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Stan Collender blogs a tricky situation facing politicians: voters consistently say they’d rather cut spending than raise taxes to reduce the deficit. But when you ask them what they want to cut, the only program there is strong support for cutting is foreign aid . . . which is like trying to pay off your credit cards by slashing your chewing gum budget.

What I’d really like to see is a poll which reads off a list of the major areas in the federal budget, names the percent of the federal budget they compose, and then asks people which of these areas they think should be cut in order to close the deficit. Obviously, you couldn’t get too deep with this, since people can’t remember more than five or six numbers at a time. But the answer would be more interesting than noting that people with a poor command of the federal budget think we should cut the enormous fantasy programs they think are wasting all of our tax dollars.

Even more interesting would be if you paired this with some realistic tax math–if you made it clear to them that the budget gap also cannot be closed simply by raising taxes on “the rich”, but rather that it probably involves a broad-based regressive tax like the VAT.

But this would be very complicated, which is, I presume, why it hasn’t been done.

Update: Ezra Klein pulls this graph from the Wall Street Journal to illustrate the problem

Meanwhile, one of my commenters says:

There are two points that you are missing. Conservatives (and libertarians) like to go on and on about how Americans are generally fiscally conservative. Polls like this one show that Americans are generally fiscally clueless. Americans certainly ARE socially conservative in lot of ways (we’re more religious, more invested in the institution of marriage, etc.), but the idea that Americans are prone to being fiscally conservative is a fiction. It’s a fiction that a lot of American believe, but still.

The point is that they agree with you less than you seem to assume that they do. In fact, they like entitlements and defense spending quite a bit. Informed libertarianism is very much a minority position.

Having said that, that doesn’t mean you are wrong. I (who am way left in sentiment, but sympathetic to libertarian policy ideas) agree with you about these things being real problems. Entitlement spending and defense spending are out of control, and dealing with those issues is a real political need.

But this poll suggest to me that we should stop claiming that Americans are fiscally conservative. We should start claiming that either Americans like to think of themselves that way or that Americans are by and large, completely incoherent when it comes to economic stuff.

I promise you, I have never been under the illusion that my political beliefs were anything other than a (very) minority position. Nor are any other libertarians I know. Still, I think this is not quite right.

Saying “Americans are fiscal conservatives” is, by and large, simply a statement of how they rank relative to national or international political discourse–not a precise allocation of where they fall on the political curve. Faced with a choice between raising taxes and cutting spending, they generally seem to favor cutting spending, even when the taxes to fund the spending are very progressive.

Now, I quite agree that these polls show that this may be based on a misperception of where the money goes. On the other hand, they also misperceive how progressive the tax system is. If properly informed, and then asked questions, would they want taxes raised or spending cut? Given their knee jerk responses, I suspect that they might start to feel differently about Medicare and Social Security if they understood that the alternative was the equivalent of a 10% sales tax on every item. But that’s only a guess, and it might well be wrong.

So in some ideal universe where they are fully informed about the options, maybe they’re not fiscally conservative. On the other hand, maybe they are. But in this universe, where they are very poorly informed, their expressed preference is for spending cuts over tax increases.

Think of it this way: perhaps in some ideal universe where you could sit down with his platonic self and go over all the options, your drug addicted cousin would choose to dry out. But that doesn’t allow you to say that he doesn’t want to do the drugs in this universe. He does, which is why he’s out trying to score right now. It’s appropriate to call him a drug addict even if he wouldn’t be one in a perfect world full of perfect information.

The analogy is imperfect, because we’re talking about stated preference versus revealed preference. But we don’t have any way to get at revealed preference, other than the incredibly messy task of trying to sort out why they voted the way they did. Which brings you right back to the polls.

(Nav Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Need a job? One green shoot of the economic recovery is the hiring glut going on over at the R/GA digital advertising agency, with 230 jobs open. That’s on top of the 130 they’ve already hired this year. But I thought advertising was dead, or at least severely atrophied?

An R/GA source says that while blood was running through Wall Street last year, R/GA went on a pitch spree, winning all but one. And recently, clients who had pulled back their ad-spending had returned wanting to start back up again.

