RA1

BoN- Why would you immediately leap to the conclusion that the RNC had any thing to do with this bumper sticker? Why not just some rednecks with nothing better to do? Neither the RNC or the DNC has my approval but I am not going to accuse either one of this kind of silliness without proof. Best regards, RA1

I am interested in the NCAA tournament and I am following my local team, the University of Memphis, which plays their first game late this afternoon. However, that is not the extent of my interest. I follow sports all year and basketball is only one of several. What is your expectation from the members of this board? Do you expect predictions, cheers for our favorite team or just a statement of interest? Best regards, RA1

lookin'- Your post excites me. We have always been willing to respect each other's opinions but this post is near and dear to my heart. I salute you (but then I always do). Best regards, RA1

I am hoping and expecting to live longer than a few to several months. I think you guys may be taking way too short a view. When inflation hits it will be powerful and long lasting and have a very negative effect on the economy and most of us personally. We, meaning mankind in general and "western countries" in particular, tamper and tinker way too much with the so called natural flow of economics. In many ways there is no natural economy and it is entirely a man made idea but we still tinker with it more than is necessary or helpful. Wait until eggs are 10 cents or more apiece. Wait, they already are. Wait until they are $1 each. Anything that is grown commercially or raised as animal stock commercially will be adversely affected by the price of oil. Those are some of the problems and regardless of who is elected in the short term, they will not go away any time soon. However, how long the problems actually last could depend upon who is elected. Best regards, RA1

I agree that at least parts of it are unconstitutional and whole thing needs to be repealed. I am not as sure about Dick Cheney's motives (or anyone else's) about enacting this but at the time I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt because we could have been facing a "big" war. During "declared" war with an expiration thereof (the act) I would be OK with it. Starting with the Viet Nam conflict and maybe the Korean Police Action the US has not been willing to fully declare war and go on a war time footing. That is a political decision that has a lot of economic ramifications, most of them negative. The last several to many years have been no exception. Best regards, RA1

Anyone else remember stagflation? I certainly do and not fondly. It was a period where prices were inflated but wages were deflated with the economy moribund. We have been in an economy very much liket that for some time. After that we had soaring inflation and I fear we will have the same or worse all too soon. Every economic cycle has its' own little quirks and definitive features. No doubt we shall look back and define this one more accurately later. Best regards, RA1

Not sure exactly what your frame of reference is but when Bush started or continued 2 wars without providing the money to pay for them and then BO made it much worse borrowing more money we don't have it became obvious that runaway inflation is going to happen. It is just a matter of when and how bad. Best regards, RA1

It means we shall die as a curious American species who previously had the will and motivation to explore. Explore or die. Sorry that is now the imminent apparent conclusion (die). I realize it is all very expensive but what isn't these days? If we do not pursue "other" things then we shall surely perish because of our own poor attitude. Best regards, RA1

Cute. Best regards, RA1

I certainly remember the Love Boat although I was not necessarily a weekly fan. However, the characters were interesting and "better" than some of the present ones as seen on TV. When one waxes nostalgic just remember, things always return to "earth", whether it be human flesh, automobiles, ships, aircraft or anything man made. That is part of the natural process of life. That does NOT mean to disregard any fond memories of any or all things prior. Best regards, RA1

I enjoy March Madness as well as any other kind of (sports) madness. It would be hard for me to choose from among the various venues and pick a favorite. The Super Bowl, the NBA championship games, the World Series, the NCAA football bowls, the US indoor and "outdoor" tennis championships, etc.,etc. I like them all. Of course, now we are in the middle of the league championships to be followed by the NCAA tournament. It should be exciting. Kentucky has an excellent chance of being national champs. Coach Cal seems to be someone you either love or hate. He has a certain amount of moxie, knows how to "grub" large sums of money and has left more than one team with a certain amount of acrimony. However, considering the current state of affairs with "coaches" of many "stripes" he, like pols, is just doing his "best" to make a living for his family, etc. I was annoyed when he left the University of Memphis but I have gotten over it. Best regards, RA1

Did you mean 'underemployed"? To me it is really difficult to tell what is really going on. One report says more jobs. Another says unemployement is actually up because those who had temporarily left the ranks of those seeking employment are now back in the game. One group says unemployment is actually close to 15% because of those who are not currently seeking employment. ETC. Most likely, both sides are not telling all of the truth, whatever that might be. One of my pressing questions is, what did we really get for our almost trillion dollar expenditure of public funds? Best regards, RA1

Perhaps it is in the sense that if one breaks the employer's rules, one is subject to termination. Best regards, RA1

I saw it live and, of course, saw it 50,000 more times during news repeats. The death of MS. McAuliffe was a shock but so were the other deaths, as well as the loss of the spacecraft itself. Likely this most public tragedy somewhat prepared the nation for some more that were sure to follow and did. That does not make the loss of life any less serious but perhaps a bit less shocking. However, I saw nothing new or of special interest in the Super 8 film. The blown up media film showed the "O" ring failing leading to the explosion which the Super 8 did not. Too bad the US has lost the will to continue space exploration. It would provide a lot of employment as well as technological advances. Best regards, RA1

