Paris Climate Summit to Expand Governments' Control

More good news for the oil and gas industry.  Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the Telegraph spells out what the new nations' emissions targets will be and the new "plutocrats" who will gain from government investment in renewable energy.   See End of Fossil Era

Somehow, these limits will cap the temperature rise at 2 degrees C.  How world energy demands will be met with oil production at 72 M barrels per day I have no idea.  This will be the death knell of oil majors.

The real intended outcome has nothing to do with the climate, but with the government controlling more and more industry and development, and more tax money going to select interests.   And this coming from an American President.

Agreement will not be a treaty.  But it doesn't matter to us, because the feds will enforce this by its expansive definition of Clean Air Act legislation and the EPA.   The Democracy gets no say in this.

Marijuana Smoking Linked to Terrorism

At least one of the Paris terrorists and the Colorado Planned Parenthood gunman have been described in the media as heavy marijuana users.  In another high profile and brutal murder in England a few years ago, the killers of the British soldier also were serious potheads.  Hmm.

Correlation is not causation.  But researchers have long noticed the connection between crime and marijuana use.  Reports from the United States, England, and Australia show that approximately 60% of arrestees test positive for marijuana use and that marijuana is the drug most frequently found in arrestees’ urine.  And despite the common assumption that pot makes you mellow, many of these criminals are violent, too. 

Here's an interesting Rand study from 2004 that does suggest a causal link between marijuana and violent crime, at least when the researchers ran some of the data:  RAND: Marijuana and Crime   (As usual with statistical social science, no definitive conclusions and more study needed!)  

The useful blog site Crime in America posted these stats correlating crime and marijuana use: more-on-marijuana-and-crime-crime-statistics/

Common sense suggests we continue to treat marijuana as a harmful substance with little proven social benefit, but with a great potential to do harm.

In the US we have been seeing a headlong rush to brand marijuana as harmless, and even therapeutic.  This flies in the face of nearly all evidence. See this post from Columbia University researchers on why voters should  be wary of medicinal marijuana:  why-you-should-think-twice-voting-yes-medical-marijuana

The Food and Drug Administration still considers it a harmful drug and has not approved it for medical use.  By smoking marijuana, how do you regulate the dosage?  Since when is smoking a legitimate way to take medicine?   Medical pot is a crock. 

Congratulations to the people of Ohio for rejecting legalized marijuana in a state referendum a few weeks ago. 

America's Mission is Not to Defend Humanity

But to defend US interests.  Robert Merry complains about the confusion of aims over the last fifteen years here:  US Leaders Don't Know What to Think  Overthrowing Saddam and Qadhafi for the sake of humanity hasn't worked for anyone's interests, except international Jihad's.  Merry supports a more "transactional" relationship with foreign leaders like former President Mubarak and Putin.

Some good points here, but I think the problem is different.  It is not that US leaders don't know what US interests are.   It is that they consistently fail to think strategically about those interests.  Washington always is reactive and tactical.  Lack of sound strategic thinking is what has made a mess of the Middle East and Central Asia recently.

Americans' Common Sense on Climate Change

The constant barrage of propaganda and fear-mongering has failed to convince Americans they need to act on climate change.  We are carpooling less, and using alternative-fueled cars even less than before.  We aren't riding bicycles to work.   Here's a good article by David Harsanyi in The Federalist pointing to the counter trends.  Americans-dont-really-care-about-climate-change/

Why?  The environmentalists have made the threat so urgent and dire that everyone realizes it is a problem than cannot be solved.  If there is no solution, there is no problem.

History Repeating Itself with Campus, Urban Protests?

Lately we are reminded of the Sixties, with its atmosphere of university sit-ins and urban protests and riots. The university demonstrations have been highly mythologized; the urban protests were very real. Michael Barone makes the point that these came during a period of liberal governance, with high expectations of the future.  What followed was the rise of the silent majority, and many years of relatively conservative administrations.  Here's his provocative piece:  An unhappy history repeating itself

Screw the Candlelight Vigil

As Mark Steyn says,  it's time now to launch the "pitiless" war against the Islamic extremists, and stop with the hashtags, and the vigils, and the weepy sentimentality.  The barbarians are inside the gates

The death toll is about 150 in Paris.

ISIS has demonstrated its global reach.  It is responsible for recent bombings in Ankara and Beirut, too. The evidence is mounting a bomb blew up the Russian plane flying out of the Sinai; ISIS took credit for it.

So now we know this is no limited, regional war that can be contained.  The West has to destroy ISIS's conceit that it can operate a caliphate in the Middle East and deliver bombers throughout the world.

Other third order effects:  illegal immigration will stay a major campaign issue here.  (Even though that it is much less a problem now than it was fifteen years ago and it has not been a cover for extremism.)  In the EU, the movement to close borders will grow; Merkel will lose that argument.  We also may see less attacks on the kind of programs the NSA was running to stop terrorism.  Anyone up for closing GTMO now?

Terror Hits Paris

This morning, we are all just catching up on this story...at least 125 dead in three or more separate attacks in Paris.  ISIS has claimed responsibility.

The worst part about the event is that the Parisian authorities were on the alert.  This isn't the first terrorist attack in the city this year; they have been bolstering up security.

Many fingers will point, but it is hard to defend against these types of suicide attacks.  However, it seems clear that France has well organized terrorist cells in its territory.  These are no "lone wolf" attacks.  This took careful planning.

Perhaps ISIS is more of an international threat after all.  A few weeks ago it made a massive terrorist strike in Ankara.  (But Ankara doesn't count like Paris.)

What will be the repercussions?   Will the western "powers" join Russia in Syria?   Will crushing ISIS actually do something about this type of terrorism?  

Will the US join up?  Our strategic has been attrition and containment, up to now.  Will we do more?  That will require Big Army getting involved.   I think the public would support it.  What say you, Mr. Obama?

Kudos to Amazon for this image on its website this am: