Last Chance Cafe

[Note: I'm off to Brazil for a week to tie up the main product line for the store and look around for other interesting stuff. I'm not taking the laptop, and will enjoy not understanding a word of the local newscasts. When I come back the site may have a more professional look to it, as I've hired a professional to make it that way. The writing and other content will remain in an amateurish condition. In the meantime here is a little essay I've prepared on "Global Warming." It's a complicated subject with many scientists and other really smart people disagreeing, so I've tried to make it simple.

My Essay on Global Warming

OK. So we've got global warming. What does this mean? Let's look at the 'Ice Age.' Back then it was cold. I also remember seeing movies where dinosaurs walked the earth and it was hot, and there were volcanoes and stuff. Man, apparently, wasn't around. So what happened to make it go from hot to cold, and then back again?

My spidey senses tell me that things change. Sometimes they get cold, sometimes they get hot. There's another thing. Things move. I know this because we have earthquakes where I live. As a matter of fact, we have volcanoes too. The last place I lived was likely the most famous place for earthquakes: Los Angeles (even though lots of other places have lots more earthquakes, like Japan, which is like, really shaking around all the time. I think it's because we have George Clooney and Angelina Jolie, who are really good looking and nobody wants to see a house fall on them. Well almost nobody.). Earthquakes can be scary.

I learned a word called 'Pangaea.' I think it was in a comic strip and I couldn't get the joke until I looked up the word. The joke was that one of the characters was old. Pangaea was an ancient 'super-continent' hanging around during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras, which, for those of you still out of the loop, was a really long time ago. It then split up into bits and then the bits floated around and bumped into each other until we have all the different continents we have now. They are still moving, thus: earthquakes, a perfectly acceptable scientifically provable factoid.

Considering my current residence (nice warm Central America with toasty volcanoes), and last (where we also have Huntington Beach where people lie around in the sun all day trying to use up all the heat), you may correctly surmise that I prefer the warmth instead of the cold. So, considering the fact that things change, and it is getting warmer, I don't find this a necessarily bad thing. If things were getting colder, I would be worrying, like they did in the seventies (the only thing I was worrying about in the seventies was who had the best weed).

However, this isn't a very vexing issue for me though, because compared to the lifespan of the earth, my lifespan is in the 'shortish' range. By the time I'm done screwing around here and ready for the 'next' life, whatever that may or may not be, it will still be relatively warm, even if in fact it is getting colder. But some people do worry about such things. Not the cold now, mind you, but the 'warmth.' Remember we are dealing here with global warming.

The main thing they worry about is whether or not mankind is responsible for global warming. Considering the whole dinosaur thing and the ice age and Pangaea and all of that (when we weren't even around), I think if we are responsible, it's by very little.

First of all let's eliminate the moving around question. It's not fixable. The earth has a liquidey center called hot lava. It also has a crispy crust like good pizza, that moves around on top of it. Sometimes when the earth moves the hot lava wants to bubble up out of the ground and we get stuff like Krakatoa (west, not east of Java), which threw up so much ash that it actually cooled the earth and made it snow on the other side of the world in the summer. It still remains warm in the South Pacific. We'll have to consider this a wild card that we can't do much about.

Then there's the trade winds. And sun spots. And ocean currents. How do we fix all this? We can't, but even so, maybe we could do something about our own small part in this: if we wanted to. So that's the first question, do we want to?

Figure this, if we stop global warming, then what happens? It gets cold. Remember, things change. It is either getting hotter or getting colder. I think you already know where I stand on this issue. Now, some people prefer the cold. Like my brother. I think there is something wrong with him, but everybody has family problems. And rich people like to ski. [This is a good point for liberals: Liberals want to tax the rich. It feels good. Let's deprive the rich of their skiing by letting the earth warm a little more. It'll be fun.]

Some people believe that cold people trying to keep warm promulgated modern civilization. Consider that in the Pacific Islands Captain Cook discovered perfectly happy people with a long history of plucking fruit from the trees and running around naked having lots of sex. It was warm there. Captain Cook was from damp and cold old England. He liked it so much that we then populated the place with white people and introduced syphilis.

Why did people like Captain Cook and the King of England spend all their time and money going out and discovering stuff? Answer: because they were cold. Cold is also why the Swedes figured out how to build sturdy buildings to keep out the weather. Ergo: we have Ikea to furnish all those warm houses.

So here we have all these cold people, historically looking into warmer climes and building warmer houses. Are they the ones that want the earth colder? I think not. I think all the people heading to Brighton Beach on holiday want more time to get a tan, like in Hollywood. So who are these people who want to stop global warming? Is one of them you? History is against you.

Please reconsider.

Posted by petefredbob at 06:46 AM | Permalink

I don't write much about idiots trying to destroy business, even though I live in Costa Rica which seems to take it as a given that this is a good thing. Here we have an idiotic system where you need a 'patenta' to open a restaurant, which in populated areas aren't available anymore from the government. You have to find someone who owns one, and rent it. It's a huge after-government market.

