My favorite $49.99 a pound steak

Gagliano's Market in Delafield has Wagyu filets on sale for half-off their regular price, a mere $24.99 a pound this week. They also offer a $5 coupon, so it was about $30 for three American Kobe Beef filet mignon steaks.

American Kobe Beef is a trade name for meat from Wagyu cattle, a type of beef that is well marbled and is a legendary delicacy of Japan. Until recently, the flavor and tenderness of Kobe beef could only be experienced by those traveling to to the meat producing regions of Japan.

The Foodologist wrote: Wagyu beef is world renowned because of its exquisite marbling. The large amount of intramuscular fat essentially helps the beef stay moist during the cooking procedure and helps give it a beautifully unctuous mouth feel whilst eating. It also has a slightly different flavour profile to conventional breeds. The only way to describe it is that is has a slightly ‘beefier’ flavour than your average breed.

Was it worth it? Yes!

These were the best steaks I have ever grilled. Steakhouse, make that expensive steakhouse quality beef, and I couldn't buy one of these steaks for that $30 at a steakhouse.

The Foodologist was exactly correct.

Don't let the word of this get out, or we are likely to see them going for $51.99/lb.

K-Car of Tomorrow

NASCAR unleashed their COT last week at Bristol. Not only do the drivers hate driving it, but it looks like this.



I have that haunting feeling of deja vu. Where have I seen that body style before?

The race commentators kept mentioning a resemblance to SCCA race cars. I've never seen SCCA racing, but Google gave me this.



Okay, they both have a spoiler and a wing, but beyond that they are not even close.

Where have I seen that body style before? Eureka. Now it makes sense. NASCAR must have hired Lee Iacoca to design their Car of Tomorrow.



Dang. NASCAR got gipped. He recycled the Dodge Lancer.

#3 must be spinning in his grave.

This would be illegal in Wisconsin

COMMISSION VOTE AUTHORIZES EARLY SITE PERMIT FOR GRAND GULF SITE IN MISSISSIPPI

By a 5-0 vote, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission today authorized the NRC’s Office of New Reactors to issue an Early Site Permit (ESP) to System Energy Resources Inc. for the Grand Gulf ESP site near Port Gibson, Miss.

Successful completion of the ESP process resolves many site-related safety and environmental issues, and determines the site is suitable for possible future construction and operation of a nuclear power plant. The company filed its ESP application Oct. 21, 2003. The permit will be valid for up to 20 years. During that time, the company (or any other potential applicant interested in the site) must still seek NRC approval for a Combined License to build one or more nuclear plants on the site before any significant construction can occur.

There can be no new nuclear plants built in Wisconsin without a change in State law.

So very sad. Wisconsin Electric Power Company and Wisconsin Public Service Corporation put nuclear units on-line early in the 1970's and ran them efficiently and safely. Point Beach and Kewaunee even set the standard for nuclear plant operation for decades. By next year neither company will remain in the nuclear business.

Hat tip: NEI Nuclear Notes.

My favorite $1.99 a pound steak

I use an old butcher trick* for my cheap steaks. I start with a boneless blade chuck roast - on sale for $1.99/pound for this piece of choice Angus.

Then the roundish piece is split off from the roast along the natural seams and to produce a 1-1/2 inch thick ribeye, that is not a ribeye. This steak is actually the continuation of the "eye" muscle from the rib primal into the chuck primal. This is only the width of a knife cut from being a choice Angus ribeye steak.

That was the best steak I've cooked for myself in a very long time. While the texture is slightly different than ribeye, the flavor is excellent.

Don't let the word of this get out, or we're likely to see them going for $11.99/lb.

* Cutting Up in the Kitchen, Merle Ellis, (c) 1975

BLEG: FEMA + DNR = Trouble

Because people in New Orleans insist on living below sea level, floodplain maps throughout the U.S. are being redrawn. I learned of this completely by accident when attending a public hearing on a different matter.

I found nothing about this project when Googling JSOnline and haven't found anything elsewhere for that matter. Having looked at the DNR's Floodplain Mapping website I still have no clue as to what is happening.

Waukesha County was also no help and my call to the DNR has not been returned. Before I decide to become a Doyle campaign contributor in order to get an answer, can someone educate me on this project and what I need to do to protect my property?

Thank you.

Drive Safely (Updated)

I came home to this last night.

In the city of Pewaukee, two vehicles collided on Lindsay Road near Woodsedge Drive, killing a 30-year-old man and injuring a woman, the Waukesha County Communications Center reported.

Pewaukee Police Chief Gary Bach ordered officers to not release information on the incident until Monday morning, according to the Saturday night-shift commander.

The surprising part is that this is the first fatal accident on Lindsay Road in the 14 years I have lived here. Lindsay Road is heavily used by runners, joggers, walkers, and road racing cyclists. There are no sidewalks, and there isn't even a defined shoulder on much of the road. Until last March, the speed limit on this country road was 45 mph, far too high considering the road's narrowness, and blind hills and curves. The road can lull unfamiliar drivers into driving faster than they should. Locals know to drive slow and with caution.

