terrymcfall.com

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IS IT ASKNG TOO MUCH?

2009.06.10 - Okay, this is going to be WAY geeky but it's driving me nuts so I have to vent a little...

Does it really have to be so difficult to get search results from Google that are sorted by date? Honestly, I thought the people at Google were so brilliant they could make ice cubes from boiling water.

But try searching for something with Google and then sort the results so that the most recent items appear at the top.

Good freaking luck.

Believe it or not, to work this magic you have to append the search string with an archaic combination of characters only recognizable by Russian software programmers. This is the ONE weak spot of Google, which has so thoroughly dominated the world of web searching.

But competition is a good thing and Microsoft, bless their little hearts of moxie, decided to show those Google brains a thing or two about search engines (like THAT'S gonna happen) so they came out with -  wait for it... Bing.

No, not Chandler Muriel.

Bing is Microsoft's new search engine that is supposed to replace Google so that when you tell someone to look for something, instead of saying "Just google it" you'll say "just bing it baby" or "badda boom badda bing" or some other clever phrase that doesn't make us all sound silly when we're telling someone to go look for something.

So can Bing sort results by date? OF COURSE NOT!!

Try using Bing to search "bing search results date sort" and it's almost comical - their own damn product lists more hits for Bing Crosby than the stupid search engine.

Okay - end of geeky rant... thank you. Now go have some fun and google "Miss Chanadler Bong".

2009 GARDEN SO FAR

2009.06.07 - Here's the 2009 version of "Mary Mary Quite Contrary"... things are growing quite well. We planted LOTS of tomatoes, chili peppers, parsley, sweet peas, bush beans, and zucchini.

The tomatoes, chilies, and zucchini have been in the ground about 3 weeks, but the sweet peas and bush beans have only been about 10 days.

And the zucchini just about busted out of the ground only 4 days after planting - monster squash!

Oh, and here's a guest appearance from my personal guard-cactus, which is located just outside my bedroom window. Blocks the view from the neighbors and if I hear an "OUCH!" in the middle of the night then I know someone is where they shouldn't be.

SOMEBODY GONNA GET HURT

2009.06.06 - Headlines in the WSJ this morning... "Government Pushed Fiat Deal on Chrysler" only adds to the list of situations where government officials have forced big business into unwanted decisions.

• After looking closer at the proposed purchase of Merill Lynch, BoA wanted to back out - but was forced by the feds to swallow the Kool-Aid. Now shareholders are furious w/CEO Ken Lewis because he knew the deal was bad but gave in to the government arm twisting.
• GM CEO Rick Wagner forced to step down by Obama administration. Granted, GM accepted bailout money, but here again government is pushing big money in ways that it is not accustomed.
• Chrysler and GM bond holders forced by the feds to accept lower compensation in bankruptcy in order pay off political debt to the UAW.

My point is that powers behind big money will only be pushed so much before they begin to push back - and when that happens... somebody gonna get hurt real bad.

RON WASHINGTON

2009.06.05 - If you've followed A's baseball over the past decade then you know what a huge factor Ron Washington has been to their success. ESPN has a good article about Wash since he took over the manager's position with the Texas Rangers.

I always liked Ron Washington... hope it goes well for him down in Texas.

SUBS AND DRUGS

2009.06.05 - Wow... cocaine dealers in Columbia are building submarines in the jungle then silently gliding by night up the coast to Central America. The subs can carry several hundred tons of cocaine worth up to $100 million in the US.

According to an article in the Washington Post:

Almost 60 feet long, the craft employed water-cooled exhaust mufflers to reduce its infrared heat signal. It was camouflaged in blue-gray paint. A small conning tower jutted from the deck at an angle designed to confuse radar signals.

The latest submersibles can go 3,000 miles without refueling.

Makes you wonder what else could be easily smuggled into the country using an intercontinental submarine...

I WANT MY GLOBAL WARMING

2009.06.01 - It's June 1st here in San Jose, CA and the weather has been unseasonably cool. Take it from someone who loves hot weather - this global warming thing is a complete and utter failure.

Not only has the weather been cool but today's 5 day forecast predicts several days of rain this week - ARRGH!

When do committees convene to advocate government subsidies for an increase of greenhouse emissions? I want my summer back, dammit!

