The Volokh Conspiracy » Cultural Defense Accepted as to Nonconsensual Sex in New Jersey Trial Court, Rejected on Appeal
"While recognizing that defendant had engaged in sexual relations with plaintiff against her expressed wishes in November 2008 and on the night of January 15 to 16, 2009, the judge did not find sexual assault or criminal sexual conduct to have been proven.
He stated:
This court does not feel that, under the circumstances, that this defendant had a criminal desire to or intent to sexually assault or to sexually contact the plaintiff when he did.
The court believes that he was operating under his belief that it is, as the husband, his desire to have sex when and whether he wanted to, was something that was consistent with his practices and it was something that was not prohibited.
After acknowledging that this was a case in which religious custom clashed with the law, and that under the law, plaintiff had a right to refuse defendant’s advances, the judge found that defendant did not act with a criminal intent when he repeatedly insisted upon intercourse, despite plaintiff’s contrary wishes."
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Did Government Meddling Cripple The Dodge Dart?
Did Government Meddling Cripple The Dodge Dart? | The Truth About Cars
"Just over a year ago, UAW members at the plant had just authorized a strike at the Dundee plant over a change in shift schedules – despite an apparent agreement not to strike, as another condition of the bailout. The FIRE engine, widely panned in the Dart, seems to exist solely to satisfy the requirement that Fiat build a 40 MPG car in America – a requirement that TTAC summarily exposed as bogus, since the agreement stated that the car must get 40 MPG “unadjusted”, or roughly 30 MPG combined in the “real world” fuel economy figures that everyone is familiar with.
But without the 40 MPG Dart, the diminutive FIRE engine and U.S. production of the FIRE engine, Fiat would not have received their 20 percent stake in Chrysler, along with the option to increase their share in 5 percent increments once these milestones (the third being Fiat recording $1.5 billion in revenue outside the NAFTA Zone)."
"Just over a year ago, UAW members at the plant had just authorized a strike at the Dundee plant over a change in shift schedules – despite an apparent agreement not to strike, as another condition of the bailout. The FIRE engine, widely panned in the Dart, seems to exist solely to satisfy the requirement that Fiat build a 40 MPG car in America – a requirement that TTAC summarily exposed as bogus, since the agreement stated that the car must get 40 MPG “unadjusted”, or roughly 30 MPG combined in the “real world” fuel economy figures that everyone is familiar with.
But without the 40 MPG Dart, the diminutive FIRE engine and U.S. production of the FIRE engine, Fiat would not have received their 20 percent stake in Chrysler, along with the option to increase their share in 5 percent increments once these milestones (the third being Fiat recording $1.5 billion in revenue outside the NAFTA Zone)."
The Crisis of the Black Middle Class
The Crisis of the Black Middle Class | Via Meadia
...factors that systematically prevented Blacks from building up and passing on wealth: exclusion from social security and GI bill benefits, challenges in getting market-rate mortgages, and marginalization in neighborhoods with depreciating housing values.
The Clinton and Bush administrations set policies to encourage Black home ownership, but these made things worse:
But around the turn of the twenty-first century, there also grew up a huge new industry of predatory lenders that targeted members of minority groups, including those who already owned their homes and were persuaded to refinance on what turned out to be usurious terms.
So when the real estate bubble burst, it hurt Blacks much more than whites: 25 percent of African-Americans who purchased or refinanced homes from 2004 to 2008 have lost or are losing them, compared to 11.9 percent of white Americans. According to Sugrue, “the median black family today holds only $4,955 in assets.”
Insightful as it is, the piece underestimates the crisis. Government jobs have historically been an important source of security for the Black middle class, and many of those jobs are disappearing. Neither party is addressing this urgent issue. It isn’t even on the GOP’s radar, and the blue policies of the past 30 years, which the Obama administration would like to perpetuate, are no longer working.
Mayor George Heartwell at State of the City: Grand Rapids gets federal grant for solar array
Mayor George Heartwell at State of the City: Grand Rapids gets federal grant for solar array | MLive.com
: "“It’s exactly because we have the other challenges (with police and fire finances) that we do projects like this,” Heartwell told MLive this week.
“It’s a long-term investment, there’s no question about it. But it’s about creating efficiencies.”"