I realize times change and a lot of folks are "posting" their lives on various social media but I am not one of those and most of the people I do business with don't appreciate their privacy being invaded. I understand this waiter telling his friends or even showing a few of them a purloined photo but posting same is beyond the pale. I would not have lasted two minutes in corporate aviation if I did something like that. I appreciate my own privacy and try to respect the privacy of others. We see a lot of the rich, famous and powerful in the course of the business of aviation and I try to leave them to as much of a normal life as I possibly can. I don't get paid to act that way. I believe it is the right thing to do. Best regards, RA1

MEM has had their LG&W trucks running on LNG for many years. As I understand it, the engines run "forever" without changing spark plugs and having very clean oil because NG burns so cleanly. However, there is only one "filling station" in town and it of course belongs to the utility provider. Also, the tanks on the trucks are heavily insulated which is more or less just a detail but necessary. This system works fine for them because all the workers come and go from the same location every day. Doesn't Brazil rely upon alcohol for their "other" fuel in addition to gasoline? Personally I like LNG so long as filling stations are readily available and the price per BTU is comparable. Of course, that is exactly the "problem" with anything other than gasoline, the cost and time to build an infrastructure to deliver it. Something that looks like gasoline and works like gasoline will be the "best" solution for quite some time. Best regards, RA1

Has Senator Sam really been gone for almost 27 years? Where is his ilk when we need them? No where in sight that I can see. Rush cannot be "censored" except by his sponsors indirectly or by the public ignoring him. Neither is likely to be the case for very long. Best regards, RA1

Actually all this and more was predicted when the airlines were de-regulated more than 30 years ago. Among the things that I heard bandied about was that the flag carriers would combine and there would only be 3-4 after several years. Today we have UA, DL, AA and US Air, sort of. There have been many, many "new" carriers to come and go but no new flag carriers. Another thing I heard repeatedly was that the airlines would regret in a major way having all those contingent liabilities aka FF miles and would go to great lengths to get rid of them or minimize their cost. Of course, "service" has fallen off as ticket prices have gone down (some of the time) and planes are now much fuller than they ever were before de-regulation. Very few meals and charges for many things. You can think I am seeing all this after the fact but I can assure you that I heard all this in the early 1980's and, to some extent, dismissed the predictions. However, virtually all have come true and, unfortunately, I think the airlines, partly because of the price of fuel, are just "warming up". They will have to increase fees, ticket prices, whatever or go under. While I have a lot of friends who are airline pilots, I hate riding the airlines and go out of my way to avoid them. The TSA being perhaps 50% of the problem. Best regards, RA1

I guess I was a sports nut even then. Who can forget Dizzy Dean saying, he slud into third base, or, the ball ka-roamed off the wall? I was not immune to the charms of many of the actors in the programs listed above and enjoyed most of them at one time or another. Good memories. Best regards, RA1

I quite agree with you. I used to refer to my family doctor as Dr. DuPont because he was pretty quick to prescribe something. However, some things seem to require Rx. I have had gout for 15 years or so and diet alone has not "conquered" it. I don't eat many of the items listed as problematic like organ meats but I do love fresh asparagus when it is in season so I do indulge in it to some extent. One side of my family has a history of gout so I suppose I have come by it honestly. I take Allopurinol which has limited my acute attacks to about 5 in the last 15 years which I treat with Indomethacin which I always carry just in case. However, I just looked at the date on the label the last time I refilled it and it was 2008 and I still have some pills in the bottle. In case some do not "get" the Dr. DuPont reference it refers to a slogan they used some time back that said, "better living through chemistry". Medicine and patients also benefit from chemistry aka Rx but "better" life style is the best until that no longer works. Best regards, RA1

I went to court the last time I got a traffic ticket (I do not get them often and I always fight them). I wore a tie and jacket as respect for the court and the system. This caused many folks to crowd around me thinking I was an attorney and they asked for advice. I had little to none to offer. The police report was completely false and I asked the judge if the cop lying made any difference. He replied by asking the court clerk to check my driving record which turned up exactly as I had claimed it would. The problem is (many things) that with a speeding ticket the prosecuting attorney makes a proclamation that states if you were speeding you will pay a court fine of $60 + $1 for each mile over the speed limit and therefore the minimum amount is $60. So, if you are guilty the best you can hope for is $60. I was not guilty and the judge agreed but it was an unusual situation. I hope you do better, Lucky, but I am not expecting "justice". Best regards, RA1

I think we have had some of this discussion before. One does not even want to "know" what such as McDonald's has in their shakes. They refuse to call them milk shakes although they do contain milk. However, the other ingredients are just as lookin' suggests........awful and not something found in your kitchen. Best regards, RA1 Thanks for the tip although if everyone ate the amount of candy that I do, all candy makers would go out of business.

If the above is true is it an accounting "improvement"? At least, partially? For instance, if an ER charges $100 to an indigent person for care and eventually the taxpayers pay for this (at some agreed upon rate), does having Medicaid, also paid for by taxpayers, charging $50 for the same care really equal a $50 savings? There is no doubt in my mind that prevention costs less in the long run than cures. However, many, many ailments are "only" treatable, either long term or when acute. Which is cheaper? Only the Shadow knows. Best regards, RA1

And, don't worry about the miles. Money talks. Best regards, RA1

Wooden you? I wood. Best regards, RA1