Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has now been granted powers to pass any law that he wants. While I have previously reported this story, I think it is important to delve into the global consequences of this act.
Dictators very rarely rise to power in a vacuum. Some, like Castro, come to power during a war or "revolution." Others, such as Hitler or Stalin come to power by way of the legal process, in which a legislature gives up its checks and balances to the president. By passing these laws, a country chooses to give up democracy. History has shown us that this is not a good thing. Once one individual possesses unchecked power, many evil acts can take place.
The region near Venezuela should be very concerned about this development. In 2005, the good people of Brazil defeated a motion to ban the sale of firearms, preserving their freedom. Many countries in Central America such as Costa Rica have adopted pro-freedom governments.
The problem with Chavez is that he sees himself as the leader of Latin America and successor to Castro, though on a larger scale. This is very dangerous, because his thinking motivates him to "liberate" other countries. In the process his nationalization, particularly that of utility and oil companies will do much to wreck the economies under his control.
While Castro has always been mostly confined to his island, Chavez has the power to aid other socialist dictators in their ascent to power in Latin America. The world should act now, before it is too late.
2007-01-31
The FJ Cruiser
As promised, albeit quite late, is my review of my new vehicle: The 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser.
Some background: The letters "FJ" have been the internal production number for Land Cruisers for the last 40+ years. Toyota even included FJ in the names of some of its vehicles such as the FJ40, a very revered early SUV that competed with the original Jeep and the formidable International Scout back in the 70's. Toyota has long dominated the 4X4 market in many areas of the world, so much that many off-road vehicles are referred to as "Land Cruisers" in many countries. This truck has some serious heritage.
The DNA: The FJ is based on the platform of the Land Cruiser Prado, a vehicle that is not sold in North America. This Hi-Lux platform is also used in the 4Runner and Tacoma, although the chassis has been modified for both applications. What you have here is not a car based SUV (i.e. a Chrysler Pacifica, BMW X3/X5, etc. which are based on sedans). The truck-based SUV's generally do not come with 4 wheel independent suspension, indeed the FJ has a live rear axle. The Engine is the 4 L 1GR-FE V6 engine, which has been used in Tacomas, Tundras, and 4Runners for the last several years.
The FJ comes in several interesting colors, mine is Sun Fusion (yellow) with a white roof. See the picture of the FJ40 above to understand why they all have white roofs, its a matter of tradition.
There are 3 different powertrain options: a 2WD automatic, a part-time 4x4 automatic, and a full-time 4x4 manual. I chose the last option as I have never owned an automatic transmission (I do not believe much in them, I like being in control of my vehicle at all times, I enjoy shifting, and appreciate the lower maintenance costs) and appreciate full-time four wheel drive, which is technically all-wheel drive. I also have the option to lock the center differential (means that front and rear axles move at the same speed) at high speed and low speed (for off-roading only), and to lock the rear differential (only used for very short periods of time when absolutely necessary, like when you are stuck in mud and nothing else works).
Exterior: The FJ has extremely bright headlights, much brighter than anything that is non-xenon. It can tow up to 5,000 pounds, which means all but the biggest campers. The wheels are 17 inches. The backdoor opens sideways, something I haven't seen before in SUVs. There is a full-size spare tire mounted on the back, this does not have to be moved out of the way prior to opening the door. There is a small glass door that also opens in the back, though it does not have much use. Other than the two main doors to get in the car, there are also two suicide doors that allow relatively easy access to the back seat, so long as a front seat passenger is there to close the doors.
Moving to the inside: The seats are high quality black cloth. Also, through several layers, some that include plastic, the seats are water resistant and can easily be cleaned with a sponge (though I have not tried this yet). The drivers seat is manually adjustable forward and back, and up and down in two ways. Both seat backs are adjustable.
The dashboard includes a driver's side glovebox (good for carrying an extra mag or 2 ;-) ), and an instrument panel with a compass, thermometer, and clinometer. There are two grab bars for both sides.
