Holy chrystal ball! This blog predicted 2021 Nobel Prize winner by name in 2017

I was rooting through what folks have looked at on this blog with three (3) followers, according to my dashboard. We're slowly and steadily on our way to 6 million views. I happened across a post from 2017 that predicted David Card would snag a Nobel in the fullness of time, and sure enough, he did! While I'm cetainly happy for Dave, I'm also a little miffed. Dave made his rep as a lefty economist with "Myth and Measurement," which he co-wrote with Al Krueger when they were both at Princeton. That initially got way more rasberries than accolades, but Dave's rep as a "lefty" persists to this day. That's why I encouraged him to use his high profile in the way certain other high profile academics, like Jeffrey Sachs, for example, have done. Dave's reply was that sort of thing is best left for retirement. Well, around the time he's getting his retirement paperwork in order, he suddenly becomes a Nobel Laureate! Berkley will for sure provide him an office, desk, and support staff for the rest of his life, even if he lives to 120. He is inundated with invitations to guest-lecture at the most prestgious universities in the world, invitations that inevitably include luxury accomodations and generous honorariums. I can't imagine the farm boy from Wellington County starting to rock the boat now. Here's the post from 2017. ******* neumann's blog Friday, June 30, 2017 Props to an old pal Me and Dave hooked up at Ponsonby PS in grade four. We were inseparable buddies till about grade seven or eight, after which our high school careers took us in different directions. I'm thinking about Dave because there's a story in today's Globe, penned by major league practitioners of the dismal science, that heavily references my old pal. Seems Dave was the first Dismal Scientist to stick his neck out for the proposition that increasing the minimum wage did not necessarily mean that jobs would be lost. He more or less got his head chopped off for that. Twenty years later everything old is new again. Raising the minimum wage is not a job-killer after all! Dave will no doubt have a Nobel with his name attached in a few years. Good on you, buddy!

Can the beautiful game survive Trumpian douchebaggery?

I'll be perfectly blunt. Personally, I don't get the allure of "the beautiful game." My late father and all three of my brothers can converse knowledgeably about who's who and what's what in the British Premier League and all the top Liga across Europa.They can spend an afternoon watching a 0-0 draw and act like they witnessed a great sporting event! As far as I'm concerned, normal fans in any other sport feel ripped off by a 0-0 tie. Nevertheless, FIFA is in charge of the biggest televised sporting event in the world. Bigger than the World Series. Bigger than the Indy 500. Bigger than the Super Bowl! That's why I'm shocked that FIFA boss Johnny Infantino's impeccably-coiffed head has been permanently wedged between Mafia Don's butt-cheeks ever since he presented him with the "FIFA Peace Prize." First one ever! I mean lots of people have won Nobel Peace Prizes... ho hum... But Donny J won the FIRST EVER FIFA PEACE PRIZE!!! The world has never seen anything like it! I don't get it. In the big picture, Infantino is a big deal and Trump is... well, not doing all that great. Then again, that name rings a bell... Infantino. Wasn't there a New Jersey Mafia boss by that name back when Donny was building casinos in the Garden State? Anyway, Spain won and the Argies didn't. The country that denied America its airspace for its criminal attack on Iran defeated the most obnoxious cheerleader for Israeli apartheid and its US-supported genocide. Let's try to enjoy that, at least for one day.

Sec War Pistol-Pete Hegseth introduces 'High Tea' tradition to US Army

What a great idea! If you saw that raggedy-ass "military parade" the US Army put on recently, you'll agree a little discipline and decorum in the ranks would go a long way. Those American war-fighters looked like they spent basic training at Dunkin' Donuts. We may have to Americanize the time-honoured Brit tradtion of crumpets and tea... how does Red Bull and donuts sound? In any event, Greasy Pete is obviously on the right track. American warfighters are known across Washington as the best, nay even better than best in the entire world. In fact, as Sec War reminds us daily, the world has never seen anything like it! Once the new and improved 'high tea' US Army takes Iran, Pete Hegseth will be venerated as the visionary leader he is, a veritable Sun Tzu for our time! Onward Christian soldiers!

Mark Carney proves he was just joking around with that whacky Davos speech

What a jokester this guy is! What a kidder! He had the entire world agog at his affrontery, his bold defiance of Empire! Yup, we're all sick and tired of a world where the Big Dogs do whatever they want, regardless of the norms they impose on the rest of the world! Mere weeks after that anti-Empire shot heard 'round the world captivated the media, the US Empire, together with its trusty vassal Israel, launched an unprovoked war against Iran. According to the Nuremberg war crimes tribunal, that's the crime of crimes where war crimes are concerned. There is no question that this illegal invasion of Iran is the most egregious example conceivable of a Big Dog shitting all over international law to impose its will on weaker nations. So what has been the response of the hero who delivered that sharp rebuke of US impunity at Davos? Why, every public utterance on the matter has been in full support of US and Israeli war crimes! What a phoney!