Depending on what kind of restaurant and where you want to open it this could cost you thirty thousand dollars or more for a ten-year rental. I'm told that you can get one for free from the government, if you are in a less populated area, but it is a two year process give or take.

Thus I reprint an AP article via the WSJ about similar idiocy from France, where they are currently protesting a law that will open up the job market for the unemployed.

PARIS -- French lawmakers approved an online copyright bill Tuesday that would require Apple Computer Inc. to break open the exclusive format behind its market-leading iTunes music store and iPod players.

The draft law -- which also introduces new penalties for music pirates -- would force Apple, Sony Corp. and others to share proprietary copy-protection technologies so that rivals can offer compatible services and players.

Lawmakers in the National Assembly, France's lower house, approved the bill 296-193. The legislation now has to be debated and voted by the Senate -- a process expected to begin in May.

Apple has so far refused to comment on the bill or on analysts' suggestions that the Cupertino, Calif.-based company might choose to withdraw from the French online music market rather than share the proprietary technology at the heart of its business model. Representatives for Apple France did not return calls Tuesday.

Under the bill, companies would be required to reveal the secrets of hitherto-exclusive copy-protection technologies such as Apple's FairPlay format and the ATRAC3 code used by Sony's Connect store and Walkman players.

That could permit consumers for the first time to download music directly to their iPods from stores other than iTunes, or to rival music players from iTunes France.

The new legislation would also introduce penalties ranging from �38 to �150 ($50 to $180) for those caught pirating music or movies at home and �3,750 ($4,600) for hackers who disable copy-protection systems. Those caught distributing software for online piracy face fines of up to �300,000 ($365,000) and jail terms.

In the spirit of "Who is John Galt?" I hope that Apple just pulls out of France. Only in a post-modern world could the government think it was a good thing to steal the formula for a proprietary system and give it to one's competitors, and then jack up the fines for those prone-to-protest college kids for merely copying a song.

Update: Apple responds and calls the proposed law, rightfully I believe, "state-sponsored piracy." Also, according to an email this morning, "Variety notes that withdrawing from France would not affect Apple's bottom line dramatically, since the French iTunes represents less than 2% of the company's online music business"

Apple Blasts French Move
To Force Opening of iTunes
By NICK WINGFIELD
March 22, 2006 9:57 a.m.

Apple Computer Inc. blasted an effort by French lawmakers that could force Apple to make its iPod and iTunes Music Store work with digital music products from other companies, in the computer maker's first public comment on the proposed law.

Lawmakers in the National Assembly, France's lower house, on Tuesday approved a bill by a vote of 296-193 that aims to require Apple to open the digital-music format used by the iPod and iTunes to other companies, along with similar technologies from other companies like Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp.

The bill, if it passes into law after going to the French Senate for a vote, could force Apple, of Cupertino, Calif., to make songs it sells through iTunes in France work on digital-music players other than the iPod and, similarly, to allow songs purchased on music sites other than iTunes work on the iPod. Such an outcome would present a challenge to a closed system that has helped Apple strengthen its position in digital music, analysts believe.

But Apple said the French action will result in "state-sponsored piracy" by encouraging French users to seek out illegally copied music.

"If this happens, legal music sales will plummet just when legitimate alternatives to piracy are winning over customers," Apple said in the statement. "IPod sales will likely increase as users freely load their iPods with 'interoperable' music which cannot be adequately protected. Free movies for iPods should not be far behind in what will rapidly become a state-sponsored culture of piracy," the company said.

Analysts on Tuesday speculated that Apple might simply abandon the French market with its music products rather than comply with a law that could prompt similar efforts by other governments.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the company's plans beyond the statement.

The legislation � which also introduces new penalties for music pirates � now has to be debated and voted by the Senate, a process expected to begin in May.

Under the bill, companies would be required to reveal the secrets of hitherto-exclusive copy-protection technologies such as Apple's FairPlay format and the ATRAC3 code used by Sony's Connect store and Walkman players. That could permit consumers for the first time to download music directly to their iPods from stores other than iTunes, or to rival music players from iTunes France.

The new legislation would also introduce penalties ranging from �38 to �150 ($50 to $180) for those caught pirating music or movies at home and �3,750 for hackers who disable copy-protection systems. Those caught distributing software for online piracy face fines of up to �300,000 and jail terms.

Posted by petefredbob at 03:39 PM | Permalink

It's almost like magic; Mel Gibson's new film, Apocalypto, has started to spur articles like this one from Reuters on Mayan archeological sites in the Yucatan Peninsula.

So is it good press, or bad press? Depends, I guess.

TULUM, Mexico (Reuters) - The ancient Maya once believed that Mexico's jungle sinkholes containing crystalline waters were the gateway to the underworld and the lair of a surly rain god who had to be appeased with human sacrifices.

Now, the "cenotes", deep sinkholes in limestone that have pools at the bottom, are yielding scientific discoveries including possible life-saving cancer treatments.