: "“It’s exactly because we have the other challenges (with police and fire finances) that we do projects like this,” Heartwell told MLive this week.
“It’s a long-term investment, there’s no question about it. But it’s about creating efficiencies.”"
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Want a good paying job in Muskegon? Simply get a college degree, labor statistics show
Want a good paying job in Muskegon? Simply get a college degree, labor statistics show | MLive.com
"From 2011 statistics, those in Muskegon County without a high school education had a 52 percent unemployment rate compared to 17 percent for high school graduates, 14 percent for those with some college, 10 percent for those with an associate’s degree and 5 percent for those with bachelor’s and graduate degrees."
"From 2011 statistics, those in Muskegon County without a high school education had a 52 percent unemployment rate compared to 17 percent for high school graduates, 14 percent for those with some college, 10 percent for those with an associate’s degree and 5 percent for those with bachelor’s and graduate degrees."
Credit Card Swipe Fees Begin Sunday In USA
Credit Card Swipe Fees Begin Sunday In USA - Slashdot
"An anonymous reader writes
"A speedbump on the road to a cash-free economy will go into effect Sunday in the USA, as retailers in 40 states will have the option of passing along a surcharge to customers who pay with credit cards.
The so-called swipe fees arose from the settlement of a seven-year lawsuit filed by retailers against Visa, Mastercard, and big banks, who collect an electronic processing fee averaging 1.5 to 3 percent on transactions involving credit cards.
The banks naturally have opposed the consumer surcharges, preferring that the extra costs to be passed along in the form of higher prices.
onsumers in ten states (California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, Texas) won't be affected, since laws in those states forbid the practice (it seems that gasoline station owners here in Massachusetts got a different memo, though).
Also, the surcharges won't be collected for debit or prepaid cards.""
"An anonymous reader writes
"A speedbump on the road to a cash-free economy will go into effect Sunday in the USA, as retailers in 40 states will have the option of passing along a surcharge to customers who pay with credit cards.
The so-called swipe fees arose from the settlement of a seven-year lawsuit filed by retailers against Visa, Mastercard, and big banks, who collect an electronic processing fee averaging 1.5 to 3 percent on transactions involving credit cards.
The banks naturally have opposed the consumer surcharges, preferring that the extra costs to be passed along in the form of higher prices.
onsumers in ten states (California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, Texas) won't be affected, since laws in those states forbid the practice (it seems that gasoline station owners here in Massachusetts got a different memo, though).
Also, the surcharges won't be collected for debit or prepaid cards.""
Auditors: $230 million in Labor Dept. grants had no criteria for success
Auditors: $230 million in Labor Dept. grants had no criteria for success | WashingtonGuardian
"You'd expect a program to help train workers in new skills would have grades to measure how well the students learned.
And you'd expect the program itself to be graded on whether it actually helped those students find employment after they graduated.
But that's precisely what a Labor Department jobs program failed to measure for grants it made in 2010 and 2011, auditors say.
Facing rising unemployment nationwide, the Labor Department Employment and Training Administration (ETA) used a discretionary grant program to support schools and businesses that were training workers and helping them find jobs.
But an internal investigation revealed that there were few benchmarks for measuring whether the grants were actually helping people find work or achieving their other goals -- and sometimes results were simply not documented.
In fact, investigators think more than one-third of the programs -- more than 200 grants out of 560 that were handed out -- might have failed, at a total cost approaching $230 million.
"You'd expect a program to help train workers in new skills would have grades to measure how well the students learned.
And you'd expect the program itself to be graded on whether it actually helped those students find employment after they graduated.
But that's precisely what a Labor Department jobs program failed to measure for grants it made in 2010 and 2011, auditors say.
Facing rising unemployment nationwide, the Labor Department Employment and Training Administration (ETA) used a discretionary grant program to support schools and businesses that were training workers and helping them find jobs.
But an internal investigation revealed that there were few benchmarks for measuring whether the grants were actually helping people find work or achieving their other goals -- and sometimes results were simply not documented.
In fact, investigators think more than one-third of the programs -- more than 200 grants out of 560 that were handed out -- might have failed, at a total cost approaching $230 million.
Ballot Integrity In the State of Washington
Ballot Integrity In the State of Washington | Power Line
My wife is a Canadian citizen, has her green card, and just received her voter registration card in the mail. Not sure what’s up with that, she did not do anything to actively register to vote. We have no idea how she became a registered voter, unless they’re simply registering all residents here in Washington State automatically.
