First Blog

The greatest contribution of the USA.   The USA has produced remarkably to the world over the past century or two.   Include construction, metals production, electronics, machinery, nuclear energy sources, aviation, medicine, and more.   Which is the greatest?   And the answer is …  Agriculture.   American scientists have developed the disease resistant crops, fertilizers, and farming methods currently feeding the world.   Without all this chow there would be no now – as we know it.   ---------------- Today’s math problem .   Let’s say the prime interest rate is 5%, and it goes up to 5.5%. Clearly the interest rate is up by 0.5%.   But, in going from 5% to 5.5% the increase is really 10%.   So which is it? Up by 0.5% or up by 10%?   And the answer is… Both.   It depends on what and how you’re counting.   In the 0.5% increase we are discussing the net increase in the borrowing percentage.   But in the 10% increase we are discussing the percentage increase of the percen

On United States foreign policy.   I long for the days when our Presidents at least listened to the advice of their foreign policy experts, and even more long for the days when our foreign policy experts were actually experts. Nowadays, contravening this chain of logic, politics seems clumsily to enter and dominate at every point. I do support our current expert, Rex Tillerson, who has decades of pragmatic experience under his belt. This supersedes most academics with only theoretical experience, politicians whose watchwords are expedience and votes, and lawyers armed with only guiding reflections coming from litigation. --------------------------------- On Judge Moore.  The Alabama Senate race pits judge Joe Moore, widely accused of sexual harassment in his past, versus Doug Jones, the Democratic challenger.  It is not clear who will win, but in the case Moore prevails, he may be first seated in the Senate, then forced to resign, then the Alabama will appoint a replacement