Man vs Shark: Man Wins

Check this out. Dramatic photos included.

Greenspan is no friend of capitalism, no friend of freedom

Alan Greenspan effectively renounced his standing as capitalist, let alone as an Objectivist, in his years as the Fed chairman. He made his renunciation explicit by blaming the semi-free economy on which he inflicted himself for years at the Fed helm for its current state. He went the distance recently by adding his voice to calls to nationalize banks.

”It may be necessary to temporarily nationalise some banks in order to facilitate a swift and orderly restructuring,” he said. “I understand that once in a hundred years this is what you do.”

This remarkable confession demonstrates what it means to fail to grasp the concept principle—i.e., either we're free or not. Greenspan is saying, in effect, "Yeah, freedom is important, but not now; not after my policies and those of the US government across decades spawned this historic mess."

Granted, Bush confessed the same thing when he said:"I've abandoned free-market principles in order to save the free-market system." But the bar is set real low for him. I don't expect much from him.

Greenspan, on the other hand, should know better. It's literally his job to know better. For him to come out for nationalizing anything, let alone the banks, is no different, in principle, from saying this: "It may be necessary to temporarily bring back slavery in order to facilitate a swift and orderly return to prosperity." It's a deeply offensive idea and should be met with moral outrage.

Istanbul Cafe

This evening, I treated Mary to a good Turkish meal at Istanbul Cafe in New Haven. The food was very good.

I had Kuzu Şiş Kebab—"Lean cubes of lamb marinated and grilled over a charcoal fire. Its simple preparation allows you to savor the exquisite, smoky flavor of the coal-fired lamb." True to its word, it was simply prepared and simply delicious.

Mary had Patlican Musakka—"A dish of pan-fried eggplant laden with a rich meat sauce decked with potato, tomato and sautéed onion and then smothered with melted kasar cheese." Yummy.

With the meal, I was delighted to indulge in a rare glass of Kavaklidere white wine. Of course, I'm a bit biased, having enjoyed the wine first at Barry's wonderful wedding in Istanbul. The taste of this excellent wine brought back those sweet memories as well as pleasing me in the here and now with Mary.

With dessert, I enjoyed a cup of apple tea, a simple, delightful beverage I enjoyed often in Istanbul.

The Istanbul Cafe is has a large parking lot right next to it. I took advantage of that, not wanting to waste time searching for a parking spot on the busy New Haven streets.

To sum it up, Mary and I will be back...with friends!

Amazing street performer

Check this out. Simply amazing.

Siberian Ice Cream

Among the last things in the world I'd anticipate is this. I love being happily surprised.

Kay Thompson

Last night, I enjoyed watching again one of my favorite movies—Funny Face. Besides the big names of Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn, Kay Parker shines. This is the only movie in which I recall seeing her perform. She's wonderful. For a fun sample, check out "Clap 'Yo Hands".

Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights

Yep, the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights is a new link I've added to my favorites here. It's a breath of fresh air needed desperately in Washington, D.C.

For example, breathe this in. Objectivist or not, consider this excerpt:

And as a historical fact, the U.S. economy during the period 1870 - 1913 grew significantly faster than it did after the Fed was established. True, there were many bank failures in this period, but there were also many business failures in general: banks were actually less likely to fail than were other businesses. The number of bank failures speaks to the dynamism of the period, not to anything fragile in the financial system. Precisely because market mechanisms were permitted to work, depositors, creditors and counterparties all kept a close eye on banks, monitoring leverage and withdrawing funds at the first sign of problems....

So pre-Fed we had runs on banks, some undoubtedly severe--but with the Fed we’ve had the Great Depression, the S&L meltdown and now perhaps the greatest worldwide credit crisis ever.

Think about it. Think about it as the Fed pours billions more into a black hole of irresponsible failures it fostered. Think about it as you listen again to Alan Greenspan blame a country of victims for the results of his actions on behalf of the Fed.