PRESS PASS

2009.06.01 - This website can get a little political at times, maybe too political... trying to change that. But one thing I cannot change is my disappointment with the press.

The press have virtually given Obama a pass on critical analysis, and that is something we may soon regret. Robert Samuelson has a great article in the Washington Post about the biggest "unreported story of our time".

Politicians will exaggerate issues to their own benefit - that is expected, and everyone can discount the drama accordingly. But we need journalists who ask them tough questions and linger over answers with a critical eye. The press did this enthusiastically, maybe too so, with Bush - but appear to be giving Obama a pass.

With the amount of money being spent and the degree of private sector nationalization, a press that sleeps why government grows is not a good thing.

BASEBALL ANYONE?

2009.05.31 - My team, those loveable over-achievers from the Least Side of the Bay, now have the second worst record in baseball. If it wasn't for the woeful Washington Nationals then the Oakland A's would be the worst team of all...

Dammit - we can't even be the best at losing.

U.S. POLITICIANS - ARE YOU WATCHING?

2009.05.31 - Corruption among British politicians is being exposed in a manner that is both torturous for those elected and shocking to those who elected them.

Everyone expects a certain amount of corruption to exist... but when it's so pervasive and blatantly self-serving, well that just tips the balance of public tolerance to the point that people will change things on their own.

An excellent summary of the situation here.

HELLO AGAIN...

2009.05.25 - Happy Memorial Day... maybe not so happy for those who recently lost a loved one in the military. A more somber greeting to those...

SWINE FLU VS. 1918

2009.05.25 - Swine flu is no longer a hot topic but I was curious about the flu pandemic of 1918... VERY interesting. 500,000 people died in the US over a 2 year period. A mortality rate of 5% led to estimates that 20 to 50 million people died worldwide. It's been speculated that much of this was due to the first World War, which makes sense when you think of a lot of people moving around the world.

Puts our little Mexico incident into perspective.

Also found that the reason healthy people are most susceptible is the virus reverses what is normally a victim's strong immune system and turns it against them... jujutsu in the virus world.

NOT QUITE THERE YET

2009.02.21 - Missile strikes in Pakistan... court appeals to maintain "domestic spying" program... White House receives a Geneva Convention blessing on Guantanamo... Amnesty International protests the US Secretary of State's position on China's human rights record.

In the words of Dr. Phil, "How's that Hope and Change working for ya?"

 

I LOVE MEGAN MCARDLE

2009.02.20 - One of the reasons is because of her Thought for the Day yesterday, which zeros in on the sophomoric partisan ignorance that pretends to be intelligent political discussion:

Isn't it astonishing how many of the commentaries on the crisis follow the same format:

• Commentator X thinks that Person or Program Y was responsible for this disaster

• This is clearly nonsense because of fact Q.

• That is why people of good sense know that in fact, the entire thing is the fault of Person Z, who is an evil and irresponsible moron.

Is the human brain even capable of coming up with an explanation that does not require the activity of some nefarious agent?

Corollary: Assuming that we are indeed facing, in large part, a crisis of confidence, would this crisis be solved more quickly if we stopped nattering about the banking system and simply burned us some witches?

NOW THAT MAKES SENSE

2009.02.13 - At a site called FuturePundit is the suggestion to "...use more nuclear, wind, solar, and geothermal power now so we can save fossil fuels to use later to delay the next ice age."

Makes sense to me... doubt if Al Gore buys it though.

Kidding.

TOO FUNNY

2009.02.05 - Don't know how many are paying attention to this but congressman Charles Rangel (D-NY) has been fighting off a multitude of questions about tax returns he's filed over the past several years. This is significant because Rangel is also House chair of the very powerful Ways and Means committee, which is responsible for setting tax laws.

According to the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation:

"Assets worth between $239,026 and $831,000 appear or disappear with no disclosure of when they were acquired, how long they were held, or when they were sold,"

Over at the blog JammieWearingFool they wonder how Charles Rangel has avoided an Obama cabinet appointment...

FINANCIAL ADVICE FOR THE REST OF US

2009.02.04 - In keeping up with the headlines I've come up with what might be the best way for you and me (AKA Taxpayer) to find our way thru this national financial mess. Step-by-step instructions as follows:

STEP 1:  Declare yourself a bank. I know, you probably don't have experience running a bank, and you don't have a boatload of cash to lend around - but stick with me on this. Based on the fact that you HAVEN'T lost billions of dollars you're already way ahead of the competition. This reason alone is bound to win you multitudes of friends and possibly even a standing ovation at the next Washington Mutual ex-employees gathering.

STEP 2:  Get some bailout money. Now you don't want to be too greedy here - the TARP fund is only $700 billion. Everyone knows the big banks will get the better part of that money, so lower your expectations and set a goal of securing only .000001 percent of that... works out to a mere $700,000. I know, I know... this is a pittance compared to BofA or Citibank, but you have to be reasonable - it's not like the US government is printing money or anything.

Okay - you're now a bank that isn't losing billions of dollars, and you have a ridiculously small slice of the bailout fund. That doesn't sound like much but when combined with this final piece of of advice it'll all make sense - and if it doesn't, don't worry because we have a nation full of financial wizards smart enough to get us into this mess and they don't have a clue about what's going on so you'll be in really good company.

STEP 3:  Limit your annual salary to $500,000.

For those of you unfamiliar with the banking industry this might be hard to fathom, but President Obama said we all have to make sacrifices and even bankers gotta tighten their belts. In real world terms this means you're going to have to fly first class commercial airlines instead of on a private jet... especially when traveling to Washington to get your meager portion of the bailout.

It's not all bad, though, because one of the perks is you only have to report private limos (with matching driver), nannies, and domestic servants to the IRS if you're asked to serve in a highly visible political appointment - otherwise it's tax free baby!

Seriously. 

DO NOT PASS GO, DO NOT COLLECT $200

2009.01.23 - It's all a game. This past election has convinced me more than ever that a game is played where words are diluted of their ability to serve the truth and instead become simple decorations carefully arranged to mask complex problems.

Real life demands real sacrifices, and I'm not just talking about community service. Do you want an economy or an environment? Because you don't have the money to spend on both.

"Don't pay attention to what is happening... listen to this wonderful idea instead."

Education, taxes, environment, foreign policy - it's all so easy if you only have to talk about it. But when putting together actual programs that have to be paid for let alone defended in court against your political opponents - well that's quite another matter.

Robert Schlesinger, a self proclaimed Obama-ite writing for U.S. News & World Report, noted in his blog that Obama made campaign promises against hated lobbyists yet is asking for a pass when appointing such evil people to his own administration.

Money quote:

It is important to prevent other administrations from doing business with lobbyists; but we are of such moral character that the rules need not apply to us.

Like I said, it's all just a game.

2009.01.23 - More game playing... the same players who crucified George Bush over domestic spying will now have to excuse Barak Obama for doing the same.

But this time it's different... really.

SEVENTEEN BIG ONES

2009.01.14 - Happy Birthday Willie!

WELL IT  **WAS**  A GOOD IDEA

2009.01.13 - This stimulus plan was found on Megan McCardle's blog at The Atlantic...

If the Government wants to stimulate the economy, then why not just declare a payroll tax holiday immediately?

It's fast to turn on, fast to turn off once CPI ticks up, and you don't have all these "is it really shovel ready" questions you have with fiscal stimulus.

People will save some of the tax cuts, but people need to pay down debt too. That's why you keep it going until there is enough spending that it starts to show up in CPI.

But then reality kicked in...

The main problem with a payroll tax holiday is that it minimizes Congressional opportunities for graft and larding out goodies to their contributors. That makes it both wise and politically unfeasible, at least until we get a better class of congresscritter.

Dammit.

DRIVING DISTRACTED

2009.01.12 - In the NY Times an article about using cell phones while driving and how eliminating handsets isn't enough. According to this article even using a phone with an earpiece is a dangerous distraction.

"Laboratory experiments using simulators, real-world road studies and accident statistics all tell the same story: drivers talking on a cell phone are four times as likely to have an accident as drivers who are not. That’s the same level of risk posed by a driver who is legally drunk."

So maybe all those times driving while talking on the phone we could have been hoisting a beer instead. Who'd a thunk...

FOR HEAVENS SAKE - THROW THE SWITCH!!

2009.01.08 - This from the Washington Post... you know all those DTV public service announcements we've been inundated with? Well Congress doesn't think we're ready and is worried not enough people will be able to watch TV after the digital conversion occurs.

