WebTodd

Election Results

2006-11-10T11:27:00.000-08:00

It is possible you live in a cave and missed this, but here are the latest election results on CNN

The Democrats are still partying over this one.

Cindy Sheehan the communist

2006-07-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

It's official. Cindy Sheehan is a communist idiot.

10 x 10 in Hong Kong

2006-06-23T09:58:00.000-07:00

Photographer Michael Wolf took these pictures of residents in their flats in one of Hong Kong's oldest housing estates. Each of the 100 flats is 10 feet by 10 feet in size. 100 rooms, 100 square feet each. Pretty interesting pictures. I'll never complain my place is too small.

World Cup

2006-06-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

I got up early yesterday (early by my standards) to watch the USA get stomped by the Czechs in their first game of the 2006 World Cup. It was a horrible game - I'm not a true soccer fan by any means, but it seemed like the US had no mojo, and when Czech scored first about 5 minutes into the game they stole all the momentum. I hope the game this Saturday against Italy turns out better. One goal perhaps?

Violent Crime Rises

2006-06-12T20:14:00.000-07:00

why is everyone so pissed off lately? maybe because we're pissing away hundreds of billions of dollars in Iraq and still haven't caught Osama?

Valleywag

2006-06-06T12:12:00.000-07:00

If you are an internet dork like myself, I think you'll find Valleywag f-ing hilarious! You can find out about disturbing new technologies like stalkerati and where Larry Page just ate a burrito

Proposition 82

2006-06-01T14:32:00.000-07:00

"Given California's tax-happy political culture, it is no wonder the wealthy and the successful are leaving the state in droves. According to the Wall Street Journal, the number of Californians reporting million-dollar incomes plummeted from 44,000 in 2000 to 25,000 in 2003—at a cost of $9 billion in lost tax revenue. Even the stock market downturn after the "dot-com" bubble burst cannot account for such a dramatic decline. It is time policymakers finally learned the lesson of the early 1990s, when an increase in the top income tax rate to 11 percent elicited a mass migration of the wealthy to more friendly environs, precipitating a fiscal crisis. Less than a decade later, it appears California is intent on repeating that costly mistake."

Read Your Official Ballot Pamphlet Carefully and You Will See:

A $2.4 billion increase in taxes and spending only increases pre-school attendance by 4% under Prop 82!
Prop 82 provides for just 3 hours of pre-school a day!
Under Prop 82, just 3 hours of pre-school may cost as much as $8,000 per child.
Prop 82 lets the current Sacramento bureaucrats create a huge new expensive bureaucracy, then lets the politicians impose a new tax, a Parent Tax, when there is a cost overrun! A Parent Tax?

Kayak Blog

2006-05-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

Just found a new blog about kayaks, in case anyone is interested...

Last Post

2006-03-17T13:21:00.000-08:00

this is my last post for a while - i'm setting up a new blog on a new domain though, so check back in a few months for details...

UPDATE: I lied, I'll be posting here for a while longer

Tandem Rail Bike

2006-03-06T11:45:00.000-08:00

What's up Water

2006-02-10T12:34:00.000-08:00

AP:

Bottled water, a natural resource taxing the world's ecosystem
Feb 10 10:10 AM US/Eastern

Bottled water consumption, which has more than doubled globally in the last six years, is a natural resource that is heavily taxing the world's ecosystem, according to a new US study.

"Even in areas where tap water is safe to drink, demand for bottled water is increasing, producing unnecessary garbage and consuming vast quantities of energy," according to Emily Arnold, author of the study published by the Earth Policy Institute, a Washington-based environmental group.

Arnold said although in the industrial world bottled water is often no healthier than tap water, it can end up costing 10,000 times more.

"At as much as 2.50 dollars per liter (10 dollars per gallon), bottled water costs more than gasoline," the study says.

It added that the United States was the largest consumer of bottled water, with Americans drinking 26 billion liters in 2004, or about one eight-ounce (25 cl) glass per person every day.

Mexico was the second largest consumer at 18 billion liters followed by China and Brazil at 12 billion liters each.

In terms of consumption per person, Italians came first at nearly 184 liters, or more than two glasses a day, followed by Mexico and the United Arab Emirates with 169 and 164 liters per person respectively.

Belgium and France follow close behind and Spain ranks sixth.

The study said that demand for bottled water soared in developing countries between 1999 and 2004 with consumption tripling in India and more than doubling in China during that period.

That has translated into massive costs in packaging the water, usually in plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) which is derived from crude oil, and then transporting it by boat, train or on land.

"Making bottles to meet Americans' demand for bottled water requires more than 1.5 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel some 100,000 US cars for a year," according to the study. "Worldwide, some 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year."

Once the water is consumed, disposing the plastic bottles poses an environmental risk.

The study, citing the Container Recycling Institute, said that 86 percent of plastic water bottles in the United States end up as garbage and those buried can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade.

In addition, some 40 percent of the PET bottles deposited for recycling in the United States in 2004 ended up being shipped to China.

The study warned that the rapid growth in the industry has also ironically led to water shortages in some areas, including India where bottling of Dasani water and other drinks by the Coca-Cola company has caused shortages in more than 50 villages.

It said that while consumers tend to link bottled water with healthy living, tap water can be just as healthy and is subject to more stringent regulations than bottled water in many regions, including Europe and the United States.

"In fact, roughly 40 percent of bottled water begins as tap water," the study says. "Often the only difference is added minerals that have no marked health benefits.

Ignorance

2006-02-05T15:08:00.000-08:00

Movies To See

2006-01-31T11:10:00.000-08:00

78th annual Oscar nominations

1. Best Picture: "Brokeback Mountain," "Capote," "Crash," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Munich."

2. Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Capote"; Terrence Howard, "Hustle & Flow"; Heath Ledger, "Brokeback Mountain"; Joaquin Phoenix, "Walk the Line"; David Strathairn, "Good Night, and Good Luck."

3. Actress: Judi Dench, "Mrs. Henderson Presents"; Felicity Huffman, "Transamerica"; Keira Knightley, "Pride & Prejudice"; Charlize Theron, "North Country"; Reese Witherspoon, "Walk the Line."

4. Supporting Actor: George Clooney, "Syriana"; Matt Dillon, "Crash"; Paul Giamatti, "Cinderella Man"; Jake Gyllenhaal, "Brokeback Mountain"; William Hurt, "A History of Violence."

5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "Junebug"; Catherine Keener, "Capote"; Frances McDormand, "North Country"; Rachel Weisz, "The Constant Gardener"; Michelle Williams, "Brokeback Mountain."

