Watering Down the Watered-Down

The Democrats are at it again. In order to further appease the minority Republicans and Blue Dogs, as well as their paymasters in the insurance industry, Dems have further watered-down the already watered-down public option...by privatizing it. So we've gone from dreams of single payer, compromising out to a public option, compromising further to a public option that allows states with Republican governors to "opt out", and finally to a plan that just forces poor people back into the private insurance market.

Thanks, Democrats. You're really turning this country around.

First We Need the Democracy Part...

"In strong and vibrant democracies, a generous social-welfare state is not a road to serfdom but rather to fairness, economic equality and international competitiveness."

- Jeffrey D. Sachs, Economist, Columbia University

It's Your Money

Every time I get my PG&E bill, they include some notice of a petition to the California PUC requesting a rate increase to cover things like "regulatory costs" and other items. These requests are for increasing the core electricity & gas rates...but take a closer look at your bill. You'll notice that our privatized utility monopoly is already recovering various regulatory fees:


Think about it...we're paying the cost of their compliance with regulations...we're footing the bill for cleaning up their nuclear mess...and yet they want to keep raising rates so they can keep bribing politicians, making more money, and paying out executive bonuses.

Ft. Hood Shootings Likely Stress-Related...

Interesting:

This year alone, the base is averaging over 10 suicides each month - at least 75 have been recorded through July of this year alone.

That's an absurdly high number. Something smells....

Guv'mint-Run Healthcare Administered to Protestors of Guv'Mint-Run Healthcare

I have a weak spot for delicious irony. And this story reads like it's straight out of The Onion...When US Rep (and noted victim of The Crazy) Michelle Bachmann organized her "press conference" and encouraged teabaggers, birthers, and other friends of Orly Taitz to attend, the last thing she probably expected was a Spinal Tap moment:

But, as with a similar rally by Democrats a week before, unpredictable things tend to happen in the wide-open spaces of the Capitol's West Front. Minutes into the rally, a breeze toppled the American flag from the stage.

More ominously, a man standing just beyond the TV cameras apparently suffered a heart attack 20 minutes after event began. Medical personnel from the Capitol physician's office -- an entity that could, quite accurately, be labeled government-run health care -- rushed over, attaching electrodes to his chest and giving him oxygen and an IV drip.

...

By the time it was over, medics had administered government-run health care to at least five people in the crowd who were stricken as they denounced government-run health care. But Bachmann overlooked this irony as she said farewell to her recruits.

"You," she said, "are the most beautiful sight any of us freedom fighters have seen for a long time."

Stonehenge anyone? The stupidity continues:

The lawmakers set the tone early, when Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) asked for the Pledge of Allegiance because "it drives the liberals crazy" to hear the "under God" part (his bravado was premature, for he left out the word "indivisible").

My goodness people...if you're going to pull pseudo-patriotic martyrdom bullshit, at least get it right. But this part really bugged me:

The actor Jon Voight, standing with the lawmakers, said of Obama: "Could it be he has had 20 years of subconscious programming by Reverend Wright to damn America?"

Yes, Jon. And Reverend Wright made you abuse and abandon your super-hot daughter too. Oh, and I think he was probably behind those two hillbillies who almost raped you and made your buddy ned squeal like a pig too. You know them boys was on guv'mint-run healthcare, dontcha? Sometimes I think Ronny Cox got the rawest deal in that movie...he was the best of 'em, you know.

National Cookie Day

Today is National Cookie Day. Here's my favorite way to celebrate:

Cue the Dead Kennedys...

Finally...our errant empty suit press release mayor has dropped out of the governor's race. Newsom claims he's dropping out of the race to focus on being mayor and on being a daddy. I think he's dropping out because he was getting his ass kicked by a guy who hasn't even declared yet...

Meg Whitman won't win this race (thank goodness). That leaves us with one inevitable possibility:

Reagan. Wilson. Davis. Schwarzenneger. Feinstein. Brown (both of 'em). Whitman. Why is it that California is saddled with bad choices?

Red State Socialism...Continued

Federal spending received per dollar of taxes paid by state, 2005

It'll be interesting to watch this change from 2009 onward. But I suspect it won't change much.

Leiberman Sells Us Out on the Public Option

No surprises here. Joe Lieberman, who's in the pocket of the insurance industry, will not vote with Democrats to cut off debate on health care reform if it includes even a watered-down public option. I always figured it'd be dirty Joe who shot down any chance at real reform.

Almost At A Loss For Words...

My Next Bumper Sticker

Why Casey Stoner Rules...

US Fundamentalists Out to Destroy Ugandan Gays...

This story has been a bit of a sleeper in the US press, but it's scandalous enough to merit some attention. A powerful and connected group of anti-gay fundamentalist bigots, called The Family (or The Fellowship), converted Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and has been advising him as he tries to implement even more official repression of gays and lesbians:

Uganda already punished gay intimacy with life in prison. But, apparently that was not harsh enough, with this bill penalizing anyone who “attempts to commit the offence” with up to seven years in jail. Additionally, a person charged will be forced to undergo an invasive medical examination to determine their HIV status. If the detainees are found to be HIV+, they may be executed.

These troglodytes are the very same people pushing theocracy at home, but getting tripped up by their own worldly desires:

The Family, of course, recently made headlines because one of its key members, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) had sex with his best friends wife, while they were working together. Another member, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), used one of the Family’s Washington properties to try to broker a deal to buy off the furious husband, who has since gone public with the Ensign scandal.

This is the face of biblically-inspired government, people. And it should make you think twice before ever voting for a fundamentalist again.

High Court to Hear Skilling Case

We're continuing to reap what we sowed by letting the Bush Administration run rampant for 8 years. The Supreme Court today agreed to hear an appeal of Jeffrey Skilling's conviction on fraud charges relating to his role in the collapse of Enron. If they overturn Skilling's conviction, the two main actors in the Enron ponzi scheme will have gotten away with their crimes. With two Bush appointees on the court, I won't be surprised if it happens.

Sheriff Joe Stripped of Xenophobic Powers

JoeP will love this one. The federal government has ended an agreement with Maricopa County sheriff Joe Arpaio that gave him and the agency power to enforce federal immigration laws. The two year agreement, created under the previous administration, authorized Arpaio's deputies to arrest people suspected of being undocumented, check their immigration status, and turn them over to the feds for deportation. But Arpaio took things a step further, setting up his own concentration camps:

Arpaio's aggressive tactics include the jailing of illegal immigrants in tent cities surrounded by barbed wire in the middle of Arizona's searingly hot summers, the reduction of meal costs to 20 cents per day, the use of pink jail clothing for men, and chain gangs for women inmates.

Arpaio also came in for criticism when he appeared on the Fox reality show Smile: You're Under Arrest.

This publicity-seeking assclown humiliates people, treats them like livestock, then has the nerve to go on "reality" television? Let's hope the feds under Obama continue to have to good sense to sever all ties with this buffoon.

