September, 2014 archive
American Taliban 0
Ducks of a feather.
“Deliverance Dragnet” 0
Daniel Ruth finds Waldo.
Full disclosure:
I’ve been through Waldo on the train. I don’t remember noticing it.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
School yourself with politeness.
Intelligence is not a job requirement for a teacher at ISU.
Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go 0
No change for all practical purposes:
(snip)
The number of people continuing to receive jobless benefits dropped by 64,000 to 2.46 million in the week ended Aug. 23, the fewest since June 2007. The unemployment rate among people eligible for benefits held at 1.9 percent during that period, today’s report showed.
Twits on Twitter 0
I was disappointed that the Wil Wheaton Project won’t be coming back. The 10-show “season” started slow, but I generally got at least one good laugh and several chuckles from each episode. If you DVRed it and zipped the commercials, it was a nice 20-minute break.
I found it an amusing way to keep up with geek froth, such as over-produced CGI science fiction movies I would never waste my time to see and games I have no interest in playing.
Facebook Frolics, Autoplay Is Evil Dept. 0
Really, it is.
Smartphone users are at risk of maxing out their data plans if they don’t change this default setting in the Facebook app, which otherwise will automatically start streaming videos in the News Feed window.
The Pachyderm in the Parlor 0
Sam Seder and Cliff Schecter discuss those who would exacerbate racial divides, rather than heal them.
Who Do That Voodoo Economics 0
Leonard Pitts, Jr., considers whether Republican economic theory is a spell or a curse. A nugget:
Yet, every election season the party nevertheless makes those claims. It will surely do so again this fall. So it seems fair to ask: Where are the numbers that support the assertion? Why is Texas only middling in terms of per capita income? Why is Mississippi not a roaring engine of economic growth? How are liberal Connecticut and Massachusetts doing so well?
Read the rest.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Don’t drive defensively. Drive politely.
One person was killed and another is in police custody. Police say a 43-year-old driver got out of his vehicle and approached the driver of a pickup truck, who is accused of shooting and killing the 43-year-old man.
Make TWUUG Your LUG 0
Learn about the wonderful world of free and open source. Learn how to use computers to do what you want, not what someone else wants you to do.
It’s not hard; it’s just different.
What: Monthly TWUUG Meeting.
Who: Everyone in TideWater/Hampton Roads with interest in any/all flavors of Unix/Linux. There are no dues or signup requirements. All are welcome.
Where: Lake Taylor Transitional Care Hospital in Norfolk Training Room. See directions below. (Wireless and wired internet connection available.) Turn right upon entering, then left at the last corridor and look for the open meeting room.
When: 7:30 PM till whenever (usually 9:30ish) on Thursday, September 4.
Directions:
Lake Taylor Hospital
1309 Kempsville Road
Norfolk, Va. 23502 (Map)
Pre-Meeting Dinner at 6:00 PM (separate checks)
Uno Chicago Grill
Virginia Beach Blvd. & Military Highway (Janaf Shopping Center). (Map)
War and Mongers of War 0
Dan Simpson advances a number of reasons why he considers military “intervention” against ISIS to be an extremely bad idea. The entire column is worth a look; here’s a snippet on the domestic pro-another-war bunch:
The U.S. companies that make money off wars, such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics and Raytheon, would of course favor another war with more sales of aircraft, drones, rockets and fuel to wage such a war.
Other Capitol elements favoring war include the Israel lobby, which wants to see American public concern diverted from what Israel is doing in Gaza and from pressing it for renewed negotiations with the Palestinians over the future of the Israel-Palestine territory. American forces fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria would serve as useful distraction in that regard from the point of view of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and his American supporters.
Also favoring increased U.S. military intervention in Iraq and Syria would be the usual mindless warmongers such as Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina . . . .
