It's more than 4000 feet long and 1102 feet above the canyon below.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2123191/Thats-way-beat-traffic-Worlds-highest-tunnel-tunnel-bridge-stretching-4-000ft-long-opens-China.html
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Platinum Gold Ratio
One way of measuring a recession is the Platinum/Gold Ratio. Platinum is much more scarce than gold and is also much more useful industrially so it should have a much higher price. However, gold is the quintessential store of value. So when economic output declines and there is a flight to safety, the ratio will decline.
"Economic activity is weakening when platinum prices fall below the price of gold because platinum is an industrial metal, said James Turk, founder and chairman of GoldMoney. And since gold is money, “monetary problems tend to worsen when the gold prices rise above the platinum price.”"
--http://articles.marketwatch.com/2011-09-16/commentary/30731404_1_platinum-guild-international-platinum-price-gold-prices/2
Gold became more valuable than Platinum on Sept. 2, 2011 and it has stayed that way ever since. I'm not sure what this means, but it indicates that there is something still very wrong with the economy.
"Platinum is much more rare in nature than gold is. More than 10 times more gold is mined each year than platinum. Unlike gold, which is either held in bank vaults or used in jewelry, more than 50% of the yearly production of platinum is consumed (used up) by industrial uses, mostly in the automobile industry. Some 40% is used for jewelry manufacturing and 10% for investment purposes. The Japanese seem to be very fond of platinum as they account for 95% of the platinum jewelry demand. There are reports in the press of a nascent interest in platinum jewelry in India, expected to make up 25% to 30% of the total Indian jewelry sales in 2012.
The annual supply of platinum is only about 130 tons, equivalent to only 6% (by weight) of the total annual gold mine production. It is less than 1 percent of silver's yearly output. Unlike gold, there are no large inventories of above-ground platinum. Therefore, any breakdown in the two major supply sources, South Africa and Russia, would catapult the price of platinum. An even more intriguing fact is that more than 90% of the world's platinum production comes from only four mines: three in South Africa and one in Siberia.
During economic expansion, platinum prices tend to outpace gold given its dual role as both a precious and industrial metal. But when the economy slows down, platinum can often stumble. For example, platinum dropped below the price of gold back in the early 1980s, pushing the spread below 1.0 for the better part of five years as the economy slowly recovered."
"Economic activity is weakening when platinum prices fall below the price of gold because platinum is an industrial metal, said James Turk, founder and chairman of GoldMoney. And since gold is money, “monetary problems tend to worsen when the gold prices rise above the platinum price.”"
--http://articles.marketwatch.com/2011-09-16/commentary/30731404_1_platinum-guild-international-platinum-price-gold-prices/2
Gold became more valuable than Platinum on Sept. 2, 2011 and it has stayed that way ever since. I'm not sure what this means, but it indicates that there is something still very wrong with the economy.
"Platinum is much more rare in nature than gold is. More than 10 times more gold is mined each year than platinum. Unlike gold, which is either held in bank vaults or used in jewelry, more than 50% of the yearly production of platinum is consumed (used up) by industrial uses, mostly in the automobile industry. Some 40% is used for jewelry manufacturing and 10% for investment purposes. The Japanese seem to be very fond of platinum as they account for 95% of the platinum jewelry demand. There are reports in the press of a nascent interest in platinum jewelry in India, expected to make up 25% to 30% of the total Indian jewelry sales in 2012.
The annual supply of platinum is only about 130 tons, equivalent to only 6% (by weight) of the total annual gold mine production. It is less than 1 percent of silver's yearly output. Unlike gold, there are no large inventories of above-ground platinum. Therefore, any breakdown in the two major supply sources, South Africa and Russia, would catapult the price of platinum. An even more intriguing fact is that more than 90% of the world's platinum production comes from only four mines: three in South Africa and one in Siberia.
During economic expansion, platinum prices tend to outpace gold given its dual role as both a precious and industrial metal. But when the economy slows down, platinum can often stumble. For example, platinum dropped below the price of gold back in the early 1980s, pushing the spread below 1.0 for the better part of five years as the economy slowly recovered."
Drunken Bohemian Rhapsody
This is hilarious. A guy gets arrested for DUI and starts belting out Bohemian Rhapsody, and he remembers every single word. (The sound track was added).
The deficit is a virtue
Video streaming by Ustream
We need higher deficits, not lower! Debt is an asset! Black is white! Up is down!
Friday, March 30, 2012
Tungsten filled gold bars
"Roughly 15 years ago – during the Clinton Administration [think Robert Rubin, Sir Alan Greenspan and Lawrence Summers] – between 1.3 and 1.5 million 400 oz tungsten blanks were allegedly manufactured by a very high-end, sophisticated refiner in the USA [more than 16 Thousand metric tonnes]. Subsequently, 640,000 of these tungsten blanks received their gold plating and WERE shipped to Ft. Knox and remain there to this day. "
--http://silverdoctors.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/tungsten-filled-1-kilo-gold-bar.html
Wow. The article claims that about 50% of all the large gold bars are tungsten filled, including those at Ft. Knox, and I assume those in the basement of the FRBNY, which may hold 25% of all the gold in the world. It shouldn't be too hard to check. Figure out how much volume the bar displaces and then calculate the expected weight and compare. Tungsten weighs slightly less than gold.
--http://silverdoctors.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/tungsten-filled-1-kilo-gold-bar.html
Wow. The article claims that about 50% of all the large gold bars are tungsten filled, including those at Ft. Knox, and I assume those in the basement of the FRBNY, which may hold 25% of all the gold in the world. It shouldn't be too hard to check. Figure out how much volume the bar displaces and then calculate the expected weight and compare. Tungsten weighs slightly less than gold.
USDA now does intelligence
I have previously suggested that the Department of Agriculture be eliminated because they duplicate the functions of other agencies. Now it seems the USDA wants to be in the intelligence gathering business:
"USDA, APHIS, Animal Care personnel need to monitor, collect and manage information from Internet sites for regulated activities throughout the United States. We require the expertise of an industry that utilizes technological advancements that can search the broad universe of Internet sources for information on individuals that are conducting regulated activities. This project is to be designed to evaluate vendor’s Internet Search Engine functionalities, user interface, and data to ensure that the data meets the Animal Care program needs."
--http://cryptome.org/2012/03/aphis-data-spy.pdf
There are at least 16 government agencies dedicated to intelligence gathering. Add number 17 to the list. Next they will need their own fancy office building in suburban Virginia or Maryland, since there aren't enough of those.
"USDA, APHIS, Animal Care personnel need to monitor, collect and manage information from Internet sites for regulated activities throughout the United States. We require the expertise of an industry that utilizes technological advancements that can search the broad universe of Internet sources for information on individuals that are conducting regulated activities. This project is to be designed to evaluate vendor’s Internet Search Engine functionalities, user interface, and data to ensure that the data meets the Animal Care program needs."
--http://cryptome.org/2012/03/aphis-data-spy.pdf
There are at least 16 government agencies dedicated to intelligence gathering. Add number 17 to the list. Next they will need their own fancy office building in suburban Virginia or Maryland, since there aren't enough of those.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Gridlock is coming
The debt ceiling of $16.394 trillion will be hit on September 14, 2012. It will probably be impossible to raise it until the new Congress comes back in late January 2013.
The Treasury has all sort of tricks up their sleeves but last time they were able to only last about 2.5 months before running out of oxygen. So the US government could actually run completely out of money by December 1. It is unknown what would happen then as it would be illegal for them to borrow any more unless the debt ceiling is raised.
Meanwhile, attempts to actually pass a budget are crashing and burning. The Bowles-Simpson plan was rejected 382-38, the Obama budget was rejected 414-0, and the Congressional Black Caucus plan was rejected 314-107. The Ryan plan passed 228-191, but it will be killed in the Senate.
I expect some kind of crisis or stock market crash or recession beginning in September.
UPDATE: This will be worse than gridlock. The Republicans hate the president so much they are willing to let the economy crash just to spite him.
"Nobody wants much to think about it yet, but it's well understood by everyone in Washington and on Wall Street, that a potentially massive fiscal problem is looming for the economy next year.
The issue is divided into three parts:
I'm actually rooting for a crisis this fall. While that sounds harsh, it would fix the long-term problems I am much more worried about. The tax increases and spending cuts would go far to balance the budget.
The Treasury has all sort of tricks up their sleeves but last time they were able to only last about 2.5 months before running out of oxygen. So the US government could actually run completely out of money by December 1. It is unknown what would happen then as it would be illegal for them to borrow any more unless the debt ceiling is raised.
Meanwhile, attempts to actually pass a budget are crashing and burning. The Bowles-Simpson plan was rejected 382-38, the Obama budget was rejected 414-0, and the Congressional Black Caucus plan was rejected 314-107. The Ryan plan passed 228-191, but it will be killed in the Senate.
I expect some kind of crisis or stock market crash or recession beginning in September.
UPDATE: This will be worse than gridlock. The Republicans hate the president so much they are willing to let the economy crash just to spite him.
"Nobody wants much to think about it yet, but it's well understood by everyone in Washington and on Wall Street, that a potentially massive fiscal problem is looming for the economy next year.
The issue is divided into three parts:
- Sometime in late 2012 or early 2013, Congress will have to approve another debt ceiling hike.
- At the same time, all of the Bush tax cuts are set to expire -- not just the tax cuts for the rich.
- Thanks to the last debt ceiling deal, some big time spending cuts are due to go into effect starting in 2013. In theory, these could be reversed by Congress, but in the context of everything else it will be challenging.
I'm actually rooting for a crisis this fall. While that sounds harsh, it would fix the long-term problems I am much more worried about. The tax increases and spending cuts would go far to balance the budget.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Does monosodium glutamate make you fat?
MSG (a slow poison) Very interesting
The food additive MSG (Mono-Sodium Glutamate) is a slow poison. MSG hides behind 25 or more names, such as "Natural Flavoring." MSG is even in your favorite coffee from Tim Horton's and Starbucks coffee shops!
I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, and so did a friend of mine, John Erb. He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario , Canada , and spent years working for the government. He made an amazing discovery while going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called The Slow Poisoning of America .
In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so scientists have to create them. They make these creatures morbidly obese by injecting them with MSG when they are first born.
The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates, causing rats (and perhaps humans) to become obese. They even have a name for the fat rodents they create: "MSG-Treated Rats."
When I heard this, I was shocked. I went into my kitchen and checked the cup-boards and the refrigerator. MSG was in everything -- the Campbell's soups, the Hostess Doritos, the Lays flavored potato chips, Top Ramen,Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, and Kraft salad dressings, especially the "healthy low-fat" ones.
The items that didn't have MSG marked on the product label had something called "Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein," which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.
It was shocking to see just how many of the foods we feed our children everyday are filled with this stuff. MSG is hidden under many different names in order to fool those who read the ingredient list, so that they don't catch on. (Other names for MSG are "Accent, "Aginomoto," "Natural Meat Tenderizer," etc.)
But it didn't stop there.
When our family went out to eat, we started asking at the restaurants what menu items contained MSG. Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG. But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough, MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere.
Burger King, McDonald's, Wendy's, Taco Bell, every restaurant - even the sit-down eateries like TGIF, Chili's, Applebee's, and Denny's - use MSG in abundance. Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender: MSG was in every chicken dish, salad dressing. and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin - their secret spice was MSG!
So why is MSG in so many of the foods we eat? As a preservative, or a vitamin?
Not according to my friend John Erb. In his book The Slow Poisoning of America, he said that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body.
Even the propaganda website sponsored by the food manufacturers lobby group supporting MSG explains that the reason they add it to food is to make people eat more.
A study of the elderly showed that older people eat more of the foods that it is added to. The Glutamate Association lobbying group says eating more is a benefit to the elderly, but what does it do to the rest of us?
"Betcha can't eat [just] one," takes on a whole new meaning where MSG is concerned! And we wonder why the nation is overweight!
MSG manufacturers themselves admit that it addicts people to their products... It makes people choose their product over others, and makes people eat more of it than they would if MSG wasn't added.
Not only is MSG scientifically proven to cause obesity, it is an addictive substance.. Since its introduction into the American food supply fifty years ago, MSG has been added in larger and larger doses to the
pre-packaged meals, soups, snacks, and fast foods we are tempted to eat everyday.
The FDA has set no limits on how much of it can be added to food. They claim it's safe to eat in any amount. But how can they claim it's safe when there are hundreds of scientific studies with titles like these:
"The monosodium glutamate (MSG) obese rat as a model for the study of exercise in obesity." Gobatto CA, Mello MA, Souza CT , Ribeiro IA. Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol. 2002.
"Adrenalectomy abolishes the food-induced hypothalamic serotonin release in both normal and monosodium glutamate-obese rats." Guimaraes RB, Telles MM, Coelho VB, Mori C, Nascimento CM, Ribeiro. Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug.
'Obesity induced by neonatal monosodium glutamate treatment in spontaneously hypertensive rats: An animal model of multiple risk factors." Iwase M, Yamamoto M, Iino K, Ichikawa K, Shinohara N, Yoshinari Fujishima.
AHypertens Res. 1998 Mar.
"Hypothalamic lesion induced by injection of monosodium glutamate in suckling period and subsequent development of obesity." Tanaka K, Shimada M, Nakao K Kusunoki. Exp Neurol. 1978 Oct.
No, the date of that last study was not a typo; it was published in 1978. Both the "medical research community" and "food manufacturers" have known about the side effects of MSG for decades.
Many more of the studies mentioned in John Erb's book link MSG to diabetes, migraines and headaches, autism, ADHD, and even Alzheimer's.
So what can we do to stop the food manufactures from dumping this fattening and addictive MSG into our food supply and causing the obesity epidemic we now see?
Several months ago, John Erb took his book and his concerns to one of the highest government health officials in Canada . While he was sitting in the government office, the official told him, "Sure, I know how bad MSG is.
I wouldn't touch the stuff.." But this top-level government official refuses to tell the public what he knows.
The big media doesn't want to tell the public either, fearing issues with their advertisers. It seems that the fallout on the fast food industry may hurt their profit margin. The food producers and restaurants have been addicting us to their products for years, and now we are paying the price for it. Our children should not be cursed with obesity caused by an addictive food additive.