The card says, “You are registered to vote.” It adds, “Your ballot will arrive by mail.” Here is the card, with identifying information deleted:
This woman is probably too honest to vote, but the automatic mailing of a ballot to someone who is not a citizen strikes me as rather diabolical. The recipient doesn’t even need to show up in person to represent, at least implicitly, that she is an eligible voter. All she has to do is return the ballot she receives in the mail. How many ineligible voters are honest enough to resist that temptation? Not many, I suspect.
Why do Democrat-run states like Washington go out of their way to undermine the integrity of the ballot? The obvious answer is that they think they will benefit, in the immediate term, if more ineligible people cast ballots. But I wonder whether the rationale goes deeper. The many measures taken by Democrats that eat away at the integrity of our elections have the effect, cumulatively, of discrediting electoral results and thereby undermining our democracy. Which, in turn, makes it easier for government to seize more and more powers from demoralized citizens. Polls suggest that a large majority of Americans support measures to protect ballot integrity, but so far, at least, that consensus has not been very effective in political terms.
2013 Muskegon County Board of Commissioners
DISTRICT NO. 1
Rillastine R. Wilkins (D)
2305 5th Street
Muskegon Heights., MI 49444
wilkinsri@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 733-1581
City of Muskegon (precincts 8 & 9),
All of the City of Muskegon Heights (precincts 1 - 4),
City of Norton Shores (precinct 1)
DISTRICT NO. 2
Benjamin E. Cross (D)
2115 Sampson Avenue
Muskegon, MI 49441
crossbe@co.muskegon.mi.us
(C) (231) 670-6047
City of Muskegon (precincts 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, & 14),
City of Norton Shores (precinct 9) ,
All of the City of Roosevelt Park (precincts 1 & 2)
DISTRICT NO. 3
Susie Hughes (D)
2425 Safari Lane
Muskegon, MI 49442
hughessu@co.muskegon.mi.us
(231) 343-4092
All of Muskegon Charter Twp (precincts 1 - 7)
DISTRICT NO. 4
Robert Scolnik (R)
4460 Cherrywood Court
Muskegon, MI 49441
scolnikro@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 798-2828
City of Norton Shores
(precincts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, & 10)
DISTRICT NO. 5
Marvin Engle (R)
5054 S. Sheridan Drive
Muskegon, MI 49444
englema@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 865-6116
All of Fruitport Charter Twp (precincts 1 - 4),
All of Ravenna Township (precinct 1),
and All of Sullivan Township (precinct 1)
DISTRICT NO. 6
CHARLES NASH, Vice-Chairman (D)
819 Amity Avenue
Muskegon, MI 49442
nashch@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 767-2345
City of Muskegon (precincts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7)
DISTRICT NO. 7
James Derezinski (D)
11 Wolf Lake Road
Muskegon, MI 49442
derezinskija@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 788-4849
All of Casnovia Twp (precinct 1),
All of Cedar Creek Twp (precinct 1),
All of Egelston Twp (precincts 1 - 3),
All of Holton Twp (precinct 1), and
All of Moorland Township (precinct 1)
DISTRICT NO. 8
Terry Sabo (D)
1188 N. Robinhood Drive
Muskegon, MI 49445
sabote@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 740-2724
Dalton Twp (Precinct 3),
All of Fruitland Twp (precincts 1 & 2),
All of Laketon Twp (precincts 1 - 3), and
All of the City of North Muskegon (precincts 1 & 2)
DISTRICT NO. 9
Kenneth Mahoney (D)
8008 Old Channel Trail
Montague, MI 49437
mahoneyke@co.muskegon.mi.us
(H) (231) 894-8608
All of Blue Lake Twp (precinct 1),
Dalton Twp (precincts 1, 2, & 4),
All of Montague Twp (precinct 1),
All of White River Twp (precinct 1),
All of Whitehall Twp (precinct 1),
All of the City of Montague (precinct 1), and
All of the City of Whitehall (precinct 1
DO PENALTIES FOR SMOKERS AND THE OBESE MAKE SENSE?
News from The Associated Press
DO PENALTIES FOR SMOKERS AND THE OBESE MAKE SENSE?