6. Director: Ang Lee, "Brokeback Mountain"; Bennett Miller, "Capote"; Paul Haggis, "Crash"; George Clooney, "Good Night, and Good Luck."; Steven Spielberg, "Munich."

7. Foreign Film: "Don't Tell," Italy; "Joyeux Noel," France; "Paradise Now," Palestine; "Sophie Scholl - The Final Days," Germany; "Tsotsi," South Africa.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana, "Brokeback Mountain"; Dan Futterman, "Capote"; Jeffrey Caine, "The Constant Gardener"; Josh Olson, "A History of Violence"; Tony Kushner and Eric Roth, "Munich."

9. Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis & Bobby Moresco, "Crash"; George Clooney & Grant Heslov, "Good Night, and Good Luck."; Woody Allen, "Match Point"; Noah Baumbach, "The Squid and the Whale"; Stephen Gaghan, "Syriana."

10. Animated Feature Film: "Howl's Moving Castle"; "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride"; "Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit."

11. Art Direction: "Good Night, and Good Luck.," "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Pride & Prejudice."

12. Cinematography: "Batman Begins," "Brokeback Mountain," "Good Night, and Good Luck.," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "The New World."

13. Sound Mixing: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Walk the Line," "War of the Worlds."

14. Sound Editing: "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "War of the Worlds."

15. Original Score: "Brokeback Mountain," Gustavo Santaolalla; "The Constant Gardener," Alberto Iglesias; "Memoirs of a Geisha," John Williams; "Munich," John Williams; "Pride & Prejudice," Dario Marianelli.

16. Original Song: "In the Deep" from "Crash," Kathleen "Bird" York and Michael Becker; "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" from "Hustle & Flow," Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman and Paul Beauregard; "Travelin' Thru" from "Transamerica," Dolly Parton.

17. Costume: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Mrs. Henderson Presents," "Pride & Prejudice," "Walk the Line."

18. Documentary Feature: "Darwin's Nightmare," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," "March of the Penguins," "Murderball," "Street Fight."

19. Documentary (short subject): "The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club," "God Sleeps in Rwanda," "The Mushroom Club," "A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin."

20. Film Editing: "Cinderella Man," "The Constant Gardener," "Crash," "Munich," "Walk the Line."

21. Makeup: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "Cinderella Man," "Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith."

22. Animated Short Film: "Badgered," "The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation," "The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello," "9," "One Man Band."

23. Live Action Short Film: "Ausreisser (The Runaway)," "Cashback," "The Last Farm," "Our Time Is Up," "Six Shooter."

24. Visual Effects: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "War of the Worlds."

house worth big $? get a boat!

2006-01-30T16:19:00.000-08:00

2 articles I noticed today. One was in the LA Times about the LA boat show. I guess boat purchasing has been going nuts the past few years, as a result of people taking out a 2nd mortgage on their LA home that recently doubled in value. (this same type of thing is happening nationwide of course) Also, this AP article reports on how people are saving less... might want to invest that extra cash instead of blowing it on a boat?

--

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON

Americans are spending everything they're making and more, pushing the national savings rate to the lowest point since the Great Depression.

Soaring home prices apparently have convinced people they don't have to worry about saving, a belief that could be seriously tested as 78 million baby boomers begin to retire.

The Commerce Department reported Monday that Americans' personal savings fell into negative territory at minus 0.5 percent last year. That means that people not only spent all of their after-tax income last year but had to dip into previous savings or increase their borrowing.

The savings rate has been negative for an entire year only twice before _ in 1932 and 1933 _ two years when Americans were having to deplete savings to cope with the massive job layoffs and business failures caused by the Great Depression.

This time the reasons for the negative savings rate are vastly different. Americans are spending all their incomes and then some because they feel wealthier because of soaring value of their homes, which for many Americans is the largest investment they own.

But analysts cautioned that this behavior was risky at a time when 78 million Americans are on the verge of retirement. The baby boomers start turning 60 this year, which means they can begin retiring with Social Security in just two more years.

Analysts said with this huge wave of pending retirements, the savings rate should be going up rather than being on a steady decline over the past two decades. The savings rate stood at 10.8 percent of after-tax incomes in 1984 and has been declining steadily since that time. It was down to 1.8 percent in 2004 before turning negative last year.

"Americans seem to have the feeling that it is wimpish to save," said David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's in New York. "The idea is to put away money for old age and we are just not doing that."

Analysts said that not only rising home prices but a rebound in stock prices following the 2000 market collapse have many Americans feeling more wealthy, and that wealth effect is a major pillar supporting consumer spending.

"Americans have been content to spend a lot more than is good for them or for the economy," said Lyle Gramley, senior economic adviser at Schwab Washington Research Group.

After setting records for five straight years, sales of both existing and new homes are expected to decline this year under the impact of rising mortgage rates. The weaker sales will translate into slower price appreciation which in turn will slow consumer spending, analysts are forecasting.

That slowdown in spending should help the savings rate rise back into positive territory. But analysts are not expecting sizable improvements in savings, because as baby boomers begin to retire they will start tapping into their savings to pay for medical bills and other consumption.

The expected slowdown in consumer spending is one reason many economists are looking for overall economic growth to slow further this year. The gross domestic product grew 3.5 percent last year, down from a five-year high of 4.2 percent in 2004.

The Federal Reserve, trying to engineer a slowdown in growth that will keep inflation under control, is expected to boost rates for a 14th time at its Tuesday meeting.

A price gauge closely watched by the Fed that excludes food and energy rose by a tiny 0.1 percent in December, down from a 0.2 percent rise in November, the Commerce Department reported Monday.

For December, consumer spending rose by a bigger-than-expected 0.9 percent while incomes were up by just 0.4 percent. That forced the savings rate down for the month to a negative 0.7 percent.

A Picture of Google China Censorship

2006-01-30T12:21:00.000-08:00

Kayak Buzz

2006-01-29T20:53:00.000-08:00

This Kayak.com Buzz tool is worth checking out. That link should list/map current deals for LAX.

Google China

2006-01-27T12:24:00.000-08:00

Google will censor search results for the commies in China? Whats up with that?
Free Tibet maybe? Beer? Democracy? Not with Google.cn

Why America Has To Be Fat

2006-01-24T17:12:00.000-08:00

Is this guy high? What? Why America Has To Be Fat

Here’s a good rebuttal

This reminds me… I need to exercise more!

