tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24887329670117176542011-07-28T13:40:02.083-05:00prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.comBlogger261100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-55887703631511401372010-03-06T09:19:00.003-06:002010-03-06T11:40:02.511-06:00

Now, it isn't necessarily the intent of MAC to talk about Missouri a lot... it just happens to be a place we like a lot. AND it is a state which could reasonably be considered as a good cross-section of America, which, until the last presidential election (when McCain won the state by a slim 4,000 votes), had been one of the most accurate bell-weathers for the county's political

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-32611156355211406432010-01-19T19:34:00.005-06:002010-01-19T20:44:41.306-06:00

Missouri, you've just had it too good for too long. So why not try and stretch it a little bit longer?Just prior to the New Year, a bipartisan panel of Missouri lawmakers released a report highlighting Missouri's energy future. The mission of the panel was to "Determine the best strategy to ensure a plentiful, affordable and clean supply of electricity that will meet the needs of the people and

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-10049489349260511842009-12-07T21:37:00.005-06:002009-12-07T21:49:32.209-06:00

What Andrew said, about the lack of activity, is all too true. Moving on, no time to lose!For most of this year, I simply haven't had the stomach to cover the health care debate, because so little of what has been discussed has been relevant, with discourse better suited for a demolition derby- combatants hurling their outdated auto bodies at their enemies, rending their own steel and rubber in

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-18945426090131339932009-12-02T11:19:00.002-06:002009-12-02T11:35:56.647-06:00

First off -- Yes, I realize that our postings and updates have been pretty much non-existent this year... I apologize (as I'm sure Pete does too!). I will try to make more time to write for 2010!Now, on to the post!Today, the Senate is conducting a hearing in discussion of the President's war strategy in Afghanistan, which he outlined last night in a speech before West Point cadets and a

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-76522724584583544022009-05-21T19:57:00.003-05:002009-05-21T20:01:13.325-05:00

The Geography of JobsPosted using ShareThisMy mother sent me this the other day- a rather stunning graphical representation of the damage that has been wrought on the job market in this country over the past few years. I strongly suggest you check it out.

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-10171292622088098372009-05-19T08:55:00.004-05:002009-05-19T12:23:24.725-05:00

Yes indeed we are; many apologies for the lack of activity over the past few months. Not a single post as we began our new presidential term- perhaps we were waiting with baited breath, as you no doubt were, to see how things were beginning to shape up. Or, perhaps we didn't have internet and got bit by the lazy bug. Who knows... either way, we're still calling, so hopefully others are still

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-23850899755810235942009-01-19T08:09:00.004-06:002009-01-19T08:47:58.496-06:00

I just got through seeing a ridiculous news story on Yahoo! about a man being forced by the state of Michigan to either 1) pay the medical costs of his daughter's birth or 2) marry the mother.At first, I was thinking maybe he is a dead-beat dad, and deserves to have the state breathing down his neck -- maybe not for 100% of the medical costs -- but at LEAST half of it. But after reading the

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-8452889677023997012008-12-10T09:06:00.008-06:002008-12-12T10:28:35.876-06:00

So Detroit is bleeding money... so much so that GM and Chrysler could be bankrupt in a matter of months if Government action isn't taken to keep them afloat until they can re-tool.This is something that was probably written on the wall for a while now. Even while GM was at the top of its game (which actually wasn't all that long ago: 2003, to be exact), several groups were concerned about the

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-53779284450219142582008-11-18T21:09:00.005-06:002008-11-18T21:39:29.925-06:00

So the word from the Los Angeles Times today comes down from San Pierre, Indiana, a town of 156 in the northwestern part of the state. Prior to the credit crunch and economic slowdown, San Pierre was due to be the site of an ethanol processing plant, promising jobs, income and opportunity to a town that is rapidly losing population to nearby cities. Instead, the credit crunch and wildly

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-17839581670604226082008-11-11T19:04:00.002-06:002008-11-11T19:13:21.376-06:00

So, after our collective exhale, I think it is interesting to look a little deeper into some of the electoral trends we witnessed this last Tuesday.I ran across this very cool map on NPR's website. What is does is this: It takes our map of the USA and turns it into a cartogram -- a representation of population rather than geographic size.What is striking to me (but not surprising, being that we

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-47715105618270880982008-11-10T21:36:00.003-06:002008-11-18T21:39:59.093-06:00

A couple days late, sure, but isn't that symbolic in itself? It's been a pretty wild and wooly election, one of the most hardly fought in history, and to be perfectly honest I could not tear my eyes away from it in order to update this ole project. Sorry. But truth be told, not sure if we can compete with the big dogs, trying as we are to refrain from partisanship, which is kind of the order of

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-26025796736751466462008-09-28T15:02:00.002-05:002008-09-28T15:13:51.078-05:00

I just stumbled across this tool for getting a comparison of gas prices between locations in the US. Hopefully not sounding like a shill, Gas Buddy has the linked "temperature map" so you can gauge how high the prices are in your area. The map is remarkably interactive, and you just might learn something that can save you some money. For instance, Kansas City has one of the lowest price/gallon

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-13377492142545798962008-09-24T22:02:00.003-05:002008-09-24T22:10:15.865-05:00

OK, I've been MIA for quite some time, I know. Been out to Utah, Colorado, Kansas and Missouri since I last posted, killed a computer, bought a computer, was shoveled a heavier workload at the job, and finally got internet reconnected. Excuses excuses. Please accept this meager post, with the aims of stoking the fires and getting back to work. Thanks all. I had a discussion with a friend

