How Can They Miss?

The new Chrysler Corporation: government, unions and FIAT. Now there's a recipe for quality. Watch those sales boom.

How Can They Miss?

The new Chrysler Corporation: government, unions and FIAT. Now there's a recipe for quality. Watch those sales boom.

Obfuscation: Murtech's Website

No doubt you will be as shocked as I was to learn a company owned by the nephew of Congressman John P. Murtha, called Murtech, is receiving no-bid government contracts yet doesn't seem to be doing much, according to the Washington Post reporter who visited the place. Determing what the company is even supposed to do is difficult and you won't get much help on that or anything else from what could be the Murtech website, all two pages of it.

You won't find on the Murtech website, for example, an address or phone number, nor the names of principals and other employees. It is, therefore, not an absolute certainty, I suppose, that this Murtech website is actually connected to the Murtech firm owned by the congressman's nephew, but gosh, you have to wonder.

One thing you will find, in spades, is gobbledygook, such as I have rarely seen before. For those in search of, for example, "Logistics Support," the website claims Murtech

Provides full range of logistics support to perform supply and logistics support at all organizational levels, provisioning and supply support. Specific support focuses on logistics support analysis (LSA), ILS planning and program implementation, inventory control, project management, shipping and handling coordination, and specialized facility requirements, warehouse management, and status reporting, tracking, facilities management, supply chain project/program plans and reports, and security support.

Okie, dokie, it looks as if they run a self-storage outfit; and what can you expect should you be in dire need of "Acquisition Support?" Have no fear, those good folks at Murtech will

[Provide] program management, analytical, engineering and technical services in support of Acquisition and Life Cycle mission functions. Specific support includes the acquisition and life cycle management functions, which are derived from the analysis of the program requirements and objections. Murtech utilizes a structured process that enables tracking of individual requirements and development planning and budgeting support documentation that is essential for program support. By integrating the system engineering design requirements, development schedules, test and evaluation results, ILSP requirements, training functions and manufacturing schedule, Murtech is able to provide detailed acquisition support documentation for the planning and budgeting cycles to ensure that the program remains on track with cost, schedule, and performance.

Got that? I hope you're taking notes.

Only once before have I encountered such inpenetrable jargon. It came from the lips of a former acquaintance who claimed to be the founder, owner and manager of an investment firm. He would use argot like the above when describing his work and those of us subjected to it would find ourselves scratching our heads, trying to figure out just what it was our friend did. The answer (not surprisingly) turned out to be nothing, the fellow was a fraud; he had no business and whatever income he enjoyed resulted from his embezzling from an an organization to which we both belonged. Any parallels, you think?

(h/t Instapundit.)

Obfuscation: Murtech's Website

No doubt you will be as shocked as I was to learn a company owned by the nephew of Congressman John P. Murtha, called Murtech, is receiving no-bid government contracts yet doesn't seem to be doing much, according to the Washington Post reporter who visited the place. Determing what the company is even supposed to do is difficult and you won't get much help on that or anything else from what could be the Murtech website, all two pages of it.

You won't find on the Murtech website, for example, an address or phone number, nor the names of principals and other employees. It is, therefore, not an absolute certainty, I suppose, that this Murtech website is actually connected to the Murtech firm owned by the congressman's nephew, but gosh, you have to wonder.

One thing you will find, in spades, is gobbledygook, such as I have rarely seen before. For those in search of, for example, "Logistics Support," the website claims Murtech

Provides full range of logistics support to perform supply and logistics support at all organizational levels, provisioning and supply support. Specific support focuses on logistics support analysis (LSA), ILS planning and program implementation, inventory control, project management, shipping and handling coordination, and specialized facility requirements, warehouse management, and status reporting, tracking, facilities management, supply chain project/program plans and reports, and security support.