About five years ago, I contacted my previous alderman about reducing the speed limit and my son sent the previous mayor a letter on the same topic as part of a Boy Scout merit badge. Neither did a thing, the mayor didn't even provide a response to my son. They must have been busy with other things.

Last March my wife phoned our new Alderman, Kathleen Novack, regarding our concern about the 45 mph speed limit. Within 10 days of her call, the new signs were up reducing the limit to 35. No one can ask for better response by an elected official than that.

Traffic enforcement by the City of Pewaukee has been effective when present, but 24/7 coverage is not achievable. I don't know the answer. Maybe rumble strips in hazardous areas.

MESSAGE FOR RESIDENTS OF NEIGHBORING SUBDIVISIONS

Lindsay Road doesn't look like your neighborhood, but it is my neighborhood. I expect you to obey the speed limit here, just as you expect traffic to slow in your neighborhood. Here's the deal. If you quit driving 60 mph in my neighborhood, I will not drive 50 mph in yours.

UPDATE: There are several interesting comments on this fatal crash posted at the Pewaukee Patriot. This "accident" might not have been "accidental."

La Carte de Mort - Online Edition (UPDATED)

Soon after I started working in Milwaukee, one of the engineers I worked with was slapped around by the corporate diversity police for maintaining his "Map de Mort." This was a Milwaukee city map with pushpins at the locations of each homicide noted in the news. Somehow this instance of depicting reality was deemed to be racially insensitive.

Being new to the city, I found the map to be enlightening and a fair warning of areas of the city to avoid. The murder of Scott Huggins brought me back to my friend's map. I have started la Carte de Mort with the location of Mr. Huggins homicide.



I plan to maintain and update this map regularly. Hopefully this will not include the addition of many new digital pushpins.

UPDATE: I found a list of all 2007 Milwaukee homicides at this website, and used that information to provide an up-to-date map for 2007.

The Nuclear Solution to Global Warming

After reading these Al Gore posts and the following quote from David Friedman at NEI Nuclear Notes I was struck by two illogical aspects about nuclear power and man-made global warming.

Nuclear power is the one energy source that does not produce greenhouse gases and, using current technology, can be expanded over the next couple of decades to replace many, arguably almost all, uses of fossil fuel. So anyone who believes that the great threat facing us, the threat we should be willing to pay large costs to deal with, is global warming due to greenhouse gases should be strongly inclined to favor nuclear power.

First, it is all too common for Al Gore and other carbon-phobes to also be anti-nuclear. This makes no sense. Nuclear energy is one of the great hopes to reduce carbon emissions and by Mr. Gore's logic, reduce global warming. Something more important than stopping man-made global warming must be on the Gore agenda.

On the other hand, it is my anecdotal observation that most workers in the commercial nuclear world are skeptical (at best) about global warming and the role of man-made carbon emissions in any warming. If anyone has a vested interest in promoting the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, it should be nuclear workers. More restrictions on fossil fueled electricity means greater demand for nuke power and greater demand for nuke workers. This in turn will lead to higher compensation for those working in this industry.

But these nuclear workers are probably more skeptical about global warming than average Americans. On the surface it doesn't make sense, but many also have financial interests in electric utilities burning fossil fuels and they have better science educations than most Americans. They can see through the hype and apply scientific thinking to the facts that are presented.

My new best friend


It just dawned on me that there will be no baseball park built near my home as long as the Butler Garter Snake is my neighbor. I'll need to be more careful when mowing so I don't hit any of these cute little guys.

I am so glad I don't live in MKE County

This is beyond stunning.

Milwaukee County supervisors and Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker should get large pay raises to bring them up to the current salaries for Milwaukee alderman and Mayor Tom Barrett, according to a county report released today.

State Champs!



Charger Robotics (including my Uber-geek son) won the FIRST Robotics Wisconsin Regional competition on Saturday. They will compete at the national championship in Atlanta on April 12-14.

Sad, but I had to go to Fond du lac to find a news report on the championship held in Milwaukee.

The Fondy Fire Robotics Team and its partners on Saturday won the Milwaukee FIRST regional robotics competition at the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee.

Team partners included Prior Lake, Minn., High School and Sussex Hamilton High School near Milwaukee.

The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) program is designed to encourage interest in science and technology for students. The three-day competition featured 52 teams from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan.

Another Musician Dies at a Young Age

The Captain reports on the too early death of the lead singer of the rock band Boston. I don't know the guy's name name and don't care.

This guy may have been the Paul Whiteman of 1970's rock & roll. A very talented musician who gained fame and fortune by playing lousy music. Anyone who attended Prof. Leckrone's Big Bands class at UW should recall his disdain for Whiteman. The Paul Whiteman Band played overly practiced and overly precise "jazz" music. It did not swing and was not big band jazz.

Similarly, every note played or synthecized by this Boston guy was perfect. It was not rock. Boston represents everything wrong with 1970's rock music.

Thankfully this man won the war and changed it all.

The stadium rock fad is dead too. Rest in peace Boston singer. Burn in hell Boston band and music.

No energy left for blogging

I am putting a lot of time and energy into updating the 5-year old business plan for the Short Game Golf Center I created as the capstone to my MBA program. I am on the agenda for the City of Pewaukee Parks & Recreation long-term planning meeting on March 14.

I have vested interest in this, since I'd rather have a golf course across from my home than a 5,000 seat minor league baseball stadium.

I'll try to find a way to post parts of the plan here.

CARBON OFFSETS FOR SALE

Details available soon at Headless Blogger.

Be a part of the global warming solution.

Late Homework

I crunched these numbers last October, but I never bothered to blog them. I had my memory jogged by this Charlie Sykes podcast on the consequences of the Wisconsin Supreme Court race on the business climate in the state. I believe this information is still relevant and is still disturbing.

In June 2006, Sykes wrote about business expansion data published by Site Selection magazine comparing business expansions in Wisconsin with four neighboring states.

Last year, there were 55 announcements of new manufacturing plants in Illinois; there were 72 in Michigan, 35 in Minnesota, and 34 in Iowa.

In Wisconsin, there was a grand total of five.

According to a report for Competitive Wisconsin released last month, Wisconsin lagged behind the rest of the Midwest across the board.

In 2005, there were 75 announcements by companies that they were expanding their manufacturing operations in Illinois; 180 expansions announced in Michigan, 36 in Minnesota, and 64 in Iowa.

In Wisconsin? Six.

It actually gets worse. When announcements of other business investments and expansions are also included, Illinois saw 510 announcements of business expansion; Michigan 505; Minnesota 176, Iowa 135, and Wisconsin…a mere 15.

What’s wrong with this picture?

The answer is that more is wrong than Sykes thinks.

The raw data from Site Selection fails to tell the whole story. To do that, the data needs to be normalized by population to better compare the performance of large states like Illinois, with smaller states such as Iowa; and the 2005 numbers needs to be separated from 2003 & 2004. The results look like this.

When the data is processed, it shows that Wisconsin lagged it's neighboring states in business announcements in 2003 and 2004, with only about half the number of the four state average and about two-thirds of the next worst state.

But in 2005, the wheels fell off for Wisconsin business. While the neighboring states showed modest growth for both the average, plus 6%, and worst case, plus 9%; Wisconsin had a 90% reduction of business announcements. Wisconsin went from 56% of the four state growth average to 6% of that average in just one year.

What changed? We are much the same tax hell and have the same regulatory and environmental disincentives for business expansions as before. The difference is the Wisconsin Supreme Court's rulings lifting liability limits and lowering the bar to prove liability.

In siting a new or expanding business, the risks and consequences of being sued apparently do matter.

My Anna Nicole Post

The most amazing thing I took away from the A. N. Smith probate trial is that this man ...




... found a way to give this man ...



... a worse name.

I did not think that could be possible.

A Hero

I'm willing to bet that this gentleman is a retired Marine.

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) -- An American tourist who watched as a U.S. military veteran in his 70s used his bare hands to kill an armed assailant in Costa Rica said she thought the attempted robbery was a joke - until the masked attacker held a gun to her head.

"I thought it was a skit. But then he pointed the gun at my head and grabbed me by the throat and I thought I was going to die," Clova Adams, 54, told The Associated Press by telephone Friday from the Carnival Liberty cruise ship.

Adams was with 12 American tourists who hired a driver to explore Costa Rica for a few hours. They were climbing out of the van to visit a Caribbean beach when three men wearing ski masks ran toward them, she said. One held a gun to her head, while the other two pulled out knives.

Suddenly, one of the tourists, a U.S. military veteran trained in self defense, jumped out of the van and put the gunman in a headlock, according to Limon police chief Luis Hernandez.

Hernandez said the American, whom he refused to identify, struggled with the robber, breaking his collarbone and eventually killing him. Police identified the dead man as Warner Segura, 20. The other two assailants fled.

This guy defines stones. Hoorah.

TC Self Check Time

Gentlemen, I don't intend to be a pest, but if you believe that you are too old to develop testicular cancer, you are wrong.

Although the disease is the most common cancer in men between 15 and 35, the risk continues past age 35. In fact, the more virile a man is, the higher his risk at older ages (at least that is my conclusion based on anecdotal evidence).

Perform a self-check monthly for life.

How to Do a Testicular Self Examination

The Testicular Cancer Resource Center

The Science of Global Warming is Settled Fact.

It is due time for Al Gore and all other science ignoramuses to shut up. Science is not settled by popularity and politics. Today I see another example.

Just as science book publishers are rewriting texts to say that there are eight planets instead of nine, they may have another edit to contend with - this time about the first inhabitants of the New World.

Since the 1960s, archaeologists have argued that the Americas were populated by one group of hunters that crossed a land bridge connecting Siberia to Alaska 11,500 years ago. The descendants of this population then moved throughout the hemisphere, taking up residence across North and South America.

But research published in this week's issue of the journal Science casts doubt on that scenario, supporting the long-standing arguments of David Overstreet, an archaeologist at Marquette University and the College of Menominee Nation, and Daniel Joyce of the Kenosha Public Museum.

For decades, these two scientists have shouted from the fringes of academia that the Clovis First theory was flawed. They pointed to sites across Wisconsin - Schaefer, Hebior and Fabry Creek - that showed that people were here before Clovis.