I Can Haz Nobel?

The newshole is awash with stories of President Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize. He's in rare company, as only the third sitting US President (after Wilson and Teddy Roosevelt) to win the award. Predictably, Republicans are up in arms over the announcement, scoffing at the idea of giving the award to a man who's been in office nine months. Of course, these are the same Republicans who scoff at the very idea of a Peace Prize itself...they don't exactly have a great track record in the peace arena.

At the end of the day, I think this is probably a bit premature, and will be an unneeded distraction for an administration with an ambitious agenda and tons of corporate money working against that agenda. In the end, I think Obama got the award precisely because he's not George W Bush. After 8 disastrous years of war, pestilence, cowboy diplomacy, and ugly nationalism I can see how some would think a small change back towards "normal" warrants this much attention. But where I come from you don't get a reward just for doing the right thing...you need to go above and beyond. Stop the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Increase US foreign aid (the peaceful kind, not the military kind) to more than 1% of the federal budget. End poverty here at home...then we'll talk.

No Wonder They Hate Science

Is it any wonder the Catholic Church hates science? Damn scientists keep using logic and reason to undermine their dogma. First it's evolution. Now it's the Shroud of Turin. This must be stopped.

Toll Pass Scams

I recently made a whirlwind trip to New York for Anne's parents' 50th wedding anniversary. I rented a car out of JFK, since that was more cost-effective than a taxi to Westchester county. While driving, I noticed that there was a resin box mounted to the windshield containing an EZPass toll transponder. I was driving, and couldn't exactly read the microscopic terms of service on the box, so I just went through the EZPass lane on the way out. I figured Hertz would add the EZPass toll to my rental bill. Wrong.

I just looked up my credit card charges, and found one for $15.50 from WWWPLATEPASSCOM. I was curious what that was, and after some googling I found this. Platepass is apparently a company that specializes in parting you with your money in exchange for not providing a valuable service. The toll on the Whitestone bridge is $4.57 for EZPass users and $5.50 for cash users. I used the EZPass one way, and paid cash on the way back the next day. So Platepass not only charged me the full cash toll, they tacked on a $10 "service" charge...all without giving me a real opportunity to read any of the fine print. And if they did happen to charge me on the way back, when I used the cash lane and paid cash, then there's something wrong with their resin box...it doesn't block the transponder signal. Yet another opt-out scam.

There have been many stories of people ending up being charged for driving on toll roads when they didn't even drive on one. My advice: if you get a rental car with a toll transponder in it, pull up to the booth on the rental car lot, take the transponder out, and tell them you don't want it. If they give you trouble, return the car immediately and go to another car rental agency that doesn't carry this.

Oh, and please report Platepass to the Better Business Bureau in your area.

The Blue Cockroach

How the hell did I get myself into this? I swerved hard left to avoid the idiot in the Camry who jumped into my lane (without signaling, of course), and the whine of the motor sounded…strange. Like there were two extra cylinders. And I was on a freeway…going to work. Even more strange. I guess I haven't reconciled with the idea that I, champion of walking whenever I can, would end up…commuting to work. On a Japanese bike. With four cylinders. Was this a nightmare?

In my rush to middle age, I've realized that I'm a V-twin kind of guy. Wait a second…make that an L-twin kind of guy. This blue & gold Cal Bear actually bleeds red. Not the wimpy cardinal red sported at that social club university in Palo Alto, but Bologna red…the kind that evokes the passion and love of the open road we've all come to know…the passion that comes from owning a Ducati. Or multiple Ducatis. So when I got this new job and found out that I had to be in San Mateo several days each week my first thought was how fun it would be to rock the Supersport down there every day. But that had some downsides. Another valve job every year? Having to extract the bike from the garage every morning? Rolling the bike down the street to start it without pissing off my neighbors? Going through 2 more sets of Pilot 2CTs every year? All of this led me to start looking for a commuter. A Japanese commuter, with bonus points for something I could take on extended trips, maybe 2-up. That led me to start looking at the FZ1.

Yamaha started making this beast in 2001, mating its carbureted 5-valve R1 motor to a standard with conventional front forks with straight bars. Over the years they've developed a reputation as a rock-solid, reliable bike that's great for long trips yet still shines in the curves. Yamaha revised the FZ1 in 2006, giving the mount a new chassis and updated motor. A few weeks of searching Craigslist led to my purchase of a well-cared-for 2004 model yesterday. I was tempted to fly to LA and look for a Generation II model, but Joe at Motojava swears by his carbureted model (he commutes in from Vallejo on it) so I took the plunge. This beast has 14k on the clock, and has been immaculately cared-for. Walking around the Yammy, I was struck by how the blacked-out engine and frame set off the blue paint scheme. I've been going for that kind of look on my Monster, and it was part of what attracted me to this particular Fazer. But the overall styling reminded me of an insect. This thing has evil-eye headlights, and a beak-like front fairing. Combine that with the stinger-looking tail and this thing looks like it could survive a nuclear winter or two. I've started calling it the cockroach. And several tasty aftermarket bits rounded out the picture: Sato rearsets, aftermarket bars, a fender eliminator, and the best part: a Throttlemeister. Someone really cared about this bike.

The test ride started off mellow enough. Seating position is slightly less hunched over than my Monster, and is generally comfortable. Reach to the aftermarket bars was a bit long, due largely to the aftermarket bars. I'll have to futz around with that and get it working well. A few curves in a residential neighborhood revealed that the bike is nimble for a standard, and you could tell the power was definitely lurking, waiting to hit the open road. The 998cc DOHC motor spins up to freeway speed quickly…and can get to those speeds in first gear. Welcome to the world of inline 4's…now hold on! I had to remind myself to shift UP instead of DOWN…I ride GP Shift, and the brain works overtime when I switch back for a test ride. The transmission is butter smooth, and downshifts require almost no blipping of the throttle. 70mph came quickly, and it came time to pass some cages. This is where the bike shines. No shifting gears, just twist the damn thing and wait for it to wake up…warp factor 10 comes quickly. 10 minutes into the freeway ride I knew this bike would be perfect as a traffic mule. It splits nicely, wind protection from the fairing is good, and the only real noise at speed is the air rushing over your head. I brought the bike back, ponied up my cash, did the paperwork and I was on my way, stock bits and free saddlebags in tow.

