Drive Without Reverse

With Nissan's new car, there will be no need for Reverse. Imagine a shift level with simply Park, Neutral, and Drive. How can a car only go forward? Is it so light, you manually push it backwards? Perhaps in the 20th century. In the 21st century, the cabin can rotate 360 degrees. "An egg on a skateboard" is one description. At the same time, concept cars should have a futurist look, which implies something not typical of today's models. I imagine driving this car down the road and spinning the cabin to look left and right rather than turning my head--I'm lazy. Blind spots are reduced thanks to a video monitoring system. You know what's missing? Tires that rotate 180 degrees so I can pull sideways into a parallel parking space. Then I might be tempted to drive down the road sideways. Maybe that's a bad idea.

Bottle Sipper Recall

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) researches the safety of consumer products, ensuring each item is free from defects that cause unpredictable injuries. A recent announcement recalled 500,000 Bottle Sipper Caps because they could become a choking hazard if the pull-up valve disconnects from the cap.

What sparked the investigation and recall? One incident of a child choking on a separated pull-up valve. ONE!! Out of 500,000. In my mind, that's ridiculous. Sure, if it happens once, it could happen again, some would say. But I would wait for a trend before recalling all of the caps. Is this what America has become? I suppose product history--for all products, not just Bottle Sipper Caps--provides evidence for taking the cautious route. It's better to disallow injury by recalling "defective" products rather than wait for an injured party to sue.

On the CPSC page, they provide this information about themselves: "The CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals - contributed significantly to the 30 percent decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years." That is, they help keep stupid people alive. I'm not saying everyone injured by a given product is stupid, but a little common sense goes a long way.

Let me go bathe in Paint Thinner now. I'll be sure to rub some in my eyes. Don't forget gargle and swallow. See you tomorrow.

Big Bulge

Oregon is growing a paunch. As you age, you grow your own bulge in the middle region. Why can't the earth do the same. Either that or it's indigestion; eventually the gas must be released. Regardless of my explanations, magma is churning under the earth's surface in southern Washington and northern Oregon. Even Mount St. Helens is getting in on this action. They have equipment monitoring changes around known volcanos in the region. Also, they've been closely watching this bulge for a few years. Scientists have their speculations about the future of the bulge which includes the possible creation of a new volcano.

Chief Justice Rehnquist Died

Chief Justice William Rehnquist died late Saturday at the age of 80 after his year long struggle with thyroid cancer. Something this big deserved same day treatment on my blog, but the long weekend pushed this post off until now. Add that to my tendency not to post on weekends anyway.

After 33 years on the court, with 19 at the Chief Justice, it will be strange to see a Supreme Court without Justice Rehnquist. Especially for my generation. I'm sure it's not so odd for those political science majors who can name off the five longest tenured judges in Court history. However, combined with Sandra Day O'Connor's resignation in July, Bush is in an interesting situation. On paper, two of nine positions for the highest court remain empty. In reality, though, since O'Connor's resignation is based on a replacement being appointed, Bush only needs to fill one quickly. Further, the two new justices will direct the stance of the Court for many years to come, so Bush wants to choose the right candidates (pun intended). Whereas the the nomination of John Roberts has had limited scrutiny, the second selection will certainly undergo more stringent questioning.

Articles I read about Rehnquist's death make me wonder about a few things. Why would Bush nominate a new judge to the role of Chief Justice? Judges already on the Supreme Court have paid their dues and deserve a promotion. Shouldn't Scalia or Thomas be expected to become Chief? Or are some people just better suited to be associates? Suppose Roberts was installed as Chief Justice of the Court. At his age, he could have a very long reign in that position of power. I suppose that would lock in Bush's agenda for many years to come. No matter who Bush chooses, it will be a fight with Congress to confirm the appointment.