But what can I do about it? I'm just one voice! What can I do to stop the poisoning of our children, while our governments are insuring financial protection for the industry that is poisoning us?
This message is going out to everyone I know in an attempt to tell you the truth that the corporate-owned politicians and media won't tell you.
The best way you can help to save yourself and your children from this drug-induced epidemic is to forward this article to everyone. With any luck, it will circle the globe before politicians can pass the legislation
protecting those who are poisoning us.
The food industry learned a lot from the tobacco industry. Imagine if big tobacco had a bill like this in place before someone blew the whistle on nicotine?
If you are one of the few who can still believe that MSG is good for us and you don't believe what John Erb has to say, see for yourself. Go to the National Library of Medicine at www..pubmed.com. Type in the words "MSG Obese" and read a few of the 115 medical studies that appear.
We the public do not want to be rats in one giant experiment, and we do not approve of food that makes us into a nation of obese, lethargic, addicted sheep, feeding the food industry's bottom line while waiting for the heart transplant, the diabetic-induced amputation, blindness, or other obesity-induced, life-threatening disorders..
With your help we can put an end to this poison. Do your part in sending this message out by word of mouth, e-mail, or by distribution of this printout to your friends all over the world and stop this "Slow Poisoning of Mankind" by the packaged food industry.
Blowing the whistle on MSG is our responsibility, so get the word out.
--Source: viral email
The food additive MSG (Mono-Sodium Glutamate) is a slow poison. MSG hides behind 25 or more names, such as "Natural Flavoring." MSG is even in your favorite coffee from Tim Horton's and Starbucks coffee shops!
I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, and so did a friend of mine, John Erb. He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario , Canada , and spent years working for the government. He made an amazing discovery while going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called The Slow Poisoning of America .
In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so scientists have to create them. They make these creatures morbidly obese by injecting them with MSG when they are first born.
The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates, causing rats (and perhaps humans) to become obese. They even have a name for the fat rodents they create: "MSG-Treated Rats."
When I heard this, I was shocked. I went into my kitchen and checked the cup-boards and the refrigerator. MSG was in everything -- the Campbell's soups, the Hostess Doritos, the Lays flavored potato chips, Top Ramen,Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, and Kraft salad dressings, especially the "healthy low-fat" ones.
The items that didn't have MSG marked on the product label had something called "Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein," which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.
It was shocking to see just how many of the foods we feed our children everyday are filled with this stuff. MSG is hidden under many different names in order to fool those who read the ingredient list, so that they don't catch on. (Other names for MSG are "Accent, "Aginomoto," "Natural Meat Tenderizer," etc.)
But it didn't stop there.
When our family went out to eat, we started asking at the restaurants what menu items contained MSG. Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG. But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough, MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere.
Burger King, McDonald's, Wendy's, Taco Bell, every restaurant - even the sit-down eateries like TGIF, Chili's, Applebee's, and Denny's - use MSG in abundance. Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender: MSG was in every chicken dish, salad dressing. and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin - their secret spice was MSG!
So why is MSG in so many of the foods we eat? As a preservative, or a vitamin?
Not according to my friend John Erb. In his book The Slow Poisoning of America, he said that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body.
Even the propaganda website sponsored by the food manufacturers lobby group supporting MSG explains that the reason they add it to food is to make people eat more.
A study of the elderly showed that older people eat more of the foods that it is added to. The Glutamate Association lobbying group says eating more is a benefit to the elderly, but what does it do to the rest of us?
"Betcha can't eat [just] one," takes on a whole new meaning where MSG is concerned! And we wonder why the nation is overweight!
MSG manufacturers themselves admit that it addicts people to their products... It makes people choose their product over others, and makes people eat more of it than they would if MSG wasn't added.
Not only is MSG scientifically proven to cause obesity, it is an addictive substance.. Since its introduction into the American food supply fifty years ago, MSG has been added in larger and larger doses to the
pre-packaged meals, soups, snacks, and fast foods we are tempted to eat everyday.
The FDA has set no limits on how much of it can be added to food. They claim it's safe to eat in any amount. But how can they claim it's safe when there are hundreds of scientific studies with titles like these:
"The monosodium glutamate (MSG) obese rat as a model for the study of exercise in obesity." Gobatto CA, Mello MA, Souza CT , Ribeiro IA. Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol. 2002.
"Adrenalectomy abolishes the food-induced hypothalamic serotonin release in both normal and monosodium glutamate-obese rats." Guimaraes RB, Telles MM, Coelho VB, Mori C, Nascimento CM, Ribeiro. Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug.
'Obesity induced by neonatal monosodium glutamate treatment in spontaneously hypertensive rats: An animal model of multiple risk factors." Iwase M, Yamamoto M, Iino K, Ichikawa K, Shinohara N, Yoshinari Fujishima.
AHypertens Res. 1998 Mar.
"Hypothalamic lesion induced by injection of monosodium glutamate in suckling period and subsequent development of obesity." Tanaka K, Shimada M, Nakao K Kusunoki. Exp Neurol. 1978 Oct.
No, the date of that last study was not a typo; it was published in 1978. Both the "medical research community" and "food manufacturers" have known about the side effects of MSG for decades.
Many more of the studies mentioned in John Erb's book link MSG to diabetes, migraines and headaches, autism, ADHD, and even Alzheimer's.
So what can we do to stop the food manufactures from dumping this fattening and addictive MSG into our food supply and causing the obesity epidemic we now see?
Several months ago, John Erb took his book and his concerns to one of the highest government health officials in Canada . While he was sitting in the government office, the official told him, "Sure, I know how bad MSG is.
I wouldn't touch the stuff.." But this top-level government official refuses to tell the public what he knows.
The big media doesn't want to tell the public either, fearing issues with their advertisers. It seems that the fallout on the fast food industry may hurt their profit margin. The food producers and restaurants have been addicting us to their products for years, and now we are paying the price for it. Our children should not be cursed with obesity caused by an addictive food additive.
But what can I do about it? I'm just one voice! What can I do to stop the poisoning of our children, while our governments are insuring financial protection for the industry that is poisoning us?
This message is going out to everyone I know in an attempt to tell you the truth that the corporate-owned politicians and media won't tell you.
The best way you can help to save yourself and your children from this drug-induced epidemic is to forward this article to everyone. With any luck, it will circle the globe before politicians can pass the legislation
protecting those who are poisoning us.
The food industry learned a lot from the tobacco industry. Imagine if big tobacco had a bill like this in place before someone blew the whistle on nicotine?
If you are one of the few who can still believe that MSG is good for us and you don't believe what John Erb has to say, see for yourself. Go to the National Library of Medicine at www..pubmed.com. Type in the words "MSG Obese" and read a few of the 115 medical studies that appear.
We the public do not want to be rats in one giant experiment, and we do not approve of food that makes us into a nation of obese, lethargic, addicted sheep, feeding the food industry's bottom line while waiting for the heart transplant, the diabetic-induced amputation, blindness, or other obesity-induced, life-threatening disorders..
With your help we can put an end to this poison. Do your part in sending this message out by word of mouth, e-mail, or by distribution of this printout to your friends all over the world and stop this "Slow Poisoning of Mankind" by the packaged food industry.
Blowing the whistle on MSG is our responsibility, so get the word out.
--Source: viral email
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Top 325 Cities, version 11
Comparison is to previous top 250 list.
- New York (2)
- Washington/Baltimore (6)
- Shanghai (11)
- Tokyo (1)
- Chicago (3)
- Bonn/Cologne/Dusseldorf/Dortmund/Essen (10)
- Paris (5)
- Los Angeles (7)
- London (4)
- Sydney (16)
- Boston (12)
- Sao Paulo (18)
- Zurich (25)
- Beijing/Tianjin (21)
- Milan (46)
- Toronto (15)
- Osaka (20)
- Mumbai (33)
- Hong Kong (9)
- San Francisco (14)
- Moscow (13)
- Stockholm (50)
- Frankfurt (23)
- Madrid (29)
- Auckland (75)
- Dallas/Ft. Worth (26)
- Mexico City (17)
- Seoul (19)
- Houston (27)
- Singapore (8)
- Amsterdam/Rotterdam (39)
- Berlin (24)
- Oslo (72)
- Istanbul (34)
- Philadelphia (30)
- Jakarta (55)
- Warsaw (98)
- Miami (32)
- Brussels/Ghent/Antwerp (28)
- Riyadh (73)
- Vancouver (35)
- Taipei (31)
- Tehran (88)
- Montreal (36)
- Vienna (42)
- Buenos Aires (22)
- Atlanta (37)
- Johannesburg (49)
- Bangkok (52)
- Guangzhou (38)
- Copenhagen (62)
- Athens (106)
- Rio de Janeiro (40)
- Dubai (48)
- Caracas (114)
- Melbourne (41)
- Bogota, Colombia (61)
- Helsinki (121)
- Geneva (43)
- Kuala Lumpur (51)
- Lisbon (97)
- Delhi (44)
- Cairo (54)
- Tel Aviv (69)
- Barcelona (45)
- Dublin (63)
- Santiago, Chile (71)
- Shenzhen (47)
- Lagos (181)
- Manila (65)
- Munich/Munchen (53)
- Prague (80)
- Bucharest (196)
- Detroit/Windsor (56)
- Karachi (109)
- Algiers, Algeria (210)
- Seattle (57)
- Lima (60)
- Almaty, Kazakhstan (203)
- Phoenix (58)
- Kyiv/Kiev (184)
- Kuwait City (103)
- Minneapolis/St. Paul (59)
- Budapest (105)
- Doha, Qatar (64)
- San Diego/Tijuana (66)
- Dhaka, Bangladesh (160)
- Ho Chi Minh City (117)
- Denver (67)
- Casablanca, Morocco (246)
- Bratislava, Slovakia (280)
- Rome (68)
- Luanda, Angola (251)
- Baghdad, Iraq (254)
- Busan (70)
- Tripoli, Libya (NONE)
- Khartoum, Sudan (244)
- Hamburg (78)
- Zagreb, Croatia (289)
- Birmingham, UK (122)
- Abu Dhabi (79)
- Edinburgh (76)
- Kolkata (81)
- Glasgow (77)
- Cape Town (82)
- Belo Horizonte, Brazil (83)
- Monterrey, Mexico (84)
- St. Louis, MO (85)
- Nagoya/Chukyo, Japan (132)
- Tampa, FL (86)
- Monaco (102)
- Charlotte, NC (87)
- Incheon (125)
- Cleveland, OH (89)
- Brasilia (90)
- Portland, OR (91)
- Fukuoka (133)
- Kansas City, MO (92)
- Krakow, Poland (195)
- Indianapolis, IN (93)
- Panama City (108)
- Orlando, FL (94)
- Bangalore (107)
- Cincinnati, OH (95)
- Dalian, China (123)
- Pittsburgh (96)
- St. Petersburg, Russia (99)
- Honolulu (100)
- Chongqing (101)
- Calgary (104)
- Brisbane (110)
- Columbus, OH (111)
- Wellington (112)
- Chengdu (139)
- Jersey (113)
- Suzhou (198)
- Isle of Man (115)
- Sacramento, CA (116)
- Luxembourg (118)
- Chennai (119)
- Manama, Bahrain (120)
- Jeddah (124)
- Stuttgart (126)
- Yokohama (127)
- Las Vegas, NV (128)
- Guadalajara, Mexico (129)
- Porto Alegre, Brazil (130)
- Kaohsiung, Taiwan (131)
- Macao (134)
- Muscat, Oman (199)
- Karachi, Pakistan (109)
- Qingdao (140)
- Gibraltar (135)
- Ahmedabad, India (201)
- Talinn, Estonia (136)
- Hangzhou (141)
- Port Louis, Mauritius (137)
- Durban, South Africa (185)
- Malta (138)
- Ankara, Turkey (142)
- Reykjavik, Finland (143)
- Medellin, Colombia (147)
- Recife, Brazil (144)
- Pune, India (202)
- Salvador, Brazil (145)
- Austin, TX (146)
- Hyderabad, India (176)
- Hanoi, Vietnam (204)
- Surabaya, Indonesia (205)
- Colombo, Sri Lanka (206)
- Bandung, Indonesia (207)
- Nairobi, Kenya (186)
- Alexandria, Egypt (208)
- Beirut, Lebanon (209)
- Fortaleza, Brazil (148)
- Wuhan, China (149)
- Gold Coast City, Australia (150)
- Curitaba, Brazil (151)
- Hartford, CT (152)
- Manchester, UK (153)
- Milwaukee, WI (154)
- Ottawa, Canada (155)
- San Antonio, TX (156)
- Virginia Beach/Chesapeake/Norfolk, VA (157)
- Providence, RI (158)
- Nashville, TN (159)
- New Orleans, LA (161)
- Lyon, France (162)
- Turin, Italy (163)
- Hamilton, Bermuda (164)
- Nassau, Bahamas (165)
- Road Town, British Virgin Islands (166)
- Salt Lake City, UT (168)
- George Town, Cayman Islands (167)
- Memphis, TN (170)
- Richmond, VA (171)
- Jacksonville, FL (172)
- Daegu, South Korea (173)
- Leeds, UK (174)
- Hanover, Germany (175)
- Perth, Australia (177)
- Louisville, KY (178)
- Benidorm, Spain (180)
- Oklahoma City, OK (179)
- Damascus, Syria (NONE)
- Nanjing, China (182)
- Quito, Ecuador (230)
- Xiamen, China (183)
- Minsk, Belarus (233)
- Raleigh/Durham, NC (187)
- Adelaide, Australia (188)
- Baku, Azerbaijan (217)
- Katowice, Poland (189)
- Naples, Italy (190)
- Birmingham, AL (191)
- Santo Domingo, Dom. Rep. (220)
- Penang Island, Malaysia (192)
- Ljubljana, Slovenia (282)
- Sharjah, UAE (193)
- Sofia, Bulgaria (286)
- Shenyang, China (194)
- Yangon, Burma/Myanmar (266)
- Krakow, Poland (195)
- Tunis, Tunisia (291)
- Omaha, NE (197)
- Guatemala City, Guatemala (221)
- Lahore, Pakistan (200)
- Montevideo, Uruguay (242)
- Algiers, Algeria (210)
- Tashkent, Uzbekistan (247)
- Yekaterinburg, Russia (211)
- Belgrade, Serbia (275)
- Rochester, NY (212)
- Vilnius, Lithuania (288)
- Buffalo, NY (213)
- San Jose, Costa Rica (273)
- Tulsa, OK (214)
- Accra, Ghana (270)
- Surat, India (215)
- Sana'a, Yemen (NONE)
- Islamabad-Rawalpindi, Pakistan (216)
- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (245)
- Yerevan, Armenia (218)
- Amman, Jordan (292)
- Tbilisi, Georgia (219)
- Riga, Latvia (285)
- Cali, Colombia (222)
- Nicosia, Cyprus (284)
- Lausanne, Switzerland (223)
- Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire (268)
- Guayaquil, Ecuador (224)
- Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (294)
- Puebla, Mexico (225)
- San Juan, Puerto Rico (226)
- Douala, Cameroon (NONE)
- Campinas, Brazil (227)
- San Salvador, El Salvador (274)
- Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (228)
- Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (NONE)
- El Paso/Juarez (229)
- Dakar, Senegal (295)
- Xian, China (231)
- Harbin, China (232)
- Bern, Switzerland (234)
- Brunei (235)
- Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa), Congo (236)
- Rosario, Argentina (237)
- Toluca, Mexico (238)
- Leon, Mexico (239)
- Santiago, Dom. Rep. (240)
- Torreon, Mexico (241)
- Khartoum, Sudan (244)
- Casablanca, Morocco (246)
- Novosibirsk, Russia (248)
- Astana, Kazakhstan (249)
- Kabul, Afghanistan (250)
- Colorado Springs, CO (252)
- Albuquerque, NM (253)
- Strasbourg, France (255)
- The Hague, Netherlands (256)
- Abuja, Nigeria (257)
- Jaipur, India (258)
- Chandigarh, India (259)
- Kanpur, India (260)
- Lucknow, India (261)
- Nuremberg/Nurnberg, Germany (262)
- Canberra, Australia (263)
- Changchun, China (264)
- Jinan, China (265)
- Handan, China (267)
- Maputo, Mozambique (269)
- Kano, Nigeria (271)
- Edmonton, Canada (272)
- Mecca, Saudi Arabia (276)
- King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia (277)
- Songdo, South Korea (278)
- Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK (279)
- Bratislava, Slovakia (280)
- Gothenburg, Sweden (281)
- Marseille, France (283)
- Valencia, Spain (287)
- Libreville, Gabon (290)
- Kingston, Jamaica (293)
- Nagpur, India (296)
- Indore, India (297)
- Coimbatore, India (298)
- Goa, India (299)
- Iskandar/Johor Bahru, Malaysia (300)
- Jerusalem, Israel/East Jerusalem, Palestine (NONE)
- Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (NONE)
- Dushanbe, Tajikistan (NONE)
- Chisinau, Moldova (NONE)
- Ashgabat, Turkmenistan (NONE)
- Ulan Bator, Mongolia (NONE)
- Pyongyang, North Korea (NONE)
- Queretaro, Mexico (NONE)
- San Luis Potosi, Mexico (NONE)
- Merida, Mexico (NONE)
- Tucson, AZ (NONE)
- Fresno, CA (NONE)
- Tulsa, OK (NONE)
- Tirana, Albania (NONE)
- La Paz, Bolivia (NONE)
- Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina (NONE)
- Havana, Cuba (NONE)
Friday, March 23, 2012
Rising federal debt creates a death spiral for the economy
"Here's how rising Federal debt creates a death spiral in the economy. As Federal debt skyrockets, the cost of debt service rises, even at super-low rates of interest. That means taxes must rise, because no constituency will allow its share of the Federal budget to decline by more than a symbolic amount. Higher taxes means there will be less money available for new investment, and the enormous sums of Federal debt that have to be sold crowds out other investment."
