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Rory Gallagher - Song of the week - February 6, 2012 - Barley & Grape Rag

 

 

Rory Gallagher, one of the many great guitarists out of the UK, was actually Irish, made some fabulous music. Not only was he a superb guitarist he was also a brilliant songwriter. Wonder what kind of music he'd be writing if he were still alive?

Anyway, when we were in Florida recently we came across a music store that was closing down and I was able to buy 10 of Gallagher's CD's for under $100. A steal.

Please visit the web site dedicated to his memory here… and buy some of his material. There's some great stuff to choose from, but if you're new to him I'd suggest "Crest of  A Wave", a best of set, and "Notes From San Francisco". They should give you a good feel for his work.

The song of the week is from his 1976 release, Calling Card. I hope you enjoy it.

Barley & Grape Rag

 

On introducing renewable energy any time soon: A pipe dream?

 

From GridCarbon iPhone App

Rick Lowe

Mr. Mark Humes, chairman of the DNA, was recently quoted in The Nassau Guardian feature column, "My Ten Cents", as saying "We need to introduce renewable energy sources like solar, hydro and wind that can all be used to bring down the cost of doing business".  (http://bit.ly/A0fT4m)

Preserving the environment is one thing, and it might even be desirable for the political class to encourage us to be more conscious of this, but even a country the size of the United Kingdom relies on coal, gas and nuclear for over 90% of its energy requirements. So is it even feasible at this point in time for an investment in these so called "green" technologies for The Bahamas?

Using an iPhone App that measures the UK Grid Carbon Intensity, developed by the University of Southampton called GridCarbon, only 3.9% of the UK's power was from Wind and .9% from Hydro. Coal accounted for 54.8%, Gas 20.6% and Nuclear 20% (as at 1:45am GMT on February 4, 2012). See image at left.

What is the cost of a wind farm or hydro plant? Where would they have to be placed to work? How about solar panels large enough to run a power grid for an average New Providence neighbourhood? In other words, has a cost benefit analysis been done or are these cute, throw away lines at election time?

Sure, why not dream of a cleaner and cheaper way of producing electricity. But to suggest this technology or even our ability to use it in a practical manner is available and at prices we can afford any time soon, so the price of business will be reduced, is little more than a pipe dream.

Lets protect the environment of course, but we also have to be practical about it.

Some sensible talk on economic inequality

Rick Lowe

Hope you enjoy the following video from Economic Freedom and Professor Robert Lawson.

Poke around their web site for a bit. I bet you'll enjoy it.

Burmese pythons thought to be wrecking Florida's Everglades

 

Click on image for more information from www.naturephoto-cz.com

Rick Lowe

I posted those photos of the Everglades yesterday as a result of this article in The International Business Times and other newspapers.

Here's a heartbreaking snippet from the article by Amir Khan:

"The Burmese python is wrecking the Florida Everglades ecosystem and have devastated small mammal populations in the area, according to a recent study. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the number raccoon and possums spotted in the Everglades has dropped more than 98 percent, bobcat sightings are down 87 percent, and rabbits and foxes have not been seen at all in years.

"Burmese pythons are not native to the Everglades. They were spotted since the 1980s, but were established as an invasive species in 2000. It is not known how they originated, but some believe that pet owners abandoned snakes once they reach an unmanageable size (Burmese pythons can grow up to 12 feet). Another theory on how Burmese pythons came to the Everglades is that a holding warehouse filled with imported Burmese pythons was destroyed by Hurricane Andrew, releasing the snakes en masse in a single area.

Florida's Fabulous Everglades. Simply incredible.

 The following photos were taken over the years in Florida's Everglades.

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 Click on each image for a closer look.

 

But what about welfare you ask

Rick Lowe

A reader of our post yesterday, while sympathetic to the point raised, wondered what happened to those people in society that cannot work or help themselves.

This is a legitimate question, although she was conferring the responsibility to help on the "government". I quickly pointed out that private charity was pushed out by government mandates as noted by Dr. Richard Ebeling in a lecture entitled The Economics of Liberty and The Welfare State, watch it here… and I still think private charity is the best route.

If that doesn't help, read The Poverty of Welfare: Helping Others in Civil Society by Michael Tanner.

Here's what sums it up best as far as I'm concerend.  It's from Donald J. Kochan and his 1997 article for The Freeman entitled, The Pervasive Duty to Rescue: Only Private Charity Can Help Those Truly in Need of Assistance.

"…Government programs create dependency, create flawed incentives, and are too broad and generalized to target resources effectively. They hurt more than they help. In tort law, an individual can be held liable for a failed rescue when his heroic attempts are beyond his capacity and actually do harm to the one in need of assistance. The government, however, is not liable for the harm its rescue programs do.