The perhaps counterintuitive facts on the ground are that a resurgence in the advertising industry can be good for consumers. Companies are willing to spend on drumming up new business. Increasing consumer demand would lead to increased production, which could lead to more employers hiring. That’s good news when unemployment is in the double digits.

The bad news is the pixie-dust sprayers are gearing up once again to separate you from your hard-earned cash. It’ll be slower going this time around, though, with so many credit card lines cut, and American’s new fondness of frugality will be hard to shake, not unless manufacturers are going to provide good products at fair prices. Whoddathunkit?

Job Openings [R/GA]

An Arizona man (not Consumerist’s Phil Villareal, in case you were wondering) is under arrest after he discharged a handgun at his local Walmart. And no, he wasn’t robbing the place; he was just nervously fidgeting with his firearm.

The 29-year-old dude walked into the El Mirage, AZ, Walmart around 1 a.m. early Thursday morning, where witnesses say he began to fumble with his holstered semi-automatic pistol.

According to police, an employee in the electronics section notified the store manager because she believed the suspect could be a robber after she saw him remove his gun from the holster.

But it wasn’t until he attemped to pay for a video game at the store’s front register that the armed dude got into real trouble.

From AZcentral:

He removed the gun from the holster again, causing the magazine to come loose and fall to the floor. [The suspect] re-inserted the magazine and continued manipulating the gun when it fired, sending one round into the ceiling.

Oops.

No one was hurt and the trigger-happy fella as arrested without incident and booked on six counts of endangerment and firing a weapon within city limits.

Man arrested after his gun goes off inside El Mirage Walmart [AZCentral]

For the past few weeks now, the HTC Incredible faucet has been leaking at a steady pace.  But yesterday the floodgates opened, unleashing a plethora of information including official specs, a user manual, equipment guide, and more release date confirmation.

Thanks (yet again) to the Android Forums, we now have a full 206 page user manual to peruse for those of you who are interested.  Follow the link to view or download the PDF (thanks to John at DroidDog for finding this).  In addition to the user manual, here’s a link to a screenshot of the equipment guide which displays a long list of “features and specifications” for the “HTC Incredible ADR6300.”  It also includes a list of items that come in the box.

The now official specs are as follows:

• CPU speed: 1 GHz (Snapdragon processor)
• Platform: Android™ 2.1 (Éclair) with HTC Sense™
• Memory: ROM: 512 MB, RAM: 576 MB
• Display: 3.7-inch AMOLED touch-sensitive screen with 480 X 800 WVGA resolution
• Onscreen navigation: Optical joystick
• GPS
• Sensors: G-Sensor, Digital compass, Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor
• Connectivity: Bluetooth® 2.1, Wi-Fi®: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n, 3.5 mm stereo audio jack, micro-USB (12-pin micro-USB 2.0)
• Camera: 8 megapixel color camera with auto focus and flash
• Expansion slot: microSD™ memory card (up to 32GB)

Last, but certainly not least, the folks over at PhoneArena managed to uncover some Best Buy documents (see above) that lend further credence to the April 29 launch date (at least for Best Buy).  According to Phandroid, however, there’s still a good chance that the Incredible could launch at Verizon retail stores on April 25th.

Eat your heart out VZW Android fans!  I’m not sure it’s possible for anything else to leak out (aside from pricing, of course) before the official launch.  Who’s getting excited?  Sound off below!

Via Phandroid

Abuse victim Gianni Bisoli in Verona April 8, 2010/Paolo Bona

Abuse victim Dario Laiti is deaf and has great difficulty speaking. But he has a clear message for Pope Benedict: expose predator priests, past and present, living and dead, for the good of the Church.

“I think the pope has to carry out justice. He has to get rid of all the priests who abused children. He has to tell the world who these people were and which of them are still living,” Laiti told Reuters in the northern Italian city of Verona.

So far, the pope has not spoken out directly on the new wave of sexual abuse allegations that is hounding the Church in a number of countries, including the United States, Italy and his native Germany.

Laiti, 59, and others who say they were abused as boys in the Church-run Antonio Provolo School for the deaf decades ago have joined a growing list of victims who are calling on the pontiff to say more and directly address the crisis.