Each of these examples was settled fact for decades. No theory or computer model for global warming can even be validated when compared to the historical weather record.

The science of climate change is not settled.

The search for barbecue nirvana

I judged my first barbecue competition on Sunday, a non-sanctioned event at the River Rand Bowling Center in Des Plaines, Illinois.

I have a two reasons that persuaded me to become a Certified Barbecue Judge. First, I am generally disappointed with the quality of barbecue available from restaurants and want to try better offerings. Second, I want to taste first hand (first tongue?) how the barbecue I produce on Salivator Senior compares to competition quality barbecue.

The Winter Burn Off Barbecue Contest is in it's second year. They had six teams in 2006 and 18 this year. In order to avoid frostbite, the meats are limited to those that can be prepared in one morning - sausage, chicken, and ribs. A Kansas City Barbecue Society sanctioned contest includes four meats, two of which take overnight cooking - pork and beef brisket - along with the chicken and pork ribs.



Above are the six sausage samples that I judged. I found out something right away. The level of seasoning and spiciness that I prefer in barbecue does not win barbecue contests in the Upper Midwest. My choices of favorites for each category were 180 degrees off from the consensus of the other five judges at my table. One of the judges was also a competitor and said that he has to tone down his seasonings in order to place well in contests. The idea is to offend as few judges as possible.

The good news for me is that a barbecue contest is a "meat" contest. Not a contest for the best sauce or other seasonings. On that score the entries were excellent. Wonderful smoked flavor and good cuts of meat presented well. The ribs in particular were almost all cooked perfectly. With the right amount of smoke, they were moist and not overcooked.

Judges also get to keep their leftovers. Ziplock bags work great for this, my 17 year old son was the beneficiary of chicken and ribs, but not much sausage.

Another brush with greatness

Present at the Burn Off, but not competing, was the reigning Jack Daniels World Barbecue Champion, Scottie Johnson of the Cancer Sucks Chicago team. Scottie was kind enough to stop for a photo. That's his traveling trophy from The Jack under his arm. I'm not sure that he ever puts it down.

UPDATED & BUMPED: No cooking this weekend

I'll be kept busy judging a barbecue contest this Sunday.

STOP THE PRESSES. Baked Potato Soup is on the menu tonight.

Homemade bacon being fried for topping the soup.



The finished product.



Drat, there will be no leftovers.

A visit to my Oncologist

I had follow-up appointment with my Oncologist yesterday. It is now almost three years since the diagnosis of my testicular cancer. The results of my CT scan and tumor marker tests were all satisfactory. Blood work and follow-up appointments are now pushed out to every six months. CT scans will be once a year. Smile with me.

My Oncologist came close to saying the other C-word (cured), but there is still time for caution. I hesitate to say that word, too. Knock on wood.

Live Strong.

Happy Valentine's Day!

No explanation needed.

From: Proflowers Customer Care
RE: Thank you for your ProFlowers order
Sent: Wed 2/14/2007 4:13 PM

Thank you for contacting us in regards to your order. Upon researching your order, I have determined that it encountered a rare system error, which prevented the grower from receiving the necessary information that would have initiated the fulfillment process. We deeply apologize for this inconvenience.

As we have worked hard to build our reputation on exceptional quality and because we are honored that you chose to send your gift from ProFlowers, we are eager to reschedule the delivery of your order courtesy of the team at ProFlowers. Additionally, we would be more than happy to call your recipient with our apologies and an explanation for the delay. Please let us know if you would like us to do this.

In order to reschedule a delivery of your gift, we will need the following information:

1. Which flower arrangement you would like (of equal value to the original item),

2. Your preferred date of delivery (Tuesday-Friday, excluding holidays).

3. The recipient's name and complete address, including daytime telephone number,

4. A card message (if desired).

Once again, please accept our heartfelt apology concerning this order. You are important to us and we look forward to your reply. We greatly appreciate both your trust and business and hope you consider giving ProFlowers another opportunity to fulfill your future floral giving needs.

Best Regards,

Customer Care
ProFlowers
The Art of Fresher Flowers

I need more than ProFlowers.com to make up for this fiasco.
Is there a ProDiamonds.com?

Re: Hello McFly? Anybody home? Huh?
Think, McFly. Think!

I have given some more thought to the proposed Pewaukee baseball stadium.

I wasn't too thrilled when I learned that the 60 acres of corn and soybeans across from my home would be replaced with a city park featuring a huge soccer complex. The increase in traffic and noise could be substantial. But Pewaukee is making an effort to minimize the impact on nearby properties and I can rationalize the park's use for taxpaying citizens and their children. Simply put, it is for the overall public good.

I see no similar rationale for the community's interest with this baseball stadium. It is privately run and built for the benefit of a few exceptional college ballplayers from throughout the nation and their corporate handlers. Very few Pewaukee residents will know or care that it is here, or ever visit the ballpark. In addition, since the soccer fields are to be located in a remote area of the park, the stadium would have to be located in the front yards of several taxpayers.