--http://www.zerohedge.com/news/guest-post-about-20-trillion-public-debt
--http://www.zerohedge.com/news/guest-post-about-20-trillion-public-debt
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
The eat one meal per day diet
There are a lot of very strong opinions about diets. I just want to chime in on my current thinking. I will call it the E1M diet.
1. The E1M diet is very easy to follow. No calorie counting (obviously don't totally pig out), no restrictions on carbs or fat. The only restriction is that you don't eat at all, not even snacks, except for at the designated time.
2. I don't believe that it will slow metabolism. A lowered metabolism only occurs when the body enters starvation mode, which takes at least 3 days of total fasting.
3. The way to do this is to pick 1 time per day to eat a full meal. Breakfast is probably best, although lunch or mid-afternoon might also be a good time. A good meal might be a footlong sub, with no chips and a diet soda.
1. The E1M diet is very easy to follow. No calorie counting (obviously don't totally pig out), no restrictions on carbs or fat. The only restriction is that you don't eat at all, not even snacks, except for at the designated time.
2. I don't believe that it will slow metabolism. A lowered metabolism only occurs when the body enters starvation mode, which takes at least 3 days of total fasting.
3. The way to do this is to pick 1 time per day to eat a full meal. Breakfast is probably best, although lunch or mid-afternoon might also be a good time. A good meal might be a footlong sub, with no chips and a diet soda.
Freeways without futures
Twelve freeways that may soon be demolished:
1. I-10/Claiborne Overpass, New Orleans
2. I-895/Sheridan Expressway, New York City (Bronx)
3. Route 34/Oak Street Connector, New Haven
4. Route 5/Skyway, Buffalo
5. I-395/Overtown Expressway, Miami
6. I-70, St. Louis
7. West Shoreway, Cleveland
8. I-490/Inner Loop, Rochester
9. I-81, Syracuse
10. Gardiner Expressway, Toronto
11. Aetna Viaduct, Hartford
12. Route 99/Alaskan Way Viaduct, Seattle
Source: http://www.cnu.org/highways/freewayswithoutfutures2012
1. I-10/Claiborne Overpass, New Orleans
2. I-895/Sheridan Expressway, New York City (Bronx)
3. Route 34/Oak Street Connector, New Haven
4. Route 5/Skyway, Buffalo
5. I-395/Overtown Expressway, Miami
6. I-70, St. Louis
7. West Shoreway, Cleveland
8. I-490/Inner Loop, Rochester
9. I-81, Syracuse
10. Gardiner Expressway, Toronto
11. Aetna Viaduct, Hartford
12. Route 99/Alaskan Way Viaduct, Seattle
Source: http://www.cnu.org/highways/freewayswithoutfutures2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Top 150 Cities, version 11
This is a totally fresh look at the list
- New York (2)
- Washington/Baltimore (6)
- Shanghai (11)
- Tokyo (1)
- Chicago (3)
- Bonn/Cologne/Dusseldorf/Dortmund/Essen (10)
- Paris (5)
- Los Angeles (7)
- London (4)
- Sydney (16)
- Boston (12)
- Sao Paulo (18)
- Zurich (25)
- Beijing/Tianjin (21)
- Milan (46)
- Toronto (15)
- Osaka (20)
- Mumbai (33)
- Hong Kong (9)
- San Francisco (14)
- Moscow (13)
- Stockholm (50)
- Frankfurt (23)
- Madrid (29)
- Auckland (75)
- Dallas (26)
- Mexico City (17)
- Seoul (19)
- Houston (27)
- Singapore (8)
- Amsterdam/Rotterdam (39)
- Berlin (24)
- Oslo (72)
- Istanbul (34)
- Philadelphia (30)
- Jakarta (55)
- Warsaw (98)
- Miami (32)
- Brussels/Ghent/Antwerp (28)
- Riyadh (73)
- Vancouver (35)
- Taipei (31)
- Tehran (88)
- Montreal (36)
- Vienna (42)
- Buenos Aires (22)
- Atlanta (37)
- Johannesburg (49)
- Bangkok (52)
- Guangzhou (38)
- Copenhagen (62)
- Athens (106)
- Rio de Janeiro (40)
- Dubai (48)
- Caracas (114)
- Melbourne (41)
- Bogota (61)
- Helsinki (121)
- Geneva (43)
- Kuala Lumpur (51)
- Lisbon (97)
- Delhi (44)
- Cairo (54)
- Tel Aviv (69)
- Barcelona (45)
- Dublin (63)
- Santiago (71)
- Shenzhen (47)
- Lagos (181)
- Manila (65)
- Munich (53)
- Prague (80)
- Bucharest (196)
- Detroit/Windsor (56)
- Karachi (109)
- Algiers (210)
- Seattle (57)
- Lima (60)
- Almaty, Kazakhstan (203)
- Phoenix (58)
- Kyiv/Kiev (184)
- Kuwait City (103)
- Minneapolis/St. Paul (59)
- Budapest (105)
- Doha (64)
- San Diego/Tijuana (66)
- Dhaka, Bangladesh (160)
- Ho Chi Minh City (117)
- Denver (67)
- Casablanca, Morocco (246)
- Bratislava, Slovakia (280)
- Rome (68)
- Luanda, Angola (251)
- Baghdad, Iraq (254)
- Busan (70)
- Tripoli, Libya (NONE)
- Khartoum, Sudan (244)
- Hamburg (78)
- Zagreb, Croatia (289)
- Birmingham, UK (122)
- Abu Dhabi (79)
- Edinburgh (76)
- Kolkata (81)
- Glasgow (77)
- Cape Town (82)
- Belo Horizonte, Brazil (83)
- Monterrey, Mexico (84)
- St. Louis, MO (85)
- Nagoya, Japan (132)
- Tampa, FL (86)
- Monaco (102)
- Charlotte, NC (87)
- Incheon (125)
- Cleveland, OH (89)
- Brasilia (90)
- Portland, OR (91)
- Fukuoka (133)
- Kansas City, MO (92)
- Krakow, Poland (195)
- Indianapolis, IN (93)
- Panama City (108)
- Orlando, FL (94)
- Bangalore (107)
- Cincinnati, OH (95)
- Dalian, China (123)
- Pittsburgh (96)
- St. Petersburg, Russia (99)
- Honolulu (100)
- Chongqing (101)
- Calgary (104)
- Brisbane (110)
- Columbus, OH (111)
- Wellington (112)
- Chengdu (139)
- Jersey (113)
- Suzhou (198)
- Isle of Man (115)
- Sacramento, CA (116)
- Luxembourg (118)
- Chennai (119)
- Manama, Bahrain (120)
- Jeddah (124)
- Stuttgart (126)
- Yokohama (127)
- Las Vegas, NV (128)
- Guadalajara (129)
- Porto Alegra, Brazil (130)
- Kaohsiung, Taiwan (131)
- Macao (134)
- Muscat, Oman (199)
Top 100 Countries
- US
- China
- Japan
- Germany
- France
- UK
- Australia
- Brazil
- Switzerland
- Italy
- Canada
- India
- Hong Kong
- Russia
- Sweden
- Spain
- New Zealand
- Mexico
- South Korea
- Singapore
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Turkey
- Indonesia
- Poland
- Belgium
- Saudi Arabia
- Taiwan
- Iran
- Austria
- Argentina
- South Africa
- Thailand
- Denmark
- Greece
- United Arab Emirates
- Venezuela
- Colombia
- Finland
- Malaysia
- Portugal
- Egypt
- Israel
- Ireland
- Chile
- Nigeria
- Philippines
- Czech Republic
- Romania
- Pakistan
- Algeria
- Peru
- Kazakhstan
- Ukraine
- Kuwait
- Hungary
- Qatar
- Bangladesh
- Vietnam
- Morocco
- Slovakia
- Angola
- Iraq
- Libya
- Sudan
- Croatia
- Syria
- Ecuador
- Oman
- Luxembourg
- Belarus
- Azerbaijan
- Dominican Republic
- Sri Lanka
- Slovenia
- Bulgaria
- Burma/Myanmar
- Tunisia
- Guatemala
- Uruguay
- Lebanon
- Uzbekistan
- Serbia
- Lithuania
- Costa Rica
- Ghana
- Kenya
- Yemen
- Ethiopia
- Macau
- Panama
- Jordan
- Latvia
- Cyprus
- Cote d'Ivoire
- Bahrain
- Tanzania
- Cameroon
- El Salvador
- Trinidad and Tobago
Final 25 Cities
These would be ranked 276-300 on my list. Mecca has the 2nd tallest building in the world and should be ranked much higher.
Jerusalem, Israel/East Jerusalem, Palestine
Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Chisinau, Moldova
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Ulan Bator, Mongolia
Pyongyang, North Korea
- Mecca, Saudi Arabia
- King Abdullah Economic City
- Songdo, South Korea
- Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
- Bratislava, Slovakia
- Gothenburg, Sweden
- Ljubljana, Slovenia
- Marseille, France
- Nicosia, Cyprus
- Riga, Latvia
- Sofia, Bulgaria
- Valencia, Spain
- Vilnius, Lithuania
- Zagreb, Croatia
- Libreville, Gabon
- Tunis, Tunisia
- Amman, Jordan
- Kingston, Jamaica
- Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Dakar, Senegal
- Nagpur, India
- Indore, India
- Coimbatore, India
- Goa, India
- Iskandar/Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Jerusalem, Israel/East Jerusalem, Palestine
Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Chisinau, Moldova
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Ulan Bator, Mongolia
Pyongyang, North Korea
Monday, March 19, 2012
New Projection: 2038
Here is my latest revised projection of deficits. I don't show it here, but it crosses the 150% of GDP line in 2038. The main change is that revenue is reduced. The revenue numbers come from the CBO, and the adjustment comes from the CRFB, consisting of tax cut extensions and continued AMT patches. I wish that revenue would be as high as the CBO projects, but I just don't see it.
Medicare and Medicaid spending seem to have slowed recently, so the projections seen here may be too high. For instance Medicare, FYTD is only $176 billion, making an annualized amount $422 billion, much lower than the $560 billion projected here. I think my numbers came from the Medicare projections. Anyways this is good news but I would like to see if the trend continues before adjusting my projected spending.
So maybe my projections are a little too bleak. Still, I want to see "facts on the ground" before producing my positive projections, and with February's deficit at an all time high, I am not seeing them, except for slightly reduced Medicare and Medicaid spending.
Update: I am looking at the official budget for defense spending and it shows defense spending of $688 billion in 2012 and $673 billion in 2013. So these numbers need to be adjusted.