Okie, dokie, it looks as if they run a self-storage outfit; and what can you expect should you be in dire need of "Acquisition Support?" Have no fear, those good folks at Murtech will

[Provide] program management, analytical, engineering and technical services in support of Acquisition and Life Cycle mission functions. Specific support includes the acquisition and life cycle management functions, which are derived from the analysis of the program requirements and objections. Murtech utilizes a structured process that enables tracking of individual requirements and development planning and budgeting support documentation that is essential for program support. By integrating the system engineering design requirements, development schedules, test and evaluation results, ILSP requirements, training functions and manufacturing schedule, Murtech is able to provide detailed acquisition support documentation for the planning and budgeting cycles to ensure that the program remains on track with cost, schedule, and performance.

Got that? I hope you're taking notes.

Only once before have I encountered such inpenetrable jargon. It came from the lips of a former acquaintance who claimed to be the founder, owner and manager of an investment firm. He would use argot like the above when describing his work and those of us subjected to it would find ourselves scratching our heads, trying to figure out just what it was our friend did. The answer (not surprisingly) turned out to be nothing, the fellow was a fraud; he had no business and whatever income he enjoyed resulted from his embezzling from an an organization to which we both belonged. Any parallels, you think?

(h/t Instapundit.)

Striking a Soft Bargain

One of the sacrifices the UAW made in the upcoming sale of Chrysler Corporation is "retirees are losing their entitlement to erectile dysfunction medicine."

Striking a Soft Bargain

One of the sacrifices the UAW made in the upcoming sale of Chrysler Corporation is "retirees are losing their entitlement to erectile dysfunction medicine."

Our Lady of Central Standard Time

After three of their watches expired on me in succession, I have sadly given up on my beloved Timex (their quality seems to have gone down the toilet) and have been searching for a new watch from a different maker. Here is one, made by the respectable Citizen company of Japan, I had to pass on; no doubt, in time, I will reject the notion of something being "too Catholic" but I'm not quite there yet.

I'll bet it's a big seller in Mexico, though.

Our Lady of Central Standard Time

After three of their watches expired on me in succession, I have sadly given up on my beloved Timex (their quality seems to have gone down the toilet) and have been searching for a new watch from a different maker. Here is one, made by the respectable Citizen company of Japan, I had to pass on; no doubt, in time, I will reject the notion of something being "too Catholic" but I'm not quite there yet.

I'll bet it's a big seller in Mexico, though.

Specter: Kemp Died for Republican Sins

The Washington Times reports 79 year-old Arlen Specter, who recently defected to the Democrats after his pollsters told him he had squeezed the lemon dry as a Republican, wasted no time getting comfy in his new party.

Sen. Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Democrat, said part of the reason that he left the Republican Party last week was disillusionment with its health-care priorities, and suggested that had the Republicans taken a more moderate track, Jack Kemp may have won his battle with cancer.

I'm not sure that quite ranks in stupidity with blaming George Bush for not signing the Kyoto Protocol but it may well set a new standard for classlessness in Congress. Specter will make a good fit with his new political playmates.

Specter: Kemp Died for Republican Sins

The Washington Times reports 79 year-old Arlen Specter, who recently defected to the Democrats after his pollsters told him he had squeezed the lemon dry as a Republican, wasted no time getting comfy in his new party.

Sen. Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Democrat, said part of the reason that he left the Republican Party last week was disillusionment with its health-care priorities, and suggested that had the Republicans taken a more moderate track, Jack Kemp may have won his battle with cancer.

I'm not sure that quite ranks in stupidity with blaming George Bush for not signing the Kyoto Protocol but it may well set a new standard for classlessness in Congress. Specter will make a good fit with his new political playmates.

The Bully's Pulpit

Apparently the President of the United State and his staff, who represent all Americans regardless for whom they voted, threatened to sic the White House press corps on recalcitrant debt holders of the now bankrupt Chrysler Corporation unless they signed onto the deal turning over the remains of the company to the UAW and Fiat.

Glenn Reynolds wonders what the press corp members' reaction will be to learn the President and his staff regard them as little more than poodles; to run, jump and fetch at their command. My guess is, while some of them might be be appalled, most will not be for the same reason minions of drug dealers, hip-hop thugs and schoolyard bullies are pleased to grovel and scramble at any request made by their leaders, including the beating up of rivals. Continual abasement for them is a small price to pay for the perceived elevation in their status being allowed to hang around with and do chores for those much cooler than they are.

