JOBSEARCH: a job without an interview

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

http://www.ere.net/articles/db/3D129B2B49624023B18453BAFF93EF41.asp

Blow The Sucker Up?
Challenging our assumptions on finding, enticing, and hiring talent
Thursday, July 12, 2007 | by Kevin Wheeler

***Begin Quote***

Assumption #4: Each candidate has to be interviewed in person. Interviews are very poor predictors of success or performance. A good behavioral interview may improve the prediction by a bit but still not raise it much above chance. While it is in human nature to want to meet and like a person we are going to work with, this meeting should not be equated with skill or ability assessment. There are hundreds of excellent, legal, affordable tests available for more accurately screening candidates. These tools, combined with a website also designed as a screening tool, can greatly improve your ability to select candidates who have the capability, the motivation, and the skills to perform. It is possible to entirely skip the interview and get better-quality candidates than you do today.

***End Quote***

That’s a stunning concept. Get a job without an interview. That could be web-able!

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Posted by reinkefj

JOBSEARCH: Be prepared to “Follow Up”

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

http://www.net-temps.com/adcgi/banner.cgi?ref=crnews&ch=2520&id=crs_2520

Here’s a Powerful Little Job Search Secret
© Written By Jimmy Sweeney
President of CareerJimmy and Author of the new, www.Amazing-Cover-Letters.com

***Begin Quote***

There are two magical words that can transform your job search. Two words that can land you more job interviews. Two words that can bring you more job offers…

Those two magical words are, “Follow up.”

***End Quote***

My added wisdom to this tip is that you just don’t just “follow up”.

You have to have the paradigm of “follow up” well integrated into your Standard Operating Procedure. When I was “out”, I used Lucht and his workbook as ONE of my tools. (Best 100$ I ever spent.) But, it was changes to my SOP that made it easy to “follow up”. And a log book.

I feel that I have a terrible memory. (It’s probably too crowded with Jeopardy answers from my own good. Name the four states who capital begins with the same first letter as the state? Done!) SO I try to compensate. I was always logging in my “job search book”. Quick what’s the name of the receptionist at the job interview at XXXXXXX on July 17, 1996. Ms. Mary Stein. (I cheated I had that factoid ready.) But, I have decades of that kind of stuff from when I’ve been “out”.

Now I have everything in text files on my notebook, backed up offline. It’s search able and usable.

My SOP is to log everything.

I grabbed business cards and anything that was being handed out. See the trick was to do it contemporaneously. Even waiting until you were out of the building was too late. I used McKay’s 66 to put as much context around the people. Ms Stein was partial to blue flowers having one on her desk and was pictured with one in a photo on her desk.

Does it matter in the grand scheme of things? I don’t know.

Another SOP of mine was to have several pre-stamped thank yous in my attache case. After meeting with any one, I’d “debrief” at a local coffee shop and write those notes. I felt I was especially tricky in that I had different looking ones for multiple interview days. (I actually had five different stock styles.) And, I would compose a “unique” note to each target. I had “stock text” printing in my bag that I copied from generics with things like <insert question form interview here>. But each target would get a customized thank you. In at least one instance, I know that the three targets compared their notes. I didn’t get the job, but did get the feed back that they were impressed. Not impressed enough though to hire me. Argh!

It’s all about having an SOP to follow. Makes it easy.

Another SOP was to send a thank you to the receptionist with something non-generic. On a repeat appearance at XXXXXXXX, the nice Ms. Stein introduced me to the interviewer, as that “thoughtful fellow I told you about”. Didn’t get the job! Argh! But maybe she was the reason I got the call back, and I was just a bad interview. Who knows!?!

Bottom line: Use SOPs that make it “brain dead” simple to follow up.

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Posted by reinkefj

MONEY:Monetary Inflation

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

http://www.homelandstupidity.us/2007/07/04/independence-day-3/

From a discussion with a befuddled fool who’s had the wool pulled over his eyes.title

***Begin Quote***

Author: Ace Duggery
Comment:
You’re a moron. First of all, I had to debate whether or not to even respond to a posting with dozens of grammatical errors. Obviously you’re a very smart person, your command of the written English language shows that. NO matter what you use as a currency, whether it’s a commodity or a piece of paper, somebody will have to control the issuance of such currency. Unless you want a barter economy, do you know what that is reinkefj?, you will never get true value from an exchange and there will constantly be a change in value of whatever you use for currency. If we used gold or silver, or even a note that is backed by such commodities, like the United States used to do, we would have to constantly revalue how much our currency is worth per oz. of these commodities. Do your research, this has happened several times over the course of history. And the reason we stopped using volatile commodities as a peg for our currency is that the prices of gold and silver fluctuated so much that we had to frequently change

Oh…and the dollar has not depreciated 95% since 1970. That is a blatant lie, did you make that number up?

I understand your points, and I even agree with you to the effect that the government, “gooferment”, whatever you want to call it, is, at times, corrupt. This is no perfect society, get over it. No such place exists, has ever existed, or will ever exist. There will always be shortcomings. I am not advocating that we completely ignore these problems, but let’s at least come up with a better idea than commodity backed currency. And seriously what the hell was Ron Paul talking about in the last debate? 9/11 happened because we were bombing Iraq and the middle east? Are you trying to say we “deserved” 9/11 because we were over there fighting against countries in the Middle East?

