SCREAMING EAGLE-66

.. -- Can't name them (many are smaller operations and/or not names a lot of people not in business or in oil country would recognize ...production companies, not retail ) ... but several articles in local paper claims it is unnecessary at the present... The USA is not importing anywhere near the amount of oil that it was 10 years ago. Production in Texas, New Mexico and North Dakota is huge compared to then due to new technology in fracking... and even in Alaska there is concern that not enough oil is now flowing down that pipeline to keep it operating properly ... it freezes if it too little flows and goes too slow (much of it is above ground). .Eventually Keystone will be needed but not now according to many.... and pick a sensible route, not a political one. That last bit is one reason we have weapons systems or planes... even the military doesn't want.... they want them manufactured in their district for employment purposes.... and that includes "conservative" as well as "liberal" politicians. True conservatives want that nonsense cut out. -- Every good engineer and scientist, asks "what if" ... because "what-ifs" do happen.. and when they do you better be prepared to deal with it. Every fireman should know that... .So are you prepared to deal with a train wreak or truck wreck with an insane amount highly radio-active waste? A lot people in Japan basicly committed suicide to lessen the effect in the Japanese plant.. They stayed and they died. This is not as left/right issue and you portray EVERYTHING. Nuke power sounds great ...until you think of all the waste it creates and how difficult it is to deal with. ............ Nuke power stations are supposed to be able to survive a plane crash... but actually would they? and if destroyed enough they might get terrible in a hurry as they did in Japans earthquake.. actually the Tsunami did the real damage which started a chain reaction of events. .... some terrorist might be willing to try ... 9-11 occurred didn't it.... and no fix is available for that as was in NYC which was tear it up then haul it off..

.. Keystone ... some oil companies don't want it... I find it odd that a pipeline from Permian Basin (West Texas oil fields) to West Coast was recently cancelled and not word of it hits the news or the political spectrum. It barely made news here... A lot of land-owners on that Keystone route don't want it plus it is the route is so political and not taken over the cheapest or shortest way. A lot of politicians wanted it to create jobs in THEIR area... which explains the nutty route. --Nuclear energy ... the problem ... no one wants the "nuke waste" stored where they live..... and that includes us in far West Texas... There is fear it would contaminate the water below and we must have that water.... plus it has to be transported down interstates through towns or on railroads .. What if a train-wreak happened in Metroplex with that waste. There was fight recently here over some radio-active medical waste being stored near Andrews.. Does Weatherford or Ft. Worth want it near them.?? France has more nuclear generation than anyone.. I have no idea what they do with it ... deep in the Sahara?? Toss in accidents ... Chernoble Russia, Japans earthquake which made a lot of land (and towns) uninhabitable due to radiation from a destroyed plant, plus our "minor" accident at Three-mile Island. If you had a lot of physics you understand the problem of waste disposal....that material would be radio-active for centuries .. not just years. We dropped Atomic test bombs on Bikini Island in the Pacific after WWII... It is still so radio-active that people can only spend a few minutes there safely (50-60 years later) Generators produce so much of that material.

--- When in Alaska a couple of years ago, our guide stated every glacier in Alaska is shrinking in size except four .... and they are located near river mouths at sea level and are getting more water down rivers from higher melting glaciers The rivers are is blocked by the glacier at sea level then Freezing in winter making those glaciers larger. Just look at photos of poles now and 50 years ago. Not the same. Apparently it is now possible for the first time ever (that we know of) for a ship to sail from Bering Strait to Greenland along Canada. Heard a comment about a month ago about NYC port being about one foot higher than it was earlier ( think they said 100 years ago.. ) The program I saw was not really about global warming but just a comment and just stating facts about NYC. --- Make up your own mind... but it sure looks like global warming exists... just don't ignore real facts. Just because you don't want something to be true doesn't mean it isn't. --- Industries that put a lot of pollutants into the air are fighting the claim so they don't have to spend more money to clean up their "act".... and it spills over to politicians that get contributions from them and their execs. Much of the well water south of Midland is so polluted humans and animals can't consume it (or irrigate with it to produce food since animals and people eat what is produced)... oil companies once just dumped chemicals on the ground until finally government forced them to stop. [ proper disposal is expensive and I am sure they fought that too ] Once in the aquifer it spreads to other places not dumped on and ruins water there too..