Which leads me to wonder why the government is so worried about us NOT watching TV... unless there's some sort of mind controlling subliminal message being pumped into living rooms across our fine, if not lethargic nation.

"EAT MORE CHEESE. DRIVE A BIG CAR. VOTE FOR OBAMA"

Oops... that nasty little bitter Republican slipped out again.

TAKEN FOR GRANTED

2009.01.07 - Was driving down the freeway the other day realizing how much we really take for granted... sure, some roads can be a little bumpy in areas but for the most part we have smooth roadways that are well regulated (you can pretty much trust people will stop at red lights.)

So I ran across this portion of Glenn Reynolds article via Megan McArdle's column in the Atlantic online:

We do take much for granted. A lot of people do very good work without much recognition - for which we benefit greatly.

MY GREEN VIEW

2008.11.30 - Pulled this from The Right Coast while browsing Instapundit.com - it's the best description of how I feel about "going green":

THIS IS DANGEROUS

2008.11.22 - Go ahead and try...

IT'S THE ECONOMY

2008.11.20 - Here's a good article in WSJ explaining why the stock market has gone down and why it will continue to go down... until February? Wow.

AUTO QUESTIONS

2008.11.11 - More thoughts about the demise of American auto makers... like, if you check out the parking lot of an upscale restaurant there'll be more Lexus (Lexii?), BMWs, and Mercedes than Cadillacs or Lincolns. There was a time when Caddys and Lincolns were the luxury cars of choice... BMW used to be just a foreign sports car and most Mercedes were owned by eclectic car enthusiasts.

Today GM is known for powerful vehicles like trucks, Corvettes, and SUVs... Ford could sell full size F series pickups until just about the last drop of oil was pumped out of the desert... except Americans decided the price of that oil was too much and decided to order Prisms from Toyota by the boatload.

This is the second gas crisis that has kicked Detroit's butt, and both times Japan has embarrassed the Americans. Again I have to point out that Toyota is not looking for government help - and they have American factories with American workers and American suppliers...

More and more people are questioning whether it makes sense for US tax dollars to prop up auto manufacturers when it looks like they haven't a clue about how to run a business.

2008.11.10 - GM, Ford, and Chrysler are making noise asking the government for a bailout similar to the banking system. Everyone agrees the Big 3 are desperate but again I have to ask some questions...

Like, why isn't Toyota also considered for a bailout? They have several US factories that employ US  workers. Is Toyota not hurting as bad as the Big 3, and if not, then why? GM is certainly as large as Toyota so the two are worth comparing.

MORE OF THE SAME

2008.11.09 - Hate to sound like broken record, but here it is again...

Two Senators, one Republican and one Democrat.

Sen. Ted Stevens (R) is charged with receiving gifts up to $250K and is in the news daily as an example of corruption in politics, particularly the Republican brand.

Sen. Chris Dodd (D) is a top recipient of Countrywide Financial favors, receiving a super sweet deal on an $800K home loan... oh, and he's chairman of the Senate banking committee... at a time when financial markets are melting and many Americans are facing foreclosure.

Sen. Dodd is also in the news occasionally amid speculation he may join the Obama administration.

Seriously. 

ADVENTURE

2008.11.07 - Love this quote...

An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered.
 - G.K. Chersterson

If I'm in the right mood (not often enough these days) I can work from that quote. 

Here's another good one...

Everything you've learned in school as "obvious" becomes less obvious as you begin to study the universe. For example, there are no solids in the universe. There's not even a suggestion of a solid. There are no absolute continuums. There are no surfaces. There are no straight lines.
 - R. Buckminster Fuller

ELECTION DAY NOTES

2008.11.06 - So now the dirt is being dished about Sarah Palin and infighting that happened among McCain's campaign workers... some, even Republicans, are relieved this much disorganization didn't wind up winning the election and running the country.

But I have another question - if McCain's campaign was run so poorly and Obama outspent him 5-to-1, why wasn't the election more lopsided?

Only one of two answers: either support for Obama wasn't as significant as everyone assumes, or reports about McCain's faulty campaign are over rated. 

2008.11.05 - Watched very little election night coverage on TV but one thing I noticed repeatedly were standard answers people gave during exit poll interviews.