""If I'm obese, the health care costs are not totally borne by me.
They're borne by other people in my health insurance plan and - when I'm older - by Medicare," Cawley said.
From an economist's perspective, there would be less reason to grouse about unhealthy behaviors by smokers, obese people, motorcycle riders who eschew helmets and other health sinners if they agreed to pay the financial price for their choices.
That's the rationale for a provision in the Affordable Care Act - "Obamacare" to its detractors - that starting next year allows health insurers to charge smokers buying individual policies up to 50 percent higher premiums.
A 60-year-old could wind up paying nearly $5,100 on top of premiums.
The new law doesn't allow insurers to charge more for people who are overweight, however."
DO PENALTIES FOR SMOKERS AND THE OBESE MAKE SENSE?
""If I'm obese, the health care costs are not totally borne by me.
They're borne by other people in my health insurance plan and - when I'm older - by Medicare," Cawley said.
From an economist's perspective, there would be less reason to grouse about unhealthy behaviors by smokers, obese people, motorcycle riders who eschew helmets and other health sinners if they agreed to pay the financial price for their choices.
That's the rationale for a provision in the Affordable Care Act - "Obamacare" to its detractors - that starting next year allows health insurers to charge smokers buying individual policies up to 50 percent higher premiums.
A 60-year-old could wind up paying nearly $5,100 on top of premiums.
The new law doesn't allow insurers to charge more for people who are overweight, however."
Climate shocker: Carry on as we are until 2050, planet will be FINE
Climate shocker: Carry on as we are until 2050, planet will be FINE • The Register
"New research produced by a Norwegian government project, described as "truly sensational" by independent experts, indicates that humanity's carbon emissions produce far less global warming than had been thought: so much so that there is no danger of producing warming beyond the IPCC upper safe limit of 2°C for many decades.
“In our project we have worked on finding out the overall effect of all known feedback mechanisms,” says project manager Terje Berntsen, who is a professor at the University of Oslo’s Department of Geosciences and a senior research fellow at the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research – Oslo (CICERO)."
"New research produced by a Norwegian government project, described as "truly sensational" by independent experts, indicates that humanity's carbon emissions produce far less global warming than had been thought: so much so that there is no danger of producing warming beyond the IPCC upper safe limit of 2°C for many decades.
“In our project we have worked on finding out the overall effect of all known feedback mechanisms,” says project manager Terje Berntsen, who is a professor at the University of Oslo’s Department of Geosciences and a senior research fellow at the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research – Oslo (CICERO)."
Judge rules EPA can’t mandate use of nonexistent biofuels
Judge rules EPA can’t mandate use of nonexistent biofuels | The Daily Caller
"The court sided with the country’s chief oil and gas lobby, the American Petroleum Institute, in striking down the 2012 EPA mandate that would have forced refineries to purchase more than $8 million in credits for 8.65 million of gallons of the cellulosic biofuel.
However, none of the biofuel is commercially available."
"The court sided with the country’s chief oil and gas lobby, the American Petroleum Institute, in striking down the 2012 EPA mandate that would have forced refineries to purchase more than $8 million in credits for 8.65 million of gallons of the cellulosic biofuel.
However, none of the biofuel is commercially available."
GOP threatens formal action against EPA for not disclosing emails
GOP threatens formal action against EPA for not disclosing emails | Washington Free Beacon
"The EPA redacted names in the email. However, Vitter says the FOIA exemption used by EPA does not apply to the released documents.
“This strikes me as incredibly fishy and begs a number of important questions,” Vitter said in a statement.
“The EPA needs to honor the president’s pledge of transparency and release these documents without redaction of the administrator’s email address a big first step toward removing the blanket of secrecy in this agency.”
“EPA’s supposed reliance on ‘precedent’ is especially misleading because they’re clearly using a separate and distinct practice than previous administrations,” Vitter said.
“And if ‘Richard Windsor’ is no more than a standard work email account, why not share the unredacted versions and prove it to the American public?”"
"The EPA redacted names in the email. However, Vitter says the FOIA exemption used by EPA does not apply to the released documents.
“This strikes me as incredibly fishy and begs a number of important questions,” Vitter said in a statement.
“The EPA needs to honor the president’s pledge of transparency and release these documents without redaction of the administrator’s email address a big first step toward removing the blanket of secrecy in this agency.”