*** end quote ***

Here’s my response:

*** begin quote ***

>somebody will have to control the issuance of such currency.

No, why can’t we have a free market in currencies as we did before the legal tender laws were passed mandating that everyone had to accept these phony unconstitutional federal reserve notes.

>And the reason we stopped using volatile commodities as a peg for our currency is that the prices of gold and >silver fluctuated so much that we had to frequently change how much the paper backing was worth to the metals.

No, the reason FDR took us off the gold standard was so that he could spend as much as he wanted on welfare and warfare. And the people were to dumb to see the con.

>The dollar has not depreciated 95% since 1970. That is a blatant lie, did you make that number up?

No even the Federal Reserve will admit that the dollar has depreciated.

http://www.frbsf.org/econrsrch/econrev/98-3/3-16.pdf
between 61 & 97 2.39% per year average by the Fed’s own numbers. The math is a little tortured to minimize the impact.

However, other credible sources

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/data/CPIAUCSL.txt
1970-01-01 37.900
2001-01-01 175.600
CPI 175 from 37 looks a lot more than 95%

http://inflationdata.com/inflation/Inflation_Rate/Inflation_Rate_Calculator.asp#results
435.49%

And no one seems to dispute the impact.

http://www.econedlink.org/lessons/index.cfm?lesson=EM168
Costs of Inflation
4. Inflation does reduce the purchasing power of money.
5. Inflation does redistribute income. On average, individuals’ incomes do increase as inflation increases. However, some peoples’ wages go up faster than inflation. Other wages are slower to adjust. People on fixed incomes such as pensions or whose salaries are slow to adjust are negatively affected by unexpected inflation.

>You’re a moron.

You’re right “Putting lipstick on a pig doesn’t make it beautiful and annoys the pig.”

One can’t reason with a “true believer”. If you wish to believe that everything in money is just peach keen, then do so in peace. But, let’s not kid around with the what is the single biggest crime of the gooferment messing with the money. It’s what brings down civilizations (i.e., Romans; Germans; English) and our turn is coming. Quickly.

***End Quote***

Which made me think of an interesting comparison.

If the CPI was 38 in 1970 and 176 in 2001, that’s a 463% increase.

If the S&P500 was 85 and 1394, that’s 1643% increase.

If the DJ was 619 and 11501, that’s 1857%.

So the markets have out performed inflation.

Using my real estate as a proxy, 55 to 350 47 to 335 40 to 350. That’s about 142 to 1035. Or, 728%.

Those are the good things.

Purchasing power has declined. SO a “depreciation factor” would make all these “paper gains” what?

$4559.73 in the year 2001 has the same “purchase power” as $1000 in the year 1970. www.measuringworth.com/ppowerus/result.php

So that’s about 79%!

But, it I think it understates it. For example, I’m paying property taxes on an inflated value. I’m paying capital gains taxes on an inflated value. And, the various taxes are all based on a percentage of inflated value.

Exponential Arghs!

One thing is for sure. You don’t want to be holding cash. Ever!

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: Social Security is such a scam

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

FROM A FELLOW ALUM’S OBIT

***Begin Quote***

… … died July 16, 2007 in New York. He was 64.

***End Quote***

SO he paid the ultimate “social security tax”. Argh. He paid into one of the most unfair Ponzi scams imaginable. If an Insurance Company offered you such a policy, the executives would all be in jail for theft. Or at least on the various nightly news shows, like “Shame on You”.

For a per centage of your life time earnings,

(Now doesn’t that sound like something you’d expect hear in a movie sequence of a Mafia shakedown?)

you get a modest lifetime disability protection,

(If you are willing to hire a lawyer and spend a lot of money getting it.)

and a less than adequate retirement income

(And they now say social security was never intended to live on … … “barbara streisand”)

that you have to pay taxes on

(That they “promised” would never be taxed … … double “barbara streisand”)

and represents the biggest savings of a poor person’s life

(Economist generally agree it’s a wealth transfer from poor minority men to rich white women!)

that’s ends with no benefit when you die.

(The ultimate in theft!)

Economist generally concede that the most optimistic look at “Social Security Insurance” is that it is a negative 1 to 2 % savings.

In my fellow alumni’s case, it’s nothing but a tax.

What a losing bet!

“Social Security Insurance” is a socialist program that is an absolute disgrace.

At least the gooferment should have the honesty to stop calling it “insurance”.

Argh!

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PRODUCTIVITY: I don’t do Link Exchanges either

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Why I Do Not Do Link Exchanges
Des Walsh
Posted in July 17th, 2007

http://www.thinkinghomebusiness.com/2007/07/17/why-i-dont-do-link-exchanges

***Begin Quote***

There must still be some courses or e-books where people new to blogging are told to email other bloggers and suggest or request an exchange of links. I don’t know what other explanation there would be for the emails I get on a fairly regular basis, out of the blue, from people I don’t know, wanting me to exchange links.