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-7599461075341307772008-09-22T10:59:00.002-05:002008-09-22T11:02:54.043-05:00

Project Censored has recently published its list of the top 25 censored stories for 2009 (yeah, I don't know why they say 2009, but whatever...)You can see the list here: http://www.projectcensored.org/top-stories/category/y-2009/

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-60937359381952614852008-09-21T13:16:00.002-05:002008-09-22T10:56:42.156-05:00

Now, I'm no economic expert, which may become painfully apparent with what I'm about to suggest.But, I would like somebody to tell me why something like the following wouldn't work better than the current plan by Treasury Secretary Paulson. Essentially, Paulson wants the US Taxpayers to put up something like $700 billion to put into his hands, so that he can use somewhat cryptic means to fix the

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-22512591733424515202008-08-18T16:50:00.007-05:002008-09-22T10:57:07.985-05:00

I don't know how many of you had the opportunity to watch the "Faith Forum" hosted by pastor Rick Warren (of "The Purpose Driven Life" fame) at his Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA on Saturday, but I hope you did. If not, you can catch it online here, courtesy of CNN.Warren began the forum by making a point which is too often forgotten during the height of election-year politics: Both

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-77934779738765120872008-07-13T23:56:00.005-05:002008-09-22T10:57:51.778-05:00

First of all, let me say I'm sorry for the delay in any new content from my fingertips. It's been a pretty busy month for me -- traveling for work training, more work, traveling home to hunt for a house, buying a house (yippee!!), and traveling back to work... and more work.So, it should come as no surprise that I am still writing about the same topic I was writing about a month ago: Energy.And

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-85752198120556899622008-06-29T10:59:00.004-05:002008-06-29T11:24:04.323-05:00

According to studies and continued observation by local endocrinologists, the men of mid-Missouri are undergoing a crash in sperm levels. The problem started cropping up in the mid-1990s, and was cemented during a 1999 study which compared healthy sperm levels between major metropolitan areas. For use in comparison, Columbia, MO was used to help establish a baseline, assuming that the presence of

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-9005802375226991402008-06-15T21:58:00.004-05:002008-06-15T22:16:58.111-05:00

For years, the SUV has served as a particularly potent symbol of American consumption and excess; it seemed to be fueled on hubris alone, considering our willingness to persist with such maddeningly inefficient vehicles used for such ill-suited purposes. I'll never forget rolling into Home Depot one day, and seeing a new, blinged-out H2 with the vanity plate "8 MPG." Oh, dear driver, haven't you

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-2550097002570547062008-06-09T21:13:00.005-05:002008-06-15T22:01:36.193-05:00

Looks like it's going to be a gasoline-themed week this week; it's on your minds, it's definitely on ours, so let's run with it, shall we?Today's view comes from the International Herald Tribune, observing how although the national average is now over $4.00/gallon, the pain at the pump is much more acute in rural regions across the US. People are giving up meat so they can buy fuel. Gasoline

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-79501899919531008732008-06-07T10:26:00.002-05:002008-06-07T10:34:12.964-05:00

I was doing a little browsing this morning before heading to work and came across the following an article in the Washington Post discussing the price of gasoline and its effects on things like fuel efficiency, etc.The author proposes using a tax as a means of setting a price floor for gasoline, so that our government is in direct control of curbing demand -- leading to a ripple effect throughout

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-85914485803529360252008-05-26T23:55:00.002-05:002008-05-27T00:06:21.514-05:00

Democrat Tom Harkin Recently made the following statement regarding the 2008 Farm Bill:“Farmers in Iowa and around the country are beginning to plant for the season. Here in Washington, Congress is fulfilling its promise to enact a farm bill that’s good for all America – farming families and rural communities, nutrition assistance for low-income Americans, fresh fruits and vegetables for school

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-23632510438941379312008-05-19T09:59:00.002-05:002008-08-21T20:10:43.125-05:00

Whenever we go to the doctor, we naturally assume that the doctor and their staff are going to safeguard our medical records, personal data, and financial information from exposure or theft. Granted, sometimes people cannot be counted on for that, but the general sanctity of our personal information at the doctor's is something that we expect- and that the medical establishment is in our corner

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-29443156845465783072008-05-12T22:26:00.005-05:002008-05-18T00:05:43.356-05:00

From the Omaha World-Herald, the big news this week relates to the untold thousands of levees protecting the Mississippi and Missouri river watersheds. A significant number of these levees are not listed on any inventory by the Army Corps of Engineers- meaning no one has any kind of idea what shape they are in.According to Robert Bea, a University of California at Berkeley levee expert, many of

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-1021148218209017302008-04-08T23:24:00.011-05:002008-05-06T10:48:00.910-05:00

As we’ve all heard about by now, most of us should be receiving checks in the mail throughout the summer, courtesy of Uncle Sam.The downturn of the American economy has prompted every Presidential contender, and every member of Congress to be the first to present a plan to save ourselves from recession.Lucky for us, they reached an agreement… and we all get some extra money.Our good friends in

AfWilliamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06038914918436512549noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2488732967011717654.post-29364110520653088412008-04-08T22:36:00.010-05:002008-04-10T21:10:39.203-05:00

If you found your way to our humble blog, welcome! We hope to raise questions, discuss issues, and maybe, just possibly find some answers. Here's hoping you're up for the dialogue. Allow us to introduce ourselves, as we begin what will hopefully be a long, arduous and rewarding process, talking about these issues with you, the body politic.So who are we? We're just two young men, as you see

prcizmadiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12108973423103746100noreply@blogger.com2