Change and No Change

No Change

Today is the 60th anniversary of the creation of Red China by the third member of the mass killer's elite club of the 20th century, Mao. That infamous triumvirate includes Hitler and Stalin. Of the three, the megalomaniac Mao is still the face of the government of Red China. How does that nation celebrate the anniversary ? By showing its true form.

FT: [my emphases] "The People’s Republic of China celebrated its 60th birthday on Thursday with a spectacular military and civilian parade through the centre of the deserted capital Beijing.
All of China’s top leaders, including Jiang Zemin, former president, watched from the rostrum above Tiananmen – the Gate of Heavenly Peace – as the cream of China’s armed forces and military equipment paraded through Tiananmen Square.

"Away from the parade, central Beijing was completely deserted after unprecedented security measures kept the public away and ensured no unexpected incidents ruined the parade. Ordinary citizens were told to watch the show on television and blocked from getting anywhere near the festivities.

"The display of military power and unabashed patriotism included goose-stepping troops, tanks, artillery, a regiment of intercontinental nuclear-capable ballistic missiles and flyovers by about 150 military aircraft. "

That's about all one needs to know: The People - no role. Goose-stepping troops on parade. Red China is a military dictatorship run by a small group, the "Central Military Commission" via a "nomenklatura" of favored bureaucrats - in effect, an aristocracy.

Change

BBC Online: "Judges who will form the highest court in the United Kingdom are to be sworn in later, marking a major milestone in British legal history. The Justices of the Supreme Court are replacing the Law Lords as the final court of appeal for almost all cases in the United Kingdom.
The court is independent of Parliament and will hear the most important cases. "

Well, well, well ... the British decide to follow the lead of their American cousins. This is quite interesting.

When will Europe decide that the US Constitution and structure of its government is the model for a United States of Europe ? I suppose it will take another fifty years to create the psychological foundations for recognizing that reality and get comfortable with accepting that the American government structure the best compromise for disparate states to form a union.

Other Matters

Ken the Cad "retires", surprising the board of directors of BofA. Sheesh, what a worthless board.

Saturn to close as its sale to Penske collapses. That's a shame. A brand and sales style the customer actually likes gets dumped. How rational is that ?

WSJ: "NEW DELHI -- India is poised for a big increase in its civilian nuclear capabilities. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday stressed the importance of nuclear energy in bridging the country's yawning energy gap, as Indian and international companies line up to enter a market opened by last year's U.S.-India nuclear deal."

So India joins the nations that are rational about energy growth, viz., going nuclear. When will the US move back to the only true solution to its energy problem ? Probably not until something breaks the grip of the Green Bishops on policy in the US.

Actions

I am doing nothing.
Je ne fais rien.
Ich machte nichts.
Nic nie robię.
Estoy haciendo nada.
Nihil facio.

[I still need this in Italian - coming soon.]

Word of the Day

"Hebetude" - noun [$10] literary; another Big Al word (and used on Gilligan's Island, too)!
Hebetude means dullness.
Sentence: After a couple years of market ping-pong games by the beefers, all these intraday moves on no significant news generates nothing but a heavy hebetude in the weary. Why do I even look intraday any more ?

Słowo Tygodnia

"Wiedzieć" - verb, imperfective, fourth conjugation
Wiedzieć means to know, in a general sense of something, everything, nothing.
Zdanie: Nic nie wiem.
Sentence: I know nothing.