From the FrumForum (say that three times fast):

First Brad Plumer in the New Republic, then Matt Yglesias on his site have marveled at the supposedly strange enthusiasm of conservatives for nuclear power. What’s strange about it? It’s pure cold economic rationality. If you wish to move away from carbon-emitting electricity sources, nuclear is far and away the cheapest choice. If we’re not going to rely more on nuclear power, then the reduction in carbon emissions will have to imply some dramatic reductions in standards of living.

I think that France has certainly demonstrated the wisdom of nuclear power from an economic perspective. The usual worries remain (waste disposal, Chernobyl, etc) but obviously coal doesn’t jive with liberal environmental goals and other types of energy just aren’t capable of delivering the same amounts of power. I think the conservative perspective is certainly to go with the most efficient form of power. Our natural inclination towards caution should also have us working hard on solutions about how to address the associated concerns.

Our populist-skewed views of American farmers is that they are always self-sufficient, always above the need for help. More skeptical views are that they are guilty of hypocrisy, complaining loudly about government assistance programs while taking farm subsidies themselves. Megan McArdle weighs in on the subject:

The core of the farmer aversion to welfare programs specifically is that old farmer maxim: “If you don’t work, you don’t eat.” But there’s a flip side to that: farmers never starve. They have lots and lots of other problems, and my grandparents’ generation was very poor. But with land, they eat and keep roofs over their heads.

So there’s a certain emotional resistance to the notion that it is necessary to provide food and shelter for able-bodied adults. And also a deep emotional resistance to going on assistance. They’re much more sympathetic to disability, social security, and other transfers to the less able-bodied.

There’s also the fact that one of the things that can make it very hard for a farmer to keep a roof over his head–aside from the debt he is prone to acquire during his more exuberant harvest seasons–is property taxes. They make near-subsistence farming nearly impossible.

So is this assessment fair? Farmers can raise a stink about welfare that doesn’t augment hard work but rather replaces it. On the other hand, urban poverty has certain extra danger in that subsistence living is impossible with no work and no land. This may be a case of apples to oranges. Or it might be a better example of why we need something like the WPA, which put young men from families on the dole to work. Most Americans are pretty okay with government support when it represents at least some amount of work. We just have a real aversion to something for nothing.

Still trying to sell our house and we had our first ’second showing’ today (cross your fingers folks!) We straightened up, hid any signs that this was actually a home people lived in and scurried out the door. With an hour to kill and the weather being absolutely beautiful for early November, our daughters asked if we could take Murphy to the dog park down the street. We obliged and spent 30 minutes watching our lab chase Dalmatians, golden retrievers and a general assortment of mutts. When Murphy started lying down for brief rests we knew he was ready to head home. A quick stop for some lunch fixings (soups and cheap microwave pizza – a favorite with the kids) and we returned home to a well-cleaned house (oh a rarity) and no obligations for the rest of the day.

Fed and full, the daughters retreated to watch TV and apparently style each other’s hair, while my wife and I, Murphy and the cats all headed to our bedroom. So I am getting some much-appreciated free time on the computer to read, blog and clean out my email while the wife and the pets snooze. I’m sitting here now with the window cracked and feeling a wonderful fall breeze, listening to my wife and my dog match each other’s breathing and then falling out of sync, both of them getting some well-needed rest, and thinking life is pretty good these days.

Very cool new tourist attraction in Harlan County.

From the Harlan Daily Enterprise (h/t Rural Blog)

Portal No. 31 mine will soon become operational once more, though this time instead of transporting coal from the mines it will transport interested museum patrons into the mines.

Located in Lynch, the mines was made famous in 1923 by setting a world record for coal production in a single nine-hour shift, producing more than 12,820 tons of coal.

Now the portal is being marketed as “more than a trip back in a mine, it is also a trip back in time.” The project to turn this closed mine into an exhibition museum mine began over 30 years ago. Now, after spending nearly $2.3 million in grant money on this state of the art exhibition, it will open to the public this month.