Update April 6: I did a revised projection based on lower Medicare and Medicaid numbers and the situation looks a little better - deficit of only 1321 in 2012 instead of 1473 - but still I don't see the deficit ever dropping below 1 trillion/year. And the endpoint is still in 2038.
Medicare and Medicaid spending seem to have slowed recently, so the projections seen here may be too high. For instance Medicare, FYTD is only $176 billion, making an annualized amount $422 billion, much lower than the $560 billion projected here. I think my numbers came from the Medicare projections. Anyways this is good news but I would like to see if the trend continues before adjusting my projected spending.
So maybe my projections are a little too bleak. Still, I want to see "facts on the ground" before producing my positive projections, and with February's deficit at an all time high, I am not seeing them, except for slightly reduced Medicare and Medicaid spending.
Update: I am looking at the official budget for defense spending and it shows defense spending of $688 billion in 2012 and $673 billion in 2013. So these numbers need to be adjusted.
Update April 6: I did a revised projection based on lower Medicare and Medicaid numbers and the situation looks a little better - deficit of only 1321 in 2012 instead of 1473 - but still I don't see the deficit ever dropping below 1 trillion/year. And the endpoint is still in 2038.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
The Bellamy Salute
The original pledge of allegiance was originally composed by Francis Bellamy in 1892 and read: "I pledge allegiance to my flag and to the republic for which it stands: one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all." It was accompanied by a military salute and then a straight-arm salute with the palm down. The straight-arm salute was replaced with the hand over the heart in 1942.
One man stands against big government
Fred Perkins refused to go along with the National Recovery Administration. He was thrown in jail. His case was appealed all the way to the Supreme Court where the National Industrial Recovery Act was declared unconstitutional in 1935.
See also: http://www.yorkblog.com/universal/2009/12/york-battery-manufacturer-defi.html
How a fascist coup almost overthrew Roosevelt in 1933
From: http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/2012/03/how-america-avoided-fascist-coup-in.html
A giant army of 500,000 veterans and unemployed men were to march on Washington under the command of Smedley Butler and overthrow Roosevelt and set up a fascist dictatorship allied with Hitler and Mussolini. The masterminds of this were unnamed financiers unhappy with Roosevelt. However, Butler refused to go along and exposed the plot. (See: Business Plot).
See also: The Plot to Seize the White House
"No false modesty prevented Butler from recognizing that he was perhaps the best-known, and certainly the most popular and charismatic, military figure in the United States. He also suited the plotters' plans perfectly because he was noted for a brilliant, hard-hitting style of oratory that, they undoubtedly reasoned, could be put to the service of demagoguery in the same spell binding way Hitler and Mussolini had magnetized millions into following them. His rasping voice and fiery spirit captured audiences and held them hypnotized."
Friday, March 16, 2012
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Next 25 Cities
These are the best cities not in the top 250:
Luanda, Angola
Colorado Springs, CO
Albuquerque, NM
Bagdad, Iraq
Stasbourg, France
The Hague, Netherlands
Abuja, Nigeria
Jaipur, India
Chandigarh, India
Kanpur, India
Lucknow, India
Nurnberg, Germany
Canberra, Australia
Changchun, China
Jinan, China
Yangon, Myanmar (Burma)
Handan, China
Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
Maputo, Mozambique
Accra, Ghana
Kano, Nigeria
Edmonton, Canada
San Jose, Costa Rica
San Salvador, El Salvador
Belgrade, Serbia
Luanda, Angola
Colorado Springs, CO
Albuquerque, NM
Bagdad, Iraq
Stasbourg, France
The Hague, Netherlands
Abuja, Nigeria
Jaipur, India
Chandigarh, India
Kanpur, India
Lucknow, India
Nurnberg, Germany
Canberra, Australia
Changchun, China
Jinan, China
Yangon, Myanmar (Burma)
Handan, China
Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
Maputo, Mozambique
Accra, Ghana
Kano, Nigeria
Edmonton, Canada
San Jose, Costa Rica
San Salvador, El Salvador
Belgrade, Serbia
Top 10 areas to cut government spending
A lot of government spending has leveled off; however, a few areas are still growing rapidly. Here are the top 10 areas I would look to cut spending. This does not include any mandatory spending items.
1. State Department OCO spending in Iraq. The state department OCO budget soared from $4.7 billion in 2010 to $8.7 billion in 2012. Of this $8.7 billion, $5.2 billion is for Iraq in 2012, up from $1.6 billion in 2011. The US military is no longer in Iraq, so there should be some peace dividends. The budgets for Afghanistan and Pakistan could also be cut a little. At least $1 billion should be sliced from this budget.
2. Education. Most education dollars are spent locally, so why is federal spending soaring, from $64.3 billion in 2010 to $77.4 billion in 2012? Maybe Pell grants are increasing. Whatever the case, at least slow down the rate of spending. It should be very easy to cut $1 billion here.
3. Department of Energy. This supposedly merited a 12% increase over the last 2 years. "This reflects increases for priority areas such as clean energy, nuclear security, and research and development." It also reflects boondoggles, such as Solyndra, the $50 lightbulb, and the blockage of the Keystone pipeline. How about a 12% cut instead?
4. National Science Foundation. Although the budget is fairly small, totalling only $7.8 billion in 2012, it has been rapidly increasing. The biggest part of the increase is $998 million for "clean energy".
5. Veterans Affairs. This budget has increased 11% over the last 2 years, and some caps are needed.
6. Social Security Administration. This has nothing to do with benefits, instead it is increased operations costs. Much of the increase has to do with expanding the area that processes disability claims, which has a huge backlog. The SSDI trust fund will go broke in 2018, and processing claims faster will only speed this up.
7. Homeland Security. This was the biggest area of government spending increases, although the rate has slowed recently. But it is still rising more than is warranted. How about a freeze in DHS spending for a couple of years?
8. State Department. Separate from the OCO spending previously mentioned, the State Department has had a large increase in spending, some of it related to climate change and clean energy. How about a freeze in State Department spending for a couple of years?
9. Department of Defense. The DOD budget really hasn't gone up that much recently, but it is so huge that there should be a few billion per year that could be cut here.
10. DOD OCO. This area has been reduced recently, but it is still one of the biggest line items in the budget. Let's cut a few billion more from this area. Maybe accelerate withdrawal from Afghanistan?
1. State Department OCO spending in Iraq. The state department OCO budget soared from $4.7 billion in 2010 to $8.7 billion in 2012. Of this $8.7 billion, $5.2 billion is for Iraq in 2012, up from $1.6 billion in 2011. The US military is no longer in Iraq, so there should be some peace dividends. The budgets for Afghanistan and Pakistan could also be cut a little. At least $1 billion should be sliced from this budget.
2. Education. Most education dollars are spent locally, so why is federal spending soaring, from $64.3 billion in 2010 to $77.4 billion in 2012? Maybe Pell grants are increasing. Whatever the case, at least slow down the rate of spending. It should be very easy to cut $1 billion here.
3. Department of Energy. This supposedly merited a 12% increase over the last 2 years. "This reflects increases for priority areas such as clean energy, nuclear security, and research and development." It also reflects boondoggles, such as Solyndra, the $50 lightbulb, and the blockage of the Keystone pipeline. How about a 12% cut instead?
4. National Science Foundation. Although the budget is fairly small, totalling only $7.8 billion in 2012, it has been rapidly increasing. The biggest part of the increase is $998 million for "clean energy".
5. Veterans Affairs. This budget has increased 11% over the last 2 years, and some caps are needed.
6. Social Security Administration. This has nothing to do with benefits, instead it is increased operations costs. Much of the increase has to do with expanding the area that processes disability claims, which has a huge backlog. The SSDI trust fund will go broke in 2018, and processing claims faster will only speed this up.
7. Homeland Security. This was the biggest area of government spending increases, although the rate has slowed recently. But it is still rising more than is warranted. How about a freeze in DHS spending for a couple of years?
8. State Department. Separate from the OCO spending previously mentioned, the State Department has had a large increase in spending, some of it related to climate change and clean energy. How about a freeze in State Department spending for a couple of years?
9. Department of Defense. The DOD budget really hasn't gone up that much recently, but it is so huge that there should be a few billion per year that could be cut here.
10. DOD OCO. This area has been reduced recently, but it is still one of the biggest line items in the budget. Let's cut a few billion more from this area. Maybe accelerate withdrawal from Afghanistan?
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Top 250 Cities, version 10
- Tokyo (6)
- New York (1)
- Chicago (8)
- London (2)
- Paris (5)
- Washington/Baltimore (7)
- Los Angeles (12)
- Singapore (3)
- Hong Kong (4)
- Bonn/Cologne/Dusseldorf/Dortmund/Essen (108)
- Shanghai (9) [should include Nanjing and Hangzhou]
- Boston (17)
- Moscow (15)
- San Francisco (13)
- Toronto (10)
- Sydney (11)
- Mexico City (21)
- Sao Paulo (22)
- Seoul (14)
- Osaka (24)
- Beijing (16) [should be combined with Tianjin]
- Buenos Aires (25)
- Frankfurt (18)
- Berlin (19)
- Zurich (20)
- Dallas (27)
- Houston (32)
- Brussels (23) [should include Ghent and Antwerp]
- Madrid (34)
- Philadelphia (35)
- Taipei (26)
- Miami (36)
- Mumbai (28)
- Istanbul (29)
- Vancouver (30)
- Montreal (31)
- Atlanta (40)
- Guangzhou (33)
- Amsterdam/Rotterdam (42)
- Rio de Janeiro (41)
- Melbourne (39)
- Vienna (37)
- Geneva (38)
- Delhi (44)
- Barcelona (50)
- Milan (51)
- Shenzhen (47)
- Dubai (43)
- Johannesburg (52)
- Stockholm (45)
- Kuala Lumpur (46)
- Bangkok (48)
- Munich (49)
- Cairo (53)
- Jakarta (54)
- Detroit/Windsor (77)
- Seattle (64)
- Phoenix (78)
- Minneapolis/St. Paul (88)
- Lima, Peru (55)
- Bogota (56)
- Copenhagen (57)
- Dublin (58)
- Doha (59)
- Manila (60)
- San Diego/Tijuana (106)
- Denver (87)
- Rome (74)
- Tel Aviv (75)
- Busan (81)
- Santiago, Chile (63)
- Oslo (66)
- Riyadh (84)
- Tianjin (65) [should be combined with Beijing]
- Auckland (67)
- Edinburgh (68)
- Glasgow (70)
- Hamburg (71)
- Abu Dhabi (72)
- Prague (73)
- Kolkata (83)
- Cape Town (100)
- Belo Horizonte, Brazil (76)
- Monterrey, Mexico (79)
- St. Louis, MO (134)
- Tampa, FL (135)
- Charlotte, NC (142)
- Tehran, Iran (173)
- Cleveland, OH (203)
- Brasilia (128)
- Portland, OR (137)
- Kansas City, MO (204)
- Indianapolis, IN (208)
- Orlando, FL (201)
- Cincinnati, OH (202)
- Pittsburgh (92)
- Lisbon (90)
- Warsaw (80)
- St. Petersburg, Russia (82)
- Honolulu (85)
- Chongqing (86)
- Monaco (89)
- Kuwait City (91)
- Calgary (93)
- Budapest (94)
- Athens (95)
- Bangalore (96)
- Panama City (97)
- Karachi (98)
- Brisbane (99)
- Columbus, OH (206)
- Wellington (101)
- Jersey (61)
- Caracas (62)
- Isle of Man (69)
- Sacramento, CA (199)
- Ho Chi Minh City (102)
- Luxembourg (103)
- Chennai (104)
- Manama, Bahrain (105)
- Helsinki (107)
- Birmingham, UK (156)
- Dalian (109)
- Jeddah (110)
- Incheon (111)
- Stuttgart (112)
- Yokohama (113)
- Las Vegas, NV (141)
- Guadalajara, Mexico (114)
- Porto Alegre, Brazil (115)
- Kaohsiung, Taiwan (154)
- Nagoya/Chukyo, Japan (157)
- Fukuoka, Japan (158)
- Macao (116)
- Gibraltar (117)
- Talinn (118)
- Port Louis, Mauritius (119)
- Malta (120)
- Chengdu (121)
- Qingdao (122)
- Hangzhou (123) [should be included with Shanghai]
- Ankara (124)
- Reykjavik (125)
- Recife, Brazil (126)
- Salvador, Brazil (127)
- Austin, TX (209)
- Medellin, Colombia (129)
- Fortaleza, Brazil (130)
- Wuhan, China (131)
- Gold Coast City (132)
- Curitiba, Brazil (133)
- Hartford, CT (NONE)
- Manchester, UK (NONE)
- Milwaukee, WI (213)
- Ottawa, Canada (198)
- San Antonio, TX (200)
- Virginia Beach/Chesapeake/Norfolk, VA (210)
- Providence, RI (211)
- Nashville, TN (212)
- Dhaka, Bangladesh (172)
- New Orleans, Louisiana (225)
- Lyon, France (194)
- Turin, Italy (NONE)
- Hamilton, Bermuda (136)
- Nassau, Bahamas (138)
- Road Town, British Virgin Islands (139)
- George Town, Cayman Islands (140)
- Salt Lake City, UT (NONE)
- Providence, RI (NONE)
- Memphis, TN (216)
- Richmond, VA (218)
- Jacksonville, FL (215)
- Daegu, South Korea (221)
- Leeds, UK (NONE)
- Hanover, Germany (NONE)
- Hyderabad, India (143)
- Perth, Australia (222)
- Louisville, KY (217)
- Oklahoma City, OK (219)
- Benidorm, Spain (150)
- Lagos, Nigeria (144)
- Nanjing, China (145) [should be included with Shanghai]
- Xiamen, China (146)
- Kyiv/Kiev, Ukraine (147)
- Durban, South Africa (148)
- Nairobi, Kenya (149)
- Raleigh/Durham, NC (NONE)
- Adelaide, Australia (179)
- Katowice, Poland (180)
- Naples, Italy (NONE)
- Birmingham, AL (NONE)
- Penang Island, Malaysia (151)
- Sharjah, UAE (152)
- Shenyang, China (153)
- Krakow, Poland (159)
- Bucharest, Romania (160)
- Omaha, NE (NONE)
- Suzhou, China (161)
- Muscat, Oman (162)
- Lahore, Pakistan (NONE)
- Ahmedabad, India (163)
- Pune, India (164)
- Almaty, Kazakhstan (165)
- Hanoi, Vietnam (166)
- Surabaya, Indonesia (167)
- Colombo, Sri Lanka (168)
- Bandung, Indonesia (169)
- Alexandria, Egypt (170)
- Beirut, Lebanon (171)
- Algiers, Algeria (NONE)
- Yekaterinburg, Russia (174)
- Rochester, NY (NONE)
- Buffalo, NY (NONE)
- Tulsa, OK (NONE)
- Surat, India (NONE)
- Islamabad-Rawalpindi, Pakistan (NONE)
- Baku, Azerbaijan (NONE)
- Yerevan, Armenia (NONE)
- Tbilisi, Georgia (NONE)
- Santo Domingo, Dom. Rep. (176)
- Guatemala City (177)
- Cali, Colombia (178)
- Lausanne, Switzerland (181)
- Guayaquil, Ecuador (182)
- Puebla, Mexico (183)
- San Juan, Puerto Rico (184)
- Campinas, Brazil (185)
- Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (186)
- El Paso/Juarez (187)
- Quito, Ecuador (188)
- Xian, China (190)
- Harbin, China (191)
- Minsk, Belarus (192)
- Bern, Switzerland (193)
- Brunei (195)
- Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa), Congo (196)
- Rosario, Argentina (197)
- Toluca, Mexico (205)
- Leon, Mexico (207)
- Santiago, Dom. Rep. (214)
- Torreon, Mexico (220)
- Montevideo, Uruguay (223)
- Antwerp, Belgium (224) [should be combined with Brussels]
- Khartoum, Sudan (NONE)
- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (NONE)
- Casablanca, Morocco (NONE)
- Tashkent, Uzbekistan (NONE)
- Novosibirsk, Russia (NONE)
- Astana, Kazakhstan (NONE)
- Kabul, Afghanistan (NONE)
Hungary takes the blame for Spain's deficit
Spain is going to run a 5.3% deficit this year with the EU's blessings. Hungary is projected to run a 3.6% deficit and will be punished by losing a half-billion euros of aid unless they can get their deficit under 2.5%. Somehow this is not a double-standard.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
The Rhine-Ruhr metro area
I just noticed this. The Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan area in Germany has over 10 million inhabitants, making it the 3rd largest in Europe, after Paris and London. It should rank in the top 25 cities worldwide. The major cities in metro area are Cologne, Dusseldorf, and Bonn.