I do see his point that with a strong economy people can afford to be lazy and eat lots of food etc.. but is that what we should be doing? Do we have to do that?

This reminds me of a quote that goes something like: we spend all our time getting money, and then spend all our money getting our health

NY Times Earnings Plunge

2006-01-24T12:54:00.000-08:00

I posted last month how ridiculous I thought “TimesSelect” was over at NYTimes.com. Why am I not surprised by their earnings news today? There’s obviously some other factors, but I still think their site could be doing a whole lot better. (I gave up ever trying to read it)

White House Search Ad

2006-01-23T23:59:00.000-08:00

How to piss off George W: buy Google keyword for "white house" and run the below ad. (someone was doing this today)

Just Like Adolf Hitler
George W Bush
Is Spying On You!
whitehouse.gov

Parking Lot Con-Artists

2006-01-23T09:56:00.000-08:00

What’s up with me getting hassled in parking lots by con-artists? These aren’t your usual people asking for spare change, I’m talking about con-artists! The Costco I usually go to is famous for them (famous to me at least). One of the (obvious) cons is: someone approaches you in the parking lot with an empty gas can and asks you for $5 so they can fill-up their gas can to get home. I’ve gotten that one at least twice at the same Costco. Last Friday, on the way home from work, I went the that Costco and right when I step out of my car this lady rushes over to me with a stroller and rattles off her plea for money, explaining she has two kids and needs to feed them etc… The way she carried herself and explained her situation was so insincere it was obviously a con. Then, on Saturday, I was in an Expo parking lot and right as I get back to my car a lady stops her car behind me and asks for help. I thought she need directions or a flat-fixed or something, so I listened to her. She rattled off a story about how she got kicked out of her apartment and had to borrow a car from a friend to drive around and ask for money. Again, her story sounded so scripted and insincere it was probably a con. These people seem to frequent parking lots of stores with nice stuff (Expo), or stores that people often carry a lot of cash to (Costco). My point is: you never know who is a con and who isn’t… so if you really want to help people give your money to a reputable charity who can make sure your money is getting to the right place.

Google Video

2006-01-18T23:35:00.000-08:00

You can find the most random shit on Google Video. Here's a couple: mosh viet rap
You can also find interesting stuff, like Larry Page's recent keynote at CES

Maryland Wal-Mart Decision

2006-01-18T12:18:00.000-08:00

I totally agree with this article. The recent anti-Wal-Mart state measure in Maryland is idiotic. It’s bad for business, bad for consumers, bad for the state, and bad for the people of Maryland.

“The measure would require companies with more than 10,000 employees to spend at least 8% of their payroll on health benefits, or pay the balance into a state low-income health insurance fund”

Where did they come up with 8%? Did they draw that number out of a hat? I hope California doesn’t get any ideas.

Extreme Skipping

2006-01-18T10:58:00.000-08:00

This video is like freestyle walking, but it’s extreme skipping

Che Stormtrooper

2006-01-17T13:15:00.000-08:00

From boingboing…

---

This short video features a quick-cut montage of stickers bearing the notorious Imperial Stormtrooper-as-Che image, stuck in various urban places, or being held up by people, with a soundtrack comprised of a DJ-scratched version of Vader's Imperial March -- it's really slick! Link

Take my money!

2006-01-17T11:22:00.000-08:00

Man Robs Store With 'HIV-Infected' Syringe

POSTED: 11:35 am EST January 17, 2006

UPDATED: 11:38 am EST January 17, 2006

Police in Rockland, Mass., are searching for a man who robbed a liquor store with a needle and syringe he claimed was infected with HIV-infected blood.

Investigators said Vinay Patel, 29, owner of Station Liquors on East Water Street, said a man in a dark hooded sweatshirt walked into his store and threatened to stab him with the HIV-infected needle unless he handed over cash.

The man was videotaped lunging forward and threatening to stick Patel.

"It's the AIDS virus he said he had in the syringe," Patel said. "It looked like blood."

Patel handed over about $1,000 from the store's register and the man fled on foot.

"I wasn't expecting anything like this here," Patel said.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.

Rubik's Cube

2006-01-16T17:21:00.000-08:00

Ok, I don’t think I’ve ever spent more than a few minutes trying to solve a Rubik’s cube, but apparently there are people out there memorizing ways to solve it faster and faster? This guy did it in just over 11 seconds…

Should we cut

2006-01-10T11:00:00.000-08:00

This guy’s balls off! This is outrageous. A 12 week old!!

$600

2006-01-09T12:59:00.000-08:00

Rashtchy is confident enough in his calculations to raise his one-year price target for Google's stock from $445 to $600, which would give Google a market cap of about $175 billion, making it the fourth largest company on the Fortune 500, just behind WalMart, Exxon Mobil and General Motors.

Fountain

2006-01-06T09:52:00.000-08:00

What make a urinal art? Is this art?

The most influential modern art work of all time?

(now you comment on my blog and tell me what you think)

Louis Braille Google Logo

2006-01-04T09:52:00.000-08:00

Is Google's logo today clever or lame? I'm not sure...

Easy$

2006-01-03T15:16:00.000-08:00

Why didn’t I think of this? He’ll be imitated, but nobody will pull this off as easy and as profitable! It pays to be first… Here’s the site: million dollar homepage

Car Video

2005-12-27T23:25:00.000-08:00

Check out this car video
This thing is fast, watch it take off towards the end...

New York Times - Times Select

2005-12-22T09:11:00.000-08:00

I went to NYTimes.com today to get some news on the transit strike happening right now, and they want me to sign-up for "Times Select" to read the article? I get a 14 day free trial, and then I have to pay? NYTimes.com has been charging for access to most of their site for a while now, and it is an extremely poor business decision in my opinion. They should figure out how to monetize web traffic using advertising, email, etc... - not by charging to access the site. Now that they are charging, I'm sure they are gettin far fewer visitors/page-views and the net $ they are bringing in must be much less then it was and could be. My guess is they will eventually wake-up and make the accessing the site free again. Until they do, I'll be reading the countless other *free* news sites. Times Select, what a joke!

The U.K. gets even more communist

2005-12-21T17:02:00.000-08:00

Now they will track the movement of every car?

So much for any kind of privacy on the roads. Might as well install a chip in every baby and monitor their every movement…wait, I’m giving them ideas.

Patriot Act in action

2005-12-21T15:11:00.000-08:00

oh shit!

