Environment, child dangers, and other goodies

First, have you checked out the live BP ROV feed lately? Fun to watch, although I have no idea what's on there at the moment. I like this guy's take on why we're even drilling out a mile under the surface of the ocean, anyway: environmentalists. They don't want us drilling where it's easy to do so and easy to "fix" when there's a problem (on land) and where it's not as likely to impact major ecosystems and "way of life" for many, many people (like remote, unpopulated areas of Alaska). Not even where it's reasonably accessible (both for drilling and in the event of a disaster) like shallow coastal waters. No, we have to go drill WAY OUT in the DEEP waters of the gulf, where, if something goes wrong, it's not so easy to get to to fix (and where we have to push the envelope of technology in order to drill there in the first place). Way to go, environmentalists!

Also, did you hear about government wanting to tell businesses how to run themselves (oh, wait, that's not that new)? Some senators want BP to suspend its dividend to its shareholders. Isn't it enough that those who have money invested in BP have lost, what, closing in on half their investment value already? Now these senators want BP to not pay the dividend on that stock. Wouldn't that require some sort of SEC filing, and/or be a violation of SEC shareholder rules or something? Seems like that sort of thinking runs along the lines of "government with unlimited power" - which this article warns against. That article is a very interesting read - I recommend you take the time to give it a gander (and I don't mean an adult male goose!). Seriously: go read that article (but come back here afterward).

Now, if you're having trouble paying your rent, don't worry about it. According to that article, it'll be over a year before you're evicted if you stop paying. Apparently that's become the new "in" thing to do - quit paying your mortgage, but keep paying everything else. After all, it's the bank's fault that you're in over your head, can't make your mortgage payment, and your house isn't worth what it used to be worth. Nothing at all to do with your own bad decision making.

If you have children, take heed of these warnings:

1. "Sack tapping" - a "game" where boys try to punch each other's testicles - boy, doesn't that sound like fun? - which can lead to ruptures, bruises, and other serious damage. Talk to your boys about this - it's more serious than you might think.
2. "Silly bandz" - those cute little bracelets in animal shapes. Yeah, they're of the devil, he wants to take your kid's arm. OK, probably not really of the devil, but they can cause circulation issues, especially if worn in great numbers.

So, there you go. Lots of fun things for this blog post! Stay tuned next time for my plans to solve electric vehicle range issues (to make it where an all-electric vehicle can have an essentially unlimited range) and nuclear waste storage issues.