What Caught My Eye Today

Hi folks, I'm back from vacation. I want to start today's rant--I mean, observations--with a little history. On this date in 1982, my little sister graced humanity with her presence. Happy birthday, Sis.

California - Firefighters have tamed the handful of wildfires still burning in California. The devastating wildfires which erupted on October 21 were among the worst in Californian history, leaving seven people dead, destroying 2,000 homes and displacing 640,000 people as they tore through tinder-dry parks and forests. At the height of the crisis 23 fires were blazing. But a lull in winds which fueled the flames early last week combined with cooling temperatures allowed firefighters to gain the upper hand over the weekend. Early today only six fires continued to be classified as "active." The fires are the worst to hit the state since 2003, when 22 people were killed and more than 3,000 homes lost in a series of blazes. At least two of them were believed to have been set deliberately. San Diego County officials have put the cost of property damage at more than one billion dollars, although insurance industry analysts have said it may go as high as 1.6 billion. So like, here I was thinking finally a year without a major natural disaster in the good 'ol U.S. of A. Sure, there was some flooding in parts of the country, but nothing remotely close to the hurricanes of two years ago. And then come these fires. Guess I spoke too soon. Then again, not all of these fires where sparked by natural causes, were they? I will say this. Whatever penalties these arsonists receive, will not come close to the pain and damage that they inflicted on the residents of Southern California. I hope these fires gave these guys an idea of what burning in hell will feel like.

Caribbean - At least 20 people have been killed in flooding in the Dominican Republic following torrential rains dumped by Tropical Storm Noel. The deaths were reported in the Dominican capital Santo Domingo, and along the south coast. The storm was expected to pour 10 to 20 inches of rain on the Dominican Republic and neighbouring Haiti, the US National Hurricane Center said. Early this evening the center of the storm had passed and was heading north-west, past the eastern tip of Cuba towards the Bahamas. This particular news item drew my attention because two short days ago I was wrapping up a rather enjoyable cruise through the Eastern Caribbean. I want to give a shout out to the staff and crew of the Freedom of the Seas. Be safe, folks.

Space Shuttle - The space shuttle Discovery has extended its 14 day mission to the International Space Station to launch an Italian-built U.S. multi-port module for the station in order to take a closer look at the gears that control the international space station's solar wings to try to find out what's grinding inside and causing steel chips to clog the system. The inspection of the good left gear will take up just a small portion of the spacewalk. The primary goal will be to hook up a giant beam and its attached solar panels — folded up like an accordion — to their new location on the space station. These panels, once unfurled, will be controlled by the left rotary joint. Installing that beam and extending those solar panels to their full 240 feet has taken on added importance because of the rotary joint problem. A significant power shortfall would delay the arrival of European and Japanese laboratories on the verge of launching. This is the 120th space shuttle mission and 23rd mission involved in the construction of the International Space Station. Don't you feel some much more informed now?

Argentina - First lady Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will become Argentina's first elected woman leader, but her husband, President Nestor Kirchner, is expected to stay active behind the scenes. Fernandez's margin of victory in the Sunday presidential vote, seen as the largest in the history of Argentine democracy, will allow her to avoid a runoff next month. With ballots counted at 96.4 percent of polling stations, Fernandez had 44.90 percent support, followed by another female candidate, former lawmaker Elisa Carrio, who had 22.96 percent. Please, please, please, don't make me explain why I included this bit. If you cannot figure out the connection by now, frankly, I give up.

Oil - Oil futures surged to a new record near $94 Monday, propelled by the weak dollar and news that Mexico's state oil company had suspended a fifth of its oil production due to stormy weather. Crude futures rallied late in the session as the euro rebounded against the dollar, analysts said. The dollar's descent against other major currencies has drawn investors to crude futures as a hedge against the weakening currency and made dollar-denominated oil futures less expensive to people dealing in other currencies. Prices on Monday were also supported by fighting in Turkey between armed forces and Kurdish rebels, and the U.S. government's imposition last week of harsh penalties against Iran, the world's fourth largest oil producer. Despite oil's relentless march higher in recent weeks, many analysts argue that the price increases are being driven by speculation, not market fundamentals. Maybe it's just me, but wouldn't it be nice if these so-called analysts practiced some of these market fundamentals? Seems to me that these analysts are the ones doing most of the talking about all this speculation. Why do they spend so much more time talking about speculation rather than fundamentals. Too boring perhaps? Or there the remote possibility that some of this speculation may actually be based on a sliver of reality. I do know this...I'm paying about $3.25 for a gallon of unleaded. If this keeps up, I may have to cutback on my Starbucks. If that happens, dude, the gloves are coming off.

Baseball - Police in riot gear cleared several large crowds gathered around Fenway Park early Monday and said they made 37 arrests the Red Sox won their second World Series title in four years. Boston, who had gone 86 years without winning a World Series before sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004, repeated the feat by outscoring the Rockies a cumulative 29-10. The Rockies, who won 21 of 22 games to storm into the postseason and their first World Series, never found their stride after waiting eight days for the Series to begin. 37 arrests, huh? I wonder how bad it would have been if Colorado had come back and won 4 in a row? Guys, let's be cool about this. Sure, last time you went a little crazy and who could blame you. 86 years is a long time. But seriously, it shouldn't be that hard to show some class and act like you have been here before and will probably be here again as soon as next year.