Oil: Next up, Inventors and Investors.

Are oil prices the result of a commodities "bubble", each buyer gambling that next month prices will go even higher? Or, classic supply and demand? The emerging markets of India and China creating demand for fewer resources resulting in higher prices.

I suspect mostly the latter with commodities speculators going along for the ride, but I really do not know.

I do know this:

If prices for gasoline stay at these levels Adam Smith's "invisible hand" will spur entrepreneurs, investors and consumers to find alternatives. And that is the silver lining in this cloudy storm. Now there is real incentive: money to be made by investors and a challenge for inventors. It won't happen this year or next, but before too long someone will find a plentiful and less expensive energy source. The money is out there looking for it as we speak.

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This is not the solution but I love American ingenuity. Make your own ethanol auto fuel.

Company owner, Tom Quinn, "It's so simple, anyone can make their own fuel." Depending upon the cost of electricity and water, he says, the MicroFueler can produce ethanol for less than $1 a gallon. Quinn likens the MicroFueler to the personal computer and says it will cause the same sort of "paradigm shift."

Like I always say . . . God, I love this country.

The First.

General Washington,
Crossing the Delaware

February 18 is President's Day, more particularly Washington's birthday. His example and leadership still guides Americans, some 250 years later. Here are a few stories that stand out to me.

Not long into the Revolutionary War, during the winter at Valley Forge, the colonial armies were cold, hungry, poorly out-fitted, and dejected. General Washington refused the customary offer to stay in a home so that he could sleep out-of-doors with his men in the snow and cold. He could not ask of his men what he could not do himself.

He guided the colonial armies in that war and led his men into battle under the most difficult of circumstances, with little support and inadequate supplies. His military strategy of letting the battle come to him kept his small army alive and able to fight another day. His decisions would either bring them victory or defeat and victory was far from certain. But the colonialists were victorious and when the war was over he resigned as commander-and-chief and returned control of the military to Congress.

A few years later, he reluctantly attended the Constitutional Convention, knowing that without his presence at the head of the table, party disagreements could splinter the then confederated states into several small nation-states. He said little during the formal meetings, he knew too much deference would be given his words.

After the ratification of the Convention's Constitution a new nation needed a first President. He won by 69 unanimous votes of the electoral college and served eight years. He declined a third term. He knew everything that he did would be the standard for all Presidents following.

Notwithstanding these virtues, in this era of deconstructing the True and Good, someone will find some fault for which he should be chastised and disrespected, and since courage and self-sacrifice are illusions, Washington's true motives must have been money or fame or some other less than noble purpose. Maybe it was because of this that I was most happy to watch MSNBC's Chris Matthews offer tribute to President Washington at the end of today's news-show. I can't quote Matthews, but I will quote historian Paul Johnson on the same story with which Matthews closed his show.

From Johnson's book on Washington:

In London, George III questioned the American-born painter Benjamin West what Washington would do now he had won the war. "Oh," said West, "they say he will return to his farm." "If he does that," said the king, "he will be the greatest man in the world."

A Grotesque Baboon - - -

A "third-rate country lawyer", a "coarse, vulgar joker", "a dictator, an ape, and a buffoon." “The craftiest and most dishonest politician that ever disgraced an [American political] office."

A description of President Bush? No, that's the press' description of the President during the Civil War -- Abraham Lincoln.

I was preparing a nice post on our delicious St Valentine's Day dinner when I switched on the news to see if I could catch the latest on Romneys's endorsement of McCain or Obama's comments on Hillary's comments. Instead, Keith Olbermann was ranting about President Bush, the fascist.

President bashing is an American right and tradition, kind of like booing the umps at a baseball game when a call goes against your team. Or second guessing the coaches decision to go for it at 4th and 1. But Olbermann goes too far, regardless of political view that kind of slander is unnecessary and wrong. And I believe it does us all harm when we show contempt and disrespect for the office of the President. He is not just a Prime Minister, he is a combination of Prime Minister and peoples King. I will say the same about Clinton, Obama or any other person who takes the oath of office. The president can be criticized, but in my view, respectfully.