.. You are doing great ...but I have seen so many who just spent "daddy's money" and had a good time. I still say for most contributing (even summer jobs which you had ) and using some of it for educational expenses is a good lesson for most kids.... I never meant one size fits all .... but a lot of kids need to learn the value of a dollar... [ see how many huge student loans many have ] They never think about what it will take to pay them off. As my older son recently told me... " I worked hard in college with a meaningful major so he could have the resources to do as he wanted to later... too many take the easy way out, and just have a good time and major in something that is easier and maybe just fun... but have few opportunities at a good salary after graduation.. Working and going to school isn't impossible ... #1 son had a full-time job as an engineer while getting his MBA and was working full-time in the semiconductor industry while going to law school ... He finished it in 3.5 years with great grades. I also did just as well with a part time job as when I didn't .... budgeted time much better. ---As I have told my students.... getting an good education is the best paying job you will ever have.... you won't get paid this week or next .... but will likely receive better paychecks the rest of your life. People get paid for what they know and what they can do.

.. ---Never had a summer job..? which contributed.... unusual.... Not sure a Fortune 500 job absolutely means that much (see Walmart ) Lots of people here in oil business making a fortune with smaller companies.. My personal kids worked and we shared cost .. and one son who was at NT also worked in computer labs and is an engineer for TI (graduated in 3.5 years) Other Son didn't work during year but had good paying summer computer jobs and is now an engineer with an MBA and law degree work as an executive for a semiconductor company. (I did not pay one dime of the law degree or MBA ) .. Daughter worked some year during the school year and graduated in 4 years. So did I.. paid for all graduate work myself. Wife worked and finished in three years ... had to ... no parental support other than living at home first year. -- It isn't always a mistake but generally speaking putting something into the "pot" makes student more serious ..... Most of those don't also then often have an insane amount of student debt at the end... They just don't seem to understand how hard that is to repay [not much understanding of money or finance ]. So many do that now. I teach college classes.

.. Check back in 4-5 years ... after UT, OU, TxTech, and the rest have beaten you back down to what you were in the SWC. Also check YOUR attendance.... SMU, Rice and TCU had terrible attendance then by their OWN fans... .. UT etc. was tired of filling their stadiums for them and withdrew from the SWC... Believe me , if UT etc was on our schedule ours would be filled to the max. as well. .

-- One big mistake parents make... totally paying for college..... If kids work and contribute then they tend to take college more seriously ... it is now their money being spent. -- Part two .... so many run up a huge debt and partially because of partying and having a good time.. --For most professions, going to a private school is just not worth the price difference... grads from recognized state schools ( not SW South Dakota State) do just as well.. In fact I have known some people who prefer grads from a state schools ... they are more likely to know how to work and don't think people "owe" them and that they should be in charge. --Another consideration.... one year at a local community (if it is a good one) ......Classes are smaller [ not 50-200+ ], profs. that likely know your name, can get help if needed, and at many Mega-universities, the "prof" is a TA with only a BA and maybe teaching his/her first class ever.... [ I was one but had taught one year ] These people would never be allowed to teach a class at a community college, must have graduate degree with 20+ hrs. grad hours in that area. Most in those have taught for years and know how and what to teach... I teach a lot of Aggies, TxTech students plus others in the summer ... they claim our classes are just as tough standardwise but have profs who actually can speak English [ largest complaint I hear about those two places, can't understand those TA profs at Megasize Univ. ] Toss in many profs at Mega Univ are more concerned about publishing and research than teaching.

Two things.... use seat-belts (or child seats) and two: -- learn English, that was also a problem.....

.. Disagree... I'm class of 66 and 75.... If there is a disconnected group it may come from the 80's when we dropped into a hole sportswise... The old MVC days were fun and in basketball the gym was full and we had less than 15,000 students much of the time. Remember those where the days of Joe Greene and later Hayden Fry. Also in that era there wasn't as much to do to take up time.... no video games... 100 channel TV etc. .few games on TV to watch instead etc... You don't get it.

John Wayne ... He convinced everyone he was an American hero ..... he never spent one day in the military other than in he movies (even during WWII). His contemporary, Jimmy Stewart, a pilot, flew bombers into the industrial Ruhr Valley (about worse possible place to be) and survived... [ as did Tom Landry ] Stewart then stayed in the military reserve for many years retiring as a General in Air Force Reserves. Many actors in Hollywood served in the military in WWII, some on Normandy Beach and many Pacific invasions (Lee Marvin). but not the greatest actor of all... whose "act" convinced people he was an American hero ( he was also known for his excessive drinking and three wives, none born in USA ).

.. --- Make an exception for those with SMU plates...

magna cum laude Southern Methodist University graduate ... hmmm .... he was one of their smarter students..