CBC will have us dining on pie in the sky till we die

Back in the pre-digital era, a crazy power-mad empress in France once advised her subjects, starving due to a bread shortage, to eat cake instead. That's a quote that has ever after served as a marker of elite detachment from reality. CBC today offers some hope for this world. Just after a spot of bad news about some youthful gangbangers shooting up the Toronto Salsa Festival, they sprung a good news story about how we are destined to get yucky stinky diesel engines off our highways. Yup, Canada is a world leader, or at least maybe not too far behind the actual leaders, in the race to replace diesel with anything but diesel. According to the CBC, once the world comes to its senses, Canada will possibly maybe be a world leader in providing clean and ridiculously virtuous hydrogen to replace diesel! That's a beautiful story, but try this little experiment. Next time you're out on a road trip, and you pass a truck stop, cruise through the acres of trucks parked and count the number of hydrogen-powered trucks. I'm guessing you won't need more than the fingers of one hand to keep track. Meanwhile, the same CBC home page barely mentions that USA and Iran are "exchanging shots." Oh ya! Not only that, but the Towelheads 'o Terror have closed the Straight of Hormuz! Again! And while CBC is not keen to trouble you with the details, this time round we're on the cusp of global shortages of everthing from fertilizer to helium to sulfer to diesel. As Canada's official propaganda network, it's their job to keep us entertained, distracted, and ignorant. Once all those diesel trucks are permanently stranded at Irving and Husky truck stops all along the Trans Canada Highway, no doubt they'll hector the truckers about why they didn't switch to hydrogen sooner!

Canada's submarine fleet was a joke in 2013 - it's only been getting funnier ever since

I was busy mocking our laughable "fleet" all those years ago. If you recall, somehow some very gullible experts decided to buy four obsolete British subs which were otherwise destined for a beach in India. Here you go:***** Saturday, August 31, 2013 Entire Canadian Navy in dry-dock after mishap at sea Both ships of the Royal Canadian Navy were being towed to port yesterday after running into each other. Navy Lt. Raul Pendergast says initial reports suggest that both Captains may have been texting while driving. If that is confirmed it would be a violation of Navy rules of conduct. The RCN only permits the use of smart phones while its ships are at anchor or in dry-dock. One of the most sought after assignments in the Canadian Navy is with the submarine fleet because all four submarines have been dry-docked for the past 14 years. While at one time that fact made the sub fleet something to guarantee death by boredom, the advent of the iPad and smart phone has made it highly desirable. Swabbies assigned to the Halifax dry-dock where the Canadian sub fleet undergoes a perpetual "refit" report that a typical day consists of eight hours sleep and sixteen hours spent surfing the internet. ***** Thirteen years on, it's noteworthy that today gaming skills are considered a bonus in fresh recruits!

Canada's first Hindu cabinet minister is a know-nothing windbag

I happened onto a EuroNews interview with our Foreign Minister Anita Anand this morning. With all the heavy hitters in attendance at the NATO pow-wow in Ankara, somebody had to draw the short straw. Anita made all the right noises. Ukraine has turned the tide, Russia is on the brink of collapse, Ukrainian victory is in the bag, and our fleet of new submarines serves notice to Russia and China that we're serious about protecting our Arctic sovereignty. That's the script, and she's sticking to it. Let's start with a few facts. We have allegedly contracted for a fleet of 12 German-built diesel-electric submarines at an estimated $2 billions per unit. The first four are to be delivered by 2034, six years hence. At the moment, China is building six new diesel-electrics per year. Assuming they don't scale up going forward, that means by the time Canada takes delivery of the last of those German-built vessels around 2040, China will have added at least 80 new subs to its fleet. Do we really think parking half a dozen German submarines at either end of what we call "the Northwest Passage" will keep China out? Our Arctic sovereignty is doomed if we think we'll prevail in a submarine war. That's without even considering Russia's Arctic footprint. Russia has more soldiers on permanent bases above the Arctic Circle than Canada has residents there. Over half of the global pop north of the Arctc circle is Russian. They have by far the world's largest icebreaker fleet. They're serious about their Arctic sovereignty. Canada talks a big game. The reality is Canada's Arctic is defended by our "Rangers," who just had their WWII era Lee-Enfield rifles upgraded to, I shit you not, "state of the art bolt-action carbines with a ten shot magazine!" Then there is the unspoken subtext that German technology is so vastly superior that it's worth paying a premium for. We know from Chinese export deals that were made public that they sell their diesel-electrics in the $300 -400 million range. In other words, we could buy four subs from China for the price of one from Germany. Chinese tech generally, in terms of cars, electronics, and weapons systems are at least the equal to German industry, and are often clearly superior. Why would their submarines be any different? At the end of the day, apparently, it all boils down to "values." Anita stressed that the democratic nations of NATO have them and the bad guys don't. Hmm... let's ponder that for a moment. By far the most crucial enabler of the ongoing genocide in Gaza is NATO boss Uncle Sam. The second is Germany. Alrighty then, values it is!