Leaders make unpopular decisions. I have no idea whether this war was justified or not. I do believe there is such a thing as a just war, I don't know if this is one of them, but that's not my decision. Disagree with this war all you want. Fight to withdraw all you want, but to say the President is motivated by personal animosity, oil money, self-aggrandizement or anything like it is wrong. I don't think President Bush's decisions are motivated by anything but the desire to protect the very people who are criticizing him. He may be right, he may be wrong, only time will tell. That's my opinion.

For the record my news watching of choice is:
Matthews / MSNBC
A Cooper / CNN
Hannity & Colmes / Fox

Shows I do not watch:
Olbermann / MSNBC
Lou Dobbs / CNN
O'Reilly / Fox

Comments anyone? Agree, disagree?

So Far, Points but No Pins . . .

I'm one of those guys who can watch presidential political debates, polling, commentary, etc. . . . ummmm, every night. Does that make me better than a guy who watches football every night. Heck no. It's not much different, football draws less blood, maybe. Modern presidential politics is good old-fashioned competition with handicapping, predictions and all the things that go with sports.

This political primary season has been a doozy. On the Republican side, 3 months ago we had written off John McCain. Too old, too worn out, too out of touch with today's voters. Wrong. He will be the Republican candidate. Who could have predicted a serious threat coming from Huckabee? And yet he is winning some southern states. And speaking of Huckabee, as much as I would love to see the disintegration of the IRS, the chances of him shutting down the IRS are slim and none. Do you really think the most powerful branch of government, the federal bureaucracy, is going to let that happen. No way, Jose. There isn't enough political capital available, let alone a Congress willing to permit it. It makes exciting political speechmaking, but it's disingenuous of him to make promises he knows he can't keep.

Picture right: J. McCain with Florida Governor Charlie Crist and California Governor Schwarzenegger. You'll see this a lot in the next few months. Florida is a toss-up state and McCain is the only Republican with a chance of taking California. A Huckabee VP selection and McCain pulls in the south and some of the evangelicals. The Republican's have announced their strategy.

On the Democrat side no one predicted Senator Obama to get too far out of the gate, but he is running close to the favorite, Hillary Clinton. I'm a Republican in most platform issues, which probably comes as no surprise to regular readers, but I will say this, the most moving person and the only person generating real, old-fashioned, political excitement is Barack Obama. He's a candidate to be reckoned with.

I still predict a Clinton victory in November, and to my Republican friends all I can say is, the Oval Office changes everyone who enters it.

For the record, my news-station of choice is MSNBC because I like Chris Matthews. I don't require that the newscaster agree with me or I with him, I do require a certain sincerity, integrity, and likability.

(Happy Birthday to Stephen, 28 years. When school gets difficult, remember the refrigerator.)

And the Winner Is . . .

Given F&FW's policy of announcing a winner after a poll has received 50 votes , and that the "Who Will be President Poll" has received 51 votes, F&FW makes the following proclamation:
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The winner of the "Who Will be President" poll, in a landslide is, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Senator Clinton received 15 of the 51 votes or 29%, a full 7 votes and 14 percentage points more than Fred Thompson, who came in second with 8 votes. Food and Fort Worth is the first "major poll" :-) to predict the November 2008 winner, and that winner will be Hillary Clinton.

Our extrapolated full results and predictions are these:
Democrat presidential candidate: Hillary Clinton ------15 votes
Democrat vice-president candidate: Barak Obama -----7 votes
Republican presidential candidate: Fred Thompson ---- 8 votes
Republican vice presidential candidate: Jack Bauer ----- 6 votes

That's right folks, Jack Bauer. For the first time in election history one actor will run as himself, Fred Thompson, and one will run as the character he plays, Jack Bauer. Besides the obvious advantage of Jack Bauer intimidating the bejeebers out of the Democrats, Mr Bauer can also recuse himself of the DWI questions that Mr. Sutherland would have to face. That's just smart politics.

Remember, you heard it first ---- at Food and Fort Worth.

(My opinion on the winner? http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/ )