The Bully's Pulpit

Apparently the President of the United State and his staff, who represent all Americans regardless for whom they voted, threatened to sic the White House press corps on recalcitrant debt holders of the now bankrupt Chrysler Corporation unless they signed onto the deal turning over the remains of the company to the UAW and Fiat.

Glenn Reynolds wonders what the press corp members' reaction will be to learn the President and his staff regard them as little more than poodles; to run, jump and fetch at their command. My guess is, while some of them might be be appalled, most will not be for the same reason minions of drug dealers, hip-hop thugs and schoolyard bullies are pleased to grovel and scramble at any request made by their leaders, including the beating up of rivals. Continual abasement for them is a small price to pay for the perceived elevation in their status being allowed to hang around with and do chores for those much cooler than they are.

Jazz Latitudinarians

Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit, links to a site listing the 100 greatest jazz albums of all time. I only have a passing knowledge of jazz and wouldn't quibble with most of the honorees save for one glaring exception, number 87: Herb Albert & the Tijuana Brass, Whipped Cream & Other Delights. No way, Jose! As pleasant those insipid sounds might be, by no stretch of the imagination are they jazz. Years ago, when I worked in a record store, Albert's discs were found in the Easy Listening section, which is precisely where they belonged.

While I also question no. 46: George Gershwin's performance of Rhapsody in Blue (that work being an early example of "crossover," not jazz but a jazz-influenced "classical" composition), it certainly has far more jazz in it than "Tijuana Taxi."

Jazz Latitudinarians

Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit, links to a site listing the 100 greatest jazz albums of all time. I only have a passing knowledge of jazz and wouldn't quibble with most of the honorees save for one glaring exception, number 87: Herb Albert & the Tijuana Brass, Whipped Cream & Other Delights. No way, Jose! As pleasant those insipid sounds might be, by no stretch of the imagination are they jazz. Years ago, when I worked in a record store, Albert's discs were found in the Easy Listening section, which is precisely where they belonged.

While I also question no. 46: George Gershwin's performance of Rhapsody in Blue (that work being an early example of "crossover," not jazz but a jazz-influenced "classical" composition), it certainly has far more jazz in it than "Tijuana Taxi."

Noted with Distress

Thomas More on praying, from The Sadness of Christ:

Would God we would sometime take so much pain, as soon as we have finished our prayers, as forthwith orderly to call to our remembrance again all things that have passed us in the while we seemed to pray. Lord, how foolish, how fond, and how filthy matters shall we many times there find? We would, I assure you, wonder how our mind could possibly in so short a space stray so much abroad into so many places so far severed asunder, and about so divers and sundry, so many and idle occupations. For if a man would even of purpose for a proof do his endeavour to occupy his thought upon as many and as manifold matters, as by any possibility he could devise, hardly could he, I trow, in so little a while think upon so many things, and so far distant asunder as our idle unoccupied mind wandereth about, while our tongue at adventure pattereth apace, upon our matins and evensong, and other accustomed prayers.

So true and so characteristic of our fallen nature: yet what else to do but keep at it, in the hope of doing a little better next time?

Noted with Distress

Thomas More on praying, from The Sadness of Christ:

Would God we would sometime take so much pain, as soon as we have finished our prayers, as forthwith orderly to call to our remembrance again all things that have passed us in the while we seemed to pray. Lord, how foolish, how fond, and how filthy matters shall we many times there find? We would, I assure you, wonder how our mind could possibly in so short a space stray so much abroad into so many places so far severed asunder, and about so divers and sundry, so many and idle occupations. For if a man would even of purpose for a proof do his endeavour to occupy his thought upon as many and as manifold matters, as by any possibility he could devise, hardly could he, I trow, in so little a while think upon so many things, and so far distant asunder as our idle unoccupied mind wandereth about, while our tongue at adventure pattereth apace, upon our matins and evensong, and other accustomed prayers.

So true and so characteristic of our fallen nature: yet what else to do but keep at it, in the hope of doing a little better next time?