Gianni Bisoli with Italian newspaper headline quoting Pope Benedict saying "Paedophilia, insult to God," April 8, 2010/Paolo Bona

The diocese of Verona has opened an investigation into the accusations. It says while some abuse may have taken place at the school in the 1950s and 1960s, it was not as extensive as some of the former Provolo students claim.

Victims have come forward in many places, including Germany and the United States. But Laiti and his former schoolmates stand out in a country where the Roman Catholic Church still wields enormous power.

“I think this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Marco Politi, a Vatican analyst and papal biographer.

Read the full feature here.

Follow FaithWorld on Twitter at RTRFaithWorld

By Nauman Farooq

Famed Italian car designer, Sergio Pininfarina, head of the Pininfarina design studio, and the force behind all Ferrari designs for the past 50 years once said; “We design beautiful cars to attract beautiful women.”

Booth Beauties of 2010 NYIAS

Something tells me he would have been very happy at the 2010 New York International Auto Show (NYIAS), because there were lots of beautiful cars, adorned with even more beautiful women.

With competition in the car industry getting tougher and tougher, car companies need all the help they can get to keep ones attention. It seems that both Audi and Chrysler firmly believe that the shorter the skirt the longer they can keep ones attention. Not going to argue about their methods. So here is a look at some of the beautiful ladies working at this years NYIAS. Enjoy!

Bond Insurer Ambac announced a surprising fourth quarter profit of $558 million today. That’s after a $2.34 billion loss in the fourth quarter of 2008. This news market quite a turnaround for the troubled insurer which has been ailing ever since the housing market’s collapse. Like most of its competitors, losses from mortgage-related guarantees have plagued the firm. Does this improvement mark a change for the troubled bond insurance industry?

First, the company reports that the improvement was partially driven by a $472 million tax benefit that allows Ambac to carry back losses. Taking that away, the firm had a much smaller profit — just $86.1 million. That is still much better than a loss in the billions, however.

Why else did Ambac improve? It incurred fewer residential mortgage-backed security (RMBS) losses. They were $385 million in 2009, down by 58% from its $916 million loss in the final quarter of 2008. The value of its credit derivatives portfolio also increased by $133 million. That compares to a $594 million loss the portfolio incurred in the same quarter a year prior.

Ambac’s net investment income also improved — up 8%. Net premiums declined by 19% year-over-year, however.  

These results are certainly encouraging and explain why its stock is up around 70% this morning. The value of its credit derivatives will continue to improve as the market does. The severity of its RMBS if should also benefit if home prices have hit the bottom.

But it’s too soon to know if Ambac and its brethren are out of the woods. Foreclosures continue to soar, which will lead to continued losses on RMBS. The housing market’s fate after the home buyer credit expiration in April is also unclear. If employment and consumer sentiment levels don’t improve, it’s hard to imagine there will be much demand on the part of potential new home buyers to soak up the increasing inventory of houses. That won’t bode well for home prices.

Still, today’s news provides some reason for optimism. If the real estate market really has hit the bottom, any bond insurers who have lasted this long could manage to survive. Of course, that’s a big “if.”

If you want to understand how libertarians see most of the public policy process, watch this video:

In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole?

Filed under: Aftermarket, Performance, SUV, Mercedes-Benz

Ah, the Mercedes-Benz G Class. The G Wagen. The Gelandewagen. It’s a relatively rare beast here in the U.S., especially in high-power G55 AMG form. We’ve never once doubted the awesomeness that is the AMG-badged G Wagen, and now the folks at Väth have decided to turn up the wick on the hardcore Benz SUV to the tune of 680 horsepower and 620 pound-feet of torque – output increases of 180 hp and 104 lb-ft over a factory-fresh G55. It’s pure insanity, and we wholeheartedly approve – of the powertrain, at least.

They key components of the engine tuning involve things like a new intake manifold, a revised outlet system, new coolers and Väth’s patented fuel cooler. Not only does this aid in the healthy power increase, but it allows the G55 to reach a top cruising speed of 165 miles per hour. To manage that added grunt, Väth has lowered the G55 by 1.4 inches, as well as fitted sport shock absorbers and beefy 15.4-inch sport brake discs.