“This is the only exhibition coal mine museum in the United States and possibly the best exhibition mine of its kind in the world,” said Dr. Bruce Ayers, president of Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College.

During a press conference, the question was raised if the remoteness of the portal would be a problem to people interested in coming from outside of the county and state. Ayers explained that they had been asked several times why not make this sort of thing near the interstate. He said this is where mining took place, and people who may travel here should be able to see what a mining camp and town was like.

“We are trying to use the remoteness as part of the appeal of this attraction. Some of the most interesting places and things are often some of the most remote,” Ayers said.

I haven’t been to Harlan County for at least 15 year, but I remember it as an interesting trip. With that said, I’m glad to see anything that boosts tourism in Eastern Kentucky. Coal mining is obviously a very important part of our economic and cultural history. This new attraction is certainly a welcome addition to our historical resources around the state.

I’ve got a new post up over at Republicans United. Check it out.

A not-so-old quote from Kyle Cupp:

Much to my disappointment, I notice that I, on occasion, passionately hold opinions about matters of which I have little to no knowledge. On these occasions, when I come upon a view contrary to my own, I almost instinctively draw my sword, raise the banner, and launch a thousand ships, ready to battle in a fit of Homeric rage. Of course, my opponent has but to breathe the slightest breath in support of his position, and my sword is shattered, my banner is torn, and my fleet is lost to the stormy sea. I retreat and seek shelter in the labyrinths of Wikipedia or Google, hoping against hope that I might find some posthumous support for my uninformed opinion.

An old quote from Jonah Goldberg (h/t Conor Friedersdorf)

Dissent from Bush was muted for years, in large part because of 9/11 and the Iraq war. Conservatives, right or wrong, rallied to support their president, particularly in the face of shrill partisan attacks from Democrats who seemed more interested in tearing down the commander in chief than winning a war.

Always be wary the team mentality of politics. I must admit I found myself swept up in the victories of last night, despite my full agreement with this statement by Conor:

The core reason is my suspicion that were they returned to power tomorrow, things would turn out exactly as they did when the Republicans last controlled Congress and the White House.

We can’t let early victories go to our heads if we’re going to really evolve into something good for the country. I’m thrilled that we won some races last night but this is not a corner turned. Many of the same people who got us into this mess are still in office. We’ve still got a lot of work to do.  An interesting dynamic is raised by Goldberg though. How easy we let ourselves become defenders of policies we don’t really like because, y’know, that guy’s on my team and I want to be loyal.  Loyalty is earned – and should not be given blindly.

So I’m seeing a LOT of  ‘moderate’ Republicans complaining to the Heavens today about the way that poor Dede  Scozzafava was driven out of the NY congressional race.  Disingenious liberals are tut-tutting them and not-so-subtlely suggesting they tack just a little farther to the Left and jump ship a la Arlen Specter. A lot of ‘moderates’ are considering it and frankly, I’m happy if they go.

Longtime readers know I am not an ideological purist when it comes to the Republican party. I’m a conservative on about 90% of the issues, so it’s easy for me to say that, but I’m also pragmatic enough to know that we need all the votes we can get. My position has always been, if you want to caucus with us on gun rights or low taxes or national defense, we’d love to have you, but if you want us to return the favor by becoming pro-choice and marching for gay marriage…umm, you’re probably wasting your time. Politics does not have to be a reciprocal relationship and I don’t agree that it’s even good strategy to imply you will scratch their backs when the voting is done.

As I’ve stated many, many times, most of the folks that call themselves ‘moderates’ right now are just run-of-the-mill social liberals. In more civilized times they proudly called themselves New England or Rockefeller Republicans. Now they hide behind the ‘moderate’ label in exactly the same way that liberals hide behind ‘progressive’. This is a terrible injustice because it tarnishes the real moderates, like John McCain and Lindsay Graham. it also exposes their strategy which is not to co-exist where possible but to try and drag the GOP in their direction so they fit in better.

