2007 archive
Frost on the Pumpkin 0
. . . er, Honda.
Brendan Writes a Letter (Updated and Kicked to the Top) 0
This Is Not Right 1
The return of Naderism:
The underlying fallacy of this idea is that we need more, not less partisanship.
It is time for people of good will to unite against those who undermine the Constitution of the United States of America, who sell the nation to the highest bidder, who defraud the electorate, who violate the ideals of the Founders, and who betray the blood shed by those who fought to make us free.
It is not time to compromise with them.
No Hub. Switch 0
I mentioned earlier that my server room hub died.
In looking to replace it, I’ve found that small hubs are apparently nowhere to be found.
They’ve been replaced by little switches. These are not the same as the industrial-strength switches you will find at a corporation. They are rather hubs with enough sense to know what came from where.
So I ended up with a switch and now the webserver and fileserver are both back on line.
The Peter Principle 0
I Am Not a Penn State Fan 1
Penn State alumni think that Happy Valley is the Only Place on Earth.
Sort of like Virginia Tech alumni, who think that Blacksburg, Va., is the only place on earth.
(Happy Valley and Blacksburg have something in common. They are both surrounded by miles and miles of not much of anything except mountains.)
Nevertheless, I hope Penn State wins the ball game tonight, because I am a Joe Paterno fan.
He is one of the few really classy coaches in American College Football.
I remember the first time I saw a Joe Paterno coached Penn State team in a bowl game. Orange Bowl, 1969, Penn State vs. Kansas. My brother and I sat up and watched it.
Kansas had a seven-point lead going into the final seconds of the game.
Penn State scored.
And went for a two point conversion. And this was back when the field goal was king and taking the safe choice was the common choice. Penn State went for two–almost unheard of in those days.
And made it.
After the game, the interviewers asked Joe Paterno why he had his team go for two. Now, I can’t remember his exact statement–it was many years ago. But it was something to the effect that
“Ties aren’t fun. This game should be fun.”
I hope Penn State wins tonight.
(If you don’t understand what “go for two” means, go here.)
(Link fixed. Thanks.)
Ethan Allen Did Not Make Furniture . . . 0
. . . despite what modern marketing may lead us to think.
He and his “Green Mountain Boys” fought for freedom.
Their spirit still lives in their home state:
“This petition is as radical as the Declaration of Independence, and it draws on that tradition in claiming a universal jurisdiction when governments fail to do what they’re supposed to do,” said Kurt Daims, 54, a retired machinist leading the drive.
Patrick Henry Is Crying 0
And Republicans cause him to cry.
Andrew Sullivan:
This is actually something like the consensus among most of the GOP candidates:
“Our most basic civil liberty is the right to be kept alive.”
It’s a very, very, very long way from “Give me liberty or give me death,”. . . .
The Republican Party, though, has shown that it doesn’t care about liberty.
It cares only about reducing taxes (for the rich, that is); making up wars; and making the rich richer, the poor poorer.
I guess Abraham Lincoln is crying right along with Patrick Henry.
Empty Suit 0
Sadly, McCain may be mostly sincere, but he is wedded to the failed policies of a failed president. But his ad is right on target.
Via Andrew Sullivan.
Ah, Truthiness 1
Of course, no one really knows what Mitt Romney believes, because he has more skins than a chameleon.
But, ya know, he makes stuff up real good. From Fact Check dot org:
Romney’s latest ad attacks McCain in New Hampshire with false and misleading claims:
- It claims McCain “voted to allow illegals to collect Social Security.” That’s untrue. Nobody who is in the country illegally could be paid any Social Security benefits under McCain’s immigration bill.
- It implies McCain supported “amnesty” for illegal immigrants. That word isn’t accurate. Illegal immigrants wouldn’t have received a blanket pardon under McCain’s bill. Instead, they would have had to pay thousands in penalties and fees to gain legal status. In fact, in 2005 Romney called McCain’s proposal “reasonable†and said it wasn’t amnesty.
- The ad says Romney “cut taxes” in Massachusetts. While he did cut some taxes – for example, enacting business tax credits – tax rates remained unchanged. Plus, Romney raised state revenues by hundreds of millions of dollars per year by increasing fees and closing corporate tax loopholes.
What an empty suit. Romney really doesn’t seem to believe in anything except that he deserves to be president. And he seems willing to believe in anything that would further that goal.
Because he looks good in a suit, I guess.
Remember, he used to be a consultant.
What is a consultant?
Someone who borrows your watch, tells you what time it is, and keeps the watch.
(And I’m no fan of McCain either, but, really, there’s plenty of facts to attack him with. No reason to make stuff up. But, then again, making stuff up is the Republican way.)
Election Round-Up 0
Josh Marshall:
Securitization 0
A long time ago, I wrote a long, wordy, rambling post on securitization and the real estate market.
Now comes Atrios, who summarizes the entire concept in just a few words.
New Car Fever 0
He must have been watching those annoying Toyotathon commercials about trying to find a reason to buy a new Toy Auto:
Richard Way Jr., 28, pushed the car down an embankment along Wopsy Mountain in Blair County last year, then reported it had been stolen from the parking lot of a hot dog restaurant, the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office said.