Realizing they're going to be on-camera, everyone wanted to sound thoughtful and intelligent. However most could only parrot answers heard from talking heads on all the political shows. So if you voted Democrat you wanted change; if you voted Republican then high taxes were a concern...

Just once it would have been nice to hear someone say “because the voices in my head kept screaming his name.” Or give a poor reporter something to really chew on make a Neanderthal comment about electing a black man.

*****  *****  *****  *****  *****

Obama seems to have gathered quite a following, which is understandable considering he’s so charismatic. But some ascribe tributes to him that go beyond the human potential... wish I had some specific examples but right now I’m coming up short.

Let’s just say that when talking about political leaders, never ever underestimate their ability to be fatally human.

*****  *****  *****  *****  *****

So I've heard the phrase "record turn-out" describing this election and I don’t quite get it.

2008 election...
63 million = Obama
56 million = McCain

2004 election...
62 million = Bush
59 million = Kerry

If this is a record turnout then what happened to the plaudits due George Bush in 2004? Again, I think the media slant toward Democrats shines brighter on one candidate than the other.

*****  *****  *****  *****  *****

Already tired of the phrase "first African American president". It's gonna be a long 4 years...

And please OH PLEASE can we dispel once and for all the question of whether America is a racist nation? Pardon my blunt language but take that whiney ass charge and shove it in the tight place where some people confuse their ass with their brains.

*****  *****  *****  *****  *****

And what of our departing president? Popular opinions can't wait for him to leave. Too bad…

I voted for Bush in both elections and while I've come to understand his weaknesses, I also think he has a chance to leave a phenomenal legacy.  

First the weaknesses... without a doubt he is one of the worst media communicators. I say "media communicator" because he just doesn't come across well in front of a microphone. For the past year or two I'd hold my breath whenever he spoke, thinking any moment new material would arrive for late night comedy shows.  

However this is contrasted with many who meet him in person and describe a warm, compassionate, genuine man. I guess the challenge of any leader is to project a caring persona to the masses. George didn't do a very good job of that.  

And speaking of media and communicating, Bush seems to have taken on the press as adversaries. While I understand his point of view (they're all Democrats!) he still needed to work with them and at a certain point it was obvious this wasn't going to happen.  

But nobody - and I mean NOBODY - can accuse him of wavering from his commitment to fight Al Qaeda.  

Whether or not you agree with the decision to go to war, you absolutely have to agree that George Bush never once gave Al Qaeda a hint that he would do anything other than pursue their sorry asses into a cold grave. If anyone has a reason to celebrate his departure it would be America's enemies, and frankly that's what I want in a president.  

The other strength I see is the possibility of a free democracy in Iraq. I know the region is highly unstable and there are many forces wanting to destroy the current government - but go back to 2005 when the first elections were about to occur...  

Terrorists were threatening to blow up polling places and the world was convinced any attempt to hold elections would only escalate the violence. But Bush insisted on maintaining the election schedule and on voting day Iraqis defiantly celebrated by holding up purple stained fingers in the air as evidence they voted, signaling to the world they were not only ready for democracy but willing to risk limb or life to make it happen.

Seriously, consider the reaction of Americans to salmonella tomatoes or Chinese lead paint, then estimate how they'd handle the threat of terrorism at polling stations – would you be willing to risk your life to punch a voter card?

The Iraqis were nothing short of awesome.  

And this is President Bush's legacy - a democratic nation in the Middle East. Few leaders would have the courage to reach for that lofty goal, considering the financial as well as political costs. Time will tell whether those costs were spent well.

CONGRATS TO OBAMA

2008.11.04 - As mentioned earlier, if Obama wins I want to see at least a diminished presence of bitter partisan politics. McCain was very classy in his concession speech and I can only hope his supporters will be the same.

UNCERTAIN CERTITUDE

2008.11.04 - Lately it seems that things which used to be described with unquestioned certitude have developed uncertain qualities or either reversed course completely. Are we really that bad at predicting things?

• The Iraq War - last year it was all be certain that America had lost this war and would either be bogged down in a bloody quagmire or end up retreating in shame. Instead there is what can only be described as a quiet US victory occurring.
• Gas Prices - 6 months ago everyone was certain gas would reach $5 per gallon in the US. Oil was at $147 per barrel and $200 was looking quite certain. Today oil is $65 per barrel and gas prices continue to drop... well under $3 in most places.
• Real Estate Values - at least for the time being there has been a definite pause in this axiom. Here in the bay area prices have dropped a little, but nothing like the bottom falling out of other regions.

