SWCAMBORNE

What a great trip and I got to re-live it today because I finally got around to organizing and posting some of the underwater photos that Mark Z took on the trip.

This is our annual group underwater photo

I have organized the photos on Flickr in four sets that are grouped in one collection. This link should take you there. CODGER DIVERS

Mark Z took some great close up shots

And some very good eel photos

This rainbow flounder is one of my favorites

See more click here

I just finished reading a very good book about immigration and development. And want to recommend it to as many people as possible.

Let Their People Come

by Lant Pritchett

Read my review of the book on Amazon.

Read my extended review on Radical Immigration.

This is the third week in a row that I have written a political commentary on Friday. Maybe it’s a trend.

This week I want to talk about the Michigan and Florida primaries, how the Democrat party has handled the controversy and the basic difference between the parties it illustrates.

To review the dispute as I understand it: Florida and Michigan violated party rules by moving their primaries to January in front of New Hampshire and Iowa. The Democrat National Committee (DNC) had warned them in advance that if they moved their primary up their delegates would not be seated. Both States moved their primaries anyway and the DNC said their delegates would not be seated. To show solidarity all of the candidates agreed not to campaign or participate in the election in either State. Now we come to an area where there is a dispute. Somehow Clinton got her name on the ballot in Michigan and Obama did not.

None of this would have been important if the primaries had gone as usual and a clear winner had emerged. But Obama surged and Clinton had to play catch-up and now the primary season is drawing to a close and what to do about these delegates has become critically important.

Now the differences between the parties becomes apparent. The Democrat party leaders are all talking about fairness and making every vote count and are willing to change their rules to make it “fair.” While in fact they are trying to tip the balance in their favor. Clinton wants to seat the delegations as elected or have a re-vote, Obama wants to have caucuses or not seat the delegates.

Republicans on the other hand, as was obvious in the Florida recount in 2000, are much more rule based. The conservative idea is that we should attempt to build fairness into the system when we design it but not change the rules in mid game. Even thinking about changing the rules after the fact reduces confidence in the system, makes everybody suspicious and ready to game the system.

Having said all of the above.  Howard Dean and the DNC made a big mistake when they punished the voters in Florida and Michigan for the mistake of their leaders who voted for the primary date changes. But don’t change the rules now. Whatever you do will make somebody angry and will in the long run undermine fairness and confidence in the system. So my advice is don’t seat the disputed delegates and let the chips fall where they may. Do it in order to save your party. Then fire Howard Dean and make up better rules for the next election cycle.

Our friend who works for the state is worried about being laid off.  She says that there are going to be major staff cuts in her department.  She worries about this every few years.  On the other hand the State budget has more than doubled in the 15 years she has worked there and the number of employees has also increased dramatically.

I have often wondered what could cause this inconsistency?  Why do people not seem to be as postive about being in a growing organization as they are negative in a shrinking one.
I have finally come up with a theory: When an organization is growing the benefit of increased employment goes predominantly to the new hires. However when layoffs occur they effects everybody on the staff.

So in this case the bad news is closer to home and the good news is mostly for others.  The worry it turns out is realistic.

We watched the first episode of “Dancing With the Stars” last night and it made me think about reality TV and how it has grown. And then I had an idea:

A City like Burbank, CA, Bisbee, AZ or Monrovia, CA should create a

Reality TV Walk of Fame.

They could have stars on their downtown sidewalks for the winners, runner-ups personalities and hosts. The annual installation would be a big media event.  It would generate buzz for the City and its downtown, while also giving the reality show stars another shot of the publicity they crave.

Now I know your saying this guy is nuts. But think about it the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is in Cleveland. The town that succeeds at this will have to be first, reasonably well funded and will have to have a loose connection to a Reality TV show. You can have this idea.

The USPS (United States Post Office) is giving away free cards with postage.

http://www.poweroftheletter.com/

At the site click on the free card link.  I love free postcards and this is almost as good.

postcards in Bisbee

The free cards are a joint marketing effort of the USPS and HBO to promote a miniseries on John Adams.

The USPS’s idea is to get people to regain the habit of sending cards and letters.  But there is a major problem.  Fifty years ago a postcard was the least expensive, fastest and most convenient way that you could let someone in another town know what was going on.  Now it is fifth on the list in terms of price and convenience.  Now Phones, Fax, Email and Text Messaging are all cheaper, faster and easier.

The personal letter and the postcard are doomed. 

I say this as a person who sends about 150 postcards a month.  I honor the nostalgia of the postcard and wish that we could keep them alive, but they are as doomed as quill pens and velum scrolls.  No amount of effort can keep the first class letter a big part of the post office and without it the post office is doomed.  It will become in the next fifty years another Amtrak.  An expensive anachronism that is to out of date to save and to powerful to kill.  It will become for a future generation the poster-child for all that is wrong with government run programs.

In the meantime  go to the link above get a free card and send it to me.

“The best way to make medicine widely available is to make wealth widely available, and the best way to do that is to liberate the economic system from statist impositions.”

William F Buckley

1925 – 2008

Up from Liberalism

page 213

When we went to the Spring Training Game in Tucson we left Missy the dog at Doggy Day Camp at Pets Mart.  Nurit organized with our home store to have her shots and her approval so we could stop at any Pets Mart that has the service and leave Missy.

When we picked her up  we were able to  see her  playing before she saw us.

Note that her tail is up.  What a great service.  Very well run and perfect for travelers.

Sign in the window of an antique store

Parents, No “Free-Range” Children Please!

A nice new application of the phrase: Free Range 

A disturbing piece of ill concealed graffiti in the public mens-room

“f*** N***** & Jews”

It is awful that someone would be stupid enough to write this but it is worse that the people who maintain the restroom allow it to stay for even an hour. It reflects badly on Bisbee and all of Arizona.

Verb (active) : To Spitzer

def; to recklessly use prostitutes.

Eliot Spitzer gets a verb

This is a great honor and might make the public humiliation worthwhile.