Ergonomics is one of the main reasons I settled on the FZ1. Sitting upright on the excellent seat will make this bike comfortable over the long haul…I see a trip or two to Southern California in this bike's future. Suspension is a bit soft on this machine…not surprising, given my weight. I'll probably have to respring the front someday. But for commuting it's pure butter. Soft, warm, melty butter. The 45 minute ride home was the perfect getting-to-know-you session, dodging cars, splitting lanes, and hitting the bay bridge in post-rush-hour traffic. The conventional steam gauges are quite easy to read, even in the dark. But after a few minutes my attention was drawn to a strange-looking gadget on the right side of the dash. Yes, friends, that's a gas gauge. A real, honest-to-goodness gas gauge. Like, Empty to Full. No more in-the-head calculations on when I'll need gas. No more lights-on, lights-off panicked runs to the nearest service station. This thing's bringing me into the big time…maybe this time next year the bike will have a second airbag. For the immediate future, I've got a Coocase S48 Topcase on order. That'll keep the rain off of my laptop bag, and the laptop bag off my back. And I can probably remodel the inside to put an extra bathroom in.

But back to the aforementioned Camry. After the swerve, I popped my foot down to downshift and found…nothing. No gearshift lever. At 65mph. On 101 South. Calmly…very calmly…I let off the throttle and looked down. The shift linkage had come off the eye bolt, and was hanging there from the now-spinning shift lever. Signaling, I quickly made my way to the right lane and took the first exit. Luckily, there was no stop sign and there was a nice curb I could pull up to. In case you haven't noticed, 1000cc inline fours don't like to be lugged around city streets in 4th gear. Looking at the linkage, I saw that I had forgotten to tighten the friction nut on the eyelet…and that's why this thing vibrated loose and left me without a shifter on the freeway. And this is where the FZ1 began to shine. Under the seat, inside the ample storage space, is an excellent toolkit. I found the right 10mm wrench to reattach the linkage. 5 minutes later I was back on the road. This bike kind of makes sense…almost.

Et Tu, Alan Thicke?

I always knew Kirk Cameron was an idiot. This proves it. And a video blogger has a classic response to it:

John Doe

Someone in your life needs a letter from you.

Why HVAC Is Important

I'm in training this week. It's a nice classroom in San Mateo, with excellent internet connectivity and good tables and chairs. This is career-defining training, so I'm excited to be here. But I'm having trouble concentrating because the air conditioning has the temperature hovering around 55 degrees. That leads to a vicious cycle...

1) I'm drinking a lot of warm drinks.
2) I'm not able to focus because I'm shivering...even in my jacket.
3) The drinking and the cold leads to a shrunken and full bladder.
4) Even more trouble focusing because of the bladder.
5) Frequent visits to the bathroom, missing even more class.

They have a technician here trying to fix the problem, but it probably won't be done until the end of the day. Marvelous.

Get a Brain Morans, Part Two

From the morans file...

Infinity

True Patriots Hang Jack-Booted Census Worker

Idiocy...sheer idiocy:

When Bill Sparkman told retired trooper Gilbert Acciardo that he was going door-to-door collecting census data in rural Kentucky, the former cop drawing on years of experience warned: "Be careful."

The 51-year-old Sparkman was found hanged from a tree near a Kentucky cemetery and had the word "fed" scrawled on his chest, a law enforcement official said Wednesday, and the FBI is investigating whether he was a victim of anti-government sentiment.

Next up in Kentucky: lynching people because they file tax returns.

Microsoft OneNote: Handy, But Annoying

I've taken to using Microsoft OneNote to take notes...especially during the multiple training courses I've been taking during my ramp-up at work. It's very useful and pretty well put-together, but I've had some major annoyances that are impeding my productivity:

Screen Clips
Screen clips are essential in software. OneNote gives you a handy button to clip something from the last window you were in. You just press this button:

This leads to a screen where you can select the section of the page to clip...you select that section, and it magically inserts the clip into OneNote. Unfortunately, it includes extra whitespace and text on when the screen clipping was taken:


As far as I can tell, there's no way to get rid of this. It's frustrating. I've been Googling for the answer, but no dice so far.

Migrating and Organizing Notes
I've had reason to switch computers a few times lately. OneNote notebooks are kept in your user profile (My Documents >> OneNote Notebooks) by default, but migrating them with their structure isn't as simple as moving the files from one machine to another. OneNote seems to treat all migrated notebooks as new notebooks, instead of placing them within the Personal Notebook or the Work Notebook hierarchies. And short of buying Sharepoint, forget about storing them in a centralized repository like a SAN or NAS...

Make It a Hierarchy, Damnit
OneNote tries hard to give you tabs and buttons to organize your notebooks. Why not give people the familiar folder-based hierarchy?

I'll keep using OneNote, but damn...I'd like to find a way around these.

Ayn Rand Loves You

The BBC Reports...

People of Wal-Mart...

My new favoritest site:
http://peopleofwalmart.com/

A few of my favorites:



Um, this here's my date...for the prom...or for after.



Wal-Mart pimp...

Fundie Pastor Prays for Obama to Die...Parissioner Takes Gun to Obama Town Hall

They're showing their true colors. After the vitriolic bullshit and lies about death panels, government-funded abortions, and other right wing make-believe, the troglodytes are frothing at the mouth almost enough to destroy themselves. After an astroturf teabagger shill brought an AR-15 to an Obama town hall meeting, it was revealed that his pastor prayed for Obama to die and go to hell, making it a cetral theme of his sermon:

The sermon, which was titled "Why I Hate Barack Obama" and also contained virulent anti-gay themes...

Once again, these people have nothing meaningful or insightful to say, so they revert to idiocy, hate, and outright lies to prevent reform. They're the real America-haters.

Carter Leaves Southern Baptists

Former President Jimmy Carter has left the Southern Baptist Convention because of growing frustration over the denomination's "unbending sexism towards women and girls..."

About time, Jimmy.

Barney Frank and the Teabaggers...

Barney Frank lays into an idiot teabagger during a town hall meeting.

Turned the Cell Phone Off...

A poignant reminder that communication is important.

Older = Wiser

Time makes one wise. Ask advice from someone older than you.

New Rules...

A classic...

Kenyan Birth Certificate Generator

http://kenyanbirthcertificategenerator.com/

A birther's wet dream...and about as authentic :)

Political Quiz Results

My Political Views
I am a left social libertarian
Left: 6.9, Libertarian: 4.72

Political Spectrum Quiz

Skaggs Springs Ride

With Democrats Like These, Who Needs Republicans?

The Blue Dogs are watering down health care reform, eliminating subsidies for lower-income folks to buy coverage, strengthening the mandate to buy insurance, and all but eviscerating the public option...the very safety net people who can't afford a plan would rely upon to meet the mandate. They're also looking at ways to tax benefits provided by employers, which will drive down disposable income during the worst recession in anyone's memory.

With friends like these, who needs enemies?

News Flash: Pigs Fly, Hell Freezes Over

Anyone who's known me for a long time could probably tell you a few truisms about me: I'm not subtle, I'm never at a loss for words, and a laugh or joke is always close at hand.

Some of them would also tell you that I'm not the marrying type. Those people, it turns out, were a bit off the mark. Two days ago I did what some would say is out of character and proposed to Anne. She said yes :)

It's an interesting feeling...I knew long ago that Anne was right for me. Marriage was never high on my list of priorities. I'm not a religious guy, and I could care less whether the state blesses my relationship with somebody. But it's still comforting to make it official. And I'm excited about it :)

Shatner Reads Palin...

