Somali pirates seize another ship

In what seems to be an increasingly common, or at least an increasingly covered, event, Somali pirates have hijacked another mercant vessel. Add this to the recent hijacking of the Sirius Star, and the battle a few weeks ago between an Indian frigate and a pirate mothership, and add it to the nearly forty hijackings that have taken place this year. I couldn’t find figures to see if this number is up from previous years (I’m certain it is, but I’m curious as to the degree of the spike).

It looks like the Gulf of Aden is becoming one of the most dangerous areas for commerce in the world. People here in the US hear “pirate,” and giggle and think of Johnny Depp or Erroll Flynn, but the reality is these men are cold-blooded killers with machine guns.

German, French, Indian, and Malaysian fleets appear to be stepping up their presence in the area, which is helpful, and hopefully will serve to deter some of these marauders. But they’ve been brazen enough as to attack another country’s naval vessels before, so more clashes are probably inevitable

Death on Black Friday

My wife went out to doorbusters at Target this morning, and while she said it was busy, it was thankfully nothing like this.

A man is dead and a pregnant women was sent to the hospital after a crowd of nearly 1000 apparently physically tore open the doors and dashed inside. This is an unbelievable tragedy, and an awful way to start the holiday season. My thoughts go out to the families affected.

Herd mentality can always be dangerous, but what makes this so senseless is that it’s not a rush to get out of a burning building or the starving surging forward to get food. No the reason is just so people could save a few dollars on a Wii, or something similar!

Man, so disheartening to hear this.

Dmitry and Vladimir: Hugo’s new BFFs!

Great news for the Western Hemisphere! Apparently Russia, that long-standing champion of one-party rule and totalitarianism, will be assisting the Chavez regime in developing a nuclear program. The same article cites recent arms sales from Russia to Venezuela nearing $4 billion. And don’t forget the Russian warships sailing blissfully into a Venezuelan port.

No worries, though! Comrade Medvedev assures us that this activity “isn’t directed at one nation.” Great! I totally believe you! That makes me feel a lot better!

Medvedev, besides Peru and Brazil, is also visiting Cuba on his tour. The fact that Russia is appearing to strengthen ties with socialist countries in Latin and South America ought to be troubling especially as relations have cooled to arctic levels over the Georgia issue.  The Monroe Doctrine, which might have provided a policy reason to oppose Russian interference, has sadly been dead since we allowed China to purchase the Panama Canal Zone.

One other thought: do you know who else Russia has offered to assist in her nuclear ambitions? That’s right, Iran! Which means that very soon, Mahmoud might get invited to the treehouse …

Scary happenings in India

Islamic militants have killed 119 people in Mumbai (Bombay to some) and India’s Prime Minister is pointing a subtle finger at Pakistan. Hopefully tensions are winding down, but this could get very ugly if two nations with nukes that hate each other come to blows.

Happy Thanksgiving

Well, I’m getting ready to head to work on this holiday morning. Microbes don’t take days off, unfortunately. I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving, and I hope you take a moment to remember all the blessings we all have and we all take for granted.

See you later, and take it easy till then.

Here I am, and here I’ll stay.

Well, now I’m here and I’ve embarked on the great and sometimes tortuous journey that is Internet blogging. I have a lot of musings and opinions on a great many things, some inane, some interesting. I hope any who come here to visit find this place at the least entertaining, and every once in a while, stimulating to their own thought process.

This is going to be a blog about current events of all kinds, stuff in the news, and the things that affect a lot of us. This isn’t going to be another blog about how cute someone’s dog looked this morning, or how bad this season of The Hills is, or how great this breakfast burrito is. No, I’d like to offer you my opinions and observations on what we see going on in the world today.

That means that inevitably, I’ll probably express a view you disagree with. That’s OK – it’s great, in fact, as a vigorous public dialogue is one of the great strengths of this country. I’ll try to present reasonable rationalizations for my arguments, and I’ll hope you’ll do the same.

Now, a bit about me:

I’m a 27-year-old husband and father of one beautiful daughter residing the great Buckeye state of Ohio. My day job is in the microbiology field, I have played guitar for 13 years, and aspire to one day write science fiction novels. I’m Catholic and tend to be conservative in most of my views, but by no means do I bear blind allegiance to a political party. I love football, and I’m a fan of The Ohio State University, and a long-suffering supporter of the Cincinnati Bengals. I very much appreciate an irreverent, even sarcastic, sense of humor, but I also respect the importance of gravity of those things which demand it.

Anyway, I’m glad you stopped by, and I hope you’ll come back. Take it easy till then.

The greatest rivalry in college football

As I mentioned, I’m an unashamed Buckeyes football fan. Yes, I was completely heartbroken the last two years as they’ve gotten clobbered in the national title games. But there’s one thing you can always look forward to every year, and that’s the annual game against that School from Up North.

This year, Michigan is a complete joke. The game was competitive early, but Ohio State just blew the doors off early in the second half as the Wolverines just looked flat out undermanned. It’s gratifying to blow out your rival and get that win (especially five in a row – kudos to you, Tressel!) but at the same time it means more if Michigan fields a decent team.

The Wolverines will be better next year, but with all their youth, they may still struggle as Rich Rodriguez begins to install the much-vaunted spread offense. In the meantime, Penn State is headed to the Rose Bowl, and the Buckeyes prepare for a bowl against a possible *gulp* SEC opponent.

Gates to stay on as SecDef

Reports are that Obama is going to retain Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense. Let me be clear about this – I think this is a great decision. Gates has proven himself to be quite capable, and with two conflicts currently underway, bringing in someone completely new would be a disaster.

It’s the only Cabinet choice I like so far. It appears that a lot of his team are going to be retreads from the Clinton administration. I understand the need to surround yourself with “competent” people, but it only serves to underscore Obama’s own inexperience, and it makes that ubiquitous campaign slogan of “Change, Change, Change” ring just a tad hollow, particularly after he spent so much time highlighting the so-called “failed” wartime policies of the Bush administration. Rehiring the guy that’s running those “failed policies” just shows it was all just hot gas to score some votes.

The Election of 2008

After the endless campaign that lasted two years, the election is fast receding in our rear view mirrors. As President-Elect Obama begins to fill his Cabinet, I offer you a few thoughts.

Up front, I voted for McCain in this past election. I was concerned about Obama’s complete lack of experience, his views on foreign policy, taxation, and health care, and yes, some of his personal associations. And I was utterly turned off by the hyperventilating and exuberant coverage of his campaign and the unquestioning cult of personality some of his supporters bought into. In my view, he was nowhere close to being vetted, and the media relinquished their responsibility to journalism to become cheerleaders for Hope and Change.

In any case, my guy lost, and Obama won, for which he deserves credit on running a successful campaign and on having the honored distinction of being elected our first black President. I wish him well and I hope he does a good job in the office. His cause was helped by a listless McCain, who was quite possibly the worst potential candidate the Republicans could have fielded. McCain’s success in the primaries was due to their front-loaded nature, and in some states, the ability of Democrats and independents to water down the Republican vote. I hope the GOP takes a long look at their primary process, just as the Democrats need to take a look at theirs as well.

McCain was also aided by a media perception that he was the most “electable,” that his moderate to liberal views would deepen the base of support for the Republicans. His defeat should dispel those perceptions, and I would caution the GOP against some sort of move to the left. The conservative base was let down this election by a candidate who has spent the last several years working against them, and he didn’t help the GOP in the general electorate as given a choice between a Democrat and kind-of-a-Democrat, folks will choose the real thing.

Despite breathless predictions to the contrary, I firmly believe that this is a center-right country, and Republicans need to remember the success they had in the past was based on running on conservative principles, not by pandering to a shifting and in some cases imaginary center.

Only time will tell what the future holds.