Flawed Bush logic on surge

Countdown, May 7: On Tuesday, Max Booth, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, insisted that the surge has worked and civilian deaths were down in Iraq. However, he wrote an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal the day before claiming the jump in American fatalities could be a sign of things getting worse before they get better.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/24511312#24511312

ICIW2008: Organizing the US Government for the Contemporary Environment

Colonel Steven Mains, US Combined Arms Center, Fort Leavenworth, KS Director, Center for Army Lessons Learned

• Thesis
• us govt is ceding to the info war to our enemies
• more money is required
• govt must be reorganized to retake the initiative
• 2 examples of what could have been
• prior to OIF, France & Muslin world opposed invasion but were open to influence
• IEDs became weapon of choice but have severe vulnerabilities
• the problem
• coordinated campaign required
• info ops not integrated into planning and decision making
• govt to people comms almost nonexistent
• US Govt built in stovepipes
• complete reorganization of the govt not a feasible option
• End
• advance US ideals and policies by ensuing that everyone has access to factual, unbiased, unfiltered info about intentions, actions & character of US, allies & adversaries
• Ways
• gauge world views by region, ethnicity, religion
• identify market segments
• identify acceptance and effects of policies
• deliver truthful, tailored content that relies on our values to our policies
• continuous reassessment
• Means
• Dep advisor to prez for national security (strategic communications)
• increased national security council
• strategic comms task force
• dept of state reorg
• DNI: covert communications
• DHS: Infrastructure assurance
• USAID: substantially increased Public Diplomacy capability
• DOD: integrated into PD efforts, CNO

The Chief's Corner

The Lincoln, NE police chief has started a blog titled The Chief's Corner. There's only a few posts at this point but so far I'm very impressed. He's dealing with relevant local issues in an honest and human way. The post responding to recent newspaper editorials titled "That pesky Constitution" is definitely one to read.

DMV, part 2 of 2

I ended up going back to the DMV yesterday after work as I'd head the necessary form had been faxed in by my ex. This time the experience was much more pleasurable. I was in and out in less than 20 minutes, didn't wait in a single line and walked out with my new title, new plates, and a new driver's license. Check all that off my to-do list.

DMV, part one of n

I finally had the cash and the time to get out to the DMV this morning. In total I have to get the car inspected by a Sheriff's Deputy (to make sure it's not a stolen vehicle,) get a Nebraska title, register the car in Nebraska, and get a new driver's license. I didn't expect to get it all done today but...

The inspection was quick and easy. Basically, just a computerized VIN search which cost me $10. Then off to get a new title. Trouble is, my ex (we divorced in 2002) was still listed on the title. Why hadn't I fixed this before? No clue. It just hadn't dawned on me as something I needed to do. So I took all my paperwork including proof of the divorce over to the next window and I was told that wouldn't work. I needed something from the divorce decree that established she'd given up all rights to the car. Or, I could get her to sign a power of attorney for the car. Back home I went to look through my files.

I found an "Affidavit of gift of motor vehicle" in my divorce papers which to me, since it said "the transferor has transfered and conveyed to transferee, all of transferor's right, title and interest in and to the... motor vehicle." [emphasis added] Sounds good to me, but when I got back to the DMV I was informed that that would only save me some money on taxes or some such and "that may be the way they do it in Missouri [where the divorced occurred], but that won't work here."

So, I'm back to faxing the form to my ex (this isn't really a problem, it's just an annoying and delaying bureaucratic step in this whole process) so she can sign it, have it notarized, and fax it back to the DMV. I then get to go tomorrow and try to get my new title and registration.