FUN & GAMES

2008.10.24 - Here's a fun new game that's played at only the smartest of parties filled with panache - it's called "Imagine If" and the idea is to pick a rather unassuming news story and imagine the ensuing media hysteria if a Republican had been involved:

IMAGINE IF... a Republican presidential candidate raked in a record amount of private donations after breaking a promise to run his campaign within public finance rules.

IMAGINE IF... a Republican congressman was involved in multiple affairs, hired his mistress as a staff member, asked her to flirt with big donors to loosen their wallets, then paid hush money to keep her quiet.

IMAGINE IF... a Republican congressman received political donations from the banking industry he "regulated", helping trigger the nations largest financial meltdown since the Great Depression.

IMAGINE IF... a Republican VP candidate had vaguely speculated about 4 or 5 scenarios where our country would be tested by foreign nations after the election. BONUS POINTS: Imagine creative use of the word "inexperienced" in describing such a Republican VP candidate.

IMAGINE IF... a Republican presidential candidate cheated on his cancer stricken wife, covered up the affair, and weaseled his way around an obvious paternity test solution.

IMAGINE IF... a Republican VP candidate were sequestered from the press and not allowed to respond to open questions. Don't guess Palin... try Joe Biden, that 30 year veteran of the Senate gaffes.

IMAGINE IF... a voter registration organization endorsing a Republican candidate was investigated in several states for voter fraud while grossly exaggerating their effectiveness.

READ THIS

2008.10.23 - More inexcusable examples of media bias...

2008.10.22 - It's not what one political party says or does that offends me... politics is politics, and each side will stretch truths and bend the rules in an attempt to win votes. We all expect that, and it would be headline news if that DIDN'T occur.

But the manner in which the press treats Republicans vs. the Democrats is reprehensible.

Orson Scott Card is a DEMOCRAT who wrote this article about the housing crisis and the pattern it follows where the press paints Bush and the GOP as the bad guys, when in fact specific politicians with a "D" after their name have some major explaining to do.

Over and over the same theme is examined: If McCain and the Republicans had done what the Democrats did, we would be treated to non-stop election news coverage of GOP greed and corruption.

There's a $700 billion government bailout occurring and because the money trail leads to one particular political party, our news topic of the day is Sarah Palin's clothing budget or how great Obama is because he visits his sick grandmother.

The media, that fourth estate responsible for speaking truth to power, have become a mouthpiece for the Democrats.

COAL: THE NEW NUCLEAR

2008.10.18 - On the heals of skyrocketing energy prices and the national guilt of of an imported oil addiction, we are now about to embark on yet another foolish public policy - demonization of coal plants.

Forty years ago environmental wackos successfully redefined nuclear power as a horrible, world-ending destructive force. Never mind that since then countries who developed and embraced nuclear power (France) now enjoy clean, safe CHEAP energy.

So here's Al Gore urging environmental protest of coal powered energy plants. Coal is inexpensive and abundant in our country - but the world will end if we use it to warm those cold winter nights. So rather than consider technology that would make it more clean and safe, let's demonize it from consideration all together.

You read it here - coal will become the next protest topic to enable fools with nothing better to do feel like they're making a difference in the world.

This is just plain stupid and further pushes America into the dark ages when it comes to our energy future.

TOLD YOU SO

2008.10.18 - So here's my "I told you so" - election officials are dumping electronic voting machines in favor of what amounts to paper ballots. Apparently electronic machines, supposedly the solution to Florida's "hanging chad" problem in the 2000 election, are not as reliable or foolproof as previously thought.

The reliability factor could be managed, but the security implication of storing millions of votes in an electronic database is just asking for trouble.

I work with large databases everyday and have to be very careful not to inadvertently mess with the data - one simple keystroke and a large amount of data could be changed in the blink of an eye.

Imagine what could happen if the wrong people gained access to an election database?

JUST SHOOT ME

2008.10.17 - A huge peeve of mine is the ridiculous highway alert signs alongside our freeways. I don't know how many times I've been stuck in traffic that had to slow to read a useless "Click it or ticket" message. Rarely do these signs provide meaningful information, and when they do people have to slow down to read them - during the twice daily rush hour commute this means yet another friggin traffic jam.

