Pages: 1 ... 294 295 [296] 297 298 ... 808   Go Down

Author Topic: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa  (Read 466446 times)

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5900 on: January 18, 2021, 10:34:31 am »

In a move that hurts our nearest neighbor and friends Canada and Canadians, Biden reverses Trump's authorization.  Additionally, both our countries will now be more reliant on the Arabs and their oil dragging us back into destructive Middle Eastern politics.  What a dumb move.

Biden to yank Keystone XL permit on first day of presidency
The move is billed as one of Biden’s Day One climate change actions, according to a presentation circulating among Washington trade groups and lobbyists.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/17/biden-yank-keystone-pipeline-permit-460142

Robert Roaldi

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4763
    • Robert's Photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5901 on: January 18, 2021, 10:56:56 am »

Just saw this although I guess it's old news, https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/17/politics/trump-pardons-expected/index.html.

I thought Trump was the law & order guy.

Pardons must be a cash cow. ;)
Logged
--
Robert

Robert Roaldi

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4763
    • Robert's Photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5902 on: January 18, 2021, 11:01:53 am »

In a move that hurts our nearest neighbor and friends Canada and Canadians, Biden reverses Trump's authorization.  Additionally, both our countries will now be more reliant on the Arabs and their oil dragging us back into destructive Middle Eastern politics.  What a dumb move.

Biden to yank Keystone XL permit on first day of presidency
The move is billed as one of Biden’s Day One climate change actions, according to a presentation circulating among Washington trade groups and lobbyists.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/17/biden-yank-keystone-pipeline-permit-460142

You could make the argument that with a strategic product like oil, maybe Canada would be better off having our own refining capacity rather than sending the crude to the Gulf coast refineries. It's not clear how Canada benefits by letting them reap the value-added profits. This is a bit like all those Covid PPEs that we were all scrambling to get a few months ago because no one was making them here any more. Sometimes, short-term "inefficiencies" are worth incurring for longer term benefits.
Logged
--
Robert

JoeKitchen

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5022
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5903 on: January 18, 2021, 11:14:14 am »

You could make the argument that with a strategic product like oil, maybe Canada would be better off having our own refining capacity rather than sending the crude to the Gulf coast refineries. It's not clear how Canada benefits by letting them reap the value-added profits. This is a bit like all those Covid PPEs that we were all scrambling to get a few months ago because no one was making them here any more. Sometimes, short-term "inefficiencies" are worth incurring for longer term benefits.

Although this sounds like a good idea, industries tend to consolidate in one location due to the support economy that develops there, and not being there just turns into a negative real fast.  Being in the Gulf Coast just makes it much easier to be in the refinery business since everyone else is there, including already trained workers, professionals (lawyers, accountants, engineers, etc.) who cater to that business, suppliers (who probably have inventory in stock), investors, and everything else. 

You really need a seismic shock for people to take the chance in another location, like what is happening with Silicon Valley.  High taxes and high regulations that are abused by unions and then the shutdowns being the catalyst.  Unlike CA though, TX is still a great place to do business and I doubt this will be enough of a hit to make it a better option to build a refinery in Canada as opposed to just continuing to send the oil down. 

What gets me is that those on the left who do not have their heads up their asses know this oil will get to market and they also know a pipeline is the safest and most efficient way to transport it.  Any other method is will use more fossil fuels of some kind to transport it and is of a much higher risk for a spill.  It seems as though our environmental lobby just keeps on coming up with bad ideas just to satisfy their loudest and most uninformed members. 

Of course this lunacy is not limited to just them; Trump is still touting his wall.  This is why I am a small government guy.  No matter what you do, as soon as government gets involved, nonsense follows.  It's the same everywhere throughout time. 
« Last Edit: January 18, 2021, 11:34:22 am by JoeKitchen »
Logged
"Photography is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent

JoeKitchen

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5022
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5904 on: January 18, 2021, 11:23:10 am »

This is a weird assertion.  If you mean that it’s the only stereotypically modern large commercial building in the immediate downtown core west of Congress St between 3rd and 5th st, well, ok. 

Austin has a massive residential modern scene, with regionally and nationally awarded architects, and the the commercial modernism tends more toward retail and entertainment/restaurant design, as well as public spaces and installations. 

Court house aside, It’s also more informed by a regional vernacular that incorporates western, “hill country” and ranch/mcm materials and design - think Usonian, but updated and slicker.  (The Austin Public Library by Lake Flato is a great example of this.) Heck, even the burger joints have a whimsical Jet Age aesthetic (PTerrys by Michael Hsu), and Ellsworth Kelly’s modernist chapel - his last work -  was just opened up a couple of years ago.

Also, Dallas is the worst.  Houston has 10x the cultural opportunities, San Antonio is sleepy as hell but at least has a distinct character, and Austin is the city everyone wants to be in.

I was speaking insofar buildings that could be easily recognized and would stand out.  Yes, I am sure a lot of modern houses and smaller establishments exist, but insofar as large buildings, I really could not find anything other then the court house that caught my eye.  I abhorred the library by the way; I could not look at it for more then five seconds without a feeling of doom taking over me. 

I did run into a retired advertising art director while shooting in Austin, and he relayed much of what you just wrote, only he did not make it seem like everyone wants to be in Austin.  He did say that Houston is much more culturally diverse, which is attractive to someone that is use to NYC and Philly, but that all of the advertising work is in Dallas.  According to him, Dallas also has a support system for commercial photography (like prop houses, rental locations, large studios, stylists), whereas Houston does not.  It is much more corporate headshot type stuff.  So, Houston would not work out for what I and my wife do.  Neither would Austin with it being way too small. 
« Last Edit: January 18, 2021, 11:31:14 am by JoeKitchen »
Logged
"Photography is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent

JoeKitchen

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5022
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5905 on: January 18, 2021, 11:27:28 am »

A meritless defence.  Equating Obama’s book with Trump’s consistent on-camera incitement to violence is a desperate false equivalent.

Only I was not doing that; that is your interpretation of what I wrote.  Perhaps you should not make up your mind about something you read before you read it.   

I was just pointing out that Trump did not divide us, like you said, but that Obama did, and then explained how. 
Logged
"Photography is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent

JoeKitchen

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5022
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5906 on: January 18, 2021, 11:30:37 am »

If you are still in the Austin area, it would be interesting to take some documentary photographs of the new Tesla Giga factory while it is still in the early building phase. Due to the type of and size of buildings, aerial shots might be the best.

I don't do arial; too much bullshit to deal with.  I usually just sub it out. 

Although I am sure it would be a cool place for photography after it is complete, both front and back of the house. 
Logged
"Photography is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5907 on: January 18, 2021, 11:56:03 am »

Although this sounds like a good idea, industries tend to consolidate in one location due to the support economy that develops there, and not being there just turns into a negative real fast.  Being in the Gulf Coast just makes it much easier to be in the refinery business since everyone else is there, including already trained workers, professionals (lawyers, accountants, engineers, etc.) who cater to that business, suppliers (who probably have inventory in stock), investors, and everything else. 

You really need a seismic shock for people to take the chance in another location, like what is happening with Silicon Valley.  High taxes and high regulations that are abused by unions and then the shutdowns being the catalyst.  Unlike CA though, TX is still a great place to do business and I doubt this will be enough of a hit to make it a better option to build a refinery in Canada as opposed to just continuing to send the oil down. 

What gets me is that those on the left who do not have their heads up their asses know this oil will get to market and they also know a pipeline is the safest and most efficient way to transport it.  Any other method is will use more fossil fuels of some kind to transport it and is of a much higher risk for a spill.  It seems as though our environmental lobby just keeps on coming up with bad ideas just to satisfy their loudest and most uninformed members. 

Of course this lunacy is not limited to just them; Trump is still touting his wall.  This is why I am a small government guy.  No matter what you do, as soon as government gets involved, nonsense follows.  It's the same everywhere throughout time. 
Also, it's not up to the government to decide what are the best business decisions. They're not on the Board of Directors. Government is inefficient at making these decisions.  The best decisions economically are made by the free market - millions of decisions made every day by people like us define the best, cheapest, and most effective practices.  When the government makes the decision by playing favorites, they distort the market.  Things cost more and become very inefficient. 

But this is all politics.  Elections have consequences.

Peter McLennan

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4690
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5908 on: January 18, 2021, 12:04:44 pm »

Only I was not doing that; that is your interpretation of what I wrote.  Perhaps you should not make up your mind about something you read before you read it.   

I was just pointing out that Trump did not divide us, like you said, but that Obama did, and then explained how.

If by "before you read it", you mean your post, then yes, I did read it.  You did "explained how", without merit, as I asserted.  You simply saying that Obama divided America more than Trump doesn't make it so.

If "before you read it" you meant Obama's recent book, then I would counter that

1) America has become much more divided under Trump than at any time in recent history, including under the Obama administration.
2) Obama's recent book was published Nov 17, 2020 and would thus have near zero effect on recent events.
3) Few, if any, of the insurrectionists at the Capitol are likely to have read "A Promised Land" and become divisively convinced by its content.

Logged

LesPalenik

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5339
    • advantica blog
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5909 on: January 18, 2021, 12:06:51 pm »

What gets me is that those on the left who do not have their heads up their asses know this oil will get to market and they also know a pipeline is the safest and most efficient way to transport it.  Any other method is will use more fossil fuels of some kind to transport it and is of a much higher risk for a spill.  It seems as though our environmental lobby just keeps on coming up with bad ideas just to satisfy their loudest and most uninformed members. 

Very true, cancelling the pipeline is a very dumb move. Pipelines are much cleaner and environmentally friendly way to move oil than by a truck. Not counting the ongoing road maintenance costs and increased road traffic caused by the heavy transport trucks.   
Logged

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5910 on: January 18, 2021, 12:15:18 pm »

If by "before you read it", you mean your post, then yes, I did read it.  You did "explained how", without merit, as I asserted.  You simply saying that Obama divided America more than Trump doesn't make it so.

If "before you read it" you meant Obama's recent book, then I would counter that

1) America has become much more divided under Trump than at any time in recent history, including under the Obama administration.
2) Obama's recent book was published Nov 17, 2020 and would thus have near zero effect on recent events.
3) Few, if any, of the insurrectionists at the Capitol are likely to have read "A Promised Land" and become divisively convinced by its content.


Divisiveness seems to have predated Obama and Trump.  It seems to be building up over the decades.  On the other hand, I remember living through the 1960's and 1970s and VietNam.  There was much more divisiveness than.  There were groups that were blowing up things and assassinating people.  The Democrat convention in Chicago ended in a riot where cops were beating up protestors.  The national guard shot and killed four students on a college campus.  The assassination of Martin Luther King created destruction and riots worse than what happened last summer with BLM.  We seem to go through these things now and then.  Certainly, our Civil War wasn't a picnic.  Things always seem worse while you're going through them. 

Biden says he wants to unite Americans.  Unfortunately, I think that's just political pablum regularly regurgitated every four years. He'll continue to divide us up playing identity politics just as Trump and Obama did and others as well.

JoeKitchen

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5022
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5911 on: January 18, 2021, 12:26:10 pm »

If by "before you read it", you mean your post, then yes, I did read it.  You did "explained how", without merit, as I asserted.  You simply saying that Obama divided America more than Trump doesn't make it so.

If "before you read it" you meant Obama's recent book, then I would counter that

1) America has become much more divided under Trump than at any time in recent history, including under the Obama administration.
2) Obama's recent book was published Nov 17, 2020 and would thus have near zero effect on recent events.
3) Few, if any, of the insurrectionists at the Capitol are likely to have read "A Promised Land" and become divisively convinced by its content.

Although true, it gives a great incite on how he actually thought during his presidency, and thus how to interpret his divisive actions.   His book clearly shows these actions were intentional and he sought to divide us at the time; they were not merely a side effect of his governing. 

Once again, you are putting your spin on what I wrote instead of actually trying to understand what I wrote. 
« Last Edit: January 20, 2021, 09:24:08 am by JoeKitchen »
Logged
"Photography is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent

Peter McLennan

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4690
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5912 on: January 18, 2021, 12:34:59 pm »

  The best decisions economically are made by the free market

Alan, you've asserted this before. You're misinformed.

Except in nature, there is no such thing as a free market.  "Free market" is a capitalist conceit.
Logged

jeremyrh

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2511
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5913 on: January 18, 2021, 12:37:02 pm »

Very true, cancelling the pipeline is a very dumb move. Pipelines are much cleaner and environmentally friendly way to move oil than by a truck. Not counting the ongoing road maintenance costs and increased road traffic caused by the heavy transport trucks.

Maybe Canada should just not be producing heavy oil that it has so much of?  It's environmentally very negative, and the oil industry doesn't have a great record.

(Canadian gas was headed for China before the Russians shot down an airliner over Ukraine, which led to a warming of Sino-Soviet relations and a pipeline from Russia to China. Strange how one thing leads to another)
Logged

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5914 on: January 18, 2021, 12:43:11 pm »

Alan, you've asserted this before. You're misinformed.

Except in nature, there is no such thing as a free market.  "Free market" is a capitalist conceit.
Crony capitalism is not what I'm referring to.  While that happens a lot, most economic determinations made by individuals occur in a free market.  But I agree with you, that there are too many crony capitalistic things going on as well as government interference in the market from the Fed and Congress.  Most of them are destructive.  If we let the free market work the way it's supposed to, things would be better.  Of course, nothing's perfect.  But a command economy centrally dictated is worse.

jeremyrh

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2511
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5915 on: January 18, 2021, 12:43:29 pm »

Also, it's not up to the government to decide what are the best business decisions. They're not on the Board of Directors. Government is inefficient at making these decisions.  The best decisions economically are made by the free market - millions of decisions made every day by people like us define the best, cheapest, and most effective practices.  When the government makes the decision by playing favorites, they distort the market.  Things cost more and become very inefficient. 

What happens in a "free market" is that people make decisions that will benefit them very locally and with a very short time frame. That means the economy gets driven into a state that is locally optimum, but globally non-optimum.  A role of government can be to identify the more optimum state and drive the economy towards it by subsidies, taxes or whatever.  This is not a new idea by now. If you had any interest in finding out more you could order a book by Mariana Mazzucato who has written extensively on the state's role in e.g. Silicon Valley (I'm not holding my breath).
Logged

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5916 on: January 18, 2021, 12:45:48 pm »

Maybe Canada should just not be producing heavy oil that it has so much of?  It's environmentally very negative, and the oil industry doesn't have a great record.

(Canadian gas was headed for China before the Russians shot down an airliner over Ukraine, which led to a warming of Sino-Soviet relations and a pipeline from Russia to China. Strange how one thing leads to another)
My point frankly was directed at our Canadian friends here who couldn't wait to get rid of Trump. Now it seems, in his first day in office, Biden will be sticking it to them. 

Alan Klein

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 15850
    • Flicker photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5917 on: January 18, 2021, 12:52:50 pm »

What happens in a "free market" is that people make decisions that will benefit them very locally and with a very short time frame. That means the economy gets driven into a state that is locally optimum, but globally non-optimum.  A role of government can be to identify the more optimum state and drive the economy towards it by subsidies, taxes or whatever.  This is not a new idea by now. If you had any interest in finding out more you could order a book by Mariana Mazzucato who has written extensively on the state's role in e.g. Silicon Valley (I'm not holding my breath).
No bureaucrat or group of bureaucrats, especially those politically motivated, can foresee what's best for an economy.  The invisible hand of a free market is a better determinant.  And yes, I've read the theories on both sides.

A command economy was the way the Soviets did it and it ruined their economy and destroyed their system.  Currently, America, and GB, and the EU, are allowing their deficit spending and printing destroy our economies. We've allowed them to pick commercial favorites.  We're going to rue the day we let our governments have so much power. 
« Last Edit: January 18, 2021, 12:55:51 pm by Alan Klein »
Logged

jeremyrh

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2511
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5918 on: January 18, 2021, 01:11:08 pm »

  The invisible hand of a free market is a better determinant. 

Clearly not - it's a matter of mathematics, not politics or philosophy, but I can't be bothered to discuss it further.
Logged

Robert Roaldi

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4763
    • Robert's Photos
Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #5919 on: January 18, 2021, 01:29:06 pm »

The free market determined that PPE should be manufactured in China, but a few months ago that didn't seem like such a good idea.

The free market determined that 95% of the world's intravenous bags (I think it was those bags) be manufactured in Puerto Rico until the hurricane took out the factory and hospitals all over the world started to run out.

The free market determined that "just in time" inventory was more efficient, until everyone was scrambling for PPE because there were none left in the cupboards.

I am certain that refining all of North America's crude at one place, like the Gulf, is more efficient. For Big Oil. Is it better for Canada? That's not so clear. Maybe gasoline can be refined more cheaply in the Gulf than in a new refinery in Alberta, but then those specialized jobs are in the US and the profits from the refining are in the US. And when you get a suddenly untrustworthy trading partner who throws out agreements of many years standing and implements tariffs for mysterious reasons, then maybe having slightly less efficient refineries inside Canadian borders might make more sense. Systems only work well until then don't. In those early months of Covid, Trump threatened to stop 3M's deliveries of masks to Canada. People remember stuff like that. A country only has to be untrustworthy once, takes years to gain that trust back.

Americans tend to think that anything that is good for the US is good for the world. Maybe sometimes it's true and maybe sometimes it isn't.
Logged
--
Robert
Pages: 1 ... 294 295 [296] 297 298 ... 808   Go Up