Those Wacky WomynPriests, at it Again!

NJ woman ordained as a priest in controversial ceremony

It's tempting to snigger at the poor deluded soul you see in this video who now thinks she is a Catholic priest. In the end, however, it is more appropriate to feel sadness, for not only has she not been "ordained," she is automatically excommunicated for attempting it.

The video, from the Newark Star-Ledger, at least attempts to present both sides, thus is far better than most media accounts concerning shenanigans like this, which seem to take the stand anyone can become a Catholic priest, regardless what the Catholic Church might have to say about it. I do wish, though, the media would not use the word "controversial" to describe women's ordination in the Catholic Church, for to the Church, it is simply impossible: "the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women," thus is no more controversial than declaring pigs can't fly.

Those Wacky WomynPriests, at it Again!

NJ woman ordained as a priest in controversial ceremony

It's tempting to snigger at the poor deluded soul you see in this video who now thinks she is a Catholic priest. In the end, however, it is more appropriate to feel sadness, for not only has she not been "ordained," she is automatically excommunicated for attempting it.

The video, from the Newark Star-Ledger, at least attempts to present both sides, thus is far better than most media accounts concerning shenanigans like this, which seem to take the stand anyone can become a Catholic priest, regardless what the Catholic Church might have to say about it. I do wish, though, the media would not use the word "controversial" to describe women's ordination in the Catholic Church, for to the Church, it is simply impossible: "the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women," thus is no more controversial than declaring pigs can't fly.

Take 'Em Along for the Ride, Senator

Legacy crook Senator Christopher Dodd, apparently under the illusion he still stands a chance of re-election, yesterday in Connecticut took part in a slow-pitch softball game disguised as a public Q & A session. Not one of the many carefully screened questions gently tossed his way touched on the manifold scandals tarring his already dubious reputation. Eventually the charade came to an end and Dodd no doubt congratulated himself for pulling off the ruse.

Dodd is deluded, nobody but nobody believes him anymore, not even his pals in the Congress and White House. As soon as they can quantify the serious liability he is, the Democrats, following orders from on high, will dump him. George Bush was often accused of being overly loyal to subordinates in trouble; nobody will ever accuse Barack Obama of that.

Dodd is going down for sure but there's no reason for him not to have fun when that happens. The very moment he senses the Democrats are cutting him off, he should announce with as much fanfare he can muster he is changing his party affiliation to Republican (there's little difference between the two parties these days and he'll make a nice replacement for principle-free Arlen Specter, who recently pulled a similar stunt). Wheeler-dealer that he is, the dirt Dodd must have in his files on Democratic colleagues, accumulated after a thirty year career, must be staggering. Those colleagues' squirming will no doubt go a long way assuaging his bitterness at their betrayal.

Take 'Em Along for the Ride, Senator

Legacy crook Senator Christopher Dodd, apparently under the illusion he still stands a chance of re-election, yesterday in Connecticut took part in a slow-pitch softball game disguised as a public Q & A session. Not one of the many carefully screened questions gently tossed his way touched on the manifold scandals tarring his already dubious reputation. Eventually the charade came to an end and Dodd no doubt congratulated himself for pulling off the ruse.

Dodd is deluded, nobody but nobody believes him anymore, not even his pals in the Congress and White House. As soon as they can quantify the serious liability he is, the Democrats, following orders from on high, will dump him. George Bush was often accused of being overly loyal to subordinates in trouble; nobody will ever accuse Barack Obama of that.

Dodd is going down for sure but there's no reason for him not to have fun when that happens. The very moment he senses the Democrats are cutting him off, he should announce with as much fanfare he can muster he is changing his party affiliation to Republican (there's little difference between the two parties these days and he'll make a nice replacement for principle-free Arlen Specter, who recently pulled a similar stunt). Wheeler-dealer that he is, the dirt Dodd must have in his files on Democratic colleagues, accumulated after a thirty year career, must be staggering. Those colleagues' squirming will no doubt go a long way assuaging his bitterness at their betrayal.