Now California is considering putting ads on the damn signs. Seriously - if state finances are that bad we should consider selling ad space on the backs of irresponsible politicians in charge of this mess.

Or set aside all pretense and, similar to naming a stadium, we could sell naming rights of the politicians themselves.

"Will the honorable Senator Tidy Bowl please relinquish the microphone."

Yeah - I like the sound of that.

MAJORITY

2008.10.17 - If the polls described in national media hold true there could be a super-majority of Democrats in the House and Senate, along with a Democrat president. The Wall Street Journal describes how such a scenario could play out...

Not saying it'll come true, but still not a pretty picture.

CAREFUL WHERE OBAMA WALKS

2008.10.17 - Out on the campaign trail Mr. Obama decides to walk an Ohio neighborhood in search of middleclass votes. Problem is he stopped to talk with Joe Wurzelbacher (AKA Joe the Plumber) who had some audacity of his own and asked an unflattering question about Obama's tax plan.

Next thing you know Team Obama has dug up dirt on Joe, informing the public of $1200 in unpaid taxes and a possible unlicensed plumbing violation.

Ouch - just for asking an unscripted question.

So the lesson here is if you see Obama strolling thru your neighborhood make damn sure your business is squared, or run for the door and don't dare answer if anyone knocks.

UNBELIEVABLE

2008.10.04 - We're gonna look back and wonder why there were no reports of people jumping out of skyscrapers. In the span of only FIVE WEEKS:

• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are taken over by the federal government. Both mortgage giants had guaranteed $6 trillion of the collapsing US mortgage market.
• Lehman Brothers, a Wall Street investment firm dating back to 1850 and with assets over $600 billion, declares bankruptcy.
• BofA agrees to purchase the struggling Merrill Lynch, another Wall Street firm in danger of collapse. Merrill had been around since 1915 and had assets of $1 trillion.
• American Insurance Group, the largest US insurance corporation cannot raise cash fast enough to pay rising interest on it's downgraded debt. The federal government steps in and lends AIG $85 billion in exchange for 80% ownership.
• Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announces a sweeping proposal to spend $700 billion on bad debt which has hobbled financial markets since last year.
• Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, the two remaining investment banks on Wall Street, agree to convert to "traditional bank holding companies" - according to the WSJ this means "Wall Street as it has long been known will cease to exist."   UPDATE: What this means is more government regulations. The under-regulated Wall St. firms that went bankrupt were allowed to leverage their assets at 50:1 ratios, as opposed to federally regulated 10:1 ratios. Easy to see how dropping home values wiped out players that bet their entire company on 50:1 "safe" mortgage investments.
• Washington Mutual, $300 billion in assets, is shutdown by FDIC. JP Morgan agrees to purchase WaMu's assets.
• House of Reps shocks the world and votes down the $700 billion federal spending plan. The Dow drops nearly 800 points.
• After 3 days of political posturing the House follows the Senate's lead and finally passes the spending plan. President Bush signs it into law within hours of approval.

In light of this some questions are desperately appropriate... Why were banks allowed to make so many bad loans, and who benefited from all that risky lending? Large corporations are always getting rescue money - why not a bailout for the little guy? And how about that partisan bickering in Washington - if this is really a crisis, shouldn't these dipsticks at least ACT like they want to solve it?

Michael Malone of Pajamas Media has one of the better articles I've seen that attempts to draw some conclusions. If I get a chance later I'll post more.

Unbelievable.

UPDATE 1: Openly gay congressman Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, had a gay lover who was the director of product initiatives at Fannie Mae - conflict of interest maybe? Seriously, I'm not making this up!

UPDATE 2: Remember those tax rebate stimulus checks? That was $150 billion bailout for the "little guy".

DEATH

2008.09.30 - Every once in a while I run across the writings of P.J. O'Rourke... this was particularly good, though the topic was about his recently discovered cancer:

I looked death in the face. All right, I didn't. I glimpsed him in a crowd. I've been diagnosed with cancer, of a very treatable kind. I'm told I have a 95% chance of survival. Come to think of it -- as a drinking, smoking, saturated-fat hound -- my chance of survival has been improved by cancer.

