August, 2013 archive
Theft of Services 0
More on Republican efforts to gut public education in Philly.
Again, it’s not just in Philly, pholks.
Reverse Midas 0
Everyone who has been following Windows 8 saw this coming.
Pretty much everything Ballmer has touched from the Windows phone on has failed miserably, not just as technology, but as a commodity on the marketplace.
The world’s biggest software company did not name a successor.
Microsoft Corp.’s stock shot up 9 percent in premarket trading following the news.
Dulcet Tones 0
In which I talk to my LUG about HPR.
It’s the Data, Stupid 2
Interviewed on Radio Times, writer Mark Bowden says that what distinguishes today’s drones from yesterday’s model airplanes is not radio-controlled flight; it’s the data pipe.
From the website:
Follow the link to listen.
Whether or not you agree with some of his opinions, if you care about robotic death raining from the sky, you will find the discussion worth your while.
Break Time 0
Off to drink liberally.
Tumblr Tomfoolery 0
Loose lips sink ships get student banned from social media for five years.
That should work out well.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
More polite family time.
James Edwards’ 19-year-old daughter, Laurin, also is dead and his 51-year-old wife and 21-year-old son are in critical condition at a hospital this morning, according to county police homicide Lt. Andrew Schurman and the Allegheny County medical examiner’s office.
If the wife and kids had been armed, no doubt the family would be sitting in a circle singing “Kumbaya” at this very minute.
Town Hall Toons 0
Why are Republicans having all that Obamacare defund fun? It’s not just the windmills.
The panel gets to the politics of it towards the end of this discussion.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Be polite in the school cafeteria.
Shawn Pachucki with Shelby County Schools told WMCT that police were called to Westside Elementary School following a gunshot that happened in the cafeteria at around 7:30 a.m. Pachucki said that the child brought the gun to school in a backpack and it accidentally discharged.
If the other kids had been packing, they could have been polite right back.
Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go 0
Slight positive trend and one surprise:
The number of claims in the month ended Aug. 17 declined to 330,500 a week on average, the least since November 2007, a Labor Department report showed today in Washington. Compared with a week earlier, claims rose by 13,000 to 336,000, in line with the median forecast of 48 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
(snip)
The number of people continuing to receive jobless benefits increased by 29,000 to 3 million in the week ended Aug. 10. The continuing claims figure does not include the number of Americans receiving extended benefits under federal programs.
(snip)
Those who’ve used up their traditional benefits and are now collecting emergency and extended payments decreased by about 51,800 to 1.5 million in the week ended Aug. 3.
The surprise is that Bloomberg’s “experts” were in the ballpark.
Twits on Twitter 0
As far as I am concerned, any good that Oprah Winfrey has done is outweighed by her unleashing Dr. Phil on an unsuspecting world.
Failing Grade 0
Gian Gentile assesses the results of the Great and Glorious Patriotic War for a Lie in Iraq and its older cousin in Afghanistan.
During the American occupation in Iraq between 2003 and 2011, as many as 250,000 Iraqis died and 1.4 million were displaced. Nearly 5,000 members of the U.S. military were killed, with many thousands more suffering life-altering wounds.
Read the rest about how we and they were Bush-whacked.
Drinking Liberally Virginia Beach Tomorrow 0
Fun and fellowship for liberals. Join us and talk about anything in a relaxed atmosphere.
When: Thursday, August 22nd, 6 p.
Where:
Croc’s 19 Street Bistro
620 19th Street (Map)
More here.
Denial Is Not Just a River in Egypt 2
At Psychology Today Blogs, two psychologist try to understand America’s failure to face the reality of climate change and to what extent even thinking about the possibility thereof may have become a societal taboo.
A nugget:
Mary: One reason Americans don’t talk about this is because we don’t get good information. For twenty years now the culture has been mired in the least productive of all topics, which is “Do you believe in climate change?” It’s as if we were talking about whether or not we believe in extraterrestrials! Climate change is no more a matter of belief than microbes are a matter of belief — it’s an empirical fact based on evidence provided by international scientists.
Chilling Effects 0
Groklaw performed a major service to the community and the polity in reporting on and explaining the legal issues in the scurrilous SCO patent trolling suit.
“Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” 0
The resident curmudgeon at my local rag goes where I feared to (I guess that’s one of the perks of being a curmudgeon): Regency Wedlock.