***End Quote***

me2

“I wouldn’t be a member of any club that would have me as a member” Groucho Marx

I don’t do Link Exchanges.

(No one has ever asked me!)

;-)

Just seems … … so conspiratorial … … so yucky.

I put sites in my rolls that I think are worth your time.

Now, if some one would send me a stack of hundreds, then I’d link to them. Never said I couldn’t be bought. But, I’ve never made a dime blogging. I just do it for the sense of moral superiority. :-) (As Rooster C. Leghorn cartoon character of my yuth says “That’s a joke, son.”)

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INTERESTING: Why They Won’t Impeach

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

http://www.lewrockwell.com/shaffer/shaffer160.html

Why They Won’t Impeach
by Butler Shaffer

***Begin Quote***

The interests of Democratic and Republican officials alike are best served by the maximization of political power. If “government” is defined as an agency enjoying a monopoly on the lawful use of force within a given territory, what politically ambitious person would not want to enjoy as much of that power as he or she can muster? And since such a purpose not only suits the interests of the ruling establishment, but defines its existence, a symbiotic relationship between these two groups is easily fashioned.

***End Quote***

It just exposes the sham of the “two party system”. It’s a system all right. A scam. A racket. Tweedle dum and Tweedle dee.

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Posted by reinkefj

TECHNOLOGY: “Microsoft Copy Protection Cracked Again” and who’s surprised?

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=2007-07-17_D8QEFI3O1&show_article=1&cat=breaking

Microsoft Copy Protection Cracked Again
Jul 17 01:13 PM US/Eastern
By JESSICA MINTZ
AP Business Writer

*** begin quote ***

SEATTLE (AP) – Microsoft Corp. is once again on the defensive against hackers after the launch of a new program that gives average PC users tools to unlock copy-protected digital music and movies.

The latest version of the FairUse4M program, which can crack Microsoft’s digital rights management system for Windows Media audio and video files, was published online late Friday. In the past year, Microsoft plugged holes exploited by two earlier versions of the program and filed a federal lawsuit against its anonymous authors. Microsoft dropped the lawsuit after failing to identify them.

The third version of FairUse4M has a simple drag-and-drop interface. PC users can turn the protected music files they bought online—either a la carte or as part of a subscription service like Napster—and turn them into DRM-free tunes that can be copied and shared at will, or turned into MP3 files that can play on any type of digital music player.

*** end quote ***

Like an arms race, the DRM folks are spending a lot of cycles on a failing paradigm.

Like putting lipstick on the proverbial pig, it annoys their paying customers and is pretty ugly! Some of my biggest irritations, in my computing career, have been at the hands of “copy protection”. Couple that with bad, or non-existent, support and you have the seeds of a revolt.

I now don’t buy content online — music or other kinds — if it has copy protection. I have a lot of expensive 8 tracks, cassettes, and cds of “content” that are unusable. Add to that “software”, which has stopped working, stopped being supported, or otherwise orphaned.

My most recent experience was with MusicMatch JukeBox being acquired by Yahoo and forced to “upgrade”. This was one of my last purchases, excuse me “licensing” — what “barbara streisand”!! — before my new policy of “no more”.

“No more” locked content. “No more” buying software, excuse me licensing it, from vendors who are one step below used car salesmen. “No more” operating systems that require “activation” and have “self-help” provisions.

I look to the open source software makers and happily “donate” to their projects.

I’m calling out the content makers, “software” licensors, and the entire Microsoft empire as the hucksters they are. At least the snake oil sales men of yesteryear didn’t try and make you “license” the bottle! A plague on all their houses.

Imagine how I’ll be when I get old and crotchety!
fjohn

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Posted by reinkefj

TECH SERVICE: Yahoo! Music about Musicmatch Migration

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Promptly a week after I had the problem and they changed the webpage causing the problem. They may be “happy” but it’s not timely.

***Begin Quote***

—–Original Message—–
From: Yahoo! Music Jukebox [mailto:yahoomusicengine-feedback@cc.yahoo-inc.com]
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 4:35 PM
To: Reinke’s Catch All Email
Subject: Re: Yahoo! Music Jukebox non-tech issue (KMM100278139V4440L0KM)

Hello Reinke’s,

Thank you for writing Yahoo! Music about Musicmatch Migration. We’re happy to help you with this question.

A tool to automatically convert your Musicmatch subscription to Yahoo!
is now available. The Migration Assistant is built into the latest release of the Yahoo! Music Jukebox. Please follow the directions below to download the Jukebox, and the Migration Assistant will walk you through this process step-by-step.

Download and install the new Yahoo! Music Jukebox here:

http://music.yahoo.com/jukebox/mm/ymj/?OEM=29

Important: Even if you already have Yahoo! Music Jukebox, you must install this special version in order to see the Migration Assistant.

When you start the Jukebox, the Migration Assistant should appear.
Follow the instructions on each page (a link to the FAQ is available from most pages).

If you have a Musicmatch On Demand subscription, you will be able to migrate it to a Yahoo! Music Unlimited subscription

If you have unspent Musicmatch Music Store Gift Certificates or Allowances, you’ll be able to convert them to Yahoo! Music Unlimited Gift Certificates

If you wish to transