NO POSTS FOR AWHILE -- TRAVELING

Until more stand-alone posts, around the world:

1.  Earnings for COP and HES posted at the sidebar at the right, under "Earnings Central."

• HES proves one shouldn't be in refining or in Libya. But then, we all knew that, and that's why COP and MRO are splitting upstream from downstream.

2. BP profits surge; see even higher earnings going forward; BP can make money refining even if they have a bit of a problem in deep water. 

3. Wow, this guy is lucky he's not in Iran. I think the punishment for this crime in Iran is loss of left hand and 500 floggings. Don't quote me on that.

4. Debt ceiling discussions: Monday night, the President said "we must compromise." Tuesday morning, he said "I will veto anything Boehner sends to me." That is what "we" call a balanced approach" (also a phrase used in the president's speech): you send me something, and I will send it back. That, by the way, was the only thing accomplished on Tuesday as we move closer to "the-everyone-knows-August-2nd-is-a-contrived-date" date.

5. A big "thank you" to Don for sending me reading material -- just now, got it. Downloaded the PDF and will read it on the plane until the computer battery runs out. Seventy-two pages on "Exploration of the Alberta Bakken: A Resource Play Mosaic in the Making?" (If I download it on the iPad, which I will also do, the battery will last twice as long as the flight. (The computer battery, in contrast, will last half the length of the flight. Both Apple products -- that just shows you how powerful the iPad battery is and how efficient they've made the iPad.)

6. A failed city and perhaps the canary in the coal mine: I thought I was misreading the article, so I checked Wikipedia and that's accurate: Detroit has fallen from a population of 1.8 million people in 1950 to 700,000 now. The metropolitan area has grown and the region has grown in population but folks are deserting the city. According to Wiki, "among major American cities during the decade, only New Orleans experienced a greater decrease by percentage."

Lots of stuff on the sidebar at the right to review.

Good luck to all.