List of Cities by GDP
This is an interesting list, mostly coming from here. There are lots of missing data and lots of guesses, but this is as good a way of ranking a city as any. There are a lot of American cities on here which I hadn't previously listed. Anyways, this would be interesting to integrate into the list. (The brackets contain a rough guess of the GDP in US $ billions).
- Tokyo
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Chicago
- London [565]
- Paris
- Washington DC/Baltimore [425]
- Osaka/Kobe
- Mexico City
- Philadelphia [388]
- Sao Paulo
- Houston [384]
- Boston [363]
- Rhine-Ruhr, Germany (Bonn/Cologne/Dusseldorf/Ruhr) 10 million pop
- Buenos Aires
- Dallas
- Moscow
- Hong Kong
- Atlanta
- San Francisco/San Jose
- Houston
- Miami
- Seoul
- Toronto
- Detroit
- Milan [241]
- Seattle [235]
- Shanghai
- Madrid
- Randstad, Netherlands (Amsterdam/Rotterdam)
- Singapore
- Sydney
- Mumbai
- Rio de Janeiro
- Phoenix
- Minneapolis
- San Diego
- Istanbul
- Barcelona
- Taipei
- Melbourne
- Delhi
- Beijing
- Denver
- Zurich [160]
- Shenzhen [160]
- Frankfurt [152]
- Johannesburg/East Rand
- Manila
- Montreal
- Cairo
- Rome [130]
- Guangzhou
- Tehran
- St. Louis
- Tampa
- Vienna
- Tel Aviv
- Busan
- Santiago
- Bangkok [119]
- Munich [116]
- Charlotte, NC [113]
- Cleveland
- Brasilia
- Portland
- Lima, Peru
- Riyadh, Saudi Arabia [107]
- Kansas City [105]
- Indianapolis
- Orlando [104]
- Kolkata, India [104]
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Monterrey, Mexico [102]
- Bogota, Colombia
- Cincinnati [100]
- Dubai [100]
- Kuala Lumpur [100]
- Pittsburgh
- Lisbon
- Athens
- Vancouver
- Berlin
- Columbus, OH [93]
- Jakarta
- Sacramento [92]
- St. Petersburg
- Birmingham (W. Midlands), UK
- Stuttgart [90]
- Las Vegas
- Fukuoka
- Hartford, CT [88]
- Manchester, UK
- Austin, TX [86]
- Brisbane, Australia [85]
- Milwaukee, WI [84]
- Brussels [83]
- San Antonio [82]
- Guadalajara [81]
- Nashville, TN [80]
- Glasgow [80]
- Virginia Beach/Chesapeake, VA
- Dhaka, Bangladesh [78]
- Karachi, Pakistan
- Hamburg, Germany [74]
- Tianjin, China
- Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
- New Orleans, LA [71]
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Edinburg [70]
- Lyon, France [69]
- Bangalore, India
- Warsaw, Poland
- Turin, Italy
- Chennai, India
- Porto Alegre, Brazil
- Salt Lake, UT [66]
- Providence, RI [66]
- Memphis, TN [65]
- Richmond, VA [64]
- Belo Horizonte, Brazil [61]
- Jacksonville, FL [60]
- Dublin, Ireland
- Daegu, South Korea [60?]
- Leeds, UK
- Hanover, Germany [60]
- Hyderabad, India
- Perth, Australia [59]
- Ankara, Turkey [58]
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Helsinki, Finland [58]
- Louisville, KY [58]
- Oklahoma City [58]
- Chongqing, China [57]
- Raleigh/Durham, NC [57]
- Auckland, NZ [55]
- Katowice, Poland
- Warsaw, Poland
- Naples, Italy
- Budapest, Hungary [53]
- Birmingham, AL [52]
- Bucharest [50]
- Honolulu [50]
- Omaha, NE [47]
- Alexandria, Egypt [46]
- Algiers, Algeria [45]
- Rochester, NY [45]
- Buffalo [45]
- Tulsa, OK [44]
- Geneva, Switzerland [40]
- Khartoum, Sudan [35]
- Lagos, Nigeria [35]
- Casablanca, Morocco [33]
- Luanda, Angola [33]
- Macau [28]
- Baghdad [24]
- Jersey [14]
- Isle of Man [2]
Top 30 Cities in Eastern Europe and Western Asia
The region I am calling "Eastern Europe and Western Asia" is everything east of Europe (excluding countries like Romania which have joined the EU), northeast of the Middle East (like Turkey), and west of the Far East (like Japan, China, etc). This vast region, which includes both Russia and India and consists of approximately one-sixth both the landmass and population of the Earth, has produced a relatively small number of world-class cities.
- Moscow
- Mumbai
- Delhi
- St. Petersburg
- Kolkata
- Karachi, Pakistan
- Chennai
- Hyderabad
- Kiev/Kyiv, Ukraine
- Lahore, Pakistan
- Ahmedabad, India
- Pune, India
- Almaty, Kazakhstan
- Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Dhaka, Bangladesh
- Yekaterinburg, Russia
- Minsk, Belarus
- Surat, India
- Islamabad-Rawalpindi, Pakistan
- Baku, Azerbaijan
- Yerevan, Armenia
- Tbilisi, Georgia
- Jaipur, India
- Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- Novosibirsk, Russia
- Kabul, Afghanistan
- Chandigarh, India
- Astana, Kazakhstan
- Kanpur, India
- Lucknow, India
Top 225 Cities, version 9
The first 53 are the same. This has lots of new cities from Brazil, the US and Mexico.
- New York (1)
- London (2)
- Singapore (3)
- Hong Kong (4)
- Paris (5)
- Tokyo (6)
- Washington/Baltimore (7)
- Chicago (8)
- Shanghai (9)
- Toronto (10)
- Sydney (11)
- Los Angeles (12)
- San Francisco (13)
- Seoul (14)
- Moscow (15)
- Beijing (16)
- Boston (17)
- Frankfurt (18)
- Berlin (19)
- Zurich (20)
- Mexico City (21)
- Sao Paulo (22)
- Brussels (23)
- Osaka (24)
- Buenos Aires (25)
- Taipei (26)
- Dallas (27)
- Mumbai (28)
- Istanbul (29)
- Vancouver (30)
- Montreal (31)
- Houston (32)
- Guangzhou (33)
- Madrid (34)
- Philadelphia (35)
- Miami (36)
- Vienna (37)
- Geneva (38)
- Melbourne (39)
- Atlanta (40)
- Rio de Janeiro (41)
- Amsterdam (42)
- Dubai (43)
- Delhi (44)
- Stockholm (45)
- Kuala Lumpur (46)
- Shenzhen (47)
- Bangkok (48)
- Munich (49)
- Barcelona (50)
- Milan (51)
- Johannesburg (52)
- Cairo (53)
- Jakarta (55)
- Lima, Peru (76)
- Bogota (54)
- Copenhagen (57)
- Dublin (58)
- Doha (60)
- Manila (61)
- Jersey (56)
- Caracas (86)
- Santiago, Chile (62)
- Seattle (59)
- Tianjin (66)
- Oslo (67)
- Auckland (68)
- Edinburgh (63)
- Isle of Man (64)
- Glasgow (65)
- Hamburg (69)
- Abu Dhabi (70)
- Prague (71)
- Rome (72)
- Tel Aviv (73)
- Belo Horizonte, Brazil (125)
- Detroit/Windsor (91)
- Phoenix (105)
- Monterrey, Mexico (96)
- Warsaw (74)
- Busan (75)
- St. Petersburg, Russia (77)
- Kolkata (78)
- Riyadh (79)
- Honolulu (80)
- Chongqing (81)
- Denver (82)
- Minneapolis (83)
- Monaco (84)
- Lisbon (85)
- Kuwait City (87)
- Pittsburgh (89)
- Calgary (88)
- Budapest (90)
- Athens (92)
- Bangalore (93)
- Panama City (94)
- Karachi (95)
- Brisbane (97)
- Cape Town (98)
- Wellington (99)
- Ho Chi Minh City (100)
- Luxembourg (101)
- Chennai (102)
- Manama, Bahrain (104)
- San Diego/Tijuana (106)
- Helsinki (103)
- Dusseldorf (107)
- Dalian (108)
- Jeddah (109)
- Incheon (111)
- Stuttgart (113)
- Yokohama (116)
- Guadalajara, Mexico (162)
- Porto Alegre, Brazil (163)
- Macao (115)
- Gibraltar (117)
- Talinn (118)
- Port Louis, Mauritius (119)
- Malta (120)
- Chengdu (121)
- Qingdao (122)
- Hangzhou (123)
- Ankara (124)
- Reykjavik (129)
- Recife, Brazil (194)
- Salvador, Brazil (145)
- Brasilia (112)
- Medellin, Colombia (159)
- Fortaleza, Brazil (141)
- Wuhan, China (132)
- Gold Coast City (133)
- Curitiba, Brazil (134)
- St. Louis, MO (131)
- Tampa, FL (182)
- Hamilton, Bermuda (110)
- Portland, OR (114)
- Nassau, Bahamas (126)
- Road Town, British Virgin Islands (127)
- George Town, Cayman Islands (128)
- Las Vegas, NV (135)
- Charlotte, NC (130)
- Hyderabad, India (136)
- Lagos, Nigeria (137)
- Nanjing, China (138)
- Xiamen, China (139)
- Kyiv/Kiev, Ukraine (140)
- Durban, South Africa (142)
- Nairobi, Kenya (143)
- Benidorm, Spain (144)
- Penang Island, Malaysia (146)
- Sharjah, UAE (147)
- Shenyang, China (148)
- Kaohsiung, Taiwan (149)
- Hangzhou, China (150)
- Birmingham, UK (151)
- Nagoya/Chukyo, Japan (152)
- Fukuoka, Japan (153)
- Krakow, Poland (154)
- Bucharest, Romania (155)
- Suzhou, China (156)
- Muscat, Oman (157)
- Ahmedabad, India (158)
- Pune, India (160)
- Almaty, Kazakhstan (161)
- Hanoi, Vietnam (164)
- Surabaya, Indonesia (165)
- Colombo, Sri Lanka (166)
- Bandung, Indonesia (167)
- Alexandria, Egypt (168)
- Beirut, Lebanon (169)
- Dhaka, Bangladesh (170)
- Tehran, Iran (171)
- Yekaterinburg, Russia (173)
- Ankara, Turkey (175)
- Santo Domingo, Dom. Rep. (none)
- Guatemala City (none)
- Cali, Colombia (none)
- Adelaide, Australia (none)
- Katowice, Poland (none)
- Lausanne, Switzerland (none)
- Guayaquil, Ecuador (none)
- Puebla, Mexico (none)
- San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Campinas, Brazil (172)
- Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (176)
- El Paso/Juarez (none)
- Quito, Ecuador (none)
- Rotterdam, Netherlands (177)
- Xian, China (178)
- Harbin, China (179)
- Minsk, Belarus (181)
- Bern, Switzerland (183)
- Lyon, France (184)
- Brunei (186)
- Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa), Congo (189)
- Rosario, Argentina (180)
- Ottawa, Canada (185)
- Sacramento, CA (187)
- San Antonio, TX (190)
- Orlando, FL (191)
- Cincinnati, OH (192)
- Cleveland, OH (193)
- Kansas City, MO (188)
- Toluca, Mexico (none)
- Columbus, OH (none)
- Leon, Mexico (none)
- Indianapolis, IN (none)
- Austin, TX (197)
- Virginia Beach/Chesapeake/Norfolk, VA (none)
- Providence, RI (none)
- Nashville, TN (none)
- Milwaukee, WI (none)
- Santiago, Dom. Rep. (none)
- Jacksonville, FL (none)
- Memphis, TN (none)
- Louisville, KY (none)
- Richmond, VA (none)
- Oklahoma City, OK (none)
- Torreon, Mexico (none)
- Daegu, South Korea (195)
- Perth, Australia (196)
- Montevideo, Uruguay (198)
- Antwerp, Belgium (199)
- New Orleans, Louisiana (200)
Top 100 Cities in the Americas
Top 100 Cities in the Western Hemisphere. (This is missing a few from the Southern hemisphere)
