun if no one knew who My Boys are.
And so, at the risk of exposing myself to the predations of real-world versions of the Dixie Flatline, I humbly announce that I have lived in and around Chicago my entire life, and Da Bears march with God at their side.
So, for all you non-Bears fans (especially you NFC types), why is it that every time you consult your Ouiji board lately, it keeps spelling out "F-E-A-R-T-H-E-U-R-S-I-N-E"?
I'll tell you why. Simple math:
1. Brian Urlacher + healthy Ted Washington + healthy Keith Traylor = No Run For You.
2. Rookie of the Year + horrendous sophomore slump = a pissed off Anthony Thomas willing to take his anger out on your defense (I'm looking at you, Green Bay - especially now that there's going to be a Gilbert Brown-sized hole in your front line)
3. Bears - shitty third-rate QBs + Kordell Stewart = an offense with both running and passing (which, incidentally, won't be nearly as easy to crowd in on given Kordell's running ability)
4. Bears - 2 hour drive to Champaign for home games + renovated Soldier Field = Hometown Karma (applause to Mayor Daley for refusing to allow those bastard McCaskeys to sell the naming rights to Soldier Field; "Charles Schwab Stadium" or some such bullshit would most assuredly have caused God to rain the Holy Cleansing Fire down upon the Windy City, and everyone in the suburbs would be turned into a pillar of salt)
5. Michael Haynes + Richard Dent as Assistant Defensive Line Coach = an indentation in the turf the size of your quarterback's ass
6. McQuarters/Azumah/Brown + Tillman = a secondary with a bit of depth, finally.
7. Da Bears = Great
8. The rest of the league = Losers
Any questions?
Sidenote: Keep in mind that just because you know my hometown and most of my associated sports loyalties, doesn't mean you know in which state I currently reside...
Ho ho.
~In which we discover The Mighty Reason Man's hometown~
As some of you may have noticed, I have been rather cagey here on VVH about disclosing where it is, exactly, that I'm from. A handful of alert readers have probably figured it out based upon a few references here and there, but for the most part, my origin -- like Batman's -- is shrouded in mystery.
The reason behind my reluctance to disclose this information is somewhat unclear, even to me. It just seems like bad policy to give out all sorts of random information about yourself online. Most of us, I think, would be surprised by how much information can be pieced together about any given person just by performing a few google searches - and as any William Gibson/Bruce Sterling reader knows, there are all sorts of nefarious ends towards which even the most innocuous-seeming digital information can be used.
If that sounds excessively paranoid, don't worry; my varied and murky reasons for geographical anonymity had more to do with allowing everyone to think that I'm from their own state -- and therefore somewhat more interesting than some guy half a continent away -- than with fears of having my dog killed by vengeful Republicans.
But with the commencement of the NFL preseason, I feel it is both necessary and proper to inform anyone who happens across VeryVeryHappy that they are going to get their asses stomped by My Boys this year- and that certainly wouldn't be any fun if no one knew who My Boys are.
And so, at the risk of exposing myself to the predations of real-world versions of the Dixie Flatline, I humbly announce that I have lived in and around Chicago my entire life, and Da Bears march with God at their side.
So, for all you non-Bears fans (especially you NFC types), why is it that every time you consult your Ouiji board lately, it keeps spelling out "F-E-A-R-T-H-E-U-R-S-I-N-E"?
I'll tell you why. Simple math:
1. Brian Urlacher + healthy Ted Washington + healthy Keith Traylor = No Run For You.
2. Rookie of the Year + horrendous sophomore slump = a pissed off Anthony Thomas willing to take his anger out on your defense (I'm looking at you, Green Bay - especially now that there's going to be a Gilbert Brown-sized hole in your front line)
3. Bears - shitty third-rate QBs + Kordell Stewart = an offense with both running and passing (which, incidentally, won't be nearly as easy to crowd in on given Kordell's running ability)
4. Bears - 2 hour drive to Champaign for home games + renovated Soldier Field = Hometown Karma (applause to Mayor Daley for refusing to allow those bastard McCaskeys to sell the naming rights to Soldier Field; "Charles Schwab Stadium" or some such bullshit would most assuredly have caused God to rain the Holy Cleansing Fire down upon the Windy City, and everyone in the suburbs would be turned into a pillar of salt)
5. Michael Haynes + Richard Dent as Assistant Defensive Line Coach = an indentation in the turf the size of your quarterback's ass
6. McQuarters/Azumah/Brown + Tillman = a secondary with a bit of depth, finally.
7. Da Bears = Great
8. The rest of the league = Losers
Any questions?
Sidenote: Keep in mind that just because you know my hometown and most of my associated sports loyalties, doesn't mean you know in which state I currently reside...
Ho ho.
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