Rumors kill

From early in our lives, we are told not to tell or spread rumors because they can be hurtful to someone. In Iraq last week, a little rumor proved deadly. Over 1,000 Iraqis died after word spread of a suicide bomber in the crowd. Crossing a bridge at the time, everyone panicked and stampeded toward safety. Some jumped in the Tigris River; others ran down the road without concern for those in the way. When the crowd calmed down, bloody bodies were strewn across the bridge. It is difficult to place blame on any individual for starting this rumor, but the results may have been more deadly than if a bomber had been in the mass and ignited his explosives. The worst part about this incident is that it was a large group of pilgrims on a religious procession to the shrine of Imam al-Kazim, one of Shiite Islam's most holy figures.

A Bad Situation Worsens

New Orleans. Home to the House of the Rising Sun. Birthplace of Jazz. Where the Saints Go Marching In. The Big Easy. Not so easy living in a glorified swamp, is it? The gamble exists when man tries to defy nature's balance. In a battle between the two, nature eventually wins. Yes, humans make adjustments, but nature always proves stronger.

I was in New Orleans for a National Youth Gathering in 2001. The theme was "Higher Ground." At that time, I knew we were close to the sea, but I didn't realize we were below it. Protected by a concrete levee, the city thrived like any other city.

Designed to withstand Category 3 hurricane force winds, the Category 4 and 5 winds of Hurricane Katrina pushed the levees beyond their limits. Residents knew the potential of the storm but didn't get out. City officials knew the limits of the levees, mandated an evacuation of the city, and prepared for worst hurricane since Camille, yet some residents chose to ride out the storm. As usual, hindsight is 20/20.

With a city under water, those remaining struggle to survive. There is no power, the water contains sewage and corpses, the weather remains hot and humid, and escape is difficult. Looting runs rampant, but police forces are short. A reporter asked one man, who was carrying designer shirts, "Isn't it wrong to steal those?" He responded, "If it was wrong, there'd be cops here to stop me." Stealing electronics makes no sense in this emergency, but I would expect supermarkets to be targeted. People need food, water, and other supplies, and the food in stores will only spoil if no one takes it.

Days past the initial storm, one sees rescue efforts in full swing. They do the best they can in their situation. We can read about the new challenges facing rescuers. The water, the fires, the violence, the desperate survivers. How can the Red Cross work in such conditions? I suppose they are prepared. So often they help out in disasters abroad. We recognize NATO for there relief efforts elsewhere, but we never expect them to be needed in the States. However, here they are.

The economic impact of Katrina is amazing. By wiping out a relatively small section of the United States, citizens throughout the country feel pinched by the fuel shortages. Forced to shut down offshore oil rigs ahead of the storm and with refineries and pipelines closed because of storm damage, gas stations are running near E. In a society that depends on automobile travel for business and pleasure, no one goes unaffected as the gas prices push upward. Down South, where there is power to pump fuel out, stations are unable to obtain fuel to keep up with demand. In attempts to alleviate the problem, the US has opened its Petroleum Reserve to refineries short on crude. Further, Europe will dip into their own emergency gasoline supply to help the US. However, the prices won't drop back down until we have certainty on crude oil supplies and refining capacity. Prior to the storm, refineries were running near capacity to keep up with American demand. Shut down a few of those plants, and the problem is obvious.

In the entire disaster, I have a few questions. If the oil industry was running near capacity, why weren't they building new refineries? If they were, how long until they could be used? Or else, were they just building on to current setups? No, my questions are not all oil based. What happened to the residents of the bayous? Many of them live in flimsy shacks or houseboats. I wonder how much warning they had of the hurricane's approach. Just because New Orleans is more populated, why don't we hear about those living further south on State Highways 1, 23, and 39? There are many small towns builts in the swamps leading toward the Gulf. Will this teach people not to defy nature by building below the waterline or near the coasts? Probably not. Will America turn from its oil dependencies? Probably only at the same rate they did before this. We have a lot to learn from such a major disaster. Let's hope it sticks.