The More You Talk...

There are lessons to be learned by listening to others.

Goldman Games the System

Nobody likes TARP. And Goldman Sachs is rapidly turning into the lead pariah. After getting government bailouts of all sorts, Goldman recently posted record revenue of $736 million. Matt Taibbi has an interesting blog post on the subject, detailing the extent of Goldman's sucking from the public trough.

Sanford Likes His Business Class Seats

South Carolina governor Mark Sanford claims to be a frugal fiscal conservative. But he sure likes his airline hospitality, according to AP. The governor spent thousands in state funds to fly in business and first class on domestic and international trips.

I wish I could fly first class everywhere. That would be fun.

Paranoid, Delusional, Massochistic Fantasies

There’s a paranoid delusional state among wingnuts these days. It’s both frightening and amusing at once. Today I saw a bumper sticker on a pickup truck in St Louis:

I’ll keep my guns, my freedom, and my money.

You can keep the change.

One part of me wanted to find the owner of the truck and try desperately to provide him with a dose of reality. But I doubt it would have taken hold.

Some wingnuts have this fantasy that Obama and his minions are coming for your guns, with the ghosts of Mao Tse Tung and Lenin in tow. Despite legions of evidence that such a thing just won’t happen, they hold fast to this idea of the ATF knocking down their front door, killing their family, and taking their guns. They also hold fast to the laughable notion that an armed population can somehow hold the government in check…with its tanks, its planes, armed unmanned drones, cruise missiles, and vast treasure. Laughable. But somehow the fantasy lives…it’s almost like they want it to happen; they want to be martyrs for the cause.

The right has fed on paranoia and fear for the better part of a century now. They get some of their power from red scares, xenophobia, and myths resulting from paranoid fantasies. That’s ultimately self-destructive. Too bad they end up dragging the rest of the nation down with them.

Just Like Grand Theft Auto...

Flying from SFO-LAX-STL yesterday, I spent a lot of time enjoying the sights from the airplane. The Golden Gate bridge and the beautiful Bay Area skylines, coastal California, the Hollywood sign, downtown LA, South Central, Mojave airport and the airplane boneyard, Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, and Lake Mead all passed below on a gloriously sunny day. A little later in my flight to STL, it hit me…this is like a microcosm of the digital landscape Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. All of these sights are replicated fairly faithfully in the game, but with different names. Then I thought I should probably get a life.

All-Stars at the St Louis Airport

I’ve been in St Louis today working with a customer. It wasn’t until I arrived that I learned that the All-Star Game is going on tonight, and that the President is scheduled to attend. My flight leaves at 4:40 PM CST, which is just about the time Air Force One is supposed to arrive. So I’ll either get out of here on time, or I’ll get to see the most powerful jet in the world land, and maybe catch a glimpse of the first President I voted for. Good times!

House Dems: Tax the Wealthy to Pay For Health Reform

I keep having to pinch myself. House Democrats have proposed a modest income surtax on individuals with incomes above $280,000 and couples with income over $350,000. The tax would raise around $540 billion, and would be used to pay for nearly half of the proposed health care reforms. Just a few years ago, this modest idea would have been laughed out of the halls of Congress. Even these days, the blue dog democrats might kill it. But it's at least refreshing to see that some in the halls of power appreciate the idea of progressive taxation.

A Case In Point...

A few months ago I had to take the girlfriend to the emergency room. No, I didn't end up on Cops...she was experiencing tightness in her chest and was having difficulty breathing. After calling her health plan's difficult-to-find advice line, we were advised to go to the hospital. The ER staff at CPMC took chest x-rays, an EKG, and declared her fit as a fiddle...and prescribed her an inhaler.

We opened up the mail tonight to find a bill for nearly $700...and that's after her health insurance company paid their share. We also found that the hospital had added billing codes for lab work...which never occurred that night. Apparently, these billing errors are extremely common. Health care providers, especially hospitals, have every incentive to make these kinds of mistakes and not correct them. And insurance companies just pass the buck along to you.

This is a perfect example of how broken our current health care system is. Perverse incentives, duplicate and redundant bureaucracies abound. And all of this from the same companies fighting hard to prevent true health care reform. And it's coming out of your pocket. Isn't America great?

Over 6000 Years Old!

Thanks to Keith Olberman for this one. Today's worst person in the world is State Senator Sylvia Allen from the great state of Arizona. While speaking in favor of approving a permit to mine uranium, the distinguished State Senator reminds us that the Earth is over 6000 years old...and predates all those pesky environmental laws.



You heard right...we need to mine Uranium, which has a half-life of 4.47 bilion years and is used to carbon date artifacts from the earliest human civilizations (8000 years ago) and to do so, we need to get around those environmental laws that weren't around when the Earth was created 6000 years ago. Classic.

Are you A Can-Do Person?

Success comes in cans, not in cannots.

Local Race Tracks

One of my hobbies recently is to find local race tracks on Google Maps, study the geography, etc. A few of my favorites:

Laguna Seca

View Larger Map
The local legend, and home to the US MotoGP race. Anne and I will be there next weekend.

Infineon Raceway (Sears Point)

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Site of my very first track day, AMA and AFM races, and a great place to watch racing.

Thunderhill Raceway

View Larger Map
Site of most of my track days (including one yesterday), AFM races, and a very fast track.

Reno-Fernley Raceway

View Larger Map
Never been there, but I hear it's epic...too many turns to memorize.

Setting Priorities

This year your highest priority will be your priority.

America's Health Plan: No Mandate, and a Public Option...PLEASE

I've been reading up on Congress' latest attempt at health care reform and I'm a little concerned. So far it looks like it will have a mandate to insure, and there's a nominal public plan in the mix. But there isn't a funding mechanism yet, and such a plan would have to survive the amendment process, where Republicans and corporatist Democrats could strip or water down the public plan.

One thing's clear: mandates do not belong in this or any other bill. Forcing Americans to purchase overpriced insurance plans won't reduce the cost of care, won't achieve universal coverage, and isn't fair. And without a real public option that could cover everyone it's not reform at all.

Mommy's Not A Stripper...I Swear

Getty Brothers Blog About Being Rich

The Chronicle has given two Getty brothers a blog so that they can write about what it's like to be rich. Thanks to SFBG for scooping this so I don't have to link directly to a worthless rag like Chron. You just can't make this stuff up:

...We're more famous for being rich than we really are rich. But we have enough to belong to the leisure class, meaning we get to spend very little of our time doing anything we don't feel like, and we have means to sample, if not to gorge on, pleasures that most people, sad to say, won't likely ever share in -- things like yacht trips and safaris, ludicrously expensive wine, and private jet travel. You can be richer than we are, but you can't live a whole lot better without mere ostentation.