“EPA’s supposed reliance on ‘precedent’ is especially misleading because they’re clearly using a separate and distinct practice than previous administrations,” Vitter said.
“And if ‘Richard Windsor’ is no more than a standard work email account, why not share the unredacted versions and prove it to the American public?”"
Who's Right On Climate? A Single NASA Scientist Vs. More Than 20
Who's Right On Climate? A Single NASA Scientist Vs. More Than 20 - Investors.com
"We live in a society where dissent from the left-wing narrative is not tolerated.
So it's no surprise that more than 20 retired NASA scientists and engineers are not getting the same media treatment that a single doomsayer whose quarter-of-a-century-old prediction has not come to pass.
The opinion of that one man will outweigh that of more than 20 because it fits the script."
"We live in a society where dissent from the left-wing narrative is not tolerated.
So it's no surprise that more than 20 retired NASA scientists and engineers are not getting the same media treatment that a single doomsayer whose quarter-of-a-century-old prediction has not come to pass.
The opinion of that one man will outweigh that of more than 20 because it fits the script."
Friday, January 25, 2013
'I was horny' says man accused of snapping photos under restroom stalls at Grand Traverse Mall
'I was horny' says man accused of snapping photos under restroom stalls at Grand Traverse Mall | MLive.com
"A northern Michigan man accused of taking pictures of people in mall restroom stalls told police he was “horny” at the time, according to the Traverse City Record-Eagle."
"A northern Michigan man accused of taking pictures of people in mall restroom stalls told police he was “horny” at the time, according to the Traverse City Record-Eagle."
Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
Killing candidacies in the cradle
The Democrats are really good at it.
They target Republicans early on for the strategy of crazy which was successful against the Tea party movement, a consistent blogosphere and media attempt to create a deadly public perception of a rising Republican star.
We’ve seen this already in The “crazy-ing” of Marco Rubio, an effort which continues via Lawrence “The Fighter” O’Donnell and others.
I see they’re doing it already to Rand Paul, as reported by Ann Althouse (h/t Instapundit):
We need to counter this effort to kill our candidacies in the cradle, and to focus on doing the same.
They target Republicans early on for the strategy of crazy which was successful against the Tea party movement, a consistent blogosphere and media attempt to create a deadly public perception of a rising Republican star.
We’ve seen this already in The “crazy-ing” of Marco Rubio, an effort which continues via Lawrence “The Fighter” O’Donnell and others.
I see they’re doing it already to Rand Paul, as reported by Ann Althouse (h/t Instapundit):
“GOP Senator Pushes Gun-Running Conspiracy Theory During Benghazi Hearing.”
That’s the way they put it over at Think Progress. I’ve watched the video. Rand Paul asks a question. It seems histrionic to equate asking a question with pushing a conspiracy theory, and the truth is Hillary Clinton’s answer has the ring of… lying.The goal of Think Progress is that in a year or so Rand Paul, Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio, and Bobby Jindal, among others, will have high negatives and be labeled in the public mind as “extremist” crazy people.
The effort on the left to stereotype Rand Paul as a nutcase is so strenuous that it stimulates my root-for-the-underdog instinct. And makes me suspicious. I feel a Rand-Paul-must-be-destroyed conspiracy theory blossoming within.
We need to counter this effort to kill our candidacies in the cradle, and to focus on doing the same.
Illinois bond rating sinks to worst in the nation with S&P downgrade
Illinois bond rating sinks to worst in the nation with S&P downgrade - Chicago Sun-Times
"The move by Standard & Poor’s to rate Illinois’ bonds at A- with a negative outlook comes as the state is preparing to go out on the market Wednesday with a $500 million bond issue."
"The move by Standard & Poor’s to rate Illinois’ bonds at A- with a negative outlook comes as the state is preparing to go out on the market Wednesday with a $500 million bond issue."
Drunk science teacher unconscious, 4X legal limit in lab at top PA high school
Carol Wittschieben: Drunk science teacher unconscious, 4X legal limit in lab at top PA high school - Riehl World News
"A high school chemistry teacher was found passed out drunk with a blood alcohol reading four times the legal limit for drivers – half way through teaching an advanced chemistry class.
