Today in history, greetings, and social banter here. (More)
The first public museum in the thirteen colonies opened in Charleston, South Carolina today (1773). Also, the Mission Santa Clara de Asís was founded in what is now Santa Clara, California (1777), the Royal Aeronautical Society was formed in London (1866), the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland was founded (1895), the first long-distance radio transmission from the Eiffel Tower was sent (1908), the University of the Philippines College of Law was founded (1911), Finland’s “Mosaic Confessors” law made Jews full citizens (1918), Sam ‘n’ Henry, later Amos ‘n’ Andy, premiered on Chicago radio (1926), Arkansas’ Hattie Caraway became the first woman elected to serve in the U.S. Senate (1932), five friends rediscovered Spain’s Caves of Nerja (1959), Dr. James Bedford was cryonically preserved (1967), the New York Jets defeated the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III (1969),CBS’ All in the Family premiered (1971), 19 European nations agreed to forbid human cloning (1998), and the Deep Impact collider was launched (2006). And an estimated 316,000 people died when an earthquake rocked Haiti (2010).
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Good morning! ::hugggggs::
January 12, 2013 at 6:01 am
Yesterday on Campus
Morning Feature – Talking About Guns, Part II: More Guns, More Crime
Midday Matinee – triciawyse with Frieday Furries
Campus Question – Washington Post opposes Hagel … why?
Today on Campus
Morning Feature – Talking About Guns, Part III: Words to Use, Words to Avoid (Non-Cynical Saturday)
Noontime News at noon
Campus Question at 6pm ET
January 12, 2013 at 6:17 am
So for those who wonder who supports gun control, the NRA nicely published an enemies list.
Think we could make this backfire?
Hugggs and good morning!
January 12, 2013 at 6:28 am
Oh, I think this will do nicely!
January 12, 2013 at 6:40 am
I agree, Norbrook. Let’s get it out there.
January 12, 2013 at 7:11 am
Quite a list of the nefarious there………..
January 12, 2013 at 7:13 am
Thank you. This is a great resource.
Maybe even an email thank you list.
January 12, 2013 at 7:18 am
And h/t to you for bringing the first article to my attention which made me look for the entire list. I hadn’t realized those dorks were quite so dorky….
January 12, 2013 at 8:21 am
Y’know, when a group’s “enemies list” is that long … umm … maybe it says more about the group than it does about the “enemies.” Just sayin’.
Good morning! ::hugggggs::
January 12, 2013 at 6:26 am
Good morning! It’s currently a cloudy 33 degrees here, and expected to get into the mid-40′s. Possibly some rain later in the day. This doesn’t look like it’ll last past Tuesday, it seems we’re going back to winter right after that. So what we’re likely to end up with is a nice firm base for any further snow, making things good for skiers.
In the “darnnit!” category, the White House announced today that it won’t support building a Death Star. Some piddling details about it costing too much and not supporting blowing up planets. Pikers.
January 12, 2013 at 6:43 am
No Death Star? I may weep for weeks…. I had my eye on a few unnecessary planets.
I see the new winter storm will reach you. Glad it will be good for skiers, but from the reports I’m seeing the snow won’t be heavy. Are you hearing differently?
And while the Big Chill will be returning your way, we’ll get a cool-down, too. From mid-eighties to mid-seventies. Okay, I know I live in FL, but really, I expect a little chill too, from time to time. I need the relief!
January 12, 2013 at 6:52 am
Death Stars don’t kill planets, people kill planets………
WE are doing a pretty good number on Earth!
January 12, 2013 at 6:58 am
Straight and to the point! WTG, Gardener!
January 12, 2013 at 7:11 am
Sure, but why strip mine the other planets when you can blow them up into nice, easily processed chunks?
January 12, 2013 at 7:37 am
Almost a bumper sticker, Gardener.
January 12, 2013 at 8:21 am
Umm, that’s tonight’s Campus Question, Norbrook.
Good morning! ::hugggggs::
January 12, 2013 at 6:34 am
And for your amusement:
Dana Milbank
January 12, 2013 at 7:15 am
Not to mention the real horror that he’s picking people who are … competent.
Impeachment offenses, for sure!
January 12, 2013 at 7:31 am
Yikes! The GOP is against everything and for nothing. Strange way to expand their base. Just saying.
January 12, 2013 at 8:23 am
The nerve of President Obama! Remember when George W. Bush nominated only cabinet appointees who were proposed by progressive Senate Democrats? No? Me either….
Good morning! ::hugggggs::
January 12, 2013 at 7:01 am
Good morning!
A clammy 51 degrees greets us today. Supposed to be one more nice day, then back to winter. I have some work to do, ashes out, wood in, that sort of thing.
S-I-L mustered early yesterday, and we were off to the shopping expedition. Bought a pair of the biggest ShopVac’s they had, brought them home and assembled. You know the drill, some assembly required……… They seem to work very well. S-I-L is happy, I am happy.
Got to try mine out. PW had bought a new storm door latch for our front door, so the new Vacuum was handy for the clean up afterwards. Somewhat surprising to me how many tools were needed for such a small job. The instructions should read, “Step 1: Better round up every tool you own.” Sheesh! I even treated myself to a cup of coffee afterwards, Livin’ Large, you know!
