Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Early morning riser
I've been an early morning riser of late and it's actually become a pretty strange process which I'm not very comfortable with. I am getting a bit more used to it but it is odd. For most of my life, I've been a member of the Late Risers Club, meaning that I liked to sleep late [LRC is also the name of a spotty radio program on MIT's WMBR. I say spotty because there are five different DJs hosting the two hour program weekdays and some of those DJs pick good stuff to play and some don't].
I think it all started back in September when I went to Dallas for the radio convention and had to be up around 3:30 a.m. to catch an early morning flight. My sked has been out of whack since that time, including trying to work out each morning and a couple of days in late November when I had to anchor the morning news.
But what's most interesting about getting up early is how much stuff I can actually get done - compared to getting up later - and the increased amount of rest I get on the back end of the day. Instead of going to bed at 1 a.m. or Midnight, I'm asleep earlier. And the sleep seems to be thicker and more complete than previous evenings which is hard to explain.
Watching the sun come up today was just amazing. The complete blackness of the morning turning to from dark blue to lighter shades of blue. The color was striking. While I've seen the sun come up in different places around the United States, the process still amazes me.

Electricity
Here is an interesting column about trying to find power drains in your home: ["A hunt for Energy Hogs"]. Those of who live in New England have seen huge spikes in electricity prices. A monthly bill which once costs $60 or $70 now costs $125. It's ridiculous and makes no sense. But the hunt for energy hogs does make sense. Jason Fry, the author, comes to some conclusions that most folks wouldn't necessarily reach, especially when assuming that the fridge is bleeding you dry. Dryers and ACs are definitely some of the worst appliances. This year, we lived without one AC - going from two efficient and one not really efficient model to the two efficient models - and really didn't notice a drop in the kwhs. I still think we all have to figure out a way to have on-site electric production via solar or wind modules. I just wish either the market or government would figure out a way to reduce the costs of the initial capital expenditure of the modules.

Trade and the Dems
While staying with the WSJ for a minute, check out this piece about the infighting while the Democratic Party about trade, jobs, and the economy: ["Trade, Fiscal Goals Split Ranks"]. To be sure, it should be splitting the ranks, with the sane Dems leaving the Robert Rubin and the free trade "legacy" on the side of the road. The country is hemorrhaging low skill, decent wage jobs and no one wants to admit it. Things are not fine and voters are starting to smarten up a bit.

2008 press

Here is some of the latest 2008 news:

The big "D" word gets floated in of all places, the Washington Times: ["Diversity marks '08 race as it intensifies"]. I think it will be interesting how voters react to a woman and a black man being the front runners in a Democratic primary race which is a year away. Sure, the goo-goo liberals are going to go nuts for this but what about the rest of us folks out here?

McCain continues to cozy up to W's friends: ["McCain taps Bush donor network"]. The "straight talk" express man is solidly becoming the go along to get along express man. I don't see him impressing Granite State indies who helped him win in 2000 with these kinds of actions, especially with "Guy Smiley" Mitt leaning over from Massachusetts [by way of the mansion in Wolfeboro, St. Lake City, or wherever else he considers "home"]. I could be wrong but I doubt it. Speaking of Mitt, I was talking with an acquaintance of mine about how, if elected, Mitt might get up to the summer home which would probably be nick-named, Camp David 2. Would he fly into Manch? Pease? Imagine the disruption to the Granite State way of life just to get him to and fro Wolfeboro.

WSJ John Fund, who has also written a book about vote fraud, has this piece on why Obama might not run after all: ["Not So Fast"]. Then, there is also this funky land deal thing: ["Obama Says He Regrets Land Deal With Fundraiser"]. Hypothetical Obama random thought: 'I shouldn't have really done that land deal because I didn't know my book would be a big seller and I could actually be president because there is such a vacuum within the Democratic Party ... I should have learned from the Clinton's Whitewater mess but didn't ...'

Edwards leans in: ["Officials: John Edwards to announce '08 run"]. I still continue to be intrigued by Edwards and his potential campaign. He continues to talk about poverty - an important issue - but one which almost every consultant will tell you is a born loser. Few voters in this country want to be lectured about poverty and yet he still keeps bringing it up. That tells you a lot about a pol when they do that.

Gingrich will wait until Labor Day: ["Gingrich plans to wait and see"]. This doesn't seem like a good strategy on Gingrich's part, playing coy and all. But if he keeps promoting limits to free speech and other such nonsense, he won't go anywhere no matter when he decides to announce.
What is frightening about Gingrich is that on a number of occasions, especially on C-SPAN, I've sat and listened to the guy and I'm amazed at how impressed I am with him. I compare the feeling to experiences some of my friends have shared with me about reading "Dianetics" ... it starts making so much sense to them that they had to put it down fast before they got sucked into the Scientology stuff. That is kinda how I feel. I start shaking my head back and forth quickly like I'm in a Warner Brothers cartoon ... arhwhy, arhwhy ... 'That's Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House ... the guy who dump his wife while she was on her deathbed fighting cancer ... the guy who has cheated on two wives now ... but he's lecturing the American people about morality ... I dig this new wave future stuff ... but I must wake up ... wake up, wake up, does not compute, does not compute ...'

Sure thing Giuliani may not be so: ["Giuliani's primary hurdle in race for presidency"]. And, if anyone delves into some of Rudy's background and strange deals in New York, they may be surprised what they find.

And lastly, this, from the indie perspective ... the "sane" Ross Perot: ["Early contenders: Bloomberg could quench yearning for independents"]. This is very intriguing, even this early. But if Bloomberg is thinking about an indie run, he needs to start planning now. Indie runs are the hardest way to run since each state has its own arcane way of running elections and gaining ballot access.

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