Agents' visit chills UMass Dartmouth senior
By AARON NICODEMUS, Standard-Times staff writer

NEW BEDFORD -- A senior at UMass Dartmouth was visited by federal agents two months ago, after he requested a copy of Mao Tse-Tung's tome on Communism called "The Little Red Book."
Two history professors at UMass Dartmouth, Brian Glyn Williams and Robert Pontbriand, said the student told them he requested the book through the UMass Dartmouth library's interlibrary loan program.
The student, who was completing a research paper on Communism for Professor Pontbriand's class on fascism and totalitarianism, filled out a form for the request, leaving his name, address, phone number and Social Security number. He was later visited at his parents' home in New Bedford by two agents of the Department of Homeland Security, the professors said.
The professors said the student was told by the agents that the book is on a "watch list," and that his background, which included significant time abroad, triggered them to investigate the student further.
"I tell my students to go to the direct source, and so he asked for the official Peking version of the book," Professor Pontbriand said. "Apparently, the Department of Homeland Security is monitoring inter-library loans, because that's what triggered the visit, as I understand it."
Although The Standard-Times knows the name of the student, he is not coming forward because he fears repercussions should his name become public. He has not spoken to The Standard-Times.
The professors had been asked to comment on a report that President Bush had authorized the National Security Agency to spy on as many as 500 people at any given time since 2002 in this country.
The eavesdropping was apparently done without warrants.
The Little Red Book, is a collection of quotations and speech excerpts from Chinese leader Mao Tse-Tung.
In the 1950s and '60s, during the Cultural Revolution in China, it was required reading. Although there are abridged versions available, the student asked for a version translated directly from the original book.
The student told Professor Pontbriand and Dr. Williams that the Homeland Security agents told him the book was on a "watch list." They brought the book with them, but did not leave it with the student, the professors said.
Dr. Williams said in his research, he regularly contacts people in Afghanistan, Chechnya and other Muslim hot spots, and suspects that some of his calls are monitored.
"My instinct is that there is a lot more monitoring than we think," he said.
Dr. Williams said he had been planning to offer a course on terrorism next semester, but is reconsidering, because it might put his students at risk.
"I shudder to think of all the students I've had monitoring al-Qaeda Web sites, what the government must think of that," he said. "Mao Tse-Tung is completely harmless."

Contact Aaron Nicodemus at anicodemus@s-t.com

This story appeared on Page A9 of The Standard-Times on December 17, 2005.

Slippers USB

2005-12-21T03:08:00.000-08:00

ever feel like you needed some slippers you could just plug right into your computer???

Albertson's

2005-12-21T02:41:00.000-08:00

Have you been in an Albertson's grocery store lately? they suck! Dirty stores, bad prices, long lines, etc... Wonder how their CEO is getting paid? What happened to paying for performance?
I saw this on MSN (yes, not sure why I was on MSN but I was)
--
Shares of supermarket chain Albertson's (ABS, news, msgs) fell 39% over the past four years. Despite this dismal record, Albertson’s CEO and Chairman Larry Johnston collected a total of $76.2 million in that time.

Google 2005 Zeitgeist

2005-12-21T02:22:00.000-08:00

The Google 2005 Zeitgeist is out - what the hell? A whole year of search data and this is the best they can do? I mean, there's a couple of cool things in there, but it look me less than 5 minutes to click through the whole deal. I prefer checking out the Yahoo Buzz Index

If you like these, here's a few more...

MSN Insider

Ask Jeeves

Lycos 50

Stalin and Saddam would have been drinking buddies

2005-12-20T13:49:00.000-08:00

Stalin's army of man-apes

Recently-uncovered documents in Moscow apparently reveal that Josef Stalin hoped to crossbreed humans and apes to create superwarriors. In 1926, animal breeding scientist Illya Ivanov was sent to Africa with $200,000 to begin the project while a laboratory was established in Georgia. After the project didn't pan out, Ivanov was exiled to Kazakhstan. From The Scotsman:

According to Moscow newspapers, Stalin told the scientist: "I want a new invincible human being, insensitive to pain, resistant and indifferent about the quality of food they eat..."

Mr Ivanov's experiments, unsurprisingly from what we now know, were a total failure. He returned to the Soviet Union, only to see experiments in Georgia to use monkey sperm in human volunteers similarly fail.

A final attempt to persuade a Cuban heiress to lend some of her monkeys for further experiments reached American ears, with the New York Times reporting on the story, and she dropped the idea amid the uproar.

Link

Buying your kid a webcam for Christmas?

2005-12-20T11:58:00.000-08:00

Check out this article – you might want to check-in on how they use it now and then.

Ebay Notice

2005-12-19T16:28:00.000-08:00

Another King Kong Review

2005-12-19T15:32:00.000-08:00

This is one of the funniest movie reviews I have ever read! I don’t know why, but I was dying when I read it. (probably because I already saw King Kong)

I’ll paste it here for those of you too lazy to click a link

If you’re lactose intolerant, make sure you stay away from the King Kong remake, because that thing is the among the cheesiest shit in movies that I have ever seen.

I don’t mean cheesy like a monkey climbing to the top of the Empire State Building either, I mean cheesy like the following:

King Kong ice skates in central park with girl.

I shit you not. When King Kong is reunited with Blondie What’s Her Name, he takes her on an escapade on ice in central park. Gay.

20 minutes of looking deep into monkey’s eyes.

Remember in every movie Chris Farley ever did how there would be like five extra minutes of looking at his face while he was making some dumpy kind of frumy face? Whoever directed King Kong, probably some newbie hack, decided that that worked for Chris Farley, so he just added four times as much of it. Seriously. If you see King Kong’s eyes come into frame, just go to the bathroom. You’ll be looking at those things for like another ten minutes.

I mean just go to the bathroom in your seat. Fuck it.

The brontosaurus stampede/gun-fight with shitty looking CGI raptors.

I wish I didn’t know what to say about this scene, except I do. Raptors only have one place in movies: Jurrassic Park. Anywhere else and we all know you’re just ripping them off from Jurrassic Park — because no one knew what a fucking raptor was before that. Dinosaurs weren’t smart and couldn’t open doors and shit before Jurrassic Park. In a dinosaur attack, you were safe as long as you didn’t do like cartwheels or glowstick rave dances.

In order to make his raptors look different than Jurrassic Park — and maybe trick us into not remembering who thought of what, Peter Jackson decided to make his CGI raptors look extra shitty; not just shitty — extra shitty. They look and behave more like the CGI Scooby Doo than anything I would call "realistic".