Please tell me this is all just a big joke. Two idiots who inherited an oil fortune, funded the political career of Gavin Newsom, and are generally a drain on society...what is it they have to offer?

The Racetrack...Marin County, CA

Goths in Hot Weather

http://www.gothsinhotweather.com/

Almost as funny as frogs in a blender...

Obama Drastically Scales Back Goals For America After Visiting Denny's

Obama Drastically Scales Back Goals For America After Visiting Denny's

Medical bills drive majority of U.S. bankruptcies

It's no surprise that more than half of US bankruptcies are caused by medical calamities...at least to those of us in the reality-based community. A new study in the American Journal of Medicine puts it in stark terms:

In 2007, before the current economic downturn, an American family filed for bankruptcy in the aftermath of illness every 90 seconds. Most troubling about this statistic is that three-quarters of them were insured, according to the authors. They also found that the share of bankruptcies attributable to medical problems rose by 50 percent between 2001 and 2007.

...

The odds that a bankruptcy had a medical cause were 2.38 fold higher in 2007 than in 2001.

And all this data is from before the catastrophic economic downturn of 2008.

I bet the Republicans try to spin this as a massive problem with personal responsibility. Those profligate people shouldn't have contracted all those illnesses!

Bruno Does Christian Rock

Texts From Last Night

My coworker Matt pointed me towards one of the funniest sites I've ever encountered:
http://www.textsfromlastnight.com/

People forward their funny/scandalous/ridiculous text messages to the site. I could spend hours reading this...a few classics:

---

(507): drinking colt 45 because lando calrissian told me to

---

(805): before i could say "i'm not that kind of girl", i was.

---

(413): that girl last night was a 15
(1-413): wait she was 15?
(413): no like black jack not sure if you should hit it

---

Oh boy...another time-wasting site.

Zapster?

Frank Zappa may have come up with the original idea for file sharing...

We propose to acquire the rights to digitally duplicate and store THE BEST of every record company's difficult-to-move Quality Catalog Items [Q.C.I.], store them in a central processing location, and have them accessible by phone or cable TV, directly patchable into the user's home taping appliances, with the option of direct digital-to-digital transfer to F-1 (SONY consumer level digital tape encoder), Beta Hi-Fi, or ordinary analog cassette (requiring the installation of a rentable D-A converter in the phone itself . . . the main chip is about $12).

All accounting for royalty payments, billing to the customer, etc. would be automatic, built into the initial software for the system.

Talk about ahead of his time...

We Cannot Simply Turn the Page

A cogent, thoughtful piece from Frank Rich today in the New York Times. As much as President Obama wants to move the country forward and deal with our common, pressing problems, the specter of the Bush Administration's misdeeds will prevent him from doing so:

TO paraphrase Al Pacino in “Godfather III,” just when we thought we were out, the Bush mob keeps pulling us back in. And will keep doing so. No matter how hard President Obama tries to turn the page on the previous administration, he can’t. Until there is true transparency and true accountability, revelations of that unresolved eight-year nightmare will keep raining down drip by drip, disrupting the new administration’s high ambitions.

Rich details several scandals that have only recently come to light, including Donald Rumsfeld's bible-laced daily briefings to Bush on the Iraq war, framing it as a modern day crusade. Rich makes it clear that the Bush Administration broke the law, and that they must be held accountable for this country to move forward.

I've been saying this all along...we can't just let bygones be bygones. When Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon, his apologists claimed that his motivation was to keep the nation from tearing itself apart over Watergate. But the net effect of his pardon was to let abuse of power go unchecked, emboldening future administrations to flout the law. Think of it this way: if the American people had held Nixon accountable and sent him to jail for ordering a third-rate burglary, would George W. Bush have brazenly violated domestic and international law to torture and spy on people? I think not.

The Shine is Starting to Come Off

This has been one of the more Clintonesque weeks in the nascent Obama administration. On Wednesday, Obama announced that he will oppose a court order to release photos of prisoner abuse at the hands of US military and intelligence personnel. And the Administration announced today that it will be keeping the Bush system of military tribunals in place with only slight modifications.

Whether these moves stem from the sort of crass political triangulation our phillandering former President made famous or not is unclear. What is clear is the fact that both decisions were wrong. Candidate Obama campaigned in part on the justifiable horror that many Americans felt upon finding out about the prior Administration's torture of detainees and its extra-constitutional system of kangaroo courts. We placed our faith in a man who said he would end the abuse and try people in US courts...according to the law of the land.

I can't help but feel betrayed. I suppose we shouldn't be surprised...the Democratic Party's mission in recent years is to impement Republican policies when Republicans can't get elected. But perhaps I expected more from a man who's been labelled a transformation figure in American history.

Pelosi Knew...She Should Resign

Speaker Nancy Pelosi admits knowing of CIA torture of detainees by early 2003. That's complicity in torture, plain and simple. She should go.

Did Pelosi Know About Torture?

A public fight has erupted between Nancy Pelosi and the CIA. The spy agency claims it briefed Pelosi that it briefed the Speaker on its use of torture during interrogations as far back as 2002. Pelosi claims only that she was made aware of legal memos clearing the Bush Administration to use torture, but was told that the tactics hadn't been employed.

The spy agency had issued a chart saying Pelosi, then the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, and Porter Goss, the committee chairman at the time, were given "a description of the particular EITs (enhanced interrogation techniques) that had been employed."

I have to wonder...does this nuance really matter? Pelosi saw evidence in 2002 that the Bush Administration was starting to cover its ass in order to torture prisoners and she did nothing. She didn't try to stop it, she didn't go public. In fact, Pelosi then took impeachment off the table. That's despicable. And it's wrong.

The sad part is that this fiasco probably won't do any lasting damage to Pelosi's career. She'll still be Speaker of the House, she'll still get re-elected, she'll still raise loads of corporate cash for Democrats in the House, and she'll continue her long and undistinguished record of failing to represent her constituents' views in Washington. From voting for the Iraq war to blocking the impeachment of the most criminal and corrupt President in a generation, she always turns her back on real San Francisco values.

Slap of the Invisible Hand

This disposition to admire, and almost to worship, the rich and the powerful is the great and most universal cause of the corruption of our moral sentiments.
- Adam Smith

Prophetic...That's When the Deal Closes

Your goal will be met in two months.

Closing Sales?

You will have a chance soon to make a profitable transaction.

Man-on-Horse?

I saw this classic on Facebook this morning:


I'm not sure of the context, but it appears to be some sort of Christian™ science fair. But hell...Man-on-horse? Where did they come up with that? Oh wait...the kid probably lives on a farm. But then I'd expect there to be a line for man-on-sheep...or man-on-pig.