...I have, of all the inglorious things, a malignant hemorrhoid. What color bracelet does one wear for that? And where does one wear it? And what slogan is apropos?

MILK SCANDAL

2008.09.28 - How many billions of dollars went up in smoke this past week as China's impressive Olympic display has been replaced with a still spreading tainted milk scandal. So far Asia, Europe and Africa have turned up powdered milk made in China that has the toxic industrial product melamine in it.

You'd be hard pressed to come up with a worse global image than being the source of poisoned babies...

UPDATE: Why melamine? Apparently milk is tested for protein content, and lower protein levels equal lower quality milk. Melamine fools the tests...

POLITICS OF CHANGE?

2008.09.27 - Been browsing news sites lately and sort of burned out on all the partisan political stuff. Donkeys and Elephants are going at it strong and after a while the news reports all sound the same... just swap out the characters in predictable fashion according to whatever political party is involved. Our guy is good - their guy is bad...

There is one item, though, that's different from elections as I remember them - in Missouri, the Obama campaign is threatening government investigations of TV stations running political ads they deem "untruthful".

The same thing happened back in August when Obama wanted the Justice Department to lean on sources supporting or broadcasting another commercial he didn't like.

Put it another way - can you imagine the meltdown that would occur if George Bush handled Michael Moore the same way?

When did "truth" in politics trump "free speech"? Haven't we all adjusted to the idea that commercials stretch the truth and one man's fact is another man's lying damnation? Seriously - if Obama uses these tactics to control the voice of his opponent, what will happen if he's elected?

This just doesn't sit right with me... as much as I hate political ads, I'd rather ignore their ignorance than ban them outright. This is NOT a good development in the politics of "change".

READ THIS

2008.09.27 - The financial crisis is the topic of smart conversation these days so of course there will be debates about the right path out of this mess. Ran across a site called South Carolina Conservative which spelled out a number of items from the point of view of financial institutions that are NOT in danger of failing... you know - the ones that DIDN'T speculate wildly.

Made a lot of sense... why don't I have any confidence in ability of our government to act on these?

UPDATE: You KNOW things are bad when Playboy bunnies are getting laid off... pun intended!

ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM

2008.09.27 - So it seems like it was only August last week (my birthday month!) but next week we start October. WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO SEPTEMBER?!!

Don't blink or you'll miss Christmas...

KCSM JAZZ

2008.09.05 - If you like jazz music you should try KCSM (FM 91.1 and here online). It's commercial free ("We put the 'non' in non-profit") so you'll encounter the occasional pledge drive - but they're a great source of all kinds of jazz... everything from Big Band to John Coltrane.

Today they featured an interesting duo - a CD of Willie Nelson with Winton Marsalis... NEVER would have imagined those two together, but it was very very good. Tempted to pick up the CD.

I found KCSM by chance when scanning radio stations looking for something different while sitting in traffic. They always seemed to be playing something really cool and after a while I just programmed the radio button - now it's on all the time.

Oh, and if you're going to purchase music thru Amazon.com go thru the link on KCSM's website - Amazon donates a portion of each purchase to KCSM. Everybody wins...

THE WISDOM OF MR. KRABS

2008.09.05 - What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger? According to Mr. Krabs on Sponge Bob that's not true - "It usually get's you the second time around, lad."

Sounded better when I heard it - guess you had to be there.

For those who don't know, I'm a rabid Sponge Bob Squarepants fan. Reminds me of the old black and white Popeye cartoons - seemingly for children but if you paid close attention to what Popeye was muttering in the middle of his antics you'd catch more than a few comic gems.

SARAH PALIN

2008.09.04 - After Sarah Palin's speech at the Repub's convention I can no longer say I've never donated to a political campaign.

And to answer those questions about McCain being too old, I'd say both the decision to choose Palin and the timing of announcing it (immediately following the Dem's convention) show McCain to be a very clever politician. Stole the spotlight from the Obama and invigorated the Repubs. Not bad for an old guy...

TOO FUNNY!

2008.09.02 - Found this on www.instapundit.com - one way to have kept Bristol Palin's pregnancy out of the news would have been to claim John Edwards as the father...

 

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Cheap Thrill of the Day - galaxies to electrons... take a ride from the astronomic world down to the molecular world.