The MJS story also mentions using 6 acres for the stadium. It does not say how much more acreage is needed for parking. With 1250 seats, at least 500 parking spaces are needed - imagine the parking lot at a very large high school. Stadium lights, crowd noise, tailgate parties, traffic and litter all near the flood plain of Spring Creek and right outside my bedroom window. I don't think that is a good idea.

The story also says that the promoter is "looking for a private-public partnership with the city." Are these code words for city owned - privately controlled and operated? I think it means no property taxes on this stadium and Pewaukee residents can forget about ever using the ballpark.

If the City of Pewaukee is giving away land, I should ask for some acreage for my Short-Game Golf Center business plan. At least a large part of the population has an interest in golf and participates regularly. Who do you know that follows minor league baseball? Especially when there is a major league franchise within 15 miles of the bush-leaguers.

NIMFY

Hello McFly? Anybody home? Huh?
Think, McFly. Think!

Some minor league baseball promoter is peddling his idea for my neighborhood.

Pewaukee looks at baseball plan
Group wants to build stadium
Chad Bauer, Lake Country Baseball Group president, said he is looking for a private-public partnership with the city. He wants the city to approve using about 6 acres of city park land for the stadium, which would be built by private investors.

Hey Chad, Pewaukee is within 20 minutes of Miller Park. MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL. MILWAUKEE BREWERS. Have you heard of them?????

Okay, stupid ideas get pitched to municipalities all the time. Here's the city's initial reception to this guy.

"Being a baseball person, I think it would be an absolute gem for the community," Del Kaatz, the city's representative to the Tourism Committee, said about a proposal by the Lake Country Baseball Group to build a stadium and have a Northwoods League team play there.

Isn't that sweet.

Chad & Del, I've got a much better idea for you. You are the baseball lovers, build the freaking ballpark by your homes.

Bipartisan solution to Social Security reform

Last night at Boots and Sabers, Owen pointed out this post by WILLisms showing the performance of a theoretical personal account had Congress reformed Social Security in 2005. Owen's conclusion:

Note: This is a bipartisan failure. Neither party has done squat about it.

But there was a bipartisan solution in 2005. Being an email hoarder, I never deleted the email exchange that hammered out the agreement.

The solution was developed in the course of four hours between me and my leftie friend. My leftie friend's credentials:

• Has aways voted Democratic
• Union member
• State government employee
• Works in Madison
• Adores Jim Doyle

I could go on. Here is the historic exchange.

-----Original Message-----
From: Headless Blogger
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 8:56 AM
To: Leftie Friend; Innocent Bystander
Subject: A different way to look at things

A couple observations from Thomas Sowell:

"Raising Social Security taxes today will not leave a dime more to pay pensions to future retirees. Right now there is more money coming into the system than is going out -- and the difference gets spent on other things. Higher taxes now would mean a bigger excess to be spent on other things, leaving nothing more for the future."·

"People who oppose the privatization of Social Security call it "a risky scheme." But is anything more risky than turning money over to politicians and hoping that they won't spend it before you retire? They have been spending the "trust fund" for decades."

-----Original Message-----
From: Leftie Friend
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 9:04 AM
To: Headless Blogger; Innocent Bystander
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

He's right in many ways. What they should do is stop raiding it and then use professional investment boards to invest a portion of the total fund not on an individual basis but as a whole. Just like many states do with their pension funds i.e. Wisconsin State Investment Board. That would address all of the concerns about the personal accounts.

-----Original Message-----
From: HB
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 9:40 AM
To: LF; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

Your idea would be a good start (I still believe that higher SS taxes and lower payouts to rich guys --- like you & me --- are inevitably needed to balance things), but then someone will raise the concern about the government investing in private markets and disrupting market forces. The Trust Fund could be turned over to private investment firms to get around that. Someone else could also claim that it is still "a risky scheme."

I agree that your plan does the same as the private accounts, but the private accounts make future raises in SS taxes an easier sell to the public.

Your plan also requires a change in the law that requires all excess SS funds to be "invested" in Gov't securities (i.e., spent now on other things). This may be Al Gore's Lock Box idea, if so, he did a lousy job of selling it.

-----Original Message-----
From: LF
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 9:53 AM
To: HB; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

I think it was Al's idea. Like most Democrats, he's a poor salesman. I think it has to be a government investment board with GAO/DOJ oversight, too much chance of abuse otherwise.

-----Original Message-----
From: HB
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 10:34 AM
To: LF; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

The oversight is not a big deal, they can just do it like they do with the current Federal retirement program (their version of the 401(k)).

Re: Al being a salesman --- it is a lot easier to sell "Private Accounts" than a "Government Controlled Lock Box" to the majority of Americans (51% to 48% when we last checked in November 2004).

Another point, regarding Privatization (or your Gov't controlled account - let's call it the "Investment Option"): Since (by law) the "SS Trust Fund" is comprised solely of US government securities, the "Trust Fund" is nothing but a promise made by the government to tax future taxpayers. These taxes will be used to pay back the moneys (with interest) which were collected from current taxes to pay future retirement benefits (& spent by Washington on other things). The Investment Option removes these funds from use by the government for pork and other spending (name your own pet peeve here) and forces Congress to raise current taxes if they want to maintain their current levels of spending.

