6 minutes

To the Apollo 11 launch.

http://www.wechoosethemoon.org/#

Economic History

Posted here:

wheatstraw wrote:

Another example of unchecked capitalism was the relaxation of lending standards and questionable banking practices (sub-prime loans, mortgage backed securities, derivatives) that lead to the current banking crisis. The bailout, or "socialization of America", or whatever you want to call it, is simply a response to that unchecked capitalism.

By "unchecked capitalism" you mean when the government comes in and says "give loans to the poor segment of your territory so they can get houses or we'll pull your license", right?

That's like the definition of deregulation: "We're removing 1% of the regulations, to give us better control, so ignore the 30% increase in new regulations so we can call it 'deregulation'.

The last hundred years have been almost constant additions to regulation and 'checks' on capitalism. Blaming the current situation on circumstances we haven't seen in almost a century is silly.

Lovely.

Hitting the nail squarely on the head, again. Some people have no sense of tradition, history, or appropriate behavior. As long as it feels okay, there's nothing wrong with it, right?

Interesting Photo Series

Weapons of Mass Destruction, a Visual Perspective

Memery

The Munchkin Wrangler has started a new meme.

You have the opportunity to make a visit to the past. You get to pick one calendar year in the history of the United States, starting with its first full year of existence after declaring independence, 1777, and ending with the last full calendar year, 2007.

Your visit will start a minute after midnight on the 1st of January of that year, and end a minute before midnight on December 31st.

The ground rules are as follows:

• This is a trip for education and/or entertainment. You may not interfere with history in any way. No assassinations, no “prescient” warning letters with details about the future mailed to world leaders, no procreation. You will be temporarily sterile for the duration of the trip, so you won’t be able to do silly stuff like being your own grandparent. Assume that any intentional attempt to influence history will cause the instant termination of your stay in the past. (No refunds.)
• You may not set your future self up for financial gain in any way. No mass purchase of IBM or GE stock during Black Friday of 1929, no Microsoft or Apple stock in the 1980s. No setting up of savings accounts or any other interest-bearing mechanism.
• You may not bring anything in, nor take anything out. You will enter the year with a set of period-appropriate clothing on your body, and another in a suitcase. You will also carry enough period currency with you to live comfortably and travel around at will for a year.
• You may not leave the continental United States for the duration of your visit, nor contact any of your ancestors. No trips to meet the great-grandparents before their kids emigrated to the New World, and no warnings or advice. Tough rule, I know…but we can’t have you telling your great-grandpa about the coming Depression or WWII, even if it wouldn’t influence history overall.

With these rules in mind, which year do you pick for your visit, and why?

Interesting. This will take some thought.

Quote of the Day

When the young leader spoke eloquently and passionately and denounced the old system, the press fell in love with him. They never questioned who his friends were or what he really believed in. When he said he would help the farmers and the poor and bring free medical care and education to all, everyone followed. When he said he would bring justice and equality to all, everyone said "Praise the Lord."

Sound familiar? Here's the rest:

And when the young leader said, "I will be for change and I'll bring you change," everyone yelled, "Viva Fidel!"

But nobody asked about the change, so by the time the executioner's guns went silent the people's guns had been taken away. By the time everyone was equal, they were equally poor, hungry, and oppressed. By the time everyone received their free education it was worth nothing. By the time the press noticed, it was too late, because they were now working for him. By the time the change was finally implemented Cuba had been knocked down a couple of notches to Third-World status. By the time the change was over more than a million people had taken to boats, rafts, and inner tubes. You can call those who made it ashore anywhere else in the world the most fortunate Cubans. - Manuel Alvarez Jr.

Via Kevin

Joke of the Day

Forgotten Great Moments in History:

SCENE: MARCH 6, 1836.

On that fateful day, Davy Crockett woke up and walked from his bunk on the floor of the Alamo up to the observation post on the west wall. Col. William B. Travis and Jim Bowie were already there.

As the three gazed at the hordes of Mexicans moving steadily towards them, Davy turned to Bowie with a puzzled look on his face and asked, "Jim, are we landscaping today?"