08:06 – A USPS representative called me back yesterday to say that my lost package probably wan’t actually lost, but just temporarily misplaced. He said that the very high volume of package shipments combined with severe weather was giving USPS fits. That’s also why some of the “2-Day” PM packages are taking three days. He suggested I give it a couple more days before assuming the package is lost. I told him that I’d already shipped a replacement to the customer and that that replacement had already arrived. He suggested I just tell the customer to mark the second one “Refused” when it eventually arrives, and it’ll be shipped back to me.
Interestingly, USPS appears to be back on schedule. The orders I’ve processed this morning for shipping today are “Priority Mail 2-Day” and are scheduled to arrive Monday, as I would normally expect. If that holds up, it means any orders I ship today and tomorrow should arrive by Tuesday.
Headed towards 80 F today in the Land of Sugar. Muggy and overcast, waiting for the next cool front (not cold, we are only going to drop into the 50s briefly before Christmas day).
Hey Bob, have you seen this about the Canadian experiment with basic income?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mincome
I guess that the single payer plan that I am advocating in the USA could be viewed as a basic income. My plan is just to extend the current Medicare plan to all citizens in the USA. And to raise the current Medicare payroll tax from 1.45% each for the employee and employer to 8% each to fund it.
Geez, I do wish we could just eliminate government entirely at all levels. Life would be so much better.
If you eliminate government that that will leave a vacuum. Nature abhors a vacuum. Something / somebody will rush in to fill the vacuum. I can just about guarantee that you will dislike them greatly (see French revolution, Iran revolution, China cultural revolution). See all the intellectuals get shortened in the public square.
I sure would like to persuade my wife to get the flu shot this year:
http://www.khou.com/news/local/BREAKING-Houston-area-health-officials-say-6-deaths-linked-to-H1N1-236620791.html
By preference I’m an anarchist. I never want to order anyone to do anything (with exceptions for my children when they are young) and at best I’ll grudgingly accept anyone else telling me what to do.
Pragmatically, I realize that very few people have any tolerance for chaos and uncertainty and self-responsibility — anarchy, in a word. As Lynn says, anarchy falls apart in an instant because of this defect in most humans.
Now, if I ever get off my ass and figure out a way to kill 90%+ of humans…
By the way, I wonder about the relationship between tolerance for uncertainty in “this” world and absence of the need for the certainty and comfort that most religions provide. I’m an atheist (of the relaxed “I don’t know what lies beyond what we know, and I doubt you do, either” sort) and am very accepting of uncertainty. RBT seems to be a harder atheist and is also an anarchist.
By contrast, in my experience a very large fraction of believers in Abrahamic religions are strong supporters of government structure and “safety nets” and controls on civil activities.
A counter-example to my notional relationship: Chuck, a professed atheist who favors strong government. Hmm, and another: OFD, a professed strong believer who favors as little government as possible. However, this is not a problem. Taking my cue from politically-active climate scientists, I’ll just ignore the inconvenient true data as outliers. The science is settled!
Funeral is over, graveside services done, mother is in the ground, her final wishes granted. Saw a lot of family members so it wasn’t all bad. Sleeping on my brothers couch is probably the worst.
SteveF wrote:
“Now, if I ever get off my ass and figure out a way to kill 90%+ of humans…”
It would be pointless. In the next generation the pure anarchists would produce 10% little anarchists and 90% little authoritarians.
As has been said, “There’s a pope in every man’s heart.”
Very Very Accepting is this, getting old person… After a life of being physical, I’ve experienced a few miracles in my life… Just arrived home from the hospital after having a 2nd mild stroke… Discovered by ENT Dr who was diagnosing my “irritable” throat… Sending me for a x-ray and discovering I had 95% blockage in my left carotid artery… I can do a little “Believing” whether I do or not….. Bob
Hi Bob Philips, sounds like you may need a stent or two. One of friends just got stent #5 last Tuesday. Do you know what they call a guy with twelve stents … A full metal jacket.
Rest easy and go get it done! And warfarin is your friend – just ignore all the little bleeds. I take 7.5 mg four days per week and 10 mg three days per week to get my INR down in the 2.0 to 2.9 range.
“If you eliminate government that that will leave a vacuum. Nature abhors a vacuum. Something / somebody will rush in to fill the vacuum. I can just about guarantee that you will dislike them greatly”
This. There are all too many people who would love to play petty dictator. It’s easier than working for a living, plus you get to rape the neighbor’s daughters.
I understand the idealism: “can’t we just all just get along”, “live and let live”, etc.. But people just aren’t like that. Anarchists must pile on the rose-colored glasses, in order to really believe this could work. Government is a necessary evil; the trick is to keep government itself under control.
The problem is not the people who want to boss others. The problem is the people who go along with being bossed. (Or, worse, who want to be bossed. shudder The idea of wanting someone else to make decisions about my life makes my skin crawl.)
Steve, I don’t disagree. The problem is that most people just want to get on with their lives, and will take the path of least resistance. As long as it’s not their daughter, they will look the other way. Of course, when the jackboots kick in their door, they don’t understand why no one comes to their aid.
If it were any other way, most of the American government would be dangling from trees and light poles. There’s just no way anyone can look at the governments actions and not know that the entire establishment is rotten to the core. The easiest solution is just not to look. Heck, when I lived there 20-some years ago, I knew this. And yet: I never marched on Washington either.
I don’t know whether the acceptance of/desire for other people bossing you around is genetic or cultural. We can have RBT look into genetic links and if there’s anything he can design a lethal virus to attack people with those genes — in his copious free time, of course.
On the cultural side, I’ll start a religion emphasizing independence and self-reliance, something like the traditional (and largely bygone) American virtue or Finnish sisu but promising an afterlife of beer and cheese doodles to encourage more people to join.
You mean the afterlife is pretty much the same as my reality? You’ll likely need to add some things to entice more people, say 78 virgins or something. Though where you’ll find those, I’m not sure. Unless having less people joining is your ultimate goal, but then why start it? Religion confuzzles me.
I’ll not join, however. I don’t believe in the afterlife, and I want my beer and cheese doodles now!