Also, The Lion King pulled off the stampede scene — straight out of the box. What we have here is a bunch of people running around like dicks in front of a green screen while the CGI nerds jizz all over each other seeing how many near misses they can compute with their mighty computing machines.

You CGI nerds fucking suck. Tone it the fuck down already.

And now we get to Jack Black — and I’m being totally serious here — stellar performance. But then everyone already knew that.

Toys For Tats

2005-12-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

Heard on the radio yesterday a tattoo shop in Van Nuys, CA was giving free $50 tattoos if you brought in a $20+ value toy for the toys-for-tots toy drive. Pretty cool.

Bubble?

2005-12-19T09:50:00.000-08:00

According to this table – LA is going to take its first major real estate hit in 2007. Vegas will take its next year. I don’t think any bubbles are popping, but it looks like the air is already being let out of the balloon in the US. But who knows, the real estate market has defied so many predictions over the past few years that the party could last a little longer…

Palos Verdes

2005-12-17T17:12:00.000-08:00

went for a motorcycle ride today in palos verdes... in all the craziness of LA it's nice to have places like this nearby to escape to. i think a lot of people give LA a bad rap, and don't even realize there is stuff like this here.

Pump and Dump

2005-12-16T13:29:00.000-08:00

Reminds me of that stock spam I get…

Motley Fool
Pump and Dump, Explained
Friday December 16, 10:03 am ET
By Motley Fool Staff

Pumping and dumping is the illegal act where someone buys shares in a company, hypes it to pump up the share price so that she profits, and then dumps her shares quickly, before they fall in value. Since this practice is usually done with small and volatile stocks, the pump-and-dumper's selling will likely contribute to the stock's rapid downfall.

This practice has flourished on the Internet, where unscrupulous folks have found it easy to pump up the stock prices of penny stocks. The SEC and others have gone after many pump-and-dumpers, so don't think of this as a new career possibility for yourself. (One famous case involved a 15-year-old.)

Our advice: Steer clear of penny stocks (those trading under $5 per share) and be wary of any hype that you might run across about small obscure companies you've never heard of.

King Kong

2005-12-16T10:05:00.000-08:00

I had very high expectations when I saw King Kong last night… which is always a bad thing going into a movie. All the critics have been going wild about it, so I guess I bought the hype. This was a good movie (I’d give it a B+, maybe an A-) but anytime I have any kind of expectation the movie doesn’t deliver like I thought it would. So here’s my advice: this movie is worth seeing, but go into it thinking it will be a pretty mediocre movie like “Troy” – then you’ll be impressed when it’s not! (wait, oops, too late, I already hyped it for you)

"you've got aids!"

2005-12-15T16:03:00.000-08:00

This has been making a splash all over the news today. Why am I not surprised LA/SF like this idea?

Software Advertising

2005-12-14T16:34:00.000-08:00

Imagine Microsoft giving away free versions of Microsoft Office and making more $ on ad rev than license rev? I don't think Google is that far away from releasing software that competes with Microsoft's bread-and-butter products like Office – and might be fully ad-supported, and free to use. (or even have no ads while in beta) Imagine if Google's software is superior to Microsoft's, and free! What about a free Google operating system?

Free Milkshakes

2005-12-14T11:02:00.000-08:00

Wow, this guy is going through a lot of trouble for some free shakes and tacos

brass nuckle implants

2005-12-13T23:38:00.000-08:00

brass nuckle implants anyone? what??

saw this on boingboing

You'd have to pay me to use MSN Search

2005-12-13T09:12:00.000-08:00

Marketing Execs Lukewarm On Plan To Pay Searchers by Shankar Gupta, Tuesday, Dec 13, 2005 6:00 AM EST

MARKETING EXECUTIVES SAID THEY ARE wary of Microsoft's tentative plan to reimburse online users for using MSN Search to conduct searches, fearing that it will dilute the value of being associated with MSN and attract a lower-value audience. The plan was put forward by Bill Gates at a conference in India last week. Speaking to an audience of Microsoft partners, Gates reportedly said that the company intends to reward users of its search engines with money, free content, or software.

But some search marketers told OnlineMediaDaily they were skeptical of the plan. "From the marketer's perspective, it raises a bit of a red flag any time you have to incentivize users to use your service," said Bryan Weiner, CEO of search engine marketing firm 360i. "We would have to get a real understanding of whether people were using the service because it was delivering the best value."

Weiner said that although higher traffic would help Microsoft's search ad product from a direct response standpoint, it would dilute the value that companies see from having their products associated with a good brand name. "On a direct response level, as long as they were not incentivizing the click, it would be good news," he said. "But I think paying users to use your service would stunt the growth of their branding argument--if you're a marketer, you want to be with the big brands because they're a good association with your brand."

Peter Hershberg, a managing partner at search engine marketing firm Reprise Media, added that attracting users with incentive programs is of little use, since few users would change their preferred search engines because of the program, and many of those who would are not the kind of consumers that advertisers seek. "There's some percentage of users that would, but I don't think that those are the users that MSN is going to build a profitable business off of, and I don't think those are the users that MSN is looking to attract," he said.

Hershberg also noted that other search engines have, in the past, offered to pay users to search with them, and have met with limited success. "We should also be cognizant of the fact that this isn't the first time we've seen this before--I don't think advertisers were dying to get in front of I-Won," he said. "AllAdvantage's model was a bit of a failure." I-Won and AllAdvantage are both search engines that have offered their users rewards--cash or gifts--to use the service.

Hershberg said that MSN is probably considering the model to close the gap between their service and that of current market leader, Google--but ultimately, only a better product will win that battle. "As far as Microsoft is concerned, everything is on the table in terms of cutting into Google's market share," he said.

"If MSN is in fact considering going down this path, they might be putting the cart before the horse. They should be having this discussion when they build a product that's either in line with or better than Google's."

As of October, Google accounted for 39 percent of search traffic--while Yahoo! was responsible for 29 percent and MSN accounted for just 15 percent, according to comScore Networks.

Death Penalty

2005-12-12T21:48:00.000-08:00

With all this Tookie stuff goin on....
For the record, I'm anti death penalty - for a number of reasons. I could write 10 pages on why I'm against it, but I'll sum it up with a few bullet points.