-----Original Message-----
From: LF
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 10:54 AM
To: HB; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

You got it. This is just another way to shrink the federal budget or balloon the deficit.

-----Original Message-----
From: HB
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 11:09 AM
To: LF; IBSubject:
RE: A different way to look at things

Are we agreeing?

Seriously, if "WE" can agree on this, we might have come up with a way to sell it to both Congress and the Prez. I think our only disagreement is whether there are to be Private or Government accounts. Is this something that could be left as a choice to each citizen (you are pro-choice!)?

They could choose from A, B or C:

A) Remain in current SS system (for codgers like the Innocent Bystander)
B) Join government controlled investment system (for the risk-adverse)
C) Establish Private SS Retirement Account (for gamblers)

I'll forward this thread to Paul Ryan.

-----Original Message-----
From: LF
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 11:38 AM
To: HB; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

I think option B is the only choice so the system is even for everyone and more importantly to minimize future law suits. Include all of the Senators/Representatives.

-----Original Message-----
From: HB
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 12:11 PM
To: LF; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

I think I see your point, but we have to get away from the current system of benefits, because a Ponzi Scheme cannot be indefinitely self-sustaining.

How about a government controlled investment fund, with two options?

A) Current defined benefit plan for codgers (with a means test and increased taxation).
B) A defined contribution plan for younger workers, with asset ownership by the worker of their portion of the government fund.

-----Original Message-----
From: LF
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 12:59 PM
To: HB; IB
Subject: RE: A different way to look at things

Sounds reasonable. My state pension is similar to choice B. I have two fund choices to put it in, a fixed rate fund (The ten-year (compounded) average annual Fixed Trust Fund effective rate is 11.3%) or a variable rate fund (The ten-year (compounded) average annual Variable Trust Fund effective rate is 10.7%). For 2004, the fixed effective rate is 8.5% and the variable effective rate is 12%. These returns are after management fees are taken out. I do 50% for both for investment diversity reasons. Not the greatest returns, but very consistent over the long term.

-----End of Email Thread-----


I forgot to forward the thread to Congressman Ryan. It is my fault this solution was never implemented.

My Fetish with Peameal Bacon



Peameal bacon is North America's best kept culinary secret. A staple in Ontario, it is unknown in most of the United States. Peameal is great stuff any way it is cooked. Sliced thin and fried, cut in chops and grilled, or cooked as a roast - the meat is juicy and tender by any method.

I was introduced to peameal bacon while traveling to Canada on business. On one trip to Ontario, I purchased a fully cooked peameal bacon roast from a butcher. It was the best "Canadian Style Bacon" I had ever eaten. A lesson on peameal bacon basics is provided at the BBQ Talk Canada forum.

I didn't have a chance to get to a butcher on my next trip, so I purchased a package of uncooked cured boneless pork loin for a grocery store. I didn't even get a blink when I carried my 1.5 kilo piece through Customs. It is a fraction of the cost of the mail order stuff sold in the U.S.

When I got home, I tried it sliced thin and fried right away and it was great. I also smoked a piece of it over apple & hickory, which was excellent.

I was next encouraged at the Canadian barbecue site to make my own Canadian bacon. There is a detailed recipe for Dizzy Pig Cow Lick Canadian Bacon online. I followed the recipe, except for my addition of a cornmeal coating to make my own peameal bacon.

My homemade version was very good pan fried. But, I'll be sure to soak it longer after brining next time to remove more of the salt.

Insert your favorite overused NASA quote here.

Am I the only man in America who will admit to thinking Lisa Nowak looks kind of hot in that booking photo? Come on, admit it. She's got that bad girl, 200-Mile High Club look going on.

She also is giving new meaning to the term 'ridden hard and put away wet.'

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Hey Sean, I call the Lamb Stew and raise you some strip steak and barbecued brisket chili.

Partial antidote to minus two Fahrenheit

I just watched the DVD from the 2006 Thompson Antique & Classic Boat Rally held last August in Marinette. The 1959 Sea Coaster we restored in 2005 made the trip. It was so chilly that I had to buy long sleeved shirts for my wife and myself. It must have been in the 60's. I felt warmer just viewing the DVD.



In September I bought our next project, a 1962 Thompson Sea Mate. This boat is in wonderful condition and only requires new paint on the hull and resealing of the keel. Another fun project for warmer weather.

Emulating Gary




On my weekly commutes to SW Michigan along the Chicago Skyway I have noticed the METRA commuter railway continues into Indiana. With the rush to build a similar line to Milwaukee, the significance of this rail line struck me. As usual, Milwaukee isn't being original. This time the city is trying to keep up with that boomtown of the Midwest - Gary, Indiana.

A little research showed that this isn't METRA, it is the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District rail line. The entire system route map is here - NICTD System Map

A comparison of the routes shows that Gary is close to the equivalent distance of Kenosha from downtown Chicago, while Milwaukee is a similar distance as South Bend. In addition, Amtrak runs trains from both South Bend and Milwaukee to Union Station, although the Milwaukee trains run much more frequently. A ridership comparison of these Indiana routes should provide some useful information for projecting ridership on the El-trains to Milwaukee.