"Only private charity can meet the requirements of those truly in need of assistance. Private funds can be targeted toward those in actual need. Moreover, private organizations are smaller and more localized, allowing them to address the specific problems that needy people have and apply specific solutions, instead of merely sending out impersonal checks drawn against government accounts. Finally, private charities must be more accountable, for they do not have the coercive power of taxation available to ensure continued funding.

"Government programs, unfortunately, have co-opted this superior private approach. Many people believe that they need not get involved because of a flawed perception that the government is doing the job. Moreover, many cannot afford to assist privately, given the drain on their budget from taxation. In tort law, a person can be held liable for preventing a needy individual from getting more effective assistance.[6] That, essentially, is what the government does by its discouragement of private charity, but again, the government is not liable for the harm it does.

"The rules of the common law, developed over many centuries, usually exhibit a profound wisdom in the ordering of human affairs. The rule against compulsory rescues is such a rule. If you were obligated to help everyone in need, the demands on your time and money would be almost endless. The only solution to the problem that protects the individual’s freedom of action and property rights is the one adopted by the common law: there is no legal duty to rescue. There may be a moral duty, but the law leaves that to the individual and his conscience." (Emphasis added).

Using the coercive force of government to "help" the less fortunate only encourages depedency, and I don't think that's what society wants. It is surely not what's best.

Gregg Allman - Song of the week - January 30, 2012 - Before The Bullets Fly

 

Rick Lowe

We just went to see Gregg Allman and his band in Florida, and what a treat it was.

The band was fabulous and he had his old friend Floyd Miles with him who also performed two songs.

Hope you enjoy the studio version of Before The Bullets Fly below. The live version was excellent!

Please visit Gregg Allman's site here… and buy a couple of his cd's. Heck buy them all like I have.

BeforeTheBulletsFly

Of course Gregg is one of the leaders of the great Allman Brothers Band.

Check out the video below of I Can't Be Satisfied from Gregg's You Tube Channel here…

Bahamas Elections 2012. An interesting new site

 

Rick Lowe

Check out this new site, Bahamas Elections 2012, it's still under development, but so far we can view:

1. Candidates with their pictures
2. Constituencies
3. The list of Candidates, and
4. Polling Divisions.

Still under development is an option to make predictions by Constituency for each candidate, a comment box and more.

The site is designed by Alexander J. Hanna and e1 Technology Limited.

Looks like it will fun to follow this site during the campaign season and on election night.

Hope you will take some time and poke around.

The FNM, PLP, DNA and the Brookfield Myth

Rick Lowe

When Mr. Brave Davis Deputy Leader of the PLP broke with the story of some secret deal hatched in the Cabinet Office between Brookfield and Atlantis, it seemed almost believable.

Then Mr. Perry Christie, Leader of the PLP and Mr. Branville McCartney, Leader of the DNA, followed up about how bad all this was.

Not too far behind were Mr. James Smith, former Minister of Finance for the PLP and former Governor of the Central Bank of The Bahamas and Mr. Franklyn Wilson, businessman confirming and or adding new twists to the story and the Brookfield Myth was being cemented in our minds as fact.

Then the so called deal was called off and the myth all unravelled when Mr. Hubert Ingraham, Prime Minister, said that when the arrangement fell through was the first communication between Brookfield and his office.

Mind you, I do not agree that it was wrong for Mr. Christie to allow the property as collateral to assist with Dubai product either. He was given a proposal at the time the world economy was booming, and nobody knew we would face a world recession in just a few months. And we must not forget we are dealing with private property here, not Crown Land.

This all leads me to the question that if the PLP and DNA would go to such great lengths to create the Brookfield Myth instead of debating the issue from a policy perspective, i.e. offer ideas and suggestions on what they would do if they were in the decision making seat, how can we take them seriously any longer?

What will it take for our politicos to debate issues with solutions in mind instead of myth making? Surely this is possible in a country approaching four decades of self rule?

Child killed in traffic mishap. Who is to blame?

Rick Lowe

Well we all knew the day would come again when a pedestrian would be killed by a Jitney, and this time it's a four year-old girl. What a tragedy.

Unfortunately from the eye witness report in The Tribune, it seems to indicate both the mother and the driver are at fault.

However, it's far past the time that jitney drivers should be acting more responsibly with their driving and parents should be more careful with their children.

Hopefully this will be a wake call for everyone that when we do not pay attention on the road tragedy can strike.

Condolences to the family and the driver. What a difficult thing it must be to deal with.

See the Nassau Guardian article about the incident here…