Hi! I'm Gordon Zaft, why isn't everyone?

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

 

CNN is reporting that Obama is going to pick Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano for secretary of Homeland Security. Wow! While I certainly disagree with the Governor on a number of issues, she's a very smart and capable woman who would do a terrific job at DHS. Good for her!

Gordon 10:55 PM

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

 

Here's a transcript of John McCain's concession speech from last night. I thought it was extremely gracious, and vintage McCain.

I would not -- I would not be an -- an American worthy of the name, should I regret a fate that has allowed me the extraordinary privilege of serving this country for a half a century. Today, I was a candidate for the highest office in the country I love so much. And tonight, I remain her servant. That is blessing enough for anyone and I thank the people of Arizona for it.

Gordon 4:28 PM

 

So... Obama won. As I had predicted, the market took a dive of almost 500 points.

Gordon 1:54 PM

Monday, November 03, 2008

 

Miscellaneous stuff -- here's a cool article about my friend Rae's grandson who was miraculously healed through the intercession of Bl. Alberione.

Gordon 1:50 PM

Saturday, November 01, 2008

 

Small stuff...

I bought gas yesterday for $2.219/gal! That's compared to just 3 days earlier (Tuesday) when I paid $2.559! Crazy stuff, but I'm not complaining.

This from our Intel Singers practice on Wednesday (neither of these was me):

• "What does 'rall.' mean?"
• "It means 'watch the conductor!'"

We all laughed :-)

My prediction... if Obama wins, the market is going to take a big dive on Wednesday. like 400 points. The market doesn't like change and doesn't think Obama is its friend so it's going to tank. Check back and we'll see if I'm right!

Gordon 1:36 PM

Monday, October 27, 2008

 

I've long been concerned about euthanasia and the slippery slope down which our society is sliding. Here in Oregon, of course, while we have rationed health care, you can legally have a doctor help you kill yourself. So much for compassion.

Anyway, thanks to Mark Shea for pointing out this good discussion on the truth about euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide.

The notion that certain patients lack worthwhile lives is a judgment which Western law and medical ethics have long rejected and which no civilized society should accept. This is, moreover, no "private" decision. The question whether some citizens (doctors) should be allowed to kill other citizens (patients) is a decision with profound ramifications for the safety and well-being of the whole community, not least its most vulnerable members. The community, rightly, jealously guards its power to decide when human life may lawfully be taken and it has, again rightly, strictly limited those circumstances. The decision to allow doctors to kill patients who consent to have their lives ended is no more "private" a matter than a decision to allow plantation owners to buy and sell slaves who consent to be owned. There are, indeed, few questions which are of greater public import than the question whether to permit VAE/PAS.

Gordon 4:42 PM

 

Energy Independence

I've been doing a lot of thinking about "energy independence" since it's been in the news and a large part of the campaign cycle.

I'm really amused by the ads and hype that talk about this subject while showing pictures of... power plants!! It's nuts.

According to the Energy Information Administration, petroleum makes up 39.8% of our available energy. 70% of our petroleum is used for transportation, 24% goes for industrial use, 5% for residential and commercial (heating oil, propane) and 2% for electric generation. 2%! That says that power plants and petroleum have almost nothing to do with each other!

If the Chevy Volt and other electric (mostly) cars sweep the market, it would be possible for us to eliminate oil imports eventually (we currently import 52% of our oil). While this is a good goal it will take a while to get to that point, especially since the Volt's power train is aimed at cars (the biggest target), not trucks and other big vehicles that require lots of horsepower (bulldozers, diggers, etc.).

Natural gas is another story. We import about 15% of our natural gas consumption. This area is ripe to be replaced with renewable energy, except for one problem. Much of the natural gas consumption for electric generation (30%) is used that way because natural gas-fired power plants are good for peak power generation. (Natural gas plants can ramp up power output much more rapidly than coal plants or nukes, about the same as hydropower). This is a hard niche to replace with wind or solar, both of which work better as supplements.

A reasonable mix would be coal/nuclear (working to elimination of coal) for base load, with renewables to supplement, and natural gas/hydropower for peak loads.

Gordon 2:48 PM