Obviously, Väth has fitted the usual host of visual upgrades to the G55, including LED daytime running lamps, Xenon foglights, a sport exhaust system out back and 22-inch light metal wheels wrapped in 295/35 Yokohama ADV ST tires. Inside, carbon fiber appliques have been added to the standard leather trim, and a new sport steering wheel features Alcantara upholstery.

Do we want one? You betcha – though we might save some money where Väth’s visuals are concerned. Click through the jump to read the company’s press release with the full details.

[Source: Väth]

Continue reading Väth tunes up Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG with 680 horsepower

Väth tunes up Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG with 680 horsepower originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 09 Apr 2010 10:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WASHINGTON–The Obama White House learned of Justice John Paul Stevens decision to retire in a letter the White House received at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, giving President Obama his second appointment to the court. Stevens, a Chicago native, signaled his impending resignation in recent interviews. A senior administration official tells me Obama is expected to address Stevens departure when he returns from Prague this afternoon. Stevens will turn 90 on April 20.

Stevens one paragraph letter started, “My dear Mr. President:”

“Having concluded that it woul be in the best interests of the Court to have my successor appointed and confirmed well in advance of the commencement of the Court’s next Term, I shall retire from regular active service as as Associate Justice….effective the next day after the Court rises for the summer recess this year.”

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said in a statement, “Justice John Paul Stevens, a native Chicagoan, is widely seen as one of the wisest and most accomplished jurists of our time. The fourth-longest-serving Justice in U.S. history, Justice Stevens’ judicial philosophy may be hard to label but his integrity is rock solid. A lifetime in the law and the courage to speak his mind (see Bush v. Gore and Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission) make him a national treasure on our highest court.”

“In the tradition of the President who nominated him, Gerald Ford, Justice Stevens has been a moderate, independent voice on a Court now dominated by conservative ideologues. Justice Stevens’ commitment to expanding freedom, safeguarding our rights and liberties, and understanding the challenges faced by ordinary Americans will be his legal legacy. He has had no judicial agenda other than fidelity to the law and the Constitution.”

“Now the President and the Senate must work together to honor his service with a justice who can honestly aspire to the high standard of public service Justice Stevens set.”

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Will the desperate men in the Kremlin attack?

By 1954 Russia will be strong enough to do so.

That is why our former Air Force chief states:

We Are in Peril!

GEN. HOYT S. VANDENBERG

ON MARCH 6, 1953, I appeared before the Armed Forces Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives. The purpose of my appearance there was to introduce the Air Force budget for the fiscal year 1954. The budget introduced at that time was designed to continue the buildup toward the 143-wing air force goal which had been fixed by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, approved by the Department of Defense, and sanctioned by-congressional action.

The statement I made before the House committee included a detailed review of enemy and friendly air strength. It provided a background of information which served to explain why an air force of at least 143 wings is an essential component of our worldwide resistance to Communist power. It stated that an air force of no less than 143 wings is the minimum force which can assure the ability of this Nation to resist successfully an all-out Communist attack.

In that statement I also expressed the hope that continued and uninterrupted progress toward an air force of this size and strength would deter the Soviet rulers from launching such an all-out attack against us.

There was a detailed analysis of the tasks and missions charged to the Air Force and a careful evaluation of the forces which would oppose us in the event of a general war in 1954 or thereafter.

The year 1954, I repeat, is considered critical principally because of the estimate that the Soviet Union will, by that time, have a stockpile of atomic weapons sufficient to mount a devastating attack on United States military installations, industry, and population centers.

The size and composition of the proposed force was based on an examination of all factors such as the buildup of our own atomic stockpile, the improvements to be expected in our own weapons and in the enemy’s weapons, and the expected size, nature, and disposition of Communist military forces. There have been no significant or unexpected changes in weapons development or in forces since the decision was made.

An Air Force consists of three principal elements—people, planes, and bases. The people include many kinds of specialists and most of these require extensive training. The planes are of many types and they all require extensive support in the form of spares, repairs, and auxiliary equipment. Bases also are of several types in a variety of locations, and most of them require a long time to build.

