Wind turbine photos from Indiana

Posted By on August 3, 2010

While driving north and south on I-65 through Indiana the past couple of days I was amazed to see the change in landscape … wind turbines everywhere. We (my daughter) took a few photos while we were driving by and figured I would try posting them on Posterous and see how they display when forwarded automatically to my blog.

These particular wind turbines were built and are operated by Horizon Wind Energy, a Houston-based renewable energy company. The 121 turbines comprise Phase I of the Meadow Lake Wind Farm in White County, Ind., powering the equivalent of 60,000 homes.

“There are five things we look at when deciding where to build a wind farm,” Horizon project manager Jeffrey Nemeth told me earlier that day. “You need wind, access to transmission lines, community support, electricity demand and land — preferably agricultural.”

Horizon pays farmers $4,000 to $8,000 per year to use their land, building turbines and access roads through the fields. Another 66 turbines are scheduled to go online in the next three weeks, and the company will have all four phases of the project completed by October. The full 303 turbines will generate somewhere in the neighborhood of 500 megawatts, enough to power 300,000 homes.

Posted via email from richc’s posterous

Category: Photos, Travel | 10 Comments »
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Arthur Laffer: The Soak-the-Rich Catch-22

Posted By on August 2, 2010

Arthur Laffer wrote another piece in the WSJ that again draws attention to the focus some in congress are promoting — “tax the rich.” America would be wise to pay attention to previous administrations and history before once again heading down the path of high taxes and even higher taxes on the rich. Our country pays a high price for this repeated practice in extending a recession/depression, weakening job recovery and focusing investors in America to wealth preservation strategies including exporting their dollars. To generate a vibrant economy is to attract capital, stimulate expansion and grow our economy.

We all know that there are lots of factors influencing tax revenues from the rich, but the number one factor has to be the statutory tax rates government tells the rich they have to pay. Not only do the direct income tax consequences of higher tax rates on those in the highest brackets lead to higher deficits, the indirect effects magnify the tax revenue losses many fold.

As a result of higher tax rates on those people in the highest tax brackets, there will be less employment, output, sales, profits and capital gains—all leading to lower payrolls and lower total tax receipts. There will also be higher unemployment, poverty and lower incomes, all of which require more government spending. It’s a Catch-22.

Higher tax rates on the rich create the very poverty and unemployment that is used to justify their presence. It is a vicious cycle that well-trained economists should know to avoid.

via online.wsj.com

Posted via email from richc’s posterous

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Enjoying time with my daughter before her USMLE Step 2 test

Posted By on August 1, 2010

giordanospizzaMy daughter Katelyn and I are checked in at the Marriott in Chicago for her USMLE Step 2 testing on Monday and enjoyed an evening together. We took advantage of the 35 minute pizza baking time for the award winning stuffed pizza at Giordano’s Restaurant inorder to practice a bit more. I’m the acting patient and she’s the doc!

Dinner and our time together was far more relaxing than our drive through Chicago traffic … I think this will be the last time I take the Dan Ryan Expressway in order to see the skyline of Chicago … it ain’t worth it. I’ll include a couple photos from the Palm Pre below (as usual, click for larger images).

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Heavy traffic entering Chicago (more photos below)

IndianWindTurbines k_chicagopizza_100801 hotelmarriotchicago 
Windturbines (100s) in Indiana | Katelyn eating ‘yummie’ pie | View from Marriot

Category: Cellphone, Personal, Photos, Travel | 5 Comments »
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Humor: Just thought this was funny

Posted By on August 1, 2010

Grabbed a few frame in slow motion from the TV screen with my Palm Pre this weekend; maybe it is just me, but found it funny seeing a squirrel dart out while Motorweek was filming a road test on a car. No harm …

Category: Automotive, Cellphone, Humor, Video | No Comments »
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Sully Sullenberger: A man who has a passion and love of aviation

Posted By on July 31, 2010

eastern-dc-7b-n836dYoung Eagles co-chair and retired Capt Sully Sullenberger was forced to select his all time favorite aircraft when interviewed at Airventure 2010 this year and it wasn’t the fully restored Douglas DC-7B that he few to Oshkosh Wisconsin in.

Here’s a choice of four aircraft that this heroic pilot has developed proficiency in flying; check video below to see if you’re correct?

  1. Airbus A380 (from “Miracle on the Hudson”)
  2. F4 Phantom II (from his USAF military service)
  3. Aeronca 7DC (the first plane he learned to fly)
  4. Engineless Glider/Sailplane (received his glider license at 14 years old)

  

Category: Aviation | 2 Comments »
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“Dumbed down” changes to 2011 VW Jetta might offend some?

Posted By on July 30, 2010

Hmm … I’m not sure all Volkswagen Jetta TDI advocates are going to like some of these ‘cost cutting’ changes? See James Healy’s comments in his USA Today article.

Among changes to keep costs down, items likely to be vilified as evidence Jetta has been “dumbed down” to get more mainstream buyers:

•Rear suspension is a so-called “semi-independent torsion beam” instead of true “multi-link” independent rear suspension on the previous version. The latter is valued because, when properly executed, it improves ride, handling and steering. A GLI sport version due next spring will have independent rear suspension.

•Rear brakes are old-style drums on most models, not the discs of the 2010. (VW insists third-party tests show its drums stop as well as, or better than, rivals’ discs.)

•Trip computer, the device that tells you miles per gallon, miles to empty and so on, isn’t offered on the lower models, though is standard on the top version.

