We use machine learning to detect anomalies on our customers' data and alert them of potential problems. It's not fancy or cutting edge, but it provides value.
Everything is relative. Can someone say, if that pipeline didn't exist, how much more or less theoretical damage would have happened had it been shipped by truck on highway instead?
The Dakota Access line is running a few miles from my workplace here in Iowa. I'm not opposed to the pipeline, per say, but the politics behind it are crap. It's approved by our utility board, which is composed of persons selected by our Governor, who has personal financial interest in the pipeline company. What's worse, the pipeline doesn't start or end in Iowa, so it just runs through here and is a total loss for us. No new jobs created. Needless to say, the utility board approved it along with eminent domain. (Shouldn't eminent domain be illegal when the land is going to a private company and not public use? The constitution is kind of clear on that, not sure how they get around it.)
The pipeline workers here are causing lots of trouble too. They're trespassing and tearing up land well outside of their easements. They're littering. They bury the scrap pipe and trash instead of hauling it out. They tear up the roads and hold up traffic.
Honestly, it's just such a net loss for us. And this is before the inevitable leaks. It's a racket.
> Shouldn't eminent domain be illegal when the land is going to a private company and not public use? The constitution is kind of clear on that, not sure how they get around it
There was a controversial 5-4 Supreme Court decision on this in 2005, Kelo v. New London.
This is the equivalent of either a terrible railway accident (six tanker railcars at 30k gallons apiece), or a horrific motorway accident (upwards of 18 or more for very large truck tankers in the 10k gallon range).
They have cleaned up ~20% and are presumably taking their sweet time until spring, when snowmelt will cause enough flow in the currently-frozen portions of the creek to help hide their shame.
Iowa will see about $25-$30 million in annual property tax revenue from the pipeline. And that's about it, which is maybe adequate? I don't know. But the report was commissioned by "Dakota Access, LLC", so I suppose we should assume they systematically erred, if at all, by inflating the potential return.
States can also tax income of the owner of the pipeline. But pipelines are usually structured as pass-through entities (e.g. MLP), and there are enough state and federal loopholes--special deductions, deferments, etc--that any income tax is probably minimal. The paper doesn't bother trying to estimate that revenue, AFAICT.
Figures for sales, use, and income taxes in that paper are only for construction and maintenance of the pipeline. It's not tied to actual pipeline throughput. I think it would be unconstitutional for states to directly tax pipeline throughput except for the state where the oil originates. Louisiana does this and the legal issues are really complex AFAIK.
Chapter 7 of that paper also examines accident risk, which is quite interesting.
In case the link disappears, the report heading is
An Assessment of the Economic and Fiscal Impacts
of the Dakota Access Pipeline in
North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois
Prepared for Dakota Access, LLC
Prepared by Harvey Siegelman, Mike Lipsman and Dan Otto
Strategic Economics Group
West Des Moines, Iowa
November 12, 2014
This is a quote from General John L. DeWitt, head of the U.S. Army’s Western Defense Command. He's basically the guy that convinced the president that this was a good idea. Why we put people like him in power (instead of prison), I'll never understand.
"There are some people who think you have to hate them in order to shoot them. I don’t think you do. It’s just business."
"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway. So it’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them. Actually it’s quite fun to fight them, you know. It’s a hell of a hoot. It’s fun to shoot some people."
"The first time you blow someone away is not an insignificant event. That said, there are some assholes in the world that just need to be shot."
If so, lets not forget Mattis's approach to things:
Talks to the enemy diplomatically:
"I come in peace. I didn't bring artillery. But I'm pleading with you, with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all"
Promotes thinking rather than force from his subordinates:
"You are part of the world's most feared and trusted force. Engage your brain before you engage your weapon."
Works well with others:
"I don't get intelligence off a satellite. Iraqis tell me who the enemy is."
I think incoming national security advisor Michael Flynn would be a more apt point of comparison:
"We are facing another 'ism,' just like we faced Nazism, and fascism, and imperialism and communism," Flynn said. "This is Islamism, it is a vicious cancer inside the body of 1.7 billion people on this planet and it has to be excised." - http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/22/politics/kfile-michael-flynn-a... (apologies for the CNN link, but it's just for the quote).
What happens if you apply this logic to others? The Philippines right now for example - that tough talk escalated. Or any of the historical examples available. Assuming someone won't do what they say they will do is not a good way to elect a leader.
Out of the 110,000 incarcerated, 62% of were American-born citizens. Since they were all living in America, and this all happened in America, English certainly makes since.
"The very fact that no sabotage has taken place to date is a disturbing and confirming indication that such action will be taken." — General John L. DeWitt, head of the U.S. Army’s Western Defense Command
Well, that's not saying very much, considering the whole thing with college text books. My last gaming rig literally cost less than my wife's textbooks last year.
I didn't know that their emails were public domain. This is very cool. It must be a treasure trove of data.
I wonder if they can really deliver these this way though. I would think their IP addresses would get black-listed for spamming almost immediately. Anybody know what stack they're using for delivering thousands of emails a day?
I find these what-ifs a bit odd. Sure it's interesting, but if those states borders weren't where they are, surely Trump would have noticed and adjusted his strategy accordingly. It not like one thing could have been different and not affected anything else at all.
The thing I find more telling is that Clinton spent well over twice what Trump did on the election [0]. If Clinton had that much of an advantage and still lost, then I think the democrats could have run almost anyone else and had a tighter race.