CIA Tortured Two Detainees 266 Times

More appalling news from the torture front. The CIA waterboarded two detainees almost 300 times over a one month period. One detainee was tortured 83 times in August 2002. And Khalid Sheikh Mohamed was tortured 183 times in March 2003. These details come out of the Bush Administration torture memos recently released by the Obama Administration, and they give lie to the claims that waterboarding was used sparingly and in accordance with official guidelines.

SF Trying to Double Water & Sewer Rates

News from the utility front. The SFPUC is proposing a doubling of residential water and sewer rates over the next 5 years. Commercial customers would not be affected by this increase, and renters are essentially prohibited from protesting this increase. San Francisco is 65% renters...

Please contact your district supervisor and the mayor's office to protest this ridiculous move.
Michela Alioto-Pier
District 2
(415) 554-7752 - Voice
(415) 554-7843 - Fax
Michela.Alioto-Pier@sfgov.org

John Avalos
District 11
(415) 554-6975 - Voice
(415) 554-6979 - Fax
John.Avalos@sfgov.org

David Campos
District 9
(415) 554-5144 - voice
(415) 554-6255 - fax
David.Campos@sfgov.org

David Chiu - Board President
District 3
(415) 554-7450 - Voice
(415) 554-7454 - Fax
David.Chiu@sfgov.org

Carmen Chu
District 4
(415) 554-7460 - Voice
(415) 554-7432 - Fax
Carmen.Chu@sfgov.org

Chris Daly
District 6
(415) 554-7970 - Voice
(415) 554-7974 - Fax
Chris.Daly@sfgov.org

Bevan Dufty
District 8
(415) 554-6968 - Voice
(415) 554-6909 - Fax
Bevan.Dufty@sfgov.org

Sean Elsbernd
District 7
(415) 554-6516 - Voice
(415) 554-6546 - Fax
Sean.Elsbernd@sfgov.org

Eric Mar
District 1
(415) 554-7410 - Voice
(415) 554-7415 - Fax
Eric.L.Mar@sfgov.org

Sophie Maxwell
District 10
(415) 554-7670 - Voice
(415) 554-7674 - Fax
Sophie.Maxwell@sfgov.org

Ross Mirkarimi
District 5
(415) 554-7630 - Voice
(415) 554-7634 - Fax
Ross.Mirkarimi@sfgov.org

Want to Make Money From Home?

She makes money bowing to Jesus™. Saw this ad on sfbg.com and it confirms my long-held suspicions about the naivete of Christians...

Keep the Chain On

Opportunity knocks on your door every day - answer it.

Keep the Chain On

Opportunity knocks on your door every day - answer it.

Sham Wow Guy Arrested...For Beating a Stripper

It doesn't get much more entertaining than this. Sham Wow spokesman Vince Shlomi was arrested in Miami for beating a stripper he had paid for sex. Brilliant....just brilliant.

It's Called Personality

Your personality is great; use it proudly - don't debate.

First Brew with Mecca Beans

I have such good friends down under. After visiting them in 2006, they kind of turned me into a coffee snob. I went out and bought a nice Rancilio Silvia with an Innova grinder for my new kitchen, and I've been brewing for myself ever since. Here's my setup:


One of the places the Aussies introduced me to in Sydney was Mecca. It's a wonderful downtown cafe, and we spent a lot of time there when I was down under in '06:


We have the pleasure of hosting Big & Rachel in the Bay Area every year or two. And our friend Zee comes up every year. This year, I asked Big to send along some Mecca espresso beans. Zee showed up with 5 (!) bags of beans from various places, including two bags of their house espresso roast:




This was something of a special occasion, so I thoroughly brushed out my grinder and spent a bit of time fiddling with the grind. Once I got things dialed, the grounds flowed and tamped nicely:



From the first seconds after kicking off the brew, I knew this would be good. Crema from the start, smooth stuff throughout the pull, and I managed to shut things off just prior to blonding:


Wonderful shots, and I have a couple pounds of this stuff! Many thanks Big!

Nothing Fails Like Prayer...Part Umpteen and a Half

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/25/tunisian-plane-crash-pilot-prayed

A pilot accused of praying when he should have been taking emergency measures to avoid a crash in which 16 people died has been sentenced to 10 years in jail by an Italian court.

Captain Chafik Gharby was at the controls of a plane belonging to the Tunisian charter airline Tuninter that crashed in the sea off the coast of Sicily four years ago. The 23 survivors were left swimming for their lives, some clinging to a piece of the fuselage that stayed afloat after the turbo-prop aircraft broke up on impact.

Gharby was at first hailed as a hero for having saved the lives of most of the passengers. But after an investigation, he, his co-pilot, and several Tuninter executives and technicians were charged with a range of offences including manslaughter.

Maybe emergency procedures are a bit more important than praying. Then again, the funcamentalist Christians will say he was praying to the wrong God™

Sarah Jessica Parker Looks Like a Horse

For some demented reason, I found this site hilarious.

Baby Got Back...Ukulele Style

Australian Internet Censorship...

There have been various stories on the Australian government's attempts to censor internet browsing by its citizens. I read an interesting article on it yesterday:
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/03/17/1237054787635.html?page=fullpage

I realize that the censorship & filtering proposal has been pushed back for now, but it sounds like our Aussie friends need an equivalent to our First Amendment rights. How is it that censorship is alive and well in the 21st century?

Red Cross: Detaineed Were Tortured

Red Cross report says detainees at CIA 'black sites' were tortured

The confidential report, published Sunday, could bolster calls for legal action against the Bush administration.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) concluded in 2007 that US methods to extract information from prisoners at secret CIA jails as part of the "war on terror" amounted to torture, according to excerpts from a confidential report published on the website of the The New York Review of Books on Sunday.

With US President Barack Obama on record as backing the prosecution of officials involved in "clear instances of wrongdoing," the report could fuel calls for such legal action.

Though allegations of the torture of terror suspects at CIA-run "black sites" have been widely detailed before, the Red Cross report has "an unusual claim to authenticity," the article's author, Mark Danner, wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times.

The article in the Times quoted the report's conclusion:

The allegations of ill-treatment of the detainees indicate that, in many cases, the ill-treatment to which they were subjected while held in the CIA program, either singly or in combination, constituted torture. In addition, many other elements of the ill-treatment, either singly or in combination, constituted cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

...

We cannot let the Bush Administration get away with this. They must be prosecuted.

My Aura Smiles and Never Frowns

Many Californians remember Governor Moonbeam Jerry Brown. His father was governor, he was governor, and he followed the worst governor in our state's history. So maybe his forced spraying of malathion over urban areas fell a little short of the Reagan gold standard for ruining the state. But he was a terrible governor nonetheless. And now he wants to be governor again, pledging no new taxes along the way. No new taxes? In a state with a structural and perennial budget deficit? How insane is that?

Rule of thumb: when the Dead Kennedys write a song about you, it pretty much means you suck:

California...NOT a High Tax State

I ran across this interesting study of the California tax system today. Despite claims by right wingers, California ranks 17th in terms of total state & local taxes as a percentage of income, and we're right about the average for the country. And our motor fuels taxes rank far behind the national average. We're also the only state that requires a supermajority to pass a budget or tax increase.