A shortage in any one of these many elements which go to make up a modern Air Force may render the remainder of that force ineffective. To keep everything in gear and to enable the entire program to move forward on schedule and with economy requires a consistent and orderly progression to established goals.

Because of reductions in the manpower of supporting units and reductions in funds for maintenance and operations, the Air Force will fly fewer hours next year, with a greater number of wings, than it is flying this year. This inevitably means a reduction in maintenance standards and in standards of aircrew skill and experience.

In addition, there will be a heavy reduction in the total airlift which was planned to be available to all the Armed Forces of the United States.

The 120-wing force, under the new program, will not be as well supported as the 143-wing force under the old program.

In general, however, the construction, fiscal, and manpower controls now being imposed will have their greatest effect in future years. In the discussion of the shorter lead times that can now be achieved as production advances, the necessary lead time for the production of trained people is too often overlooked.

For instance, if it should be decided next year that the Air Force will, after all, have 143 wings, it will then be impossible to recruit and train the personnel for such a force earlier than 1957.

The problem of providing trained personnel in sufficient numbers is particularly acute in the Air Force because next year we will begin losing large numbers of men, now skilled and experienced, who have joined us since the beginning of the Korean war.

When a force is reduced in size the quality becomes more important than ever, yet reductions in training facilities, units, equipment and personnel will damage the quality of our force as well as reduce its size.

There has even been a heavy reduction in funds that can be used for research, and for the development of planes and weapons of the future.

Since 1948 the situation has not been a happy one. Not only has the Soviet Union —and the Communist world dominated by the U. S. S. R.—become more and more! belligerent, but also more and more capable of damaging us and our allies.

We Americans are traditionally an optimistic people. There is always the half-believed rumor that perhaps our enemies are much weaker than all the evidence indicates. “This tendency to optimism is a fortunate| characteristic because it makes life among us happier in many ways. But it can lead to wishful thinking and to disaster if those of us who know the facts fail to state them repeatedly—even when we ourselves would like to forget them.

The Communist air threat in the Far East is a most serious one. This is true despite the brilliant success of a few Air Force fighter pilots against a very small percentage of the total number of Soviet-built MIG-15’s.

They have made no effort whatever against our bases in Korea and Japan, despite their superior strength in aircraft. Their ability to damage us grows every day as they introduce more and more jet light bombers into the Chinese air force. While they have not yet used these jet bombers against us, there is no justification for assuming they will not do so at a time of their choosing.

In addition to the Chinese Air Force of more than 2,000 aircraft, the Russians have in the Far East a total of more than 5,000 tactical aircraft. At the other end of Russia-there is a much larger number of Soviet tactical aircraft, most of which are near the NATO area. The significance of the large numbers of Soviet tactical aircraft facing Western Europe is apparent when we consider operating radii of many of these aircraft will permit them to cover most of that area. Communist MIG’s, for instance, can reach Denmark and the low countries as well as northern Italy, Yugoslavia, Greece, and western Turkey. Their jet light bombers can cover England. France, Italy, Turkey, and most of the Mediterranean. The large numbers of these aircraft, together with high performance capabilities and the excellent base system already prepared for them, constitute as great a menace to the NATO nations as the Russian ground forces, and one which can be far more rapidly applied.

The flying time of a jet bomber from inside the Iron Curtain across most of Western Europe and the Mediterranean is just a little more than 1 hour.

As a matter of passing interest, this is one of the reasons why the Air Force was so anxious to get strategic bases in North Africa, near the Atlantic and beyond the range of most of the Soviet Air Force.

Another important element of the Soviet Air Force is the medium bomber force. It has the capability of carrying atomic bombs for a distance of 2,000 miles and returning to its bases. It can also deliver the atomic bomb through staging bases already prepared in Siberia and northern Russia to an> target in the United States on a one-way mission.

Whether the Soviets are yet completely prepared to commit this force in a full-scale attack against the United States we do not know. But we do know that these planes can reach us.