Carol Wittschieben, 42, was found unconscious in a Pennsylvania school laboratory while her 16 and 17-year-old students took a test in the classroom next door, according to Philly.com.
The teacher at Conestoga High School, which is ranked as the third best school in the state, later admitted she had been drinking alcohol from a water bottle hidden in her purse."
"A high school chemistry teacher was found passed out drunk with a blood alcohol reading four times the legal limit for drivers – half way through teaching an advanced chemistry class.
Carol Wittschieben, 42, was found unconscious in a Pennsylvania school laboratory while her 16 and 17-year-old students took a test in the classroom next door, according to Philly.com.
The teacher at Conestoga High School, which is ranked as the third best school in the state, later admitted she had been drinking alcohol from a water bottle hidden in her purse."
Union Will Use 'Any Legal Means' To Combat Members Who Want To Leave
Union Will Use 'Any Legal Means' To Combat Members Who Want To Leave [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
"Michigan Education Association President Steve Cook said his union will use “any legal means at our disposal” to combat members who want to leave the union."
"Michigan Education Association President Steve Cook said his union will use “any legal means at our disposal” to combat members who want to leave the union."
Has the GEICO Gecko Trampled on the Second Amendment?
The PJ Tatler » Has the GEICO Gecko Trampled on the Second Amendment?
"It seems that GEICO, ...... has canceled a customer’s policy because the customer is engaged in the firearms industry.
Here is the letter that GEICO sent to the canceled customer. Click to enlarge."
"It seems that GEICO, ...... has canceled a customer’s policy because the customer is engaged in the firearms industry.
Here is the letter that GEICO sent to the canceled customer. Click to enlarge."
Bill To Set Limit For Driving While Stoned Has A Good Chance
Bill To Set Limit For Driving While Stoned Has A Good Chance « CBS Denver
"In 2011, the most recent data available, 13 percent of deadly crashes in Colorado involved pot.
This is the third year lawmakers have tried to pass the bill, and they watered it down this time to make sure it gets through."
"In 2011, the most recent data available, 13 percent of deadly crashes in Colorado involved pot.
This is the third year lawmakers have tried to pass the bill, and they watered it down this time to make sure it gets through."
This Is the World's Largest Container Ship, But Not for Long
This Is the World's Largest Container Ship, But Not for Long | Autopia | Wired.com
"Meet the CMA CGM Marco Polo.
It’s held the title of largest container ship in the world for a little over a month.
But later this year, it will lose that distinction."
"Meet the CMA CGM Marco Polo.
It’s held the title of largest container ship in the world for a little over a month.
But later this year, it will lose that distinction."
Thursday afternoon links
Thursday afternoon links | AEIdeas
"7. UK study last year found that female teachers give male students lower grades, and similar evidence was found recently in the US."
"7. UK study last year found that female teachers give male students lower grades, and similar evidence was found recently in the US."
Best of the Web Today: War on Women
Best of the Web Today: The Todd Akin of Newspapers - WSJ.com
Reader Kenneth Johnson argues that it's a bad idea:
As a Marine Corps veteran of three combat tours, the first as a rifle platoon commander during the Vietnam War, my concern is what this policy will contribute to further breaking down the already-troubled relationships of men and women in our society.
Friedrich von Hayek wrote that profound social knowledge is embedded in tradition that has evolved through the millennia of human experience. In "The Fatal Conceit," he taught that a society breaks these traditions just because someone has a "good idea" of what would be fair. When these notions are enacted through legislation and court decisions, there is a very real risk of wasting this profound knowledge.
In my view, traditions in the military and civil society are severely broken and the embedded wisdom lost forever where women have combat roles. Totally independent of whether women can physically and mentally contribute to American military effectiveness and efficiency, I am concerned about the broader social implications of a civilization that believes that combat is an appropriate role for women.
For the record, I have ordered men to undertake missions where the entire platoon was at risk. During Operation Dewey Canyon in 1969 (the real one, not the incoming secretary of defense's one), I lost all seven of the Marine casualties I had during my tour. One died five feet from me. We moved on. Others died moments before I got to their position. We moved on. After one firefight, we carried a gut-shot Navy corpsman, who knew how much trouble he was in, for miles up a steep hill out of Laos.
How does a man not give special comfort to a wounded woman? My last Marine died in my arms from a wound I thought he would have survived. Could I have held her in my arms without reservation?
