Let’s get one thing straight, the Energy Choice Initiative — Question 3 — on the November ballot is not deregulation of the electricity market. It would replace Nevada’s regulated energy monopoly with a regulated competitive energy market. It would amend the Constitution to require lawmakers by July 1, 2023, to “establish an open, competitive retail electric market, to … [Read more...]
Analog Anachronisms and Digital Dinosaurs
There stood I at DMV waiting to get mugshotted for a new four-year driver’s license. The kid who had just examined my eyes had expressed surprise that this old man could see so well, so I was feeling kinda pumped. “You look like Hammy,” said a skinny teen standing ahead of me. “Who?” said I. “Dr. Hammond. Haven’t you seen the ‘Jurassic Park’ movies?” his well-tattooed … [Read more...]
The Dance of Cynicism and Skepticism
In ancient Greece, Antisthenes, a pupil of Socrates, rose to sufficient stardom in philosophical circles that he landed a ‘spin off’ as the founder of his own sect, The Cynics. The Cynics “were marked by an ostentatious contempt for ease, wealth, and the enjoyments of life (The Oxford English Dictionary).” On the extreme side of this sect lived Diogenes, who advanced the idea … [Read more...]
Remembering Frank
Recently there have been a number of flicks on the tube starring Frank Sinatra. They reminded me of the many times I interfaced with the singer in Reno, Tahoe and Vegas. The most memorable follows: The jangle of the telephone around midnight usually is the precursor of bad news. When the phone rang for me at that time it was a cold wintry night with a storm in the mountains. … [Read more...]
BLM Rule Change Doesn’t Signal Wild Horse Slaughter
Wild horse advocates are apoplectic over a change in rules for selling off wild horses recently announced by the Trump administration’s Bureau of Land Management, saying it could lead to the animals being sold for slaughter. In 2013, after learning that Colorado rancher Tom Davis, a friend and neighbor of then-Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, had over a three-year period sold … [Read more...]
Ballardini Black Hole: Let’s Get Our Millions Back
Great Depression2 is now a lock, so let’s go get our money back. In 2006, former Washoe County commissioners put a stop to the acquisition of the Ballardini Ranch via eminent domain. The Minnesota-based speculators would have gotten a fair market profit. Taxpayers would have preserved the last large swath of open space in the Truckee Meadows, 1,019 acres. Alas and alack, … [Read more...]
Know Your Limits, Then Reach for the Skies
A little to the left, a little to the right – the good life is found through balance. Work matters. Human beings are happy when they are productive, creative and engaged in life. We have a need to contribute. To participate. To feel accomplished. Not to mention that we have to pay the bills. I spent all day yesterday climbing up and down a 20’ extension ladder, painting. … [Read more...]
Old News and Sports
Since this column is usually written a week before it appears in print, many of the topics we cover might seem like old news. Even though that may be true, it usually deals with items that were important at the time. Case in point would be the explosive stories that happened last mid-week. Chief among them was Trump’s overseas trip to NATO, England and a face-to-face with … [Read more...]