Monthly Archives: December 2008

Energy, Security

VW TDI wins 2008 Green Car of the Year

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A site called Hybrid Cars reports that diesels are taking top honors at the LA Auto Show

The brand-new Volkswagen Jetta TDI diesel took the Green Car of the Year award at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show. The Jetta TDI won based on its high fuel efficiency numbers—41 mpg on the highway and 30 in the city—and its price point of $21,900. The high-mpg and low cost gave the Jetta TDI the upper hand—“market significance” is a key criterion for the award—as it bested the more expensive BMW 335d (also an oil-burner,) as well as the Ford Fusion Hybrid, Saturn Vue Two-Mode Hybrid, and the diminutive Smart car.

The key to this award, of course, is the modern technology used in the latest diesel engines. The generation of diesels made before 2005 are now about as relevant as a five-year-old laptop is to a modern one. In fact, you could even argue these days that diesel innovation is moving twice as fast as computers or more — a ten-year-old laptop to a modern one. It will continue to increase in pace as demand grows:

The Jetta TDI may not need the publicity boost that comes from an award, since VW has said it is virtually sold out at all dealerships. According to the company, many dealers have started to form waiting lists.

Good thing I bought my four years ago so I can enjoy the current revolution without the wait or competition. On the other hand, it’s hard not to want to get into the next generation.

At the Audi stand, a quartet of diesels from the recent Mileage Marathon were showcased, highlighted by an A3 2.0-liter diesel that turned in a high of 50.6 mpg during the cross-country driving program. The US-spec version of that model is rated at 39 mpg. A version of the A3 is likely to join the Audi US fleet in fall of 2009, joining the Q7 3.0L TDI that goes on sale in January and a future A4 3.0L TDI.

Mercedes-Benz showcased its three diesel SUVs currently on the market: the ML320, R320 and GL320. In addition, the company introduced the Fascination concept coupe, powered by a supercharged 2.2-liter 4-cylinder BlueTEC diesel that puts out 204 horsepower. With fourth generation common rail diesel technology that raises injection pressures, the engine demonstrates how a 4-cylinder diesel could replace the standard V-6 in its class.

Wait a minute, that future concept of Mercedes looks a lot like the car I have now. Apparently sport-wagon diesels are the future?

And hey, where’s the Cadillac? Note that torque is not even mentioned. Oh well, I suspect American journalists aren’t completely tuned into the diesels yet. Torque rules the road. The need for horsepower should be met with electric/hybrid drive.

Poetry, Security

Prop 8 – The Musical

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Funny review of the issues, with Jack Black providing a stellar (pun not intended) performance:

Mmmm, shrimp cocktail!

I wish I had the budget do security and compliance musicals like this for HIPAA and the NERC Cyber Security Standards. Maybe I will just try singing a little at the next engagement. Ha, engagement. Get it?

History, Sailing, Security

Pirates and the Corridor

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The latest in anti-pirate satellite imaging has led the UN to make some interesting conclusions about security programs, according to the Danger Room from Wired.com

There have been a total 84 reported pirate incidents in just the last three months, UNOSAT says. Half of them occurred in or around the shipping “corridor” sent up by the international community to protect commercial vessels. And that corridor didn’t seem to do much to deter the pirates; their rate of successful attacks dipped only slightly (37 percent, versus 42 percent) inside the protected area. What the corridor did do was concentrate the pirate strikes. “The mean distance between reported attacks has fallen from 30.5km… to 24.6km after,” UNOSAT says.

Perhaps this has been asked elsewhere and I haven’t noticed but, if the corridor is successfully concentrating attacks, should we now expect a navy to deploy heavily-armed decoy ships to trick the pirates and destroy them upon contact or start taking hostages? I’m just reading out of the old anti-pirate playbooks at this point, and wondering when history will repeat itself.

Food, Security

Russian Tacos

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The Atlantic has a highly amusing story of espionage in America that seems to center around food and beverages:

On my way to meet [the FBI agent] the next morning, I realized that I didn’t know what he looked like. Not to worry: I was in Adams Morgan, D.C.’s original hippie/hipster neighborhood, and he and his colleague were FBI agents straight out of central casting, with dark-blue suits and close-cropped hair. They wanted to know everything I knew about Vladimir. I had assumed that he was a spy. But I was pretty confident that there was nothing illegal about our conversations. So I spent about 45 minutes telling them what I could. I learned my experience was not that unusual: Cactus Cantina, the agents told me, was the favorite haunt of Russian spooks (and the cringe-worthy tipping I had observed was standard practice).

How much is cringe-worthy tipping?

Do the Russians like Mexican food or are they trying to blend in? It sounds like pizza is acceptable to them also, especially if the name of the pizza includes the letters P-U-T-I-N. The FBI on the other hand go for Starbucks. The American agent’s choice might seem as obvious to us Americans as their stereotypical clothes, but maybe it looks to Muscovites like fancy taco joints are where Americans want to go for lunch.

I can just imagine a KGB bulletin describing the current administration’s culture of tex-mex preferences, with a potential shift coming towards deep-dish (Chicago-style) pizza.

Gee, either it’s lunch time or I’m getting hungry just reading about national security…perhaps one of these savvy beltway insiders/journalists could put together a spook’s guide to dining?