The Soviets are moving rapidly toward a jet-powered air force and they are neglecting none of their basic elements of combat air power—air defense, long-range bombardment, and offensive tactical power. In the last—offensive tactical powers—the Soviets, with their new twin-jet bombers, are achieving a performance which is as great an advance over the old piston types as the MIG-15 was an advance over their old piston fighters.

The MIG-15, despite warnings, was a great surprise to most Americans. But the MIG-15 was a defensive airplane and has never been used against us offensively. The jet light bomber, on the other hand, represents as great a technical advance as the MIG-15 and it is far more dangerous to us since it is designed for offensive use against our planes on the ground, our bases, our troops, our support, and supply systems.

The Soviets were extremely reluctant to reveal new models last year. They abandoned their former practice of parading test models in flights over Moscow. We have to admit the possibility that their latest developments are being tested in greater secrecy than ever before.

Our own program of expansion was based on the target set for us last year—to build and maintain a modern force of 143 wings.

It was hoped originally that we could have 143 modern wings by 1954, but decisions based on other than military factors caused a postponement of the readiness date.

Much official and public attention has been devoted to management problems in recent years, and the Air Force is attempting to capitalize on all of it. Not content with the employment of many recognized experts in management from business and industry to advise us, we have systematically trained our commanders and staff officers in the principles and practices of economy.

In discussing economy, I should like to register an objection—a very serious objection —against a false and dangerous standard that has been widely advocated in recent months. It seems incredible to me that anyone could propose to judge the efficiency and the effectiveness of a military organization by calculating the percentage of its men intended to manipulate weapons and to be subjected to enemy fire.

This kind of analysis entirely overlooks the fact that what counts in warfare is fire power, and that fire power is not necessarily proportionate to the number of men handling weapons.

The evolution of modern warfare has led from many men with simple weapons requiring little support to a few men with powerful weapons requiring a tremendous amount of support. Obviously, the more ammunition a man can deliver the more help he needs to keep him supplied with that ammunition—and to service his powerful but complex weapons. Judged by such a standard as the one to which I am objecting, Caesar’s legions equipped with simple broadswords were far more efficient than any military force of modern times.

In every combat air squadron the men who remain on the ground are several times as numerous as those who take to the air in combat crews. But the men on the ground make possible the delivery of explosives that are far more effective than all the broadswords or muzzle loaders ever made. If we use any such misleading standard of measurement as the ratio of men firing weapons to those servicing weapons, we would find air forces, like all other military forces, getting less efficient every day.

The simpler the airplane, the more limited its range and the lighter its load of weapons. The primitive airplanes of World War I and the obsolete planes of World War II required fewer men on the ground, and they required many more men in combat crews to deliver the same load. They also had far less effect on the enemy.

It is necessary and desirable that we search continuously for new savings through better management and administration. But these efforts should not blind us to the fact that the greatest waste, by far, can result from mistakes in the composition or the employment of a military force.

Because of the nature of the equipment needed by a modern air force, there is no way to escape the necessity of implementing our program through decisions that have to be made years before their results materialize. In the case of planes that take 2 years to produce, a failure to place orders in 1954 means a failure of deliveries in 1956.

Fortunately, the same is true of enemy forces. What we have to do is watch the trend of developments in the Communist world and plan ahead to make sure that at no future point in time will our own strength be so low that Communist strength can overwhelm us.

Our greatest hope for peace or for victory is to invest our military resources exclusively in those programs and projects which will have the greatest influence on our enemy in restraining him from all-out war—and the greatest effect upon him if the restraint proves insufficient.

One of the consequences of the air-atomic revolution in warfare is that the initial blows in any struggle are likely to be the decisive ones. We can no longer count on having time, as we did in the last two wars, to mobilize our military resources after the fighting has begun. If Soviet industries, and airfields, and transport facilities were left intact while they struck with atomic weapons at those of the West, we would have no chance of ever meeting them again on anything like equal terms.

No matter how strong our air defense, we could not prevent them from getting through with enough bombs to do us enormous damage. That is why we need to have, also in instant readiness at all times, a strategic force of our own capable of doing more than equal damage to the warmaking capacity of our potential enemies. This is the assignment of our Strategic Air Command.