Hope all well today.
Best, G
January 12, 2013 at 7:14 am
I’ve run into that when I’ve had to install a new door hinge, and the solar porch light was … surprisingly labor & tool intensive.
January 12, 2013 at 7:16 am
OMG, I know those jobs! Only, unfortunately, they never write down step one. You discover it as you paw repeatedly through your toolbox look for yet another something.
Glad to know you’re happy with the shop vacs. What kind did you get? Will they vacuum up cats?
January 12, 2013 at 7:56 am
S-I-L researched, said the ShopVac brand was best, so that’s what we bought…….. Any yes, cats, small dogs, and odds and ends had better beware……
January 12, 2013 at 7:23 am
Good morning. So I am going the full Florida and yesterday I bought a pair of flip-flops. This will probably cause the temperatures to drop. I put this in the same category of washing the car makes it rain, FYI. They didn’t have the flip flops in my size so they will be here in 4 days. I have narrow feet so not just any flip flop would do. The shipping time will test the cause and effect ‘theory.’ Will it cool down because they were purchased or will it cool down when they arrive?
I do hope northern Minnesota gets some snow soon. My friends that have a dog sledding business really need it. Yesterday it was 36 and raining. Hard to run dogs in the mud.
Last winter’s lack of snow was really hard on snow dependent businesses. A lot of them are in the Mom and Pop category and two bad years would finish them off.
January 12, 2013 at 7:45 am
I have the opposite problem. I have very wide feet – my Irish grandmother used to refer to them as “bogtrotters.”
It’s difficult to find shoes that fit properly. 
The snow is why we’re happy here, because last year was truly miserable in terms of our snow dependent businesses. While the ski areas can make snow, the snowmobile trails can’t.
January 12, 2013 at 7:35 am
I love those kind of projects. Great justification for having lots of tools. I’m sorry that it took so long.
My coworkers in the summer were surprised at my tool collection and came to rely on me when they forgot something. This was all fine and good until they needed a voltmeter. I didn’t have one and they were shocked. Off to the hardware store they went.
January 12, 2013 at 7:48 am
I do have a multimeter, but that was acquired back in the day when you could do a lot of computer fault testing with it. These days, it’s easier just to pull the board and replace it. One of the things I’ve learned in my current job is that no matter how many tools you bring with you into the field, you’ll always be without the one you need. However, in a pinch, a hammer and a screwdriver can usually be made to substitute.
January 12, 2013 at 8:06 am
I have the tools I’ve bought over the years, plus what I call the “Legacy Items,” handed down from Pop.
One gizmo in the box is an impact driver from Sears/Craftsman. Various screwdriver and wrench heads can fit in it. Is for stuck bolts and screws. You put in the bit you need, apply to stuck screw, and turn the thing in the direction you want it to go, R or L, doesn’t matter, give the butt end a good solid whack with a hammer, and presto, it frees the thing. How it works I’ll never know, but it’s like magic. You only need it once a year, but the day you need it, you can’t do without it!
January 12, 2013 at 8:27 am
Did you get a ShopVac for PW also, or was the other one for SIL?
Good morning! ::hugggggs::
January 12, 2013 at 7:56 am
Good Morning,
One of my former colleagues digs into ACA and links pay to performance
My former colleague, Al Aviles, runs the NYC Public Health Care system and is implementing new compensation arrangements for doctors along the lines called for by the ACA..
January 12, 2013 at 8:10 am
Fascinating article Mike and thanks. I am a big believer that “what you pay for, you get.” It may take some time to work out the kinks, but just paying by the procedure seems to have encouraged lots of procedures. I do think proper incentives can change behavior by rewarding what we need and want.
Incentives, generally speaking, put pressure on the organization to determine what is really important (not always easy or obvious) and to measure the results (also not easy or obvious.) In my corporate experience we too often focused on activities and not results. That reminds me of a magnet on my aunt’s refrigerator which says, “Jesus is coming. Act busy.”
January 12, 2013 at 8:27 am
Very informative article, Mike. Thanks so much for sharing it. I see positives emerging from this program if properly managed.
I have a doctor who works with me because I have no insurance. There is absolutely no unnecessary testing for me, and a lot that he would like to do that he skips because I can’t afford it. That requires a lot of trust from him, that I will report accurately to him on symptoms and general well-being.
Unfortunately, doctors are too often being run by insurance companies who want patients out of care (especially hospitals) way too soon. Some of those bad outcomes result directly from that, and doctors should not be penalized when an insurance company says “We won’t pay, send the patient home,” overriding the doctor’s medical judgment. And as I have seen, when that word comes down, even if the doc is willing to fight, the hospital often isn’t.
I’m sure that’s different at publicly funded hospitals, but I’ve seen the other side, and it ain’t pretty.
January 12, 2013 at 8:36 am
That’s a fascinating article, Mike. I find it – predictably hypocritical, I suppose – that doctors offer a litany of excuses for why pay for patient satisfaction and recovery won’t work … despite the obvious excessive costs and failures of the pay-for-services model.
Good morning! ::hugggggs::