Carnival of the Curmudgeons - Mark Seven

This week's Carnival is a day late, again. No excuse, sir. Well, maybe. My month in the sun has turned into a physical breakdown nightmare for me. First, I threw my back out again, then my weak GI tract let go and I lost quite a bit of blood and spent day before yesterday in the ER. Now I can't drink, can't eat anything called food, can't sit in the sun, can't do squat.

Bummer, dude.

But, I have a bad feeling that my troubles pale into insignificance compared to the Nation's. I refer to the disastrous decision to outsource the management of 6 US ports to the United Arab Emirates.

You will notice I said UAE, not Dubai Ports, Ltd, the company whose name appears on the documents. I remind readers that the UAE is a monarchy, and Dubai Ports is a state-owned company owned by the Emirate, which is owned by the Emir.

If I felt generous towards the UAE, I would say that the security of our ports is a concern of Dubai Ports, but there's no proof of that. There IS proof of their previous lack of concern for security of transportation as regards air transport.

The 3,000 graves from 9-11 should serve nicely as an example.

I don't feel generous towards the UAE. Over there, family name trumps everything, not security concerns. Sure, we will write enough regulations into the deal to choke a horse, but as any good terrorist knows, regulations are for the weak, and serve mainly to blind the victims from their fate.

I could write a better deal.

First, I would charge Dubai Ports for a comprehensive new security set-up. With the Emir's rials, there would be efficient inspection of EVERY shipping container crossing our docks.

With the Emir's rials, a very large trust bond would be set up to compensate any and all victims of any future act of terror resulting from weapons crossing the docks.

With the Emir's rials, port security would be increased with new MIUW units (Mobile Inshore Underwater Warfare), Navy/Coast Guard units that monitor or engage surface traffic flow in the harbors, but are also set up to do underwater inspections of arriving vessels as well.

With the Emir's rials and influence, the world would subscribe to a tracking system that would track every single shipping container wherever it sits or sails.

Put the Emir's money to work to make us safer, and Bush's objectives will be met. I'm betting that no such agreement will ever be written, however.

But, I'm a curmudgeon, and I think that way.

Of course, GuyK thinks like a curmudgeon as well. Here's his take on the FEMA handouts.

Here's the retired geezer with his take on Ice Dancing in the lee-limpix.

Now that the furor over Veep Cheney's hunting accident has died down, I nominate the Anarchangel as having written the best post on it.

Back to the lee-limpix: PawPaw, always a curmudgeonly read, has a humorous take on it.

My take on the lee-limpix is ho-hum. Being laid up for the moment, I am watching more than my usual share of teevee, and last night I watched some women's speed skating. Let us say that the skin-tight costumes leave little to the imagination as to the form of the skater underneath, so I was reminded of this (NSFW) website. Yes, there were some cameltoe shots at the end of races.

Aaron Neal, not a curmudgeon in years, but one who could give lessons in the culture, writes about the "new police". I refused to become a New Policeman in my last few years in that career, and became very unpopular to the brass, but ever more popular to the citizenry I served.

Mr. Completely, an "A-list" curmudgeon, has this post on border security.

That's all folks. My B.R.A.T. dinner awaits (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce and Tea).

Blllarrrrrg.