An attack by Soviet Russia on the United States or on any of our NATO allies would bring this ready force into action. Its job would be to deliver atomic bombs against those targets in enemy territory which are most vital to his military operations. I cannot begin to explain the amount of planning and organization that has been required to put us in a position to carry out this mission. Nor can any of us fully comprehend the power of destruction that new developments have created. The idea of our ever having to use it is horrifying to all of us. But if we did not have it as part of our Defense Establishment, we would be inviting the global war which we hope to prevent.

Should a war against the West be started by the Soviets, one of their first moves might be a large-scale sneak attack on our air bases, ports, industrial centers, and on other strategic targets in this country. Therefore, the Air Defense Command must be ready on a moment’s notice to send up our interceptors to engage the attacking planes. We have been setting up radar installations to pick up enemy planes while they are still many miles away from our most vital targets. If the attack were made at night, as it probably would be, our interceptors would have to be able to locate the invaders in the dark. I need not stress how much would depend on the effectiveness of this operation, nor the importance of our having the best equipment to carry it out.

By readiness to counter an attack we do not mean that we should have in being all the forces needed to fight a war. We mean only those that are required to give us a clear advantage in the first round of such a war if it were forced upon us. The maintenance of forces for any other purpose is of lesser importance. If we could not protect ourselves against the first onslaught of an enemy equipped with atomic weapons, and deal him harder blows in return, there would be no second round in the conflict.

Since the performance and range in aircraft is steadily increasing, we can expect that, after a few more years, direct, two-way atomic warfare between the United States and Soviet Russia would become possible on a decisive scale. In such an event the victory would go to the nation possessing the strongest and most effective weapons and the strongest and most effective air force to deliver those weapons at long range.

In case of all-out war, as these units move out from the United States for the air campaign against the heart of the Soviet Union, the first strike of that campaign would already be under way. These strikes, if they must be made, would overshadow all the campaigns that ever have been fought on the face of the globe. The greatest land mass on earth would become one battlefield, with carefully spaced and carefully timed air units moving across it from many directions at once. This method of attack would require a worldwide control of men and planes far more complete than General Lee or General Meade could exercise over their 5 miles of battleline at Gettysburg.

Only an attack such as this, resulting from years of planning and preparing, could be carried out without staggering losses. At the same time it is difficult to conceive how such an attack, if carried out successfully, could leave any nation with the ability or the will to continue fighting a modern war.

This is the possibility that the Kremlin has to contemplate when it ponders the problem of when to begin World War III. In my opinion, no other consequence could possibly disturb them one-tenth as much or be one-tenth as effective an influence for peace. ?

Complete Angler 1958?

From catch to “quick-freeze” in minutes . . . that’s the trawler of tomorrow—a floating fishery to locate, attract, catch, process, package and freeze fish … manufacture by-products and conserve spawn. Imaginary? Sure! But it’s coming. And look for New Departure ball bearings, many self-sealed and lubricated-for-life, on the job. New Departures simplify design, require little or no maintenance, assure long-life performance of working parts under extreme conditions. Today, as in the future, it’s New Departure for the finest in quality and engineering service.

NEW DEPARTURE • DIVISION OF GENERAL MOTORS • BRISTOL, CONNECTICUT

NEW DEPARTURE BALL BEARINGS – NOTHING ROLLS LIKE A BALL

30-inch loudspeaker

For audiophiles who like to feel the deep bass in recorded music, Electro-Voice has perfected its 30-inch loudspeaker, the model 30W. Write to manufacturer in Buchanan, Michigan for more information.

According to this video showing Cydia multitasking and this tweet by a member of the Dev Team, iPhone OS 4.0 has been jailbroken already. Then again, Apple may have left the doors wide open as a pre-launch red herring. More »

From Green Right Now Reports

The fast food industry is slow to get that it needs to move to more sustainable packaging. That’s the word from the Dogwood Alliance, which this week launched a public awareness effort called Kentucky Fried Forests campaign to skewer Kentucky Fried Chicken’s practice of using unsustainably sourced paper.