1. New York/Jersey City, NJ
2. Chicago
3. Los Angeles/Long Beach/San Bernadino/Santa Ana, CA
4. Washington DC/Baltimore, MD/Arlington, VA
5. Mexico City
6. San Francisco/San Jose/Oakland, CA
7. Buenos Aires, Argentina
8. Sao Paulo
9. Rio de Janeiro
10. Boston
11. Lima, Peru
12. Bogota, Colombia
13. Caracas, Venuzuela
14. Dallas/Ft. Worth/Arlington, TX
15. Toronto
16. Philadelphia
17. Santiago, Chile
18. Houston, TX
19. Vancouver, BC
20. Montreal
21. Miami
22. Atlanta
23. Belo Horizonte, Brazil
24. Guadalajara, Mexico
25. Detroit/Windsor
26. Phoenix/Mesa/Glendale
27. Monterrey, Mexico
28. Porto Alegre, Brazil
29. Recife Brazil
30. Salvador Brazil
31. Brasilia, Brazil
32. Medellin, Colombia
33. Seattle
34. Fortaleza, Brazil
35. Santo Domingo
36. Minneapolis/St. Paul
37. Curitaba, Brazil
38. San Diego/Chula Vista, Calif./Tijuana, Mex
39. Guatamala City
40. St. Louis
41. Tampa/St. Petersburg
42. Cali, Colombia
43. Guayaquil, Ecuador
44. Puebla, Mexico
45. San Juan, Puerto Rico
46. Denver/Aurora
47. Campinas, Brazil
48. Pittsburgh
49. Vancouver
50. El Paso-Juarez
51. Panama City, Panama
52. Quito, Ecuador
53. Portland, OR
54. Honolulu
55. Calgary
56. Sacramento, CA
57. San Antonio, TX
58. Orlando, FL
59. Cincinnati, OH
60. Cleveland, OH
61. Kansas City, KS/MO
62. Las Vegas, NV
63. Toluca, Mex.
64. Columbus, OH
65. Leon, Mexico
66. Charlotte, NC
67. Indianapolis
68. Austin, TX
69. Virginia Beach/Chesapeake/Norfolk, VA
70. Providence, RI
71. Nashville, TN
72. Milwaukee, WI
73. Santiago, Dom. Rep.
74. Jacksonville, FL
75. Memphis
76. Louisville, KY
77. Richmond, VA
78. Oklahoma City
79. Ottawa
80. Torreon, Mexico
81. Hartford, CT
82. New Orleans
83. Edmonton
84. Buffalo
85. Raleigh, NC
86. Birmingham, AL
87. Salt Lake City
88. Queretaro, Mexico
89. Rochester, NY
90. San Luis Potosi, Mex
91. Merida, Mex
92. Kingston, Jamaica
93. San Salvador, El Salvador
94. Tucson, Ariz
95. Albuquerque
96. Fresno, Calif
97. Colorado Springs
98. Tulsa, OK
99. Nassau, Bahamas
100. San Jose, Costa Rica
1. New York/Jersey City, NJ
2. Chicago
3. Los Angeles/Long Beach/San Bernadino/Santa Ana, CA
4. Washington DC/Baltimore, MD/Arlington, VA
5. Mexico City
6. San Francisco/San Jose/Oakland, CA
7. Buenos Aires, Argentina
8. Sao Paulo
9. Rio de Janeiro
10. Boston
11. Lima, Peru
12. Bogota, Colombia
13. Caracas, Venuzuela
14. Dallas/Ft. Worth/Arlington, TX
15. Toronto
16. Philadelphia
17. Santiago, Chile
18. Houston, TX
19. Vancouver, BC
20. Montreal
21. Miami
22. Atlanta
23. Belo Horizonte, Brazil
24. Guadalajara, Mexico
25. Detroit/Windsor
26. Phoenix/Mesa/Glendale
27. Monterrey, Mexico
28. Porto Alegre, Brazil
29. Recife Brazil
30. Salvador Brazil
31. Brasilia, Brazil
32. Medellin, Colombia
33. Seattle
34. Fortaleza, Brazil
35. Santo Domingo
36. Minneapolis/St. Paul
37. Curitaba, Brazil
38. San Diego/Chula Vista, Calif./Tijuana, Mex
39. Guatamala City
40. St. Louis
41. Tampa/St. Petersburg
42. Cali, Colombia
43. Guayaquil, Ecuador
44. Puebla, Mexico
45. San Juan, Puerto Rico
46. Denver/Aurora
47. Campinas, Brazil
48. Pittsburgh
49. Vancouver
50. El Paso-Juarez
51. Panama City, Panama
52. Quito, Ecuador
53. Portland, OR
54. Honolulu
55. Calgary
56. Sacramento, CA
57. San Antonio, TX
58. Orlando, FL
59. Cincinnati, OH
60. Cleveland, OH
61. Kansas City, KS/MO
62. Las Vegas, NV
63. Toluca, Mex.
64. Columbus, OH
65. Leon, Mexico
66. Charlotte, NC
67. Indianapolis
68. Austin, TX
69. Virginia Beach/Chesapeake/Norfolk, VA
70. Providence, RI
71. Nashville, TN
72. Milwaukee, WI
73. Santiago, Dom. Rep.
74. Jacksonville, FL
75. Memphis
76. Louisville, KY
77. Richmond, VA
78. Oklahoma City
79. Ottawa
80. Torreon, Mexico
81. Hartford, CT
82. New Orleans
83. Edmonton
84. Buffalo
85. Raleigh, NC
86. Birmingham, AL
87. Salt Lake City
88. Queretaro, Mexico
89. Rochester, NY
90. San Luis Potosi, Mex
91. Merida, Mex
92. Kingston, Jamaica
93. San Salvador, El Salvador
94. Tucson, Ariz
95. Albuquerque
96. Fresno, Calif
97. Colorado Springs
98. Tulsa, OK
99. Nassau, Bahamas
100. San Jose, Costa Rica
Top 200 Cities, version 8
Previous ranking in parenthesis. Anomalies are marked with *.
1. New York (2)
2. London (1)
3. Singapore (7)
4. Hong Kong (6)
5. Paris (8)
6. Tokyo (3)
7. Washington (12)
8. Chicago (5)
9. Shanghai (4)
10. Toronto (13)
11. Sydney (15)
12. Los Angeles (14)
13. San Francisco (18)
14. Seoul (9)
15. Moscow (10)
16. Beijing (11)
17. Boston (21*)
18. Frankfurt (22)
19. Berlin (24)
20. Zurich (25*)
21. Mexico City (16)
22. Sao Paulo (17)
23. Brussels (25*)
24. Osaka (19)
25. Buenos Aires (20)
26. Taipei (21*)
27. Dallas (32)
28. Mumbai (23)
29. Istanbul (24)
30. Vancouver (35)
31. Montreal (34)
32. Houston (33)
33. Guangzhou (28)
34. Madrid (30)
35. Philadelphia (37)
36. Miami (31)
37. Vienna (42)
38. Geneva (43)
39. Melbourne (41)
40. Atlanta (40)
41. Rio de Janeiro (36)
42. Amsterdam (46)
43. Dubai (38)
44. Delhi (39)
45. Stockholm (47)
46. Kuala Lumpur (45)
47. Shenzhen (52*)
48. Bangkok (53*)
49. Munich (44)
50. Barcelona (54)
51. Milan (55*)
52. Johannesburg (57)
53. Cairo (48)
54. Bogota (49)
55. Jakarta (50)
56. Jersey (51)
57. Copenhagen (60*)
58. Dublin (58)
59. Seattle (60*)
60. Doha (62)
61. Manila (56)
62. Santiago (59)
63. Edinburgh (52*)
64. Isle of Man (53*)
65. Glasgow (55*)
66. Tianjin (57*)
67. Oslo (78)
68. Auckland (89)
69. Hamburg (90)
70. Abu Dhabi (92)
71. Prague (87)
72. Rome (75)
73. Tel Aviv (63)
74. Warsaw (86)
75. Busan (96)
76. Lima (97)
77. St. Petersburg (83)
78. Kolkata (93)
79. Riyadh (88)
80. Honolulu (61)
81. Chongqing (104)
82. Denver (64)
83. Minneapolis (65)
84. Monaco (109)
85. Lisbon (110)
86. Caracas (68)
87. Kuwait City (107)
88. Calgary (69)
89. Pittsburgh (70)
90. Budapest (115)
91. Detroit (71)
92. Athens (117)
93. Bangalore (118)
94. Panama City (119)
95. Karachi (120)
96. Monterrey (121)
97. Brisbane (73)
98. Cape Town (123)
99. Wellington (74)
100. Ho Chi Minh City (124)
101. Luxembourg (76)
102. Chennai (125)
103. Helsinki (79)
104. Manama, Bahrain (82)
105. Phoenix (84)
106. San Diego/Tijuana (85)
107. Dusseldorf (91)
108. Dalian (132)
109. Jeddah (94)
110. Hamilton, Bermuda (95)
111. Incheon (136)
112. Brasilia (98)
113. Stuttgart (100)
114. Portland, OR (101)
115. Macao (105)
116. Yokohama (106)
117. Gibraltar (108)
118. Talinn (111)
119. Port Louis, Mauritius (112)
120. Malta (113)
121. Chengdu (141)
122. Qingdao (139)
123. Hangzhou (145)
124. Ankara (149)
125. Belo Horizonte, Brazil (148)
126. Nassau, Bahamas (114)
127. Road Town, British Virgin Islands (102)
128. George Town, Cayman Islands (103)
129. Reykjavik (116)
130. Charlotte, NC (122)
131. St. Louis, MO (126)
132. Wuhan, China (127)
133. Gold Coast City (128)
134. Curitiba, Brazil (129)
135. Las Vegas, NV (130)
136. Hyderabad, India (158)
137. Lagos, Nigeria (162)
138. Nanjing, China (131)
139. Xiamen, China (133)
140. Kyiv/Kiev, Ukraine (134)
141. Fortaleza, Brazil (135)
142. Durban, South Africa (167)
143. Nairobi, Kenya (168)
144. Benidorm, Spain (137)
145. Salvador, Brazil (138)
146. Penang Island, Malaysia (140)
147. Sharjah, UAE (142)
148. Shenyang, China (143)
149. Kaohsiung, Taiwan (144)
150. Hangzhou, China (145)
151. Birmingham, UK (none)
152. Nagoya/Chukyo, Japan (none)
153. Fukuoka, Japan (none)
154. Krakow, Poland (none)
155. Bucharest, Romania (none)
156. Suzhou, China (none)
157. Muscat, Oman (none)
158. Ahmedabad, India (none)
159. Medellin, Colombia (none)
160. Pune, India (none)
161. Almaty, Kazakhstan (none)
162. Guadalajara, Mexico (none)
163. Porto Alegre, Brazil (153)
164. Hanoi, Vietnam (none)
165. Surabaya, Indonesia (none)
166. Colombo, Sri Lanka (none)
167. Bandung, Indonesia (none)
168. Alexandria, Egypt (none)
169. Beirut, Lebanon (none)
170. Dhaka, Bangladesh (none)
171. Tehran, Iran (none)
172. Campinas, Brazil (146)
173. Yekaterinburg, Russia (147)
174. Belo Horizonte, Brazil (148)
175. Ankara, Turkey (149)
176. Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (150)
177. Rotterdam, Netherlands (151)
178. Xian, China (152)
179. Harbin, China (154)
180. Rosario, Argentina (155)
181. Minsk, Belarus (156)
182. Tampa, FL (157)
183. Bern, Switzerland (159)
184. Lyon, France (160)
185. Ottawa, Canada (161)
186. Brunei (163)
187. Sacramento, CA (164)
188. Kansas City, MO (165)
189. Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa), Congo (166)
190. San Antonio, TX (169)
191. Orlando, FL (170)
192. Cincinnati, OH (171)
193. Cleveland, OH (172)
194. Recife, Brazil (173)
195. Daegu, South Korea (174)
196. Perth, Australia (175)
197. Austin, TX (none)
198. Montevideo, Uruguay (none)
199. Antwerp, Belgium (none)
200. New Orleans, Louisiana (none)
1. New York (2)
2. London (1)
3. Singapore (7)
4. Hong Kong (6)
5. Paris (8)
6. Tokyo (3)
7. Washington (12)
8. Chicago (5)
9. Shanghai (4)
10. Toronto (13)
11. Sydney (15)
12. Los Angeles (14)
13. San Francisco (18)
14. Seoul (9)
15. Moscow (10)
16. Beijing (11)
17. Boston (21*)
18. Frankfurt (22)
19. Berlin (24)
20. Zurich (25*)
21. Mexico City (16)
22. Sao Paulo (17)
23. Brussels (25*)
24. Osaka (19)
25. Buenos Aires (20)
26. Taipei (21*)
27. Dallas (32)
28. Mumbai (23)
29. Istanbul (24)
30. Vancouver (35)
31. Montreal (34)
32. Houston (33)
33. Guangzhou (28)
34. Madrid (30)
35. Philadelphia (37)
36. Miami (31)
37. Vienna (42)
38. Geneva (43)
39. Melbourne (41)
40. Atlanta (40)
41. Rio de Janeiro (36)
42. Amsterdam (46)
43. Dubai (38)
44. Delhi (39)
45. Stockholm (47)
46. Kuala Lumpur (45)
47. Shenzhen (52*)
48. Bangkok (53*)
49. Munich (44)
50. Barcelona (54)
51. Milan (55*)
52. Johannesburg (57)
53. Cairo (48)
54. Bogota (49)
55. Jakarta (50)
56. Jersey (51)
57. Copenhagen (60*)
58. Dublin (58)
59. Seattle (60*)
60. Doha (62)
61. Manila (56)
62. Santiago (59)
63. Edinburgh (52*)
64. Isle of Man (53*)
65. Glasgow (55*)
66. Tianjin (57*)
67. Oslo (78)
68. Auckland (89)
69. Hamburg (90)
70. Abu Dhabi (92)
71. Prague (87)
72. Rome (75)
73. Tel Aviv (63)
74. Warsaw (86)
75. Busan (96)
76. Lima (97)
77. St. Petersburg (83)
78. Kolkata (93)
79. Riyadh (88)
80. Honolulu (61)
81. Chongqing (104)
82. Denver (64)
83. Minneapolis (65)
84. Monaco (109)
85. Lisbon (110)
86. Caracas (68)
87. Kuwait City (107)
88. Calgary (69)
89. Pittsburgh (70)
90. Budapest (115)
91. Detroit (71)
92. Athens (117)
93. Bangalore (118)
94. Panama City (119)
95. Karachi (120)
96. Monterrey (121)
97. Brisbane (73)
98. Cape Town (123)
99. Wellington (74)
100. Ho Chi Minh City (124)
101. Luxembourg (76)
102. Chennai (125)
103. Helsinki (79)
104. Manama, Bahrain (82)
105. Phoenix (84)
106. San Diego/Tijuana (85)
107. Dusseldorf (91)
108. Dalian (132)
109. Jeddah (94)
110. Hamilton, Bermuda (95)
111. Incheon (136)
112. Brasilia (98)
113. Stuttgart (100)
114. Portland, OR (101)
115. Macao (105)
116. Yokohama (106)
117. Gibraltar (108)
118. Talinn (111)
119. Port Louis, Mauritius (112)
120. Malta (113)
121. Chengdu (141)
122. Qingdao (139)
123. Hangzhou (145)
124. Ankara (149)
125. Belo Horizonte, Brazil (148)
126. Nassau, Bahamas (114)
127. Road Town, British Virgin Islands (102)
128. George Town, Cayman Islands (103)
129. Reykjavik (116)
130. Charlotte, NC (122)
131. St. Louis, MO (126)
132. Wuhan, China (127)
133. Gold Coast City (128)
134. Curitiba, Brazil (129)
135. Las Vegas, NV (130)
136. Hyderabad, India (158)
137. Lagos, Nigeria (162)
138. Nanjing, China (131)
139. Xiamen, China (133)
140. Kyiv/Kiev, Ukraine (134)
141. Fortaleza, Brazil (135)
142. Durban, South Africa (167)
143. Nairobi, Kenya (168)
144. Benidorm, Spain (137)
145. Salvador, Brazil (138)
146. Penang Island, Malaysia (140)
147. Sharjah, UAE (142)
148. Shenyang, China (143)
149. Kaohsiung, Taiwan (144)
150. Hangzhou, China (145)
151. Birmingham, UK (none)
152. Nagoya/Chukyo, Japan (none)
153. Fukuoka, Japan (none)
154. Krakow, Poland (none)
155. Bucharest, Romania (none)
156. Suzhou, China (none)
157. Muscat, Oman (none)