The instrument cluster includes a fuel guage, tachometer, speedometer, voltmeter, and coolant temp guage. There's also an odometer and 2 trip odoms. The climate control system is manual, which I like, as I hate buttons being substituted for nobs. And these are some really big nobs, big enough to be easily manipulated with gloved hands. The radio looks pretty cool and whenever the car starts up it displays its name the "FJammer". There is a 6 disc in dash CD player that works with MP3 CD's, satellite radio, AM, FM, an an AUX jack for iPods.
Some background: The letters "FJ" have been the internal production number for Land Cruisers for the last 40+ years. Toyota even included FJ in the names of some of its vehicles such as the FJ40, a very revered early SUV that competed with the original Jeep and the formidable International Scout back in the 70's. Toyota has long dominated the 4X4 market in many areas of the world, so much that many off-road vehicles are referred to as "Land Cruisers" in many countries. This truck has some serious heritage.
The DNA: The FJ is based on the platform of the Land Cruiser Prado, a vehicle that is not sold in North America. This Hi-Lux platform is also used in the 4Runner and Tacoma, although the chassis has been modified for both applications. What you have here is not a car based SUV (i.e. a Chrysler Pacifica, BMW X3/X5, etc. which are based on sedans). The truck-based SUV's generally do not come with 4 wheel independent suspension, indeed the FJ has a live rear axle. The Engine is the 4 L 1GR-FE V6 engine, which has been used in Tacomas, Tundras, and 4Runners for the last several years.
The FJ comes in several interesting colors, mine is Sun Fusion (yellow) with a white roof. See the picture of the FJ40 above to understand why they all have white roofs, its a matter of tradition.
There are 3 different powertrain options: a 2WD automatic, a part-time 4x4 automatic, and a full-time 4x4 manual. I chose the last option as I have never owned an automatic transmission (I do not believe much in them, I like being in control of my vehicle at all times, I enjoy shifting, and appreciate the lower maintenance costs) and appreciate full-time four wheel drive, which is technically all-wheel drive. I also have the option to lock the center differential (means that front and rear axles move at the same speed) at high speed and low speed (for off-roading only), and to lock the rear differential (only used for very short periods of time when absolutely necessary, like when you are stuck in mud and nothing else works).
Exterior: The FJ has extremely bright headlights, much brighter than anything that is non-xenon. It can tow up to 5,000 pounds, which means all but the biggest campers. The wheels are 17 inches. The backdoor opens sideways, something I haven't seen before in SUVs. There is a full-size spare tire mounted on the back, this does not have to be moved out of the way prior to opening the door. There is a small glass door that also opens in the back, though it does not have much use. Other than the two main doors to get in the car, there are also two suicide doors that allow relatively easy access to the back seat, so long as a front seat passenger is there to close the doors.
Moving to the inside: The seats are high quality black cloth. Also, through several layers, some that include plastic, the seats are water resistant and can easily be cleaned with a sponge (though I have not tried this yet). The drivers seat is manually adjustable forward and back, and up and down in two ways. Both seat backs are adjustable.
The dashboard includes a driver's side glovebox (good for carrying an extra mag or 2 ;-) ), and an instrument panel with a compass, thermometer, and clinometer. There are two grab bars for both sides.
The instrument cluster includes a fuel guage, tachometer, speedometer, voltmeter, and coolant temp guage. There's also an odometer and 2 trip odoms. The climate control system is manual, which I like, as I hate buttons being substituted for nobs. And these are some really big nobs, big enough to be easily manipulated with gloved hands. The radio looks pretty cool and whenever the car starts up it displays its name the "FJammer". There is a 6 disc in dash CD player that works with MP3 CD's, satellite radio, AM, FM, an an AUX jack for iPods.
2007-01-28
An Uncredited Inspiration For Anti-Smoking Laws
I went to DC last weekend and noticed they have now banned smoking in all bars, restaurants, etc. It seems many elements within our country have suddenly embraced this idea, and give credit to organizations like the Lung Association, the Cancer Association, etc.
I think credit should be given where credit is due, and in this case there was one man who had the courage to stand up and demand smoking be banned in his country when no one had even considered this idea before. He was a pioneer of the anti-smoking movement and deserves to have statues erected in NY and CA and now even NV(!) and all of the other places that have followed in his footsteps.
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