It's irreversable punishment. DNA evidence can get the wrongly convicted out of jail, but it can't bring them back to life. Killing someone "on accident" is inexcusable.
Violence causes violence. I don't think you teach society it is wrong to kill by killing. I wouldn't tell a child it is wrong to punch people, and then prove my point by punching them in the face. It makes no sense to me.
It's expensive. I don't have the numbers handy, but I know that the cost of each death penalty case costs several times more than a life in prison. Most of the cost lies in the countless appeals, sick politics, etc.. Texas has tried to cut through some of that nonsense and kill people quickly, but I don't think they are saving themselves any money over life imprisonment.
Sitting in misery in a 6 foot concrete cell is better punishment than death. Lock them up and throw away the key. Slide a tray of food under the door a couple of times and that's about it. No trips to the gym, no coffee, no visits by family, nothing. If they are a murderer, there is no chance of redemption in my opinion. I suppose they should be treated humanely enough to retain sanity in the event they were actually wrongly convicted. If you plan on driving an inmate to insanity you might as well just kill him.

Now with Tookie, I find it hilarious that so many people are questioning his innocence? I've read a lot of info about the case, and they had very solid cases on him in both trials. I agree he's guilty, and I don't care that he's written some poor quality books. He should stay in prison for life, and shouldn't be getting all this attention/praise. He is a murderer, and was a notorious thug in Los Angeles who contributed to forming the gang culture that plagues huge areas of Los Angeles today. Once you kill, you are always a killer.

Remember that thing called Friendster?

2005-12-12T17:08:00.000-08:00

Neither do I. Myspace left them in the dust, and continues its charge. Murdoch got such a deal on this one. It’s amazing how fast a company like this can pop-up, become ridiculously popular, sell for nearly 600 million - and the founder is probably left feeling he sold it too cheap. It’s just crazy. (Google is way crazier)

audiblogger from last night didn't work

2005-12-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

had a funny call to this blog last night, but it didn't work/post? (sorry joanne)
hopefully i'll figure this thing out

Calling My Blog

2005-12-10T12:44:00.000-08:00

A couple posts back, I tested audioblogger - which lets me call a phone number, enter my password, and record a message - then seconds later it is posted to my blog. This is a really cool feature, and I could see myself using it on a long road trip or if I was away from a computer for a long time. I've seen some truck driver blogs that make use of audioblogger, which makes total sense because they get bored on the road and love to yap into a phone or radio or whatever. Now that I'm using audioblogger, I can actually drunk-dial my blog... this is scary. So, stay tuned for some 2am posts (I hope not)

Tookie

2005-12-09T16:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, this Tookie news coverage is getting excessive!

Sent This From My Cell Phone - Crazy

2005-12-09T16:12:00.000-08:00

Bush on global warming

2005-12-09T15:06:00.000-08:00

Check this clip of Will Ferrell doing W

116 Years

2005-12-09T11:23:00.000-08:00

By Tim Castle

LONDON (Reuters) - A 116-year-old Ecuadorean woman was declared the oldest person in the world on Friday, lifting the title from a U.S. woman previously thought to be the oldest person alive, Guinness World Records said.

Maria Esther Capovilla was confirmed as the oldest living person after her family sent details of her birth and marriage certificates to Guinness World Records.

"We only told her yesterday she was the new Guinness world record holder," Kate White, brand manager at the records publisher told Reuters. "We hadn't heard of her before."

"She's in very good health, she's got good sight, is able to read the papers and watch television, and doesn't walk with a stick," White added.

Capovilla was born in Guayaqull in western Ecuador on September 14, 1889, and lives there today with her daughter-in-law and son.

She had five children, and has four grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

Her husband died in 1949.

White said Capovilla had been asked what she thought about the changes she had seen over her life.

"She said she disliked the fact that presently it's acceptable for women to pursue men. And she said that every day she thanks God that she's alive," White said.

As a girl at the turn of the century one of Capovilla's favorite pastimes was going to parties, where she never drank alcohol.

At the time it was the custom for women just to touch the rim of the glass with their lips without drinking, as a sign of accepting hospitality, her family told Guinness World Records. Continued ...

© Reuters 2005. All Rights Reserved.

Kill Bill's Browser

2005-12-09T09:08:00.000-08:00

If you still use IE, you might want to check out this site

Office Space Quote

2005-12-08T17:05:00.000-08:00

Peter Gibbons: What would you do if you had a million dollars?
Lawrence: I'll tell you what I'd do, man, two chicks at the same time, man.
Peter Gibbons: That's it? If you had a million dollars, you'd do two chicks at the same time?
Lawrence: Damn straight. I always wanted to do that, man. And I think if I had a million dollars I could hook that up, cause chicks dig a dude with money.
Peter Gibbons: Well, not all chicks.
Lawrence: Well the kind of chicks that'd double up on a dude like me do.
Peter Gibbons: Good point.
Lawrence: Well what about you now? what would you do?
Peter Gibbons: Besides two chicks at the same time?
Lawrence: Well yeah.
Peter Gibbons: Nothing.
Lawrence: Nothing, huh?
Peter Gibbons: I'd relax, I would sit on my ass all day, I would do nothing.
Lawrence: Well you don't need a million dollars to do nothing, man. Just take a look at my cousin, he's broke, don't do shit.

Working For The Man

2005-12-08T12:17:00.000-08:00

OMAHA, NE—A report released Monday by the Omaha-based public-interest group Aurora indicates that increasing numbers of Americans are being defrauded by schemes that offer financial reward for a lifetime of hard work. "People don't realize that long-term savings and loyalty to one company don't pan out," said Sylvia Girouard, the study's author. Girouard added that steady employment which claims to offer long-term financial gain in the form of a pension plan is nothing more than an elaborate Ponzi scheme.

Call Companies - Talk to Humans

2005-12-07T13:55:00.000-08:00

Here’s a cheat sheet to actually get a human on the phone (fast) when you call your bank, or whatever

GOONIES!!!

2005-12-06T21:43:00.000-08:00

ninecommentaries.com

2005-12-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

I came across this ninecommentaries.com site, apparently run by The Epoch Times

This reminds me how messed-up it is that Google News BANS The Epoch Times in China "don't be evil" - remember Google?

Matrix Ping Pong

2005-12-06T21:06:00.000-08:00

Some random matrix ping pong video

CA Bar Too Hard?

2005-12-06T16:50:00.000-08:00

Is the California Bar too hard? Naaa, too many lawyers anyway! ha ha

"Maxcy Dean Filer, who may hold the California bar endurance record, having passed in 1991 after 47 unsuccessful tries."

Wow, anyone who attempts to pass any test that many times almost deserves to pass, just on persistence!