.. -- I am in education.... I have seen a lot of lousy kids from wealthy families. The parents do a terrible job of raising them and just never say "no" and make excuses for them. One I am thinking of wreaked several pickups and they kept buying him a new one... plus got a girl or two pregnant.... no problem ... the family did nothing. On the other end I have seen great kids come from very "poor (unwealthy) " families.. They turned out great... Odds may be better with a wealthy family BUT that is not the total answer .. good parenting usually is ... but with a few they succeed or fail despite what the family does or has... Manziel looks like a kid that never had limits put on him growing up.... kids that are out of control by age 10-12 or so will get worse... it starts young. Too many parents with teens have big problems and know it .. and usually the reason was what they did with the kid when he/she was young... Bad behavior is never "cute". I seen kids throw food at a restaurant or act up and parents think it is funny .. it isn't. Wait until they get 13 or so ... they will have created a Frankenstein that they can't now control.. A couple of good ones... know of a kid kicked off of bus ... result they refused to drive him... rode a bike for miles even if very cold... I am sure he got to think a lot about what he had done while peddling. Another --- parents ticked off at a girl (fighting) no makeup for her the remainder of the year .. looked a lot different.. (may have done a lot more, don't know.. that was obvious ) My wife got our older kid up at 6:00 AM every day for a few weeks after his verbal tirade at her and made him sit a kitchen table and read or study ... he is now a lawyer. ..

.. --Don't blame the QB, he is trying to do his best most likely.... blame the guy that puts him on the field... if you have a problem with him being QB... He should play a better one (if one exists on team) or recruit better. Part II : don't call plays that he can't really execute well ... know what his capabilities are.

. -- True in Texas ...but not every state ... in some places employees are required to join. [ we are a "right to work state" ]. Unions once served a great purpose because of the terrible conditions people worked under.. especially mines. Today they have outlived most of that need. The federal government now regulates safety so much that they serve little useful purpose anymore.

Read below on this post.

. ---Great Post... Houston was considered a great program starting in late 60's and into the 70's under Yoeman. We did well in Joe Greene era (wish we could have played more "name" opponents), sagged a bit but were making great strides in the 70's under Fry and against some very good name teams ... then he left and we were sent to football's Siberia as was several other programs. Fry and UNT had hoped to become the SWC's tenth member ... didn't happen. The privates in the SWC [ SMU, TCU and Baylor , especially SMU ] didn't want us in... likely feared what having a large state school in Metroplex would do to them. Don't let SMU kid you, they were the force that kept us out ... most conferences were going to 10 members then, the SWC never did. It has been a long road back to recognition since. Games I really remember are shutting out Houston in the 70's, almost defeating Texas with Earl Campbell, the Tennessee win, and coming from behind and defeating Tech in Lubbock in the tortilla game ( I was there with wife and kids). ---We need to win another big one ... been too long.

--- Detroit has been dying for decades.... even in the early 70's it had more homes reprocessed than any city in America... Foreign cars in the late 60's begin to make headway into the market... In the 50's nearly all cars in America were American made...(also remember Japan and Europe had just finished a destructive war industrially and we sold cars there as well in the 50's.) Volkswagens made headway in the 60's and others slowly moved in. A lot of American cars in the 70's were pretty bad quality wise. . Cars are made better now, don't change looks much, and last longer meaning fewer cars are sold annually compared to the population that exists. No doubt unions do get some blame but not entirely. When I was a kid any car over 5 years old was considered old and looked dated... that is not the case now. Politics is a very small part of this issue.... declining population size and car companies moving out of Detroit is ... also foreign imports which don't manufacture in Detroit...

.. --- Let's compare... how many major companies have gone bankrupt in past 50 years [ don't forget bank bailouts too... ran by the financially "smart" people ]...vs. ... how many major cities. The big problem in Detroit is the auto COMPANIES leaving town and the declining population and tax base. --- States are a different matter, not so locally run.... and the National debt was barely moving up (less than 2% per year during the eight years prior to 2001) until the "conservative" people took over the next eight years and doubled it (not financially conservative though) .. still not under control ... tough to stop landslides and avalanches too....

Law and Order ... seems like one version is on all day long somewhere.