So here’s the deal guys: If you want to stay, stay. Accept that we aren’t heading in your direction and you are not the path to the mythical Center. Sometimes we agree with you and sometimes you look a lot more like Democrats than Republicans. For whatever reason, you want to have an (R) after your name. So great. That means be a dependable voter for our side and don’t threaten to jump ship like spoiled teenagers when we fight hard for a more conservative candidate than the social liberal you prefer. That’s what election politics are about, getting the candidate that best represents you on the ballot. It may not be fair but there are a lot more of us conservatives in the GOP than you ‘moderates’. In a democracy that usually means we win.

Headed out to the gun show on Saturday morning with a couple of friends. This was my first one in years. I just don’t buy guns. I am lucky enough to have all the ones I need and I find it hard to justify buying new guns regularly when I would usually rather spend my money on non-firearm hunting gear. But I needed a couple spare magazines for one of my handguns, so I thought I would hope for a bargain.

Gun shows are pretty fun if you A) Like guns B) Are a conservative and C) All of the above. I saw the prerequisite amount of anti-Obama propaganda, some of which was witty and some which was just kind of dumb. The crowd itself was 99.9% male, which makes for an interesting dynamic. Everyone was well-mannered, but you get the impression that if the stuff hit the fan there were a lot of guys in there that would love an excuse to open fire on the bad guys. And woe to the bad guys.

I had a talk with one of my friends on the way there and I think our consensus opinion was that gun show background checks are not a big deal. Yes, I know that when the Russians invade they will use gun registrations to round up potential insurgents, but I guess I just trust NORAD to keep that from happening. I continue to believe that gun owners as a group are some of the most law-abiding and loyal citizens we have. So we need to clean up our own backyard if we want to keep knee-jerk legislation from causing us grief. Read my old post on trafficking. That is where the problem lies. Fix that and a lot of our problems with guns go away.

I wasn’t able to locate the spare magazines (anyone know a good place to get some spares for a Smith & Wesson 2214?) I did buy some cheap flashlights and pocket knives for the emergency kits I am putting together for my car and the wife’s (more on my go-bag in a later post).

Daily Yonder makes a pretty convincing case for how to extend the school year, as the President has suggested, without forcing kids to stay in a classroom and extra month or two every year:

President Obama wants a longer school year. Great. But make sure that students spend part of that year learning from and about their communities.

…

In other words, meet your state’s standards, but use the community as a classroom. Knowledge needed for passing tests is important, but students can acquire that knowledge by doing. Engage students in hands-on projects with community members to build understanding, practical knowledge, and leadership skills. The knowledge and skills of adults can be used as great teaching tools with students while also improving life in the community.

And don’t forget to leave time for outdoor play so that students can exercise while being exposed to changing seasons and life in their surroundings. Creative, self-directed play, coupled with formal, guided environmental education, can foster closer relationships with playmates and nature.

This sounds like a winner of an idea to me. Having worked in public education I’m a HUGE proponent of educational opportunities outside of the classroom. Imagine then that when May rolled around, instead of kids leaving for three months, they started coming to school on half days for the next two months, with no uniforms, plenty of breaks for socialization and physical activity and time spent on field trips and/or community service projects? That’s a school I would have enjoyed attending.

In addition, rather than having the same teachers they had the previous year, they can use the summer session to begin to get to know their new teachers in a more fun and informal way. I would go so far as to suggest teachers coach intramural-type teams in a variety of athletic and non-athletic competitions throughout the summer, or even participate as a team member. The summer sessions can be used as trust-building periods and also to help socialize the students better with one another which cuts down on bullying and other social problems.

I think when presented with new and innovative approaches that give kids a more well-rounded education, most parents will choose more school if they know it is being done well. Kids might even come to look forward to the extra school time if it provides a break in the routine they can chafe against. One other idea might even to be to create smaller and more infrequent periods of informal learning opportunities. Kids can be pretty darned focus if they know that once every six weeks they get a week of casual clothes, field trips and 2 hour recesses. We just have to be willing to think outside the box to find an arrangement which makes the most sense.