But the thing that struck me most was this:

A Phillip Randolph Institute...A Local Shill

People who know a bit about San Francisco politics will tell you that the A. Phillip Randolph Institute is little more than a front for corporate interests. Now the LA Times has broken the story...on the record:

James Bryant, who earned just under $68,000 as a transit station agent in 2007, received about $117,000 that year as president of the San Francisco chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, according to the tax return and the city's Municipal Transportation Agency. He was also paid or reimbursed about $10,000 as an executive board member for SEIU Local 1021, whose political committee he chairs, the union's financial statements show.

The nonprofit's tax-exempt purpose is to promote civil rights, voter education and the interests of black workers. Its biggest contributors include Pacific Gas & Electric and other corporate benefactors that have enlisted it to campaign for or against ballot initiatives dealing with energy and land development.

During the Willie Brown era, APRI was known as hizzoner's water carriers. And since Willie was a PG&E lawyer before he became mayor, this is to be expected. Yet another corporate-funded astroturf play in SF politics.

Anyone Want to Build a Pizza Oven?

I wish I had a bigger backyard. I've been wanting to build a pizza oven, but we just don't have the room. The Oz Monsters seem to have it down, and I'm wondering why we don't have a few. There are free plans on teh interwebz, and I'm fairly handy. Just need a sucker with a backyard...

Fiona Ma Is An Idiot

I was apprehensive when Fiona Ma went to the assembly. I was glad to get her off the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, but she's trying to do more harm from Sacramento. Aside from her idiocy on mandating JROTC, she's also apparently pushing for a state tax break for the largest corporation in the world...by changing the way the state's corporate income taxes are calculated.

Let me get this straight, Fiona...you've increased taxes on the poor and middle class, yet you want to give corporate titans a permanent tax break in a futile effort to keep jobs in California? I guess we know who pays for your campaigns.

Haga!

Nori wins race 1 at Phillip Island!

Idiocy Only Wingnuts Can Believe In

Granted, it's hard to be a Republican these days. Their numbers are dwindling, the Bush Recession has turned them into a regional party comprised mainly of wingnuts, and the public is with President Obama on almost all major issues. The national GOP has turned to cynicism and obstructionism in a time of true crisis. But every so often the wingnuts truly go off their rocker and say or do some things I can hardly believe. A few examples:

The California Mayor and The Watermelons
Los Alamitos, CA Mayor Dean Grose has announced that he will be stepping down from his position on March 2, after sending an e-mail picture depicting the White House lawn planted with watermelons under the title ‘No Easter egg hunt this year.’

Texas GOP Congressman Claims Recessions are Just Part of Freedom
This morning on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, a caller asked Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) how Republicans would solve the current economic crisis. He replied by insisting that the best cure was more tax cuts, and said that recessions are simply "part of freedom."

Rush Limbaugh's Female Summit
Why do women hate him? Could be the misogyny.

John Bolton Suggests Nuking Chicago, CPAC Audience Cheers
A little collateral damage never hurt anyone...at least according to Bolton.

These people were in charge just a few short months ago. Is it any wonder that our nation is in crisis?

Very Gradual Change We Can Believe In

Suenos de Puerto Escondido

After seeing a bit about Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico on GlobeTrekker this afternoon I'm almost intent on making it my next vacation spot. Gorgeous beaches, great hotels, and a coffee plantation are all attractions for me.

Necessary, But Not Sufficient

Congress finally passed the Stimulus Package last week, and President Obama will sign it into law Wednesday. The consensus from economists (and everyone else, for that matter) is that this step is necessary but not sufficient. Paul Krugman has the same relative take. What's needed now is massive, continued federal intervention in the private economy. We need infrastructure, we need make-work jobs, and we need assurance that those items will be forthcoming for years. We do not need tax cuts, and unfortunately the Stimulus Package is laden with them...up to 40% of the nearly $800bn total. We'll definitely need another shot in the arm, as this severe recession may last 5 years or more. It's time to bring Keynes back into our national dialog.

Fortune Cookies: V

You will soon embark on a business venture.

Fortune Cookies: IV

An important word of advice may come from a child.

Fortune Cookies: III

Listen attentively. You will come out ahead in the coming week.

The Movie Quiz

Supposedly if you've seen over 85 of these films, you have no life. Mark the ones you've seen. Copy this list, and paste it as a note. Then, put 's net to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number, and click publish at the bottom. Have fun.

[] Rocky Horror Picture Show
[] Grease
[] Pirates of the Caribbean
[] Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
[] Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End
[x] Boondock Saints
[x] Fight Club
[x]Starsky and Hutch
[x] Neverending Story
[x] Blazing Saddles
[x] Airplane

Total so far: 6 of 11

[x] The Princess Bride
[x] Anchorman
[x] Napoleon Dynamite
[] Labyrinth
[] Saw
[] Saw II
[] Saw III
[] Saw IV
[] Saw V
[] White Noise
[x] White Oleander
[x] Anger Management
[x] 50 First Dates
[] The Princess Diaries
[] The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement

Total so far: 12 of 26


[] Scream
[] Scream 2
[] Scream 3
[x] Scary Movie
[] Scary Movie 2
[] Scary Movie 3
[] Scary Movie 4
[x] American Pie
[x] American Pie 2
[] American Wedding
[] American Pie Band Camp

Total so far: 15 of 36


[] Harry Potter 1
[] Harry Potter 2
[] Harry Potter 3
[] Harry Potter 4
[] Harry Potter 5
[] Resident Evil 1
[] Resident Evil 2
[] Resident Evil 3
[x] The Wedding Singer
[] Little Black Book
[] The Village
[] Lilo & Stitch

Total so far: 16 of 48

[] Finding Nemo
[] Finding Neverland
[] Signs
[] The Grinch
[] Texas Chainsaw Massacre
[] Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
[] White Chicks
[] Butterfly Effect
[] 13 Going on 30
[x] I, Robot
[] Robots

Total so far: 17 of 57

[] Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
[] Universal Soldier
[x] Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
[] Along Came Polly
[] Deep Impact
[x] KingPin
[x] Never Been Kissed
[] Meet The Parents
[] Meet the Fockers
[] Eight Crazy Nights
[x] Joe Dirt
[] King Kong (All three )

Total so far: 21 of 65

[] A Cinderella Story
[x] The Terminal
[] The Lizzie McGuire Movie
[] Passport to Paris
[] Dumb & Dumber
[] Dumber & Dumberer
[] Final Destination
[] Final Destination 2
[] Final Destination 3
[] Halloween (the original)
[] The Ring
[] The Ring 2
[] Surviving Christmas
[] Flubber

Total so far: 22 of 74

[x] Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
[] Practical Magic
[] Chicago
[] Ghost Ship
[] From Hell
[] Hellboy
[] Hellboy 2
[] Secret Window
[x] I Am Sam
[x] The Whole Nine Yards
[x] The Whole Ten Yards

Total so far: 26 of 83

[x] The Day After Tomorrow
[] Child's Play
[] Seed of Chucky
[] Bride of Chucky
[x] Ten Things I Hate About You
[] Just Married
[] Gothika
[] Nightmare on Elm Street
[x] Sixteen Candles
[] Remember the Titans
[] Coach Carter
[] The Grudge
[] The Grudge 2
[] The Mask
[] Son Of The Mask

Total so far 29 of 95

[] Bad Boys
[] Bad Boys 2
[] Joy Ride
[] Lucky Number Slevin
[x] Ocean's Eleven
[x] Ocean's Twelve
[x] Bourne Identity
[x] Bourne Supremecy
[x] Bourne Ultimatum
[] Lone Star
[] Bedazzled ( the Dudley Moore one)
[x] Predator I
[x] Predator II
[] The Fog
[] Ice Age
[] Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
[] Curious George

Total so far: 36 of 105

[x] Independence Day
[] Cujo
[] A Bron Tale
[] Darkness Falls
[] Christine
[x] ET
[x] Children of the Corn
[] My Bosses Daughter
[] Maid in Manhattan
[x] War of the Worlds
[x] Rush Hour
[x] Rush Hour 2

Total so far: 42 of 113

[] Best Bet
[] How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
[x] She's All That
[] Calendar Girls
[x] Sideways
[x] Mars Attacks
[] Event Horizon
[] Ever After
[x] Wizard of Oz
[x] Forrest Gump
[x] Big Trouble in Little China
[x] The Terminator
[x] The Terminator 2
[x] The Terminator 3

Total so far: 51 of 125

[] -Men
[] -2
[] -3
[] Spider-Man
[] Spider-Man 2
[] Spider-Man 3
[] Sky High
[] Jeepers Creepers
[] Jeepers Creepers 2
[x] Catch Me If You Can
[] The Little Mermaid
[] Freaky Friday (both versions)
[] Reign of Fire
[] The Skulls
[x] Cruel Intentions
[] Cruel Intentions 2
[] The Hot Chick
[] Shrek
[] Shrek 2

Total so far: 94 of 142

[] Swimfan
[] Miracle on 34th street
[x] Old School
[x] The Notebook
[] K-Pa
[] Krippendorf's Tribe
[] A Walk to Remember
[] Ice Castles
[] Boogeyman
[x] The 40-year-old Virgin

Total so far: 56 of 148

[x] Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
[x] Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
[x] Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
[x] Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
[x] Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
[x] Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
[] Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Total so far: 62 of 155

[] BASEketball
[] Hostel
[x] Waiting for Guffman
[] House of 1000 Corpses
[] Devils Rejects
[] Elf
[] Highlander
[] Mothman Prophecies
[x] American History X
[] Three

Total so Far: 64 of 161

[] The Jacket
[x] Kung Fu Hustle
[] Shaolin Soccer
[] Night Watch
[] Monsters Inc.
[] Titanic
[x] Monty Python and the Holy Grail
[x] Life of Brian
[x] Meaning of Life
[] Shaun Of the Dead
[] Willard (The original)

Total so far: 68 of 167

[] High Tension
[] Club Dread
[] Hulk
[] Dawn Of the Dead
[] Hook
[] Chronicles Of Narnia The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
[] 28 days later
[x] Orgazmo
[] Phantasm
[x] Waterworld

Total so far: 70 of 174

[x] Kill Bill vol 1
[x] Kill Bill vol 2
[] Mortal Kombat
[] Wolf Creek
[] Kingdom of Heaven
[] The Hills Have Eyes
[] I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
[] The Last House on the Left
[] Re-Animator
[] Army of Darkness

Total so far: 72 of 180

[x] Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
[x] Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
[x] Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
[x] Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
[x] Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
[x] Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
[x] Star Wars: The Clone Wars
[] Ewoks Caravan Of Courage
[] Ewoks The Battle For Endor

Total so far: 79 of 186

[x] The Matrix
[x] The Matrix Reloaded
[x] The Matrix Revolutions
[] Animatri
[] Evil Dead
[] Evil Dead 2
[] Team America: World Police
[] Red Dragon
[x] Silence of the Lambs
[] Hannibal

Total 83 of 195

Mr. Frost Goes to Washington

Halsey (Anne's brother) attended the signing of the SCHIP bill yesterday, and got to meet President Obama in a private reception in the green room.

Fortune Cookies: II

Be content with your lot. One cannot be first in everything.

After Receiving Bailout Money, Citigroup Buys new Jet

This is a bit of an old story, but Citigroup has decided to take delivery of a new Dassault Falcon jet so its executives can fly to Washington and ask for more taxpayer money. Citigroup claims that not taking delivery would have cost them millions...but they didn't turn around and sell the jet after taking delivery, did they?

Citigroup claims that it will save money by operating the new jet...because it's more fuel-efficient. I'll tell you what's more fuel-efficient and economical: commercial airlines. These bastards should be flying coach after getting TARP funds.

More Fraud from Lehman

It must be wonderful to be rich and connected. You get to fly around in private jets, screw the little people, and commit fraud without repercussion. Richard Fuld, who ran Lehman Brothers into the ground, is one of these people. Last month, he transferred his $20 million Florida mansion to his wife...for $100. Fuld might be trying to avoid having his mansion liquidated to pay for the many civil judgements he'll accrue in the coming months. And we let this guy run an investment bank?

Bailed-Out Merryl Gives Billions In Bonuses

It's unforgivable. An affront to society, to justice, and to Americans' trust in the integrity of financial markets. Merryl Lynch management, which drove the company into the ground (forcing an eventual federally-assisted acquisition by Bank of America), recipient of billions in federal aid and guarantees, accelerated its bonus schedule and doled out $4 billion to its executives at the end of 2008. That makes $15 billion in bonuses for 2008...a year that saw ML lose $25 billion. And much of that bonus money will be taxed as capital gains, rather than ordinary income...

I've often said that one of the main problems with America's version of capitalism is that it entails no risk for those at the top entrusted with making decisions. Pay packages for the CEOs of even mid-sized companies are large enough to make them comfortable for life, even if they perform poorly. This skews incentives...corporate "leaders" will take risks that others (employees, shareholders, and now the public) have to bear, in hopes of a gigantic payday. And sometimes, they get that payday even when they fail.

Change Is In the Air...Just Read It

President Obama's inaugural speech today was compelling, poignant, and hard-hitting. He gave no quarter for the policies of George W. Bush, and succinctly laid out the challenges and opportunities before this country. I was skeptical before hearing it, but the speech put me at ease in these troubled times. It's a speech that doesn't need to be dissected at this point, so here it is in its entirety:

---

My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. Those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers ... our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it)."

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

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