I had to decide how to handle the situation where a new squad leader beat a Marine who fell asleep on watch, the latter punishable by death in time of war. The decision process I went through is captured in a speech I gave to the Valley Forge Military Academy almost a year ago.
My concerns:
What kind of a man is it who can send women off to kill and maim? What kind of society does that?
What kind of men sharing a fire-team foxhole with a woman and two other men don't treat the woman more gently?
What kind of society bemoaning that men don't seem to respect women can't see that part of the respect they demand is predicated on the specialness of the other?
Perhaps it is possible in a firefight to distinguish between how one treats women and men, but I doubt that I could do it. And if I am trained to treat men and women the same throughout my career, can this have no significant effect on how I treat women otherwise?
Climate-Change Misdirection
In his second inaugural address on Monday, President Obama laudably promised to "respond to the threat of climate change."
Unfortunately, when the president described the urgent nature of the threat—the "devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms"—the scary examples suggested that he is contemplating poor policies that don't point to any real, let alone smart, solutions.
Global warming is a problem that needs fixing, but exaggeration doesn't help, and it often distracts us from simple, cheaper and smarter solutions.
For starters, let's address the three horsemen of the climate apocalypse that Mr. Obama mentioned.
Historical analysis of wildfires around the world shows that since 1950 their numbers have decreased globally by 15%.
Estimates published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences show that even with global warming proceeding uninterrupted, the level of wildfires will continue to decline until around midcentury and won't resume on the level of 1950—the worst for fire—before the end of the century.
Claiming that droughts are a consequence of global warming is also wrong.
The world has not seen a general increase in drought.
A study published in Nature in November shows globally that "there has been little change in drought over the past 60 years."
The U.N. Climate Panel in 2012 concluded: "Some regions of the world have experienced more intense and longer droughts, in particular in southern Europe and West Africa, but in some regions droughts have become less frequent, less intense, or shorter, for example, in central North America and northwestern Australia."
As for one of the favorites of alarmism, hurricanes in recent years don't indicate that storms are getting worse.
Measured by total energy (Accumulated Cyclone Energy), hurricane activity is at a low not encountered since the 1970s.
The U.S. is currently experiencing the longest absence of severe landfall hurricanes in over a century—the last Category 3 or stronger storm was Wilma, more than seven years ago.
While it is likely that we will see somewhat stronger (but fewer) storms as climate change continues, a March 2012 Nature study shows that the global damage cost from hurricanes will go to 0.02% of gross domestic product annually in 2100 from 0.04% today—a drop of 50%, despite global warming
Unfortunately, when the president described the urgent nature of the threat—the "devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms"—the scary examples suggested that he is contemplating poor policies that don't point to any real, let alone smart, solutions.
Global warming is a problem that needs fixing, but exaggeration doesn't help, and it often distracts us from simple, cheaper and smarter solutions.
For starters, let's address the three horsemen of the climate apocalypse that Mr. Obama mentioned.
Historical analysis of wildfires around the world shows that since 1950 their numbers have decreased globally by 15%.
Estimates published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences show that even with global warming proceeding uninterrupted, the level of wildfires will continue to decline until around midcentury and won't resume on the level of 1950—the worst for fire—before the end of the century.
Claiming that droughts are a consequence of global warming is also wrong.
The world has not seen a general increase in drought.
A study published in Nature in November shows globally that "there has been little change in drought over the past 60 years."
The U.N. Climate Panel in 2012 concluded: "Some regions of the world have experienced more intense and longer droughts, in particular in southern Europe and West Africa, but in some regions droughts have become less frequent, less intense, or shorter, for example, in central North America and northwestern Australia."
As for one of the favorites of alarmism, hurricanes in recent years don't indicate that storms are getting worse.
Measured by total energy (Accumulated Cyclone Energy), hurricane activity is at a low not encountered since the 1970s.
The U.S. is currently experiencing the longest absence of severe landfall hurricanes in over a century—the last Category 3 or stronger storm was Wilma, more than seven years ago.
While it is likely that we will see somewhat stronger (but fewer) storms as climate change continues, a March 2012 Nature study shows that the global damage cost from hurricanes will go to 0.02% of gross domestic product annually in 2100 from 0.04% today—a drop of 50%, despite global warming
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