Ok, we can cure cancer. On page 2 of the story:

Among the startling discoveries are microorganisms that live in the transitional zone where the fresh water rivers flow out into the Caribbean, and salt-water sponges which may contain anti-tumor compounds.

"Research is at an early stage, but it is quite possible that the bacteria and sponges may have potential biomedical applications including cures for cancer," Iliffe told Reuters in a telephone interview. "There is a great deal of scientific excitement about it."

OK, we can cure cancer with "anti-tumor compounds," sounds logical. Cancer consists of tumors, I think, so ant-tumor compounds seem the way to go. Rah. But wait, Page 3:

The hundreds of tourists who dive and snorkel each day in any of a dozen cenotes and caves open to the public are also unwittingly destroying the ecosystems before they can be properly understood, Iliffe says.

"Fish are following the divers into the caves and they gobble up all the life, and they (the caves) are left biologically sterile," he said.

"When you consider that they could possibly lead to a cure for cancer, it is essential to conserve them."

Again, a cure for cancer mentioned on all three pages, but there's trouble. Humans. You know, the people with the cancer.

THREATENED BY DEVELOPMENT

In the past three decades the population of the Riviera Maya has soared 10-fold to close to 1 million people, as tourists from the United States, Europe and Mexico flock to the palm-fringed strip to soak up the sun.

So, people go to the 'Mayan' Peninsula, spend lots of money, set up a working infrastructure, which enables the researchers to discover a cure for cancer, and they are now considered a problem because they are there.

The underlying critique, is now that people are going to see this sumptuous film, they also will want to go and see the ruins, adding to the human element that is destroying the cure for cancer: for humans. Never mind that Cancun, the jump-off point for your preferred Mayan tour, still recuperating from a big hurricane hit is in desperate need of tourists.

As Gibson will likely be the subject of future articles as a positive influence on renewed tourism in the area (as Savannah benefited from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil), Reuters in a preemptive strike, reports on the cloud around the silver lining. Take that Mel.

Posted by petefredbob at 08:01 AM | Permalink

Haphazard as usual posting, but I have a good excuse this time: I'm the proud owner of a new store. It's empty for the time being, but in a couple of months I expect it to define fashion for the younger set in Costa Rica.

I'll be bringing in boots and shoes from Brazil, corsets and the like from L.A., stuff from Japan and whatever else I happen to like. Maybe even Dickies. We'll see.

To celebrate the birth of my new baby I'll be doing what all new proud parents do; posting pictures. Here are the first:

Here we have the front door, currently carrying the name "ShoeStock." This of course will be changed, but I'll save that for a future post.

Here is my next-door neighbor. As these things happen, the owner of this store is related to a friend of ours, who also happens to be on the board of our corporation. My landlord, unbeknownst to us at the time we decided on this place, is an old friend of my girlfriend, which made negotiations much easier.

Here's the overview as it is. It's a pretty high ceiling, which I will drop a bit, and has plenty of storage and a place for the office in back.

Speaking of the office, here 'tis. I'll be slapping up a (thick) wall or two to keep out the ladrones. In light of a recent discussion on the internet, I'll be going for a carbine of some sort instead of the shotgun I had in mind. Notice the security window.

La Doña de la tienda, marking her territory where the register will be.

Looking out the front window at Centro Comercial Munoz & Nanna in beautiful downtown San Pedro, Costa Rica, my new haunt for the next couple of years. There are two universities within spitting distance and traffic seems to be nonstop. I hope it stops at least for a few minutes at my place.

I'll post more stuff as it happens, especially the expected bureaucratic snafus with all the colorful details.

Posted by petefredbob at 05:57 PM | Permalink

A few days ago Captain Ed requested a blogswarm in response to a report issued by Mark Denbeaux, a Professor at Seton Hall University School of Law and Counsel to two Guantanamo detainees. The purpose of the blogswarm is to try and provide a rapid evaluation of this report, which is based on quite a bit of evidence recently unclassified and released by the US government pertaining to why they are still holding 517 detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba.

The idea of a blogswarm is to take advantage of the internet to muster as many resources as possible in the shortest amount of time. I downloaded and analyzed one set of documents that included four detainees and sent my take back to Ed.

Mr. Denbeaux, as counsel for two of the detainees, has an interest in presenting the data released by the government as in favor of his clients. My purpose in participating is to address two concerns. The first is to make sure that the government is not pressured politically into releasing detainees that are likely to return to combat. The second is to satisfy my concerns that these people are in fact dangerous.

It's scary to think that someone is being held that does not deserve to be held, especially for a long period of time. Aside from the bad PR that is Guantanamo, it is entirely hypocritical to our purpose in the war. You don't free a people by locking them up. I was just as interested in finding reasons to release any one of these individuals, if not more so, than I was to find a reason to keep them.

I'll refrain from disclosing my opinion until Ed has a chance to compile his report. If you want to participate click here as I think there are a few more reports left. I'll post a link to the finished version when it's complete.

Posted by petefredbob at 10:02 AM | Permalink