Stripping For Rose Bowl Tickets

2005-12-06T15:27:00.000-08:00

25yr old CSULB female student needs rose bowl tixs

Reply to: anon-116215393@craigslist.org
Date: 2005-12-06, 10:16AM

I'm a young 25 year old Long Beach student that needs two tickets to the big game (any seats).....I'm willing to offer some private serivces if we can work something out.......maybe a private strip show..or something...please contact me.....

Original URL: http://losangeles.craigslist.org/tix/116215393.html
------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------

Pie Bill Gates

2005-12-05T19:45:00.000-08:00

In case you missed this classic video, here's Bill Gates getting it in the face

Pic From Mazatlan

2005-12-04T21:50:00.000-08:00

Took this on on the beach near El Centro

Zip Code Boundary Map

2005-12-02T08:32:00.000-08:00

This zip code boundary map is an interesting google maps mashup I saw today. Looks like something very useful to anyone looking at real estate, or trying to slice and dice maps for whatever reason.

Roomba

2005-12-02T08:17:00.000-08:00

From iRobot: "Roomba is an intelligent and effective vacuuming robot. All Roomba Vacuuming Robots feature iRobot’s unique AWARE™ Robot Intelligence Systems. AWARE uses dozens of sensors to monitor Roomba’s environment, and adjusts Roomba’s behavior up to 67 times per second, ensuring that Roomba cleans effectively, intelligently and safely."

I hate cleaning... this is perfect.

Safe Obelisk

2005-12-02T08:15:00.000-08:00

The Obelisk of Buenos Aires is covered with a giant condom to commemorate World AIDS Day December 1, 2005.

Mazatlan

2005-12-02T00:01:00.000-08:00

I'm off to Mazatlan tomorrow. I don't even want to talk about all the bad things that happened the last time I was in Mexico. Lets hope I have better luck this time around.

Bad Credit

2005-12-01T14:29:00.000-08:00

You know you have bad credit when you have one of these installed in your car.

Penguin Movie

2005-11-30T17:50:00.000-08:00

Watched a little penguin movie last night. I had no idea penguins could swim down thousands of feet holding their breath for 15 minutes? What are they, whales? I recommend the movie (March of The Penguins) - really cool if you’re into national geographic type stuff. I’m sometimes afraid of G-rated flicks, but this one is worthwhile.

Good Advice

2005-11-29T14:02:00.000-08:00

Warren Buffett

Chairman and CEO, Berkshire Hathaway

“When you get out of bed in the morning and think about what you want to do that day, ask yourself whether you'd like others to read about it on the front page of tomorrow's newspaper. You'll probably do things a little differently if you keep that in mind.”

Stock Spam

2005-11-28T16:44:00.000-08:00

---
I checked my spam box today, and decided to read one my latest spam emails. This one was promoting Remington Ventures - A random OTC stock some guy in a "boiler room" type operation is probably getting rich on. I noticed it was up 116%+ today. Stock hype is nothing new: being able to pump a stock on pure PR and hype is an old trick, but the internet takes it to the next level. I really wish law enforcement would crush these spammers! Above is what was in the email.

Buck the Animated, Singing Trophy Deer

2005-11-28T12:58:00.000-08:00

At last, A Christmas gift anyone would love.

Buck the Animated, Singing Trophy Deer

A whitetail deer with a 10-point symmetrical rack
His ears twitch, his head moves up and down and side to side, and his mouth moves in synchromotion to six songs, 12 sayings or your voice
Songs include: "Rawhide," "Sweet Home Alabama," "Friends in Low Places," "Suspicious Minds," "On the Road Again" and "La Grange"
Mounts on any wall — in the home, vacation house, office, restaurant, bar or game room
Remote control and microphone included (batteries not included)
Mounts to any wall
Also available in Wal-Mart stores
Model No. 36155

$500 Google

2005-11-27T23:53:00.000-08:00

I keep hearing that Google is on track to $500+/share. While I believe this is a strong possibility, and I'm a believer in a healthy financial future for Google - the price is just going up too fast and too quickly. Maybe Google deserves its current $126+ billion market cap, but probably not today. I just can't invest in this stock that is being driven up by lunatic investors - many of whom seem to be banking on eachother's irrational enthusiasm about the stock. Or, quite possibily, I'll laugh at this post in 10 years when I'm using a Google operating system on my new Google PC wishing I had made a meaningful investment in Google back when it was "cheap".

Stella!

2005-11-22T09:20:00.000-08:00

San Francisco Election

2005-11-21T10:45:00.000-08:00

SF passed Proposition H making it illegal for city residents to own handguns (this is only temporary in my opinion; it will get reversed by the courts). Have they read the constitution? Right to bear arms? Taking guns away from law abiding citizens will make SF safer? They think criminals will turn in their already illegally owned handguns? Have they seen what happened to crime after gun bans in DC, South Africa, and Australia, to name a few?

And what about Proposition I - opposing military recruitment? Are they kidding? I guess when the next huge earthquake, fire, or terrorist attack hits San Francisco they won’t be needing any military assistance.

2006 BMW M5

2005-11-21T10:35:00.000-08:00

2006 BMW M5

V10, 500hp, this thing is nasty. The Germans really need to remove that lame 155mph governor though.

Fake Dates

2005-11-18T12:12:00.000-08:00

Looks like their little plan at Match.com backfired…

By Martha Graybow

NEW YORK, Nov 18 (Reuters) - It's not easy finding love in cyberspace, and now some frustrated online daters say they were victims of fraud by two top Internet matchmaking services and have taken their complaints to court.

Match.com, a unit of IAC/Interactive Corp. (IACI.O: Quote, Profile, Research), is accused in a federal lawsuit of goading members into renewing their subscriptions through bogus romantic e-mails sent out by company employees. In some instances, the suit contends, people on the Match payroll even went on sham dates with subscribers as a marketing ploy.

"This is a grossly fraudulent practice that Match.com is engaged in," said H. Scott Leviant, a lawyer at Los Angeles law firm Arias, Ozzello & Gignac LLP, which brought the suit.

Match "promotes the policies of integrity to protect members, and yet they themselves, we allege, are misleading their entire customer base," he said.

The company said it does not comment on pending litigation. But Match spokeswoman Kristin Kelly said the company "absolutely does not" employ people to go on dates with subscribers or to send members misleading e-mails professing romantic interest. The company has about 15 million members worldwide and 250 employees, she said.

In a separate suit, Yahoo Inc.'s (YHOO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) personals service is accused of posting profiles of fictitious potential dating partners on its Web site to make it look as though many more singles subscribe to the service than actually do.