158. Ahmedabad, India (none)
159. Medellin, Colombia (none)
160. Pune, India (none)
161. Almaty, Kazakhstan (none)
162. Guadalajara, Mexico (none)
163. Porto Alegre, Brazil (153)
164. Hanoi, Vietnam (none)
165. Surabaya, Indonesia (none)
166. Colombo, Sri Lanka (none)
167. Bandung, Indonesia (none)
168. Alexandria, Egypt (none)
169. Beirut, Lebanon (none)
170. Dhaka, Bangladesh (none)
171. Tehran, Iran (none)
172. Campinas, Brazil (146)
173. Yekaterinburg, Russia (147)
174. Belo Horizonte, Brazil (148)
175. Ankara, Turkey (149)
176. Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (150)
177. Rotterdam, Netherlands (151)
178. Xian, China (152)
179. Harbin, China (154)
180. Rosario, Argentina (155)
181. Minsk, Belarus (156)
182. Tampa, FL (157)
183. Bern, Switzerland (159)
184. Lyon, France (160)
185. Ottawa, Canada (161)
186. Brunei (163)
187. Sacramento, CA (164)
188. Kansas City, MO (165)
189. Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa), Congo (166)
190. San Antonio, TX (169)
191. Orlando, FL (170)
192. Cincinnati, OH (171)
193. Cleveland, OH (172)
194. Recife, Brazil (173)
195. Daegu, South Korea (174)
196. Perth, Australia (175)
197. Austin, TX (none)
198. Montevideo, Uruguay (none)
199. Antwerp, Belgium (none)
200. New Orleans, Louisiana (none)
Monday, March 12, 2012
120 Most Competitive Cities
I love these sort of lists. From Citicorp:
Source: http://www.managementthinking.eiu.com/sites/default/files/downloads/Hot%20Spots.pdf
- New York
- London
- Singapore
- Hong Kong
- Paris
- Tokyo
- Zurich
- Washington
- Chicago
- Boston
- Frankfurt
- Toronto
- Geneva
- San Francisco
- Sydney
- Melbourne
- Amsterdam
- Vancouver
- Los Angeles
- Seoul
- Stockholm
- Montreal
- Copenhagen
- Houston
- Dallas
- Vienna
- Dublin
- Madrid
- Seattle
- Philadelphia
- Atlanta
- Berlin
- Oslo
- Brussels
- Hamburg
- Auckland
- Birmingham
- Taipei
- Beijing
- Dubai
- Abu Dhabi
- Barcelona
- Miami
- Shanghai
- Kuala Lumpur
- Prague
- Doha
- Milan
- Osaka
- Nagoya
- Rome
- Shenzhen
- Warsaw
- Monaco
- Budapest
- Incheon
- Lisbon
- Moscow
- Tel Aviv
- Buenos Aires
- Bangkok
- Sao Paulo
- Fukuoka
- Busan
- Guangzhou
- Krakow
- Johannesburg
- Delhi
- Santiago
- Mumbai
- Mexico City
- Athens
- Cape Town
- Istanbul
- Tianjin
- Bucharest
- Rio de Janeiro
- Panama City
- Bangalore
- Kuwait City
- Jakarta
- Dalian
- Chengdu
- Suzhou (Jiangsu)
- Manila
- Muscat
- Chongqing
- Lima
- Bogota
- Monterrey
- Qingdao
- Ahmedabad
- Hangzhou
- Durban
- Ankara
- Medellin
- Pune
- Belo Horizonte
- Hyderabad
- Almaty
- Saint Petersburg
- Guadalajara
- Porto Alegre
- Hanoi
- Chennai
- Kolkata
- Riyadh
- Kiev
- Ho Chi Minh City
- Surabaya
- Colombo
- Karachi
- Cairo
- Bandung
- Nairobi
- Alexandria
- Beirut
- Dhaka
- Lagos
- Tehran
Source: http://www.managementthinking.eiu.com/sites/default/files/downloads/Hot%20Spots.pdf
Sunday, March 11, 2012
India is becoming the US
The India in which I grew up was, in many respects, an isolated and dour place of limited opportunity. The country was straitjacketed by its moralistic rejection of capitalism, by a lethargic and often depressive fatalism. Now it is infused with an energy, a can-do ambition and an entrepreneurial spirit that I can only describe as distinctly American. In surveys of global opinion, Indians consistently rank as among the most optimistic people in the world. Bookstores are stacked with titles like “India Arriving,” “India Booms” and “The Indian Renaissance.” The Pew Global Attitudes Project, which measures opinions across major countries, regularly finds that Indians admire values and attributes typically thought of as American: free-market capitalism, globalization, even multinational companies.
--http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/opinion/sunday/how-india-became-america.html
--http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/opinion/sunday/how-india-became-america.html
Zone Diet and Mediterranean Diet
I find these two diets interesting. I initially classified the Zone Diet as an Atkins-like diet and the Mediterranean Diet as a low-fat, low-calorie diet, but they may be almost identical and may deserve a class of their own.
Zone Diet
The Zone Diet preaches that one should consume carbs, proteins and fats in the ration of 40%-30%-30%. "Whether the Zone diet is a low-carb diet is a matter of opinion and definition. It is much less restrictive in total carbohydrate intake than the Atkins diet". The basic theory of the zone diet is that inflammation causes one to lose weight, and the proper proportion of carbs to protein reduces inflammation. It views food as a hormone-control device.The diet suggested taking fish oil supplementation.
"The Zone Diet isn’t about eating “low-carb” or “high-protein” or anything like that. It’s a diet balanced in
• Protein (lean, natural meats are preferred)
• Carbs (mostly low glycemic-load fruits and vegetables)
• Fat (one of the most important macronutrients!)
With the right balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats, you can control three major hormones generated by the human diet – insulin, glucagon and eicosanoids. [source]"
A Zone meal is described as follows: "Eat as much protein as the palm of your hand, as much non-starchy raw vegetables as you can stand for the vitamins, enough carbohydrates to maintain mental clarity because the brain runs on glucose, and enough monounsaturated oils to keep feelings of hunger away."
Some foods allowed: high-fat ice cream (in very limited quantities, but still this is probably the only diet that would allow ice cream); pasta. It allows fats from olives, cashews, peanut butter, and olive oil.
There is a new version called the Italian Zone diet that emphasizes pasta: "Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera is reporting that there’s a new diet on the market that’s similar to the Zone Diet invented in the U.S. but with a difference: pasta and olive oil are recommended. The diet Nuova Zona also referred to as the Zona Italiana, uses the same concept as the Zone Diet (40-30-30, the percentage of carbohydrates, protein and fats which one can consume during every meal and snack), only it includes many of the components already built into the traditional Mediterranean Diet. [source]"
Mediterranean Diet
The Med Diet is based on the "traditional dietary habits of the inhabitants of countries in the Mediterranean region." It encourages the use of olive oil: "It should be noted that the Mediterranean diet is not a low fat diet, 40 percent of the calories come from fat, much higher compared to the 30 percent recommended in a conventional diet. Can this be too much fat? No, according to Trichopoulou, as long as the fat comes from olive oil."
It includes a lot of vegetables: "Most Greeks consume vegetables as a main dish 2-3 times a week. These dishes are somewhat like casseroles and are usually made from seasonal vegetables such as green beans, eggplant, artichoke, cauliflower and okra. Basically it is a combination of vegetables, herbs, tomatoes and olive oil. This dish is called lathera from the Greek word lathi which means oil. Normally a big plate is consumed, which easily covers at least 3-4 servings of vegetables.[source]". It recommends the consumption of fatty fish 2-3 times a week
Zone Diet
The Zone Diet preaches that one should consume carbs, proteins and fats in the ration of 40%-30%-30%. "Whether the Zone diet is a low-carb diet is a matter of opinion and definition. It is much less restrictive in total carbohydrate intake than the Atkins diet". The basic theory of the zone diet is that inflammation causes one to lose weight, and the proper proportion of carbs to protein reduces inflammation. It views food as a hormone-control device.The diet suggested taking fish oil supplementation.
"The Zone Diet isn’t about eating “low-carb” or “high-protein” or anything like that. It’s a diet balanced in
• Protein (lean, natural meats are preferred)
• Carbs (mostly low glycemic-load fruits and vegetables)
• Fat (one of the most important macronutrients!)
With the right balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats, you can control three major hormones generated by the human diet – insulin, glucagon and eicosanoids. [source]"
A Zone meal is described as follows: "Eat as much protein as the palm of your hand, as much non-starchy raw vegetables as you can stand for the vitamins, enough carbohydrates to maintain mental clarity because the brain runs on glucose, and enough monounsaturated oils to keep feelings of hunger away."
Some foods allowed: high-fat ice cream (in very limited quantities, but still this is probably the only diet that would allow ice cream); pasta. It allows fats from olives, cashews, peanut butter, and olive oil.
There is a new version called the Italian Zone diet that emphasizes pasta: "Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera is reporting that there’s a new diet on the market that’s similar to the Zone Diet invented in the U.S. but with a difference: pasta and olive oil are recommended. The diet Nuova Zona also referred to as the Zona Italiana, uses the same concept as the Zone Diet (40-30-30, the percentage of carbohydrates, protein and fats which one can consume during every meal and snack), only it includes many of the components already built into the traditional Mediterranean Diet. [source]"
Mediterranean Diet
The Med Diet is based on the "traditional dietary habits of the inhabitants of countries in the Mediterranean region." It encourages the use of olive oil: "It should be noted that the Mediterranean diet is not a low fat diet, 40 percent of the calories come from fat, much higher compared to the 30 percent recommended in a conventional diet. Can this be too much fat? No, according to Trichopoulou, as long as the fat comes from olive oil."
It includes a lot of vegetables: "Most Greeks consume vegetables as a main dish 2-3 times a week. These dishes are somewhat like casseroles and are usually made from seasonal vegetables such as green beans, eggplant, artichoke, cauliflower and okra. Basically it is a combination of vegetables, herbs, tomatoes and olive oil. This dish is called lathera from the Greek word lathi which means oil. Normally a big plate is consumed, which easily covers at least 3-4 servings of vegetables.[source]". It recommends the consumption of fatty fish 2-3 times a week
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Types of Diets
I have a theory that there are about 10 basic types of diets and diets within each category are very similar to each other.
I. Low-fat, low-calorie
Diets in this category emphasize limiting calories, avoid high-fat foods, and eating a healthy, balanced diet. Most diets fall within this category.
List of diets: Scarsdale diet, Rotation diet, Cabbage soup diet, Ornish diet, Pritikin diet, DASH diet, TLC diet, Mayo Clinic diet, Volumetrics, Biggest Loser Diet, Fat Belly diet, Abs diet, Daniel Plan, Joy Bauer's Life Diet, Sonoma diet, American Heart Association Diet.
My opinion: It would be healthy to be on one of these diets for a period of time, maybe 2 to 3 months. I don't believe it is possible to lose weight on these diets. Maybe some people could lose a pound per week.
II. Packaged meals
These really fit into the same category above, except for the presentation. These are the most expensive type of diets.
List of diets: Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Lean Cuisine, Nutrisystem
My opinion: same as above
III. Vegetarian and Vegan
These may have some health benefits.
List of diets: Vegetarians (avoid meat but eat eggs and dairy), Vegans avoid anything animal-based, including eggs and dairy. Raw food diet, Macrobiotic diet (fish)
My opinion: One would go on one of these for religious or philosophical purposes. Minor weight loss may be a side effect.