Overall ridership on NICTD is booming, surpassing 4 million passengers in 2006. The Milwaukee commuter rail proponents should be embracing these numbers for projecting use of their rail line extension. Where are the projections?

I'll keep looking. Something tells me the South Bend to Gary route isn't the bulk of those 4 million riders.

Life Imitates Bad Science Fiction

Fallen Angels is sci-fi book with an interesting premise and multiple references to Wisconsin. So it had enough going on to get my interest. Unfortunately, the character development is so childish that I could never finish the book. The premise can be summed up in these two sentences from an Amazon review:

The Earth is slipping into a new Ice Age, even while zealous Greens and "Eco-Fascists" put a stop to any technology that might lead to global warming. There's only one group to whom Alex can turn, one group still attached to the ideas of progress and science - Sci-Fi fans!

Two recent reports fall in line with precursers to the novel. First I see the efforts to silence any distent to the global warming orthodoxy, and then Cambridge astrophysicist Nigel Weiss writes:

Typically, sunspots flare up and settle down in cycles of about 11 years. In the last 50 years, we haven't been living in typical times: "If you look back into the sun's past, you find that we live in a period of abnormally high solar activity," Dr. Weiss states.These hyperactive periods do not last long, "perhaps 50 to 100 years, then you get a crash," says Dr. Weiss. 'It's a boom-bust system, and I would expect a crash soon." In addition to the 11-year cycle, sunspots almost entirely "crash," or die out, every 200 years or so as solar activity diminishes. When the crash occurs, the Earth can cool dramatically. Dr. Weiss knows because these phenomenon, known as "Grand minima," have recurred over the past 10,000 years, if not longer.

The Fallen Angels authors may be prophets. I'm not a betting man, but in the Man-Made Global Warming vs. Solar Cooling Super Bowl, I take the Sun minus the 7 points.

Althouse Spotting

I saw Ann crossing Gorham Street at State this afternoon.

Another brush with greatness. I am not worthy.

My Bacon number is 3.

This is not the Salivator



I have not named this classic, but I spent a lot of time to clean the rust and paint my smoker. My WSM was last used to smoke Canadian style peameal bacon. But that's another blog post.

100 Hour Update

Hours worked through close of business on 1/12/07.

Headless Blogger - 88 hours

U.S. House of Representatives - 23.4 hours

Where do I sign up for a 12 hour work week?

100 Hour Countdown

The clock is ticking for House Democrats, but it's hard to tell what time it is. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was touting a plan to push six bills through a Democratic House in 100 hours or less as early as June of last year. She's reached the halfway point — in fewer than 20 hours, according to her count.

But just as the official clock for a basketball or football game stops for time-outs and commercial breaks, Democrats aren't counting the minutes spent on business unrelated to those six designated bills.

Let's keep score, time worked in 2007 (through 1/11/07):

Headless Blogger - 80.0 hours

U.S. House of Representatives - 17.8 hours

What is that smell?

Three losses for 3 conference teams is a big deal. It could be decades until we see it again.

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My wife has a thing for pancakes and waffles. That's a good thing, except for the waffle irons stored all over the house. Fresh berries were the excuse this time.

Paper Proves Local Cooling in Milwaukee


Jesse Garza sets out in today's MJS to show that this winter is exceptionally warm, backing up anecdotal information with historical weather records. It couldn't just be normal temperature variations - global warming, you know.

When the temperature in Milwaukee plunged to 6 degrees above zero Dec. 8, few people might have considered the possibility that last month would be memorable for its unusual warmth.

But when the mercury shot up to 40 degrees two days later it began a 25-day streak of above-normal temperatures that helped make for the 14th warmest December on record in Milwaukee.

And Wednesday's high temperature of 49 degrees marked the 26th consecutive day in the city with a temperature of 32 degrees or higher, five days shy of the previous winter record for an at-or-above-freezing streak.

Fourteenth warmest, now that is quite a standard. With over 13 decades of weather data, what are the chances that two years within one decade would be in the list of the 14 warmest Decembers? Quite high, actually.

The problem with the article is that it includes the data for those 14 sweltering Decembers. When the numbers are plotted, the curious truth emerges. The trend (see graph) from over 129 years of weather records is towards a cooler highest average temperature for December. The average is actually 2.4 degrees of cooling per century.

Geez-oh-man. To think that Al Gore is sweating a temperature rise of only a fraction of a degree per century.

The Journal-Sentinel has shown that Milwaukee is at the start of another ice age. Please burn some hydrocarbons to help reverse this trend. A little global warming couldn't hurt.

UPDATE: Thanks to Dad29 for linking here, but I feel the need to clarify his statement about what I have proven. The only claims I make are:

1. The weather this year is not exceptional. It is just another warm winter in our not very long historical record; and
2. This record can be easily manipulated if the analyst is biased.

The Badgers fulfill their part of the deal

Wisconsin 17, Arkansas 14

Unfortunately, Michigan couldn't, so no Big 10 dominance this year.

It is now up to OSU to make this the first three loss Big 3 since 1971. A Buckeye win will also set a record for total wins by three teams from a single conference.

The Big Ten still has a chance to record a historically exceptional year.