Yahoo did respond to requests for comment.

The suits, which both seek class-action status, came as growth in the online dating industry has slowed, although Web matchmaking still remains a big business.

U.S. consumers spent $245.2 million on online personals and dating services in the first half of 2005, up 7.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the Online Publishers Association. That's a slower growth rate compared with several years ago.

At the same time, competition among online dating services is fierce, with some sites offering newfangled features such as extensive compatibility surveys to match up people with similar temperaments and outlooks.

ALLEGATIONS OF 'DATE BAIT'

The Match lawsuit was filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles by plaintiff Matthew Evans, who contends he went out with a woman he met through the site who turned out to be nothing more than "date bait" working for the company.

The relationship went nowhere, according to his suit. Evans says Match set up the date for him because it wanted to keep him from pulling the plug on his subscription and was hoping he'd tell other potential members about the attractive woman he met through the service, according to Leviant.

His lawyers said Evans, of Orange County, California, was not available to comment, but described him as a working professional in his 30s.

Leviant said his client found out about the alleged scam after the woman he dated confessed she was employed by Match. The lawsuit also claims the company violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act, a law best known for being used in prosecuting organized crime.

The Yahoo suit was filed last month by Robert Anthony, of Broward County, Florida. The suit, brought in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California, accuses the company of breach of contract, fraud and unfair trade practices.

Anthony's lawyer, Peter McNulty of the McNulty Law Firm in Bel Air, California, did not respond to requests for comment.

Random USA Facts

2005-11-18T09:39:00.000-08:00

Land area

9,161,923 sq km

Population

293.7m (July 2004, Census Bureau estimate)

Main urban centres (incl suburbs)

Population in millions (2000 census)

New York 17.8

Los Angeles 11.8

Chicago 8.3

Washington-Baltimore 7.0

Philadelphia 5.1

Miami 4.9

Dallas-Fort Worth 4.1

Boston 4.0

Detroit 3.9

Houston 3.8

Climate

Mainly temperate; subtropical in the South

Weather in Washington DC (altitude 22 metres)

Hottest month, July, 21-31°C; coldest month, January, –3-6°C; driest month, February, 69 mm average rainfall; wettest month, August, 99 mm average rainfall

Language

English

Measures

Previous UK (imperial) system except

US gallon = 0.833 UK gallon

US bushel = 0.969 UK bushel

US short ton = 2,000 lb

Currency

Dollar (US$)=100 cents. Average exchange rates in 2004: ¥108:US$1; US$1.24:€1; US$1.83:£1; C$1.30:US$1. Average exchange rates on July 14th 2005: ¥112.1:US$1; US$1.21:€1; US$1.76:£1; C$1.21:US$1

Time

Hours behind GMT

Eastern zone 5

Central zone 6

Mountain zone 7

Pacific zone 8

Hawaii 10

Fiscal year

October 1st to September 30th

SOURCE: Country Profile

California Loses Nissan

2005-11-17T11:15:00.000-08:00

This kind of news drives me crazy. Companies are fleeing the state like crazy to avoid the oppressive business environment in California. Not only are they leaving, many companies that would have otherwise been formed in California are starting up in other states. See how keeping taxes low can bring in more tax revenue? I know, it’s hard for some of those on the far left to comprehend, but in this specific example Tennessee will now happily collect all the tax and real estate revenues from Nissan North America. These are tax revenues that could have stayed right here in sunny California. Do you think the people at Nissan really want to live in Tennessee? Tennessee will also get a huge influx of highly educated people to add to their state, not to mention the fact that other companies will likely follow suit and pack their bags for Tennessee. The benefit to Tennessee is tremendous. Where I think Nissan takes a gamble is in their ability to recruit future employees, and to replace those that were lost in the move. I’m guessing they’ll have some extra money to pay in salary, since they’re saving so much in taxes, not to mention the cost of living is so much lower there – I think Nissan will do just fine.

Space Hoax

2005-11-17T09:51:00.000-08:00

I really hope I wouldn’t fall for this one

I wouldn’t be surprised if they pull it off though

Bartender Robot

2005-11-16T12:37:00.000-08:00

I just hope he makes ‘em stiff - robot

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Reports

2005-11-15T13:23:00.000-08:00

Thought I would post a link to these – some excellent free information. If you haven’t ever read one, you should check it out. Warren Buffet places huge value on the information that goes into an annual report; notice there is no “fluff” or fancy logos etc.. – just real numbers and information you can use (even if you can’t afford even 1 share of Berkshire stock)

Corvette Z06

2005-11-11T08:25:00.000-08:00

This new Corvette Z06 is amazing. Whether or not you like corvette’s you have to appreciate the fact that this thing could beat most exotics on the road, and does it for about $70k. This car could literally beat a lot of exotics in the $200k-$400k range. For me, the really amazing thing about this car is that it somehow avoids the gas guzzler tax, even with its 505 horsepower 7.0 liter V8.

24 million

2005-11-10T17:36:00.000-08:00

Saw this on drudgereport today – why would anyone pay this kind of money for this? I’m obviously not an art investor, but maybe this could possibly be a good investment? I don’t know, I’d rather have a few hundred of these instead, or maybe thousands and thousands of inverted Christmas trees.

California Special Election Results

2005-11-09T14:12:00.000-08:00

Results here

I don’t get it? People vote to recall Davis, but when it’s time for real reform they fall for the lame tv ads and vote no on everything?

It’s unfortunate 75 & 77 did not pass. Better luck next time Arnold.

Oil Profits

2005-11-09T14:01:00.000-08:00

Lee Raymond, chairman of Exxon Mobil Corp. is feeling good about the $10+ billion his company made last quarter.

Hermosa Beach Election Info

2005-11-01T11:29:00.000-08:00

If you live in Hermosa and don’t know who to vote for city council, maybe this will help. I haven’t got a clue right now.

Free Mammograms

2005-10-29T17:38:00.000-07:00

A guy was giving free mammograms at the halloween party I was at last night - very generous of him don't you think?

Dolphin Dog Pic

2005-10-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Wilma

2005-10-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

Wow! The most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded? Mother nature is pissed!!!

Looks like I'll be I might be donating again...

North Korea Business Trip

2005-10-18T13:21:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I like to check out North Korea's web site, mostly for comedy relief. Is anyone interested in the business trip to North Korea they are promoting? Didn't think so. You know, for communist propoganda, this site really sucks! You hear that Kim Jong-il?