(Photo: Dogwood Alliance)

Dogwood, a 14-year-old group focused on saving forests in the U.S. South, reports that Louisville-based KFC is failing to protect domestic forests by using paper that does not come from operations certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). The FSC certification, used by Walmart, IKEA and other major retailers of wood products, is considered the gold standard for certification.

KFC, however, uses paper from the logging industry’s self-developed Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), which Dogwood calls a greenwashing “certification scheme.”

The SFI is “a green label on products made from business-as-usual industrial forestry practices,’’ the group says in a news release.

The group laments that only one Southern mill out of about 100 produces paper packaging that is sourced from authentically certified forests that adhere to the FSC’s stricter standards.

The nation’s Southern forests provide paper packaging for companies around the world, supplying 20 percent of global needs for pulp, paper and lumber with just 2 percent of the world’s forests. But with such low participation in the FSC’s certification program, the South is losing its forests to clear cutting for paper and paper packaging, Dogwood leaders say.

Dogwood is calling on KFC to lead the way out of this forest of destruction, because it is both a big user of paper packaging and an established Southern business.

“KFC prides itself as a southern heritage brand while it has knowingly contributed to the destruction of the natural riches within this community for decades,” stated Danna Smith, executive director of Dogwood Alliance. “It’s time for KFC to lead, and prevent these areas that have served as flood barriers, a vital source of clean drinking water and places of recreation for southerners for hundreds of years, from becoming disposable buckets for KFC chicken.”

KFC, a part of Yum! Brands, operates 5,200 restaurants in the United States and thousands more outlets around the world. It did not have an immediate response to the Dogwood action on its website. KFC did offer information about its newest product, the double-down bunless (but not paperless) chicken sandwich, which is served without a bun. The buns will be donated to charity as part of the “sandwiches” promotion.

Dogwood, meanwhile, has its sites on the KFC buckets, which are more emblematic of the packaging involved in fast food.

It chides KFC for getting its packaging source material from International Paper, which it says also uses the deceptive SFI certification to mask destructive forestry practices.

“IP has long been associated with the worst forestry practices, including large-scale clearcutting and the conversion of diverse natural forests to sterile mono-culture plantations,’’ the group reports.

IP reports on its sustainability webpage that “our company has been one of the most environmentally responsible companies in the world. We have always taken a sustainable approach to business that balances environmental, social and economic needs. This approach has served our company and society well.”

IP also defends its use of the SFI certification, saying on its website that: “Our company supports the existence of multiple certification standards to increase the amount of certified fiber and the concept of mutual recognition, which acknowledges that responsible forest management can be achieved through a number of credible certification systems.”

As rescue teams continue scrambling in search for four missing miners at the Upper Big Branch, Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) just shot out a statement on the Massey Energy’s role in the disaster. And here’s a hint: He ain’t happy.

“The more I learn about the extent of these violations by Massey at the Upper Big Branch Mine alone, the angrier I get,” he said. “57 citations in the month of March alone! Closed over 60 times during the past two years to correct problems!”

To me, one thing is clear — for a company that has had this number of violations at just one coal mine — one must seriously begin to question the practices and procedures of this particular coal company and it needs the most serious scrutiny from the Congress and the federal regulators.

But Byrd also concedes that there’s plenty of blame to go around. Congress, the White House and Massey all could have taken greater steps to prevent the disaster, he implies. “It is infuriating that in this day and age, and in this country, that such a disaster could still happen. I am sick. I am saddened and I am angry. We have the laws. We have the resources. These tragedies, on this scale, should no longer be happening.”

It’s too early to propose specific legislative changes, Byrd adds, but those changes are sure to be coming.

It’s not the first time Byrd has ripped into Massey over safety issues at their facilities. In October, the nine-term senator blasted the company for its refusal to help move an elementary school that sits below a Massey-owned pond holding hundreds of millions of gallons of toxic coal sludge.

“Such arrogance,” Byrd said at the time, “suggests a blatant disregard for the impact of their mining practices on our communities, residents and particularly our children. These are children’s lives we are talking about.”

That school isn’t far from Monday’s explosion, leading to some concerns that the embankment holding back the sludge might have weakened by the blast. Byrd said today that the embankment “was inspected on Wednesday and determined by inspectors to ‘be fine.’”