Time to take away the credit cards

The Journal Sentinel reports today that Wisconsin is out of control financially.

The state's financial books show that Wisconsin ended the last fiscal year with a $2.15 billion deficit, under accounting principles that are standard for private companies, according to a report that the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance released Friday.

Alliance President Todd Berry said the report represented a truer picture of state finances than what was shown with the method mandated under the state constitution and favored by elected officials for years. Using the state's measure, Wisconsin posted a $49.2 million balance for the fiscal year that ended on June 30.

"It's safe to say we're in the worst financial position of any state in the country," Berry said.

As much as I dislike the thought of additional taxes to try to pay this off, it is inevitable. With the governor and legislators that were just elected, the next two years will be open season for tax increases in Wisconsin.

But can't they at least try to keep it from getting worse? Some basic financial planning advise should be heeded before any taxing authority in Wisconsin applies for another proverbial credit card. Do not get locked into additional spending until you pay off your current liabilities.

Wisconsin is not in adequate financial condition to begin another spending spree.

Why ...

... would otherwise rationale parents buy their child this for Christmas?

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Serving suggestion - Grilled beef tenderloin.

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Grilled Pizza Atomica.

Big 10 (Big 3) Football Dominance?

2006 – Big 10 (34 wins, 2 losses, 94.4%)
#1 – Ohio State 12-0-0
#3 – Michigan 11-1-0
#6 – Wisconsin 11-1-0

OSU/UofM/UW are collectively undefeated against the rest of college football, 32-0. Think about it. Three teams from one conference that cannot be beat, exclusive of one another. This has probably never happened previously in the 100+ years of college football. Have you read this fact at ESPN.com?

The SEC crowd whined enough last week about Big 10 bias and got their way. Deal with it. The Big 3 win out and OSU is #1, UofM is #2, and the Badgers might end up #5 if they catch a tailwind.

I posted the above comment on Sunday at TheWisconsinSportsBar blog.

It was reckless of me to make the unsubstantiated claim that having three teams from one conference that cannot be beaten has probably never happened in the history of college football. I undertook an effort to prove my point and have completed my due diligence. However, I ended up proving that I was wrong.

To determine which conferences have had dominating years, I reviewed the final AP polls since 1950. My rule was that any three teams from one conference with three or less total losses were assumed to be exceptions to my claim. I don't have access to complete season records nor the desire to look through them, so this rule of thumb will have to do. Right away I determined that it was pretty common in the 1950’s and 60’s to have teams that met my criteria. I found the following cases.

1951 – Big 10 (25 wins, 1 loss, 2 ties, 92.9%)
#2 – Michigan State 9-0-0
#4 – Illinois 9-0-1
#8 – Wisconsin 7-1-1

1957 – Big 10 (24 wins, 3 losses, 1 tie, 87.5%)
#2 – Ohio State 9-1-0
#3 – Michigan State 8-1-0
#6 – Iowa 7-1-1

1958 – SEC (29 wins, 2 losses, 1 tie, 92.2%)
#1 – LSU 11-0-0
#4 – Auburn 9-0-1
#11 – Mississippi 9-2-0

1961 – SEC (30 wins, 3 losses, 90.9%)
#1 – Alabama 11-0-0
#4 – LSU 10-1-0
#5 – Mississippi 9-2-0

1962 – SEC (29 wins, 2 losses, 1 tie, 92.2%)
#3 – Mississippi 10-0-0
#5 – Alabama 10-1-0
#7 – LSU 9-1-1

1969 – Pac 8 (25 wins, 3 losses, 3 ties, 85.5%)
#3 – USC 10-0-1
#12 – UCLA 8-1-1
#19 – Stanford 7-2-1

1971 – Big 8 (34 wins, 3 losses, 91.9%)
#1 – Nebraska 13-0-0
#2 – Oklahoma 11-1-0
#3 – Colorado 10-2-0

From 1951 to 1971 there were seven years in which a single conference produced three teams with 3 total losses or less. That is one-third of those 21 seasons. The 1971 Big 8 trio captures what I had in mind when I said "three team from one conference that cannot be beaten, exclusive of one another."

The research continued from 1972 up through the 2005 season. No further examples of 3 or less losses within any conference were identified. I’ll say it again, from 1972 through 2005 there has not been a single conference with any three teams with a cumulative 3 or less losses. That is thirty-four (34) seasons since we last saw one conference with this level of dominance.

I urge others to check my results. Determining which teams were in each conference in any given year greatly complicated the research.

At least I have an excuse for my rash statement at The Wisconsin Sports Bar. What I had in mind has not occurred in over a third of a century. The change in football dominance is probably due to overall increased parity in college football, the increased number of games played including increased intra-conference play, the addition of conference championship games and additional bowl games.

This research also verified that the record of this year’s Big 3 is truly exceptional. Their total number of wins is approaching the previous record (35 by the Big 10 in 2002, I think). If the three teams win out, their winning percentage will set a new record. Even finishing 2-1 in their bowl games, they’ll be historically great - the first 3 loss Big 3 since 1971.

But finish 1-2 or 0-3, and OSU/UofM/UW are just another fart in the wind.