No posts today. It’s my anniversary.

Five years ago I made the smartest decision of my life and married my wife.  We’re going to celebrate the day and I’m going to give myself permission to neglect my readers.

See you guys on the flip side.

Not too long after I started The Big Stick I was posting about some alfredo I had made the night before and one of my commentors left me a link to this dish for pasta with a creamy tomato sauce and shrimp. My wife and kids don’t like seafood but they fell in love with the sauce and it has become a regular request in our house. It makes me feel like a famous chef when I hear them singing its praises to our friends and extended family, even though it’s so easy to make I can’t claim credit.

I was a decent cook before finding that recipe, but my cooking has gone to a new level since then. The site that I owe my cooking success to is The Pioneer Woman, a blog started by a stay-at-home mom who lives on a cattle ranch in Oklahoma. Her blog is like an urban (rural?) legend that the rest of us bloggers talk about in hushed whispers.  We think, “Maybe someday I’ll have that kind of traffic and make the big bucks on advertising and get a book deal.” The truth is that Ree Drummond captured lightning in a bottle with her site and while there are successful imitators, her unique blend of photography, cooking and stories about an amazing place she calls home is impossible to duplicate.

My favorite feature of Ree’s site is her cooking section, where she posts recipes for simple, satisfying food that makes you think of your grandmother’s cooking and temporarily forget your waistline. We’ve tried a lot of the recipes at our house (so many that my wife claims I’m in love with the Pioneer Woman and rolls her eyes whenever I tell her where I got the idea for tonight’s dinner).  The high percentage of these recipes which find their way into our ‘keep’ folder is a testament not only to Ree’s skill in the kitchen but also to her style of showing the cooking process step-by-step which is a big help to mistake prone chefs like myself.

Yesterday Ree’s first cookbook went on sale. The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl will probably find its way onto our kitchen counter soon and I’m man enough to admit it. Spend some time over at her site. Check out the recipes and I dare you to try a few of them. Start with the pasta, then the Crash Hot Potatoes and then the Marlboro Man sandwich. If you’re still not convinced, your taste buds are beyond my help.

The Federal Duck Stamp program turned 75 this year. The Daily Yonder gives some specifics on the program here:

The government prints 3.1 million duck stamps a year. The government has been printing duck stamps since 1934 and the program has raised more than $750 million, enough to purchase 6 million acres of wildlife habitat.

Before anyone thinks the duck stamp program is a way for the government to get more money for its treasury, readers should know that 98 cents of every dollar used to purchase Duck Stamps goes directly to buying or leasing wetland habitat for wildlife. The Federal Duck Stamp program remains yet another example of the positive way in which hunters contribute towards wildlife conservation through fees and taxes which we have actually asked for (how often do groups ask to be charged for something). Additional funds for these efforts come from hunting licenses, ammo and gun sales and contributions through private groups like Ducks Unlimited. 

I have been purchasing Federal Duck Stamps for hunting waterfowl since 1993. Every year I affix them to the back of my hunting license and then I save then when the season ends for my collection. I’m happy to contribute and I’m equally happy to have the memento. This year’s stamp, pictured above, is already in my wallet, ready for the season opener in November.  Every one of these stamps holds memories of another season afield for me. I can’t think of a better way to support your sport and to remember the years spent doing it.

It seems that stimulus funding is not happening at the rate it was originally projected. An article at The American discusses the breakdown in the stimulus spending:

The administration recently announced that stimulus spending totaled $113 billion by the end of fiscal 2009 (which ended September 30). While this top-line number was consistent with what the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected when the bill passed, the composition of spending differs significantly from the original estimates. Transfer payments to states and individuals for unemployment insurance and education have far exceeded initial projections, while spending for construction and infrastructure projects, designed to fuel job creation, is far below the original plan.

