Author Archives: Sean Patrick Hazlett

About Sean Patrick Hazlett

Finance executive, engineer, former military officer, and science fiction and horror writer. Editor of the Weird World War III anthology.

Taking the SAT? Then Brush Up on Your Reality TV

Posted on Thursday, March 17, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Remember the SAT? That horrid little test that measured not what you knew, but how fast you could think, and that had a disproportionate influence on your college admissions prospects? Back in the early nineties, one’s score was measured out of 1600 points and … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Education, Policy, Politics | Tagged Reality television, SAT | Leave a comment

Sell to Sucker: Potassium Iodide for Sale!

Posted on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

©2011 Reflections of a Rational Republican Welcome to Tulipomania circa 2011. In 1624, a tulip bulb became so valuable that some wealthy merchants were willing to pay a sum roughly equal to their annual income for it. And so now … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Business, Clean Energy, Clean Tech, Defense, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, Investing, Media, Nuclear Power, Policy, Politics | Tagged Fallout, Nuclear power, Potassium iodide, Radiation, Tulipomania, Tulips | 4 Comments

Thurston and Talbot: Mitigating Michael Moore

Posted on Monday, March 14, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Michael Moore’s rousing March 5th speech to the Wisconsin masses has made Thurston and Talbot very nervous. How will they stop the Madison Marauder?

Rate this:

Posted in Business, Food Security, Healthcare, Humor, Media, Policy, Politics, Thurston and Talbot, Unions | Tagged Illuminati, Malthus, Michael Moore, Opus Dei, Profits, Thurston and Talbot, Trilateral Commission, Truffles, Twinkees | 1 Comment

The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy

Posted on Sunday, March 13, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

I decided to break from tradition and to publish something a little less serious. I put together this little video using a program called xtranormal. It is satire on what many left bloggers write and think about conservatives. Huffington Post … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Business, Clean Energy, Clean Tech, Climate Change, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, Food Security, Humor, Investing, Media, Middle East, Policy, Politics, Thurston and Talbot, Unions | Tagged Acid Rain, America, Child labor, Conservatives, EPA, Footbinding, Fox News, Hitler, Humor, Kennebunkport, Koch brothers, NRA, Sarah Palin, Satire, Thurston and Talbot, Vast right wing conspiracy | 22 Comments

Saudis Shrug Off Day of Rage: Three Strategies to Suppress a Revolt Before It Starts

Posted on Saturday, March 12, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

While the world was understandably distracted by Japan’s terrible earthquake and the tsunami in its wake, I have been monitoring one local Saudi woman’s blog to get a sense of how the March 11th Day of Rage progressed in Saudi … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Clean Energy, Clean Tech, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, International Security, Investing, Middle East, Policy, Politics, Predictions | Tagged Day of Rage, Oil, Saudi Arabia | 4 Comments

Smart Money Sells U.S. Treasuries

Posted on Friday, March 11, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

One of the world’s largest and most respected bond funds announced Wednesday it had reduced its exposure to U.S. government securities to zero in light of rising yields, which are inversely related to a bond’s value. Given the right’s refusal … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Business, Finance and Economics, Investing, Policy, Politics | Tagged Bill Gross, Dollar, Federal Reserve, PIMCO, U.S. Treasuries | 3 Comments

No Representation With Misrepresentation

Posted on Thursday, March 10, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

In recent years both the right and the left have engaged in petty “gotcha” politics in which political operatives deliberately misrepresent themselves and goad their political opponents into making damaging statements that help these operatives score petty political victories. While … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Media, Politics | Tagged Ian Murphy, James O'Keefe, Koch, NPR, Ronald Schiller, Vivian Schiller | 8 Comments

Decision Points: Good Read, Bad Style

Posted on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Source: ©2011 Reflections of a Rational Republican Decision Points is President George W. Bush’s personal account of the most consequential decisions that impacted his controversial presidency. Whether one likes President Bush or detests him, this book is a must read … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Book Reviews, Business, China, Defense, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, International Security, Media, Middle East, Policy, Politics | Tagged Book Reviews, George W. Bush, Katrina, Saudi Arabia | 2 Comments

Debunking Peak Phosphorus

Posted on Tuesday, March 8, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

U.S. Rock Phosphate Production vs. Price, Source: Adapted from USGS data The media’s fascination with the prospect of peak oil has spread to another commodity — phosphorus. In Julian Cribb’s 2010 book, The Coming Famine: The Global Food Crisis and … Continue reading →

Rate this:

Posted in Clean Energy, Clean Tech, Climate Change, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, Food Security, International Security, Media, Policy, Politics, Predictions | Tagged Famine, Food, Peak Phosphorus, Phosphorus | 31 Comments

Felling Pharaohs (Part VI): The Beatings Continue Because Morale Has Not Improved

Posted on Sunday, March 6, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

A little over a month ago in the midst of Egyptian unrest, I warned that U.S. policy-makers should “be very afraid” of these developments because of their impact on crude oil prices. Now that Libya is in flames, its oil … Continue reading →