BeezleBub and I spent Thanksgiving Day down at the WP In-Laws, while Deb was at work at the local Veterans Home.
Our trip down to the In-Laws and then back to The Manse was incident free as traffic was almost non-existent. I guess everyone got to where they wanted to be on Wednesday.
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One thing that greeted us this morning that we could have done without: freezing rain.The roads are nothing but sheets of ice, leading to accidents when the laws of physics – specifically friction and inertia – asserted themselves and reminded drivers that they aren't necessarily in control. There were a number of accidents overnight, including a multi-vehicle pileup on one of the Interstates early this morning.
Our driveway was a sheet of ice and I must admit to a bit of laziness as I waited until early this afternoon spread sand and ice melt. (It wasn't like any of us needed to go anywhere this morning, so why bother doing it any earlier than necessary?)
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I have to admit I like Bobby Jindal's idea about making Congress part-time. It would solve a number of problems including the propensity for members of Congress to spend money we don't have because they feel they need to justify their existence. If Congress isn't in session year round then they won't have enough time to get into mischief.Over the years my brother and I have discussed a number of ways to reduce the amount of time Congress meets, including the removal of the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems from the Capitol Building and all Congressional offices. That would mean there would be only a few months every year when the temperatures would not be unbearably hot and humid or frigidly cold, in turn limiting the amount of time Congress would be in session. That also means they would have to devote what time they did have to actually doing the work the were elected to do, not wasting time on things most Americans feel is a waste of time and tax money.
A number of states have part-time legislatures, including New Hampshire (though 'part-time' appears to mean they meet for 6 months every year rather than 5 months every two years as in the past) and Texas. For the most part states with part-time legislatures appear to be doing better than states with full-time legislatures. Maybe there's a lesson to be learned here.
(H/T Instapundit)
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Is it time for Great Britain to leave the EU? Taking a look at what's been happening over the past few years, the economic crises befalling a number of member states, and Brussels ever more heavy-handed dictats, I'd say the answer is not just “yes”, but “Hell, yes!” At least the UK didn't make the mistake of adopting the Euro and stayed with their own monetary system, which would make it easier for them to withdraw from the European Union.If they desire to belong to a larger common cause group, then maybe some kind of Anglosphere union maybe be the answer.
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It seems the mayor of Burlington, Vermont is about to learn a harsh lesson about economics and the consequences of not making loan payments. Somehow he seems to think that some other lender will come to the rescue in order to save Burlington's municipal broadband network. He's about to find out they won't. Who wants to lend money to a city that has failed to make payments to a previous lender?**********
Why is it I have no difficulty believing this?Upper-class people have trouble recognizing other people's emotions.
Interestingly enough, when many upper-class people were made to feel as if they were now in a lower social class, their recognition of other people's emotions increased. Could it be that money insulates them from the many social interactions that help promote emotional awareness, meaning their 'emotion translator' atrophies?
[The study] results suggest that people of upper-class status aren't very good at recognizing the emotions other people are feeling. The researchers speculate that this is because they can solve their problems, like the daycare example, without relying on others -- they aren't as dependent on the people around them.