IV. Sugar Water
Maple syrup diet, Master Cleanse, Hollywood diet
My opinion: May be useful for a 48 hour fast and cleanse.
V. Diet Pills
Types: orlistat (fat blocker); sibutramine (appetite suppressant); hoodia (appetite suppressant); green tea extract (boosts metabolism); hydroxycitric acid (suppresses appetite and boosts metabolism); ephedra (boosts metabolism - banned because of dangerous side effects); chromium picolinate (appetite suppressant)
My opinion: Should be used only under doctor's orders
VI. Very-low calorie liquid diet
Optifast, Medifast
My opinion: May work for very obese people. Should be used only under doctor's orders
VII. Protein shake meal replacement
Slim-Fast ("a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, then a sensible dinner"), Cambridge Diet
VIII. High-protein, low-carb.
Banting diet, Eat Fat Grow Slim diet, Atkins diet, Paleolithic/Paleo diet, Protein power, South Beach diet, Dukan diet, Elimination diet, Eco-Atkins, Glycemic Index Diet, Makers Diet, Sugar Busters, Carbohydrate Addict's Diet
My opinion: May result in moderate weight loss if the fat content is high enough. Would be useful for maintaining weight, although a balanced low-fat diet is probably healthier.
IX. High fat diet
Ketogenic diet
My opinion: This is the only way to achieve rapid weight loss, but it is unhealthy and should only be done for about three-four days before shifting to another diet.
X. Medium carb, medium fat, medium protein diets
Mediterranean Diet, Zone Diet
My opinion: These would probably be the best diets for long-term maintenance.
I. Low-fat, low-calorie
Diets in this category emphasize limiting calories, avoid high-fat foods, and eating a healthy, balanced diet. Most diets fall within this category.
List of diets: Scarsdale diet, Rotation diet, Cabbage soup diet, Ornish diet, Pritikin diet, DASH diet, TLC diet, Mayo Clinic diet, Volumetrics, Biggest Loser Diet, Fat Belly diet, Abs diet, Daniel Plan, Joy Bauer's Life Diet, Sonoma diet, American Heart Association Diet.
My opinion: It would be healthy to be on one of these diets for a period of time, maybe 2 to 3 months. I don't believe it is possible to lose weight on these diets. Maybe some people could lose a pound per week.
II. Packaged meals
These really fit into the same category above, except for the presentation. These are the most expensive type of diets.
List of diets: Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Lean Cuisine, Nutrisystem
My opinion: same as above
III. Vegetarian and Vegan
These may have some health benefits.
List of diets: Vegetarians (avoid meat but eat eggs and dairy), Vegans avoid anything animal-based, including eggs and dairy. Raw food diet, Macrobiotic diet (fish)
My opinion: One would go on one of these for religious or philosophical purposes. Minor weight loss may be a side effect.
IV. Sugar Water
Maple syrup diet, Master Cleanse, Hollywood diet
My opinion: May be useful for a 48 hour fast and cleanse.
V. Diet Pills
Types: orlistat (fat blocker); sibutramine (appetite suppressant); hoodia (appetite suppressant); green tea extract (boosts metabolism); hydroxycitric acid (suppresses appetite and boosts metabolism); ephedra (boosts metabolism - banned because of dangerous side effects); chromium picolinate (appetite suppressant)
My opinion: Should be used only under doctor's orders
VI. Very-low calorie liquid diet
Optifast, Medifast
My opinion: May work for very obese people. Should be used only under doctor's orders
VII. Protein shake meal replacement
Slim-Fast ("a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, then a sensible dinner"), Cambridge Diet
VIII. High-protein, low-carb.
Banting diet, Eat Fat Grow Slim diet, Atkins diet, Paleolithic/Paleo diet, Protein power, South Beach diet, Dukan diet, Elimination diet, Eco-Atkins, Glycemic Index Diet, Makers Diet, Sugar Busters, Carbohydrate Addict's Diet
My opinion: May result in moderate weight loss if the fat content is high enough. Would be useful for maintaining weight, although a balanced low-fat diet is probably healthier.
IX. High fat diet
Ketogenic diet
My opinion: This is the only way to achieve rapid weight loss, but it is unhealthy and should only be done for about three-four days before shifting to another diet.
X. Medium carb, medium fat, medium protein diets
Mediterranean Diet, Zone Diet
My opinion: These would probably be the best diets for long-term maintenance.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
How many agencies does it take to fight financial narco-terrorism?
I came up with a list of 8 agencies whose missions all involve fighting international financial narco-terrorism:
Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (Treasury)
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (Treasury)
Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (State)
Drug Enforcement Agency (Justice)
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Office of Intelligence (Justice)
National Drug Intelligence Center (Justice)
CIA Crime and Narcotics Center (ODNI)
Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement (DHS)
Might it be possible to combine some of these or is that too much to ask?
Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (Treasury)
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (Treasury)
Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (State)
Drug Enforcement Agency (Justice)
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Office of Intelligence (Justice)
National Drug Intelligence Center (Justice)
CIA Crime and Narcotics Center (ODNI)
Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement (DHS)
Might it be possible to combine some of these or is that too much to ask?
State Department labels Vatican as money-laundering center
"The Vatican has for the first time appeared on the State Department's list of money-laundering centers but the tiny city-state is not rated as a high-risk country. The 2012 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report was made public on Wednesday and Washington's list of 190 countries classifies them in three categories: of primary concern, of concern and monitored. The Vatican is in the second category, grouped with 67 other nations including Poland, Egypt, Ireland, Hungary and Chile. It was added to the list because it was considered vulnerable to money-laundering and had recently established programs to prevent it, a State Department official said. "To be considered a jurisdiction of concern merely indicates that there is a vulnerability to a financial system by money launderers. With the large volumes of international currency that goes through the Holy See, it is a system that makes it vulnerable as a potential money-laundering center," Susan Pittman of the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, told Reuters."
--http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/08/us-vatican-laundering-idUSBRE82710J20120308
=============
I just got through mentioning how odd I thought it was that the Treasury Department labeled an Iranian General as a narco-trafficker. But this is truly bizarre - the State Department labels the Vatican as a potential center for narco-terrorism? I guess there has to be balance - if you add a Muslim then you have to add a Catholic to show you aren't biased.
How many lists are there? How many agencies does it take to fight financial narco-terrorism?
--http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/08/us-vatican-laundering-idUSBRE82710J20120308
=============
I just got through mentioning how odd I thought it was that the Treasury Department labeled an Iranian General as a narco-trafficker. But this is truly bizarre - the State Department labels the Vatican as a potential center for narco-terrorism? I guess there has to be balance - if you add a Muslim then you have to add a Catholic to show you aren't biased.
How many lists are there? How many agencies does it take to fight financial narco-terrorism?
The fall of the Spanish empire
Source: http://www.americaneconomicalert.org/view_art.asp?Prod_ID=1086
It may be hard for most people to imagine, but Spain was the first global Superpower. It gained this status as the defender of Europe against Muslim armies and by leading the West’s exploration of America. In 1492, the same year that Spanish-financed Christopher Columbus discovered the New World, the last Muslim stronghold of Granada was ceded to Ferdinand and Isabella to complete the Catholic Reconquest of the Iberian peninsula. With Spain as its political base, and gold and silver flowing in from its American colonies, the Hapsburg dynasty became the dominant power in Europe. It controlled rich parts of Italy through Naples and Milan, and Central Europe from the Netherlands through the Holy Roman Empire to Austria. In the 16th century it added the far distant Philippine islands to its empire. The Hapsburgs held off the Ottoman Turks, whose resurgent wave of Islamic conquest in the 16th century swept across the Balkans and nearly captured Vienna.
The Hapsburgs went into decline in the 17th century, and while any such momentous event has many causes, for our purposes the focus will be on the economic collapse of Spain, which not only sapped the empire of strength but served to build up the power of its rivals.
The demands of empire required a strong and growing economy, but Spain did not keep up with the economic expansion that was taking place in other parts of Europe. Madrid’s financial base fell out from under its empire. Spain could continue to consume in the short term because of the flow of precious metals from American mines, but it could not produce the goods it needed at home, which in the long-run proved fatal to its standing as a Great Power and as an advanced society.
Spanish imports were double exports and the precious metals became scarce within weeks of the arrival of the American treasure fleets as the money flowed to Spain’s many creditors. What industry there was, along with banking and shipping, was in the hands of foreign owners. As a modern historian, Jaime Vicens Vives, has concluded, “This was one of the fundamental causes of the Spanish economy’s profound decline in the seventeenth century, maritime trade had fallen into the hands of foreigners.” This, plus the “opening of the internal market to foreign goods,” produced a “fatal result.” Spain’s exports were at the same time under heavy pressure by competitors in third country markets. A nation that cannot control its domestic market will seldom be able to sustain itself in foreign markets, which are inherently less accessible and more unstable.
Yet, Spanish leaders were deluded by a sense of false prosperity. This is testified by the statement of a prominent official, Alfonso Nunez de Castro in 1675: “Let London manufacture those fine fabrics of hers to her heart’s content; let Holland her chambrays; Florence her cloth; the Indies their beaver and vicuna; Milan her brocade, Italy and Flanders their linens…so long as our capital can enjoy them; the only thing it proves is that all nations train their journeymen for Madrid, and that Madrid is the queen of Parliaments, for all the world serves her and she serves nobody.” A few years later, the Madrid government was bankrupt. The Spanish nobleman had foolishly elevated consumption, a use for wealth, above production, the creation of wealth.
Historians have traced the flow of Spanish gold and silver across the markets of Europe. Those who “served” Spain by establishing industries to manufacture goods for the Spanish market gained the money. Spain’s rivals, France, Holland (which started a successful revolt in 1568) and England, prospered by their trade surpluses, and reinvested the money to expand their own capabilities. Another modern expert on Hapsburg history, Henry Kamen, has cited contemporary sources who referred to 17th century Spain as “the Indies for the foreigner.” The military empire of the Hapsburgs became the economic colony of other powers, or, to use a current phrase, Spain was the “engine of growth” for the rest of the continent.
Where there were jobs and prosperity, there was also rapid population growth, and rising tax revenue. Rival powers were able to field and finance military forces that could defeat the once superior Spanish forces both on land and at sea. The irony of this is that Spain was ruled by a warrior aristocracy tempered by centuries of constant warfare against Islamic hordes and Christian heretics. These nobles looked down on merchants and manufacturers and disparaged their mundane professions only to find that without a strong domestic business class they could not afford the fleets and armies that guarded the empire they had built.
It may be hard for most people to imagine, but Spain was the first global Superpower. It gained this status as the defender of Europe against Muslim armies and by leading the West’s exploration of America. In 1492, the same year that Spanish-financed Christopher Columbus discovered the New World, the last Muslim stronghold of Granada was ceded to Ferdinand and Isabella to complete the Catholic Reconquest of the Iberian peninsula. With Spain as its political base, and gold and silver flowing in from its American colonies, the Hapsburg dynasty became the dominant power in Europe. It controlled rich parts of Italy through Naples and Milan, and Central Europe from the Netherlands through the Holy Roman Empire to Austria. In the 16th century it added the far distant Philippine islands to its empire. The Hapsburgs held off the Ottoman Turks, whose resurgent wave of Islamic conquest in the 16th century swept across the Balkans and nearly captured Vienna.
The Hapsburgs went into decline in the 17th century, and while any such momentous event has many causes, for our purposes the focus will be on the economic collapse of Spain, which not only sapped the empire of strength but served to build up the power of its rivals.
The demands of empire required a strong and growing economy, but Spain did not keep up with the economic expansion that was taking place in other parts of Europe. Madrid’s financial base fell out from under its empire. Spain could continue to consume in the short term because of the flow of precious metals from American mines, but it could not produce the goods it needed at home, which in the long-run proved fatal to its standing as a Great Power and as an advanced society.
Spanish imports were double exports and the precious metals became scarce within weeks of the arrival of the American treasure fleets as the money flowed to Spain’s many creditors. What industry there was, along with banking and shipping, was in the hands of foreign owners. As a modern historian, Jaime Vicens Vives, has concluded, “This was one of the fundamental causes of the Spanish economy’s profound decline in the seventeenth century, maritime trade had fallen into the hands of foreigners.” This, plus the “opening of the internal market to foreign goods,” produced a “fatal result.” Spain’s exports were at the same time under heavy pressure by competitors in third country markets. A nation that cannot control its domestic market will seldom be able to sustain itself in foreign markets, which are inherently less accessible and more unstable.
Yet, Spanish leaders were deluded by a sense of false prosperity. This is testified by the statement of a prominent official, Alfonso Nunez de Castro in 1675: “Let London manufacture those fine fabrics of hers to her heart’s content; let Holland her chambrays; Florence her cloth; the Indies their beaver and vicuna; Milan her brocade, Italy and Flanders their linens…so long as our capital can enjoy them; the only thing it proves is that all nations train their journeymen for Madrid, and that Madrid is the queen of Parliaments, for all the world serves her and she serves nobody.” A few years later, the Madrid government was bankrupt. The Spanish nobleman had foolishly elevated consumption, a use for wealth, above production, the creation of wealth.
Historians have traced the flow of Spanish gold and silver across the markets of Europe. Those who “served” Spain by establishing industries to manufacture goods for the Spanish market gained the money. Spain’s rivals, France, Holland (which started a successful revolt in 1568) and England, prospered by their trade surpluses, and reinvested the money to expand their own capabilities. Another modern expert on Hapsburg history, Henry Kamen, has cited contemporary sources who referred to 17th century Spain as “the Indies for the foreigner.” The military empire of the Hapsburgs became the economic colony of other powers, or, to use a current phrase, Spain was the “engine of growth” for the rest of the continent.
Where there were jobs and prosperity, there was also rapid population growth, and rising tax revenue. Rival powers were able to field and finance military forces that could defeat the once superior Spanish forces both on land and at sea. The irony of this is that Spain was ruled by a warrior aristocracy tempered by centuries of constant warfare against Islamic hordes and Christian heretics. These nobles looked down on merchants and manufacturers and disparaged their mundane professions only to find that without a strong domestic business class they could not afford the fleets and armies that guarded the empire they had built.
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