.. If you need 12-20 quick shots to kill a coyote or feral hog... you are a terrible shot.... I am not opposed to guns... why the need for one that can shoot a dozen plus in a hurry.??? You are trying to picture me as something I am not.... anti-gun.

enough is enough .... time for the media (all of them) to move on.. Whatever happened wasn't going to please a lot of people... Two people both made a lot of mistakes and it happened... neither did what they should have done... don't follow ( especially with a gun ) and don't turn and confront then attack or get extremely close to the other one (which apparently happened). Bad things often happen when two fools get together and can't get along. Zimmerman did not get convicted but his life is screwed up and he doesn't have the freedom he had. His face and name will be recognized everywhere he tries to go. (not a good thing) I would not have found him completely innocent... he did a lot of stupid things... but he is paying for it in a different way

- --- The law is about teaching first graders ...... The article at top shows a small kid with a gun... The Eddie Eagle comment is not bad about leaving the area or leaving one alone ... but that is not what the main purpose of the law apparently. No YOU did not say it was a membership drive... but why use NRA ... just tell young kids to leave guns alone ..period. Telling them to leave them alone is not considered a gun safety COURSE and no law is needed to tell them.. .... The picture creates a totally different image. Do you think we need AAA or Nascar in the schools to teach kids to not start or drive cars. --ok you lived in the country.. I don't lease my land to city-types because so many are fools with guns just shoot everything in sight including what they think are worthless structures. My cousin did one time and said never again ... said he didn't need the money that bad. Uninformed ... don't think so... some in town are ok but unless you know them and have watched them ... nope... one almost shot me .. shot at anything that moved and never considered what was in the distance (cows, barn, pickup etc.) . .You are a bit unusual if you use an assault weapon to hunt with... they don't have the "knock down power" of a 30-30 or 30-06 and often injures an animal that then escapes.. then suffers and dies elsewhere.. Few hunters want that or use guns like that.

---That is a complete misrepresentation of what I said.. no don't leave the room or flee from them... Small children have no business handling a gun... I own several guns and didn't allow mine to use them.. nor did I as a child.....I also didn't let them drive or even start car engines**... Kids are given responsibilities and privileges as they get older ... and first grade is too young to be giving gun lessons ... except leave them alone. Last week an adult in my hometown even shot through his wall and into a neighbors house when mounting a scope.... and you think children are mature enough to handle them?? You seem to agree that was the NRA program objective ... get members in the future ... I don't hide the fact that I am against assault weapons. which have only one purpose.... kill a lot of people in a hurry.. not against guns in general. (NRA wants people to own anything apparently.. we already have some gun control.. no machine guns ) Damn lucky that idiot in Granbury could not shoot better ... lot of folks would have died. Interesting that this type of argument just didn't exist when I was a kid..... but a lot of our parents went through WWII and saw what guns do first hand ... plus the population then was more rural than now... Army .. I am guessing you never lived or have good rural connections ... few gun wanting assault weapons do. ... they seem to think they are toys.. **legalize Indy-cars for street use .. cars don't kill people.. their drivers do. They have one purpose "go fast" ... but we could drive them to work. Seems like a similar comparison

. Read what YOU wrote... it was mostly political and slamming people you disagree with ( two of the three sentence was about that) ... and not about fire safety which I support. You make everything political. Fire safety should be taught to kids... but as we both know most problems come from kids who are not really in school yet or maybe have been only kindergarden.. That is why I claim the fire safety begins at home and fire depts. should reinforce it. I am not anti-gun... I grew up with them ( lived in the country until age 6) but again that is more the responsibility of parents.. Not sure why a high school would have a gun course... way too late to start to teach safety ...sounds more like NRA is just trying to create members. As for having a gun class for first graders (ever been around them?) ... that is nuts... at that point just teach them to leave guns alone ... they are far to immature to be handling one... there might be an exception for some rural kids in odd situations but extremely rare. I know you think I am a screaming liberal.... I am a mix.... I hated the increasing debt after 2001 (financial conservative) and think we, USA, should mind our own business a much as possible ( no real evidence to invade Iraq, not 9-11 related.. again conservative ) but I am a religious liberal (go to whatever religion church you want to, and don't criticize me, but I go to a Christian one also) . Don't try to mix religion in to politics. Yes I consider myself a Democrat (but not a liberal).... but a lot of that come from the way the extreme parts of the GOP is treating public education since 2000?... (my profession) . Less and less money is paid by the state all the time (but they have been giving tax-breaks to those who don't need any.. Texas have about the lowest tax rates in America... which causes local taxes and college tuition to climb. The other issue I have with extreme GOP is their holier than thou attitude... Democrats are not pagans... most of us go to church also. Perry has bragged about tax cuts... really?? which ones did you or I pay ... wasn't sales, gasoline, alcohol, tobacco, or any most of us pay. His contributor's industries got them. (READ) He brags about job increases .. well most came from oil industry and Texas is where the oil is ... not New York. He has nothing to do with that. Rarely do you post anything that doesn't have a extreme conservative slam to it. Read them.