•Far fewer combinations of equipment and trim are available — 18 vs. 148 previously, not including color choices. Such simplification is cheaper for VW. It also makes it more likely a dealer will have one you want in stock — if your wants are defined by the 18 choices.

•No leather upholstery is available, even though rivals such as Civic offer it. VW insists that its “leatherette” (textured vinyl), perforated to let your backside breathe, is just as handsome and comfortable. It did seem more than OK in our drives.

Category: Automotive, Volkswagen | No Comments »
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Police chase: Will the judge go easy on this driver?

Posted By on July 30, 2010

There is a part of me feeling sorry for this driver and for her regard for safety in stopping at lights, but since we once had our car hit by an uninsured driver with a suspended license and had to pay 100% of the repairs, I don’t want them getting off easy either; the judge needs to go by the book if for no other reason than to send a message not to drive under suspension or to resist arrest. ZZZAPPP – oh … but remember “don’t tase me bro!”

CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati police say a speeding driver tried to flee arrest while obeying red lights.

Police say a 26-year-old woman was going 78 mph in a 55 mph zone early Friday on Interstate 75 when an officer tried to pull her over. Police say she exited the highway to drive home.

Police say that when the woman reached local streets, she drove the speed limit and stopped at red lights. They used sticks that punctured her tires, just yards from her home.

She told police she feared having her car impounded, which they did.

Police say she resisted, and they used a stun gun before charging her with resisting arrest, failing to comply with police, speeding and driving under suspension.

Category: Local, Misc, News | No Comments »
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Politically liberal Dan Baum and “Happiness is a worn gun”

Posted By on July 29, 2010

danbaum While traveling this week, I enjoy a point of view and odd story for NPR which had self-proclaimed “liberal Democrat” Dan Baum about his Happiness is a worn gun article in Harper’s Magazine on the radio. (currently a PDF version of the article here) He addresses the subject of the love of guns from the political left and living in the city of Boulder, CO which are both normally slanted as “anti-gun ownership” and “anti-conceal carry.”

I live in Boulder, Colorado, a town so painstakingly liberal that the city council once debated whether people are “owners” or “guardians” of their pets. “Guardians” won.

harpershappinessisaworngunBaum doesn’t fit the mold in that he’s both grown up loving guns, hunting and now has a concealed carry permit; in other word in this area he more politically aligned with a pro-gun conservative … generally a Republican or Libertarian.

In writing his article Dan Baum also took a couple conceal carry courses for the article, and although he is critical of the training, believes in the right for law abiding citizens to carry firearms. He admits that he use to agreed with most liberal Democrats that more gun ownership and conceal carry permits would increase gun crime. What he found out, is that he and his liberal friends were wrong — statistics proved the exact opposite. He doesn’t go so far to conclude that the increase in permits has decrease crime, but does say that there isn’t the expected increase (numbers are down).

If you are open minded, his Harper’s article is worth a read and audio interviews are at several radio stations, including WHYY and KUER, are interesting.

I got hooked on guns forty-nine years ago as a fat kid at summer camp—the one thing I coulddo was lie on my belly and shoot a .22 rifle — and I’ve collected, shot, and hunted with guns my entire adult life. But I also grew up into a fairly typical liberal Democrat, with a circle of friends politely appalled at my fixation on firearms.

Category: Audio, Politics | No Comments »
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Pilot and passenger of ‘crash’ at Airventure are ‘okay’

Posted By on July 28, 2010

hawkerbeechcraftN6JR Safety is always of concern for organizers of airshows, especially ones that attract 1000s of pilots, aviation enthusiasts and airplanes. The week long EAA airshow and fly-in at Oshkosh Wisconsin called Airventure is no exception — accidents can and do sometimes (rarely) happen.

The routine at Airventure is for Wittman Regional Airport to open runways after the days scheduled events for a short time to allow aircraft to arrive and depart. This was the case on Tuesday night as well when NASCAR owner and pilot Jack Roush and his passenger Brenda Strickland began their final approach. At 6:15 PM, Roush a long time pilot and EAA advocate, attempted to land in his Hawker Beechcraft twin engine business jet, when according to observers, “attempted a JackRoush100727go-around with too little airspeed.” The plane lost lift about 150 feet above the runway, according to one spectator and made a “hard landing” (crashed), causing significant damage to the airplane. Both pilot and passenger were able to leave the plane under their own power when on field rescue personnel arrived, but Mr. Roush was said to have suffered a head injury. Roush was taken to Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wisconsin and is in “serious but stable condition.” Ms. Strickland was reported to have non-life threatening injuries. The NTSB is leading the investigation into the accident.

Category: Aviation, News | 2 Comments »
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Airventure 2010 in Oshkosh is well underway

Posted By on July 28, 2010

SubSonex_9749m

In chatting with an EAA buddy camping for the week up at Airventure 2010 I had the chance to talk to him about a few ideas for our local EAA Chapter 284, and he has some excellent ones. I’ve also been paying attention to the “goings-on” this week online through the variety of feeds, links and multimedia. First there are a number of Twitter feeds based on one’s interest which are easy to follow even on a cellphone, and of course there are plenty of blog posts along with photos and video. Then there’s the live and archived EAARadio connection along with 3 airport associated radio feeds. With all of this technology, its easy to eat up an evening or waste time at work, but I’ll include only one video clip below  … the SubSonex with a new small self-contained jet engine.

SubSonex_2view

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Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee

  1. lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
  2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
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