So rather than funding the kinds of projects that create jobs and get people employed, most of the stimulus money is going to unemployment benefits and education as a stop-gap measure while projects are tied up.

A closer look at the implementation of the stimulus bill reveals why it is not surprising that the bill has failed to meet its objective of stimulating the economy.

The Departments of Commerce, Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, Interior, and Transportation have spent less than 10 percent of their stimulus funds, far less than what was originally anticipated.Federal departments and agencies tasked with spending money on infrastructure and construction have overwhelmingly failed to get the money out the door. The Departments of Commerce, Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, Interior, and Transportation have spent less than 10 percent of their stimulus funds, far less than what was originally anticipated. In the case of the Department of Energy, the stimulus bill provided $38.7 billion to promote energy efficiency and develop renewable energy sources, yet only $779 million, or 2 percent, of the money was spent by September 30, less than half of what was expected. The Department of Transportation, with its particular emphasis on shovel-ready projects, spent 8 percent of its stimulus funds—only three-fourths of what it was expected to have spent thus far. Other agencies have done far worse—National Institutes for Health and the National Science Foundation spent only 1 percent of their stimulus funds in the first seven months. At that rate, those agencies would take 58 years to exhaust their stimulus money.

This is another example of red tape delaying real progress, or as my grandfather used to say, “This is a nickel holding up a quarter.” What I have noticed is that in my own city and elsewhere (I’ve been out of Louisville twice in the last month) there are a lot of basic road projects being done. Unfortunately this isn’t forward-looking infrastructure improvements, but rather just maintenance on existing roads. Traffic has been a bear (in relative terms) for the last month here in the ‘Ville as roads are resurfaced across the city.

The unfortunate narrative for the first stimulus package (I expect a second to follow) is that it will mostly be used for unemployment, providing a band-aid when surgery is needed. It’s a stop-gap measure and at the rate of current spending there will be nothing left for anything else.

The CBO originally estimated that some of the money provided in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for infrastructure would not be spent until 2019. Meanwhile, spending for transfer programs, especially for unemployment insurance benefits, and new and existing federal education spending, is proceeding much faster than anticipated. States received $6.5 billion more than CBO estimated for education through the Department of Education’s new State Fiscal Stabilization Fund. Spending for student financial assistance at the Department of Education also outstripped CBO’s original estimate by about the same amount. Altogether, the Department of Education spent $20.6 billion by the end of fiscal 2009, $11.7 billion more than anticipated. The Department of Labor spent $27.5 billion, an amount that exceeded CBO’s original estimate by nearly $10 billion, because total unemployment benefits were substantially more than expected. The Department of Health and Human Services was the biggest spender by department, with nearly $33 billion in outlays…

I had dreams when this money was first promised, of a WPA for the 21st century. I had hoped we could put young people to work doing important and necessary projects while also equipping them with the skills needed for a lifetime of income earning. Now it seems this is tied up in a government that cannot move fast enough on even are most pressing needs.

So last night we went to our first middle school open house as we try to make a decision on where we would like our youngest daughter to go next year. For those unfamiliar, the way the Jefferson County public school system (JCPS) works is that you have 3 options for middle schools. The first is to just let your kid go to their ‘reside’ school which is the school closest to your house. We don’t like that option because the school closest to us has a terrible reputation and our daughters only know it as ‘the school where kids fight all the time’.

The second option is to get your child into a ‘traditional school’ which is one of about 6 middle schools we have in the system that are on the traditional program. These schools focus on the basic reading, writing, artithmetic model, plus foreign language, social studies and art. All of them have a good reputation, but the high-level of structure can be tough for some kids. Our oldest daughter was lucky enough to get into a traditional program and she loved it at her school, but for several reasons we don’t think the traditional program is the best fit for our other daughter (my wife calls her a ‘free spirit’ which is a nice way of saying she’s kind of weird – but weird in a good way). An additional problem even if we did choose this option is that the pipeline from traditional elementary schools to traditional middle schools has gotten so tight that there is no room for kids coming from a regular elementary school anymore.

The third option is a ‘magnet’ program. Several schools in the district have these. Some have a math and science magnet, one is performing arts and the one we are most interested in has an International Studies program. We thought this would be an interesting program for our daughter, but the more important thing is that we really like the school.  When we visited last night I loved that it was an old building (circa 1920’s by my estimate) and we liked what we saw. We are also impressed with a unique program they use called looping. 

Looping is a system where the teachers that our daughter would have next year as a 6th grader would stay with her for all 3 years at the school. The teachers would move up each year with the kids and would develop a much tighter bond and also become more aware of the student’s strengths and weaknesses. As we were told last night, this also means when the kids return from summer break they pick up right where they left off and there is no get-to-know you period. School officials estimate this gives kids an extra month of learning within the 3 years they are there. We were also told that when the program was first tried in the school using an experimental group, their standardized test scores were an average 20% better than the kids that didn’t loop. Now it is a school-wide program and the teachers apparently love it.

So that’s our life right now until December when we submit all of our paperwork and start praying (reminder: ask my mother who the patron saint of education is). We have a few more schools to visit, but I think my wife and I have already made up our minds. Now we just have to convince the kid who actually has to go there.

Catholic News Agency (h/t First Things) has the text of an essay by Archbishop Charles Chaput of the Archdiocese of Denver wherein he explains some of the opposition to President Obama’s speech at Notre Dame this spring. I know this is an old issue and I’m not trying to resurrect it. As a pro-life Catholic I found the perspective interesting:

First, resistance to President Obama’s appearance at Notre Dame had nothing to do with whether he is a good or bad man. He is obviously a gifted man. He has many good moral and political instincts, and an admirable devotion to his family. These things matter. But unfortunately, so does this: The President’s views on vital bioethical issues, including but not limited to abortion, differ sharply from Catholic teaching. This is why he has enjoyed the strong support of major “abortion rights” groups for many years. Much is made, in some religious circles, of the President’s sympathy for Catholic social teaching. But defense of the unborn child is a demand of social justice. There is no “social justice” if the youngest and weakest among us can be legally killed. Good programs for the poor are vital, but they can never excuse this fundamental violation of human rights.

Second, at a different moment and under different circumstances, the conflict at Notre Dame might have faded away if the university had simply asked the President to give a lecture or public address. But at a time when the American bishops as a body had already voiced strong concern about the new administration’s abortion policies, Notre Dame not only made the President the centerpiece of its graduation events, but also granted him an honorary doctorate of laws – this, despite his deeply troubling views on abortion law and related social issues.

The real source of Catholic frustration with President Obama’s appearance at Notre Dame was his overt, negative public voting and speaking record on abortion and other problematic issues. By its actions, Notre Dame ignored and violated the guidance of America’s bishops in their 2004 document, “Catholics in Political Life.” In that text, the bishops urged Catholic institutions to refrain from honoring public officials who disagreed with Church teaching on grave matters.

Thus, the fierce debate in American Catholic circles this spring over the Notre Dame honor for Mr. Obama was not finally about partisan politics. It was about serious issues of Catholic belief, identity and witness – triggered by Mr. Obama’s views — which Cardinal Cottier, writing from outside the American context, may have misunderstood.

It is troubling to me when political factions cherry-pick from Catholic doctrine to suit their needs. Conservatives select abortion but ignore opposition to capital punishment and protection of the poor. Liberals select the vague notion of ’social justice’ but ignore abortion. The Catholic Church continues to play an important role in American culture and in some ways is the most powerful of American churches in that it spans the two-party system and could never fairly be attributed solely to either.

It is for this reason that the Church must stand firm on its principles. Notre Dame, as a very visible symbol of national Catholic unity, made a mistake this spring. The Church cannot afford to make too many more like that. Our unity is what binds us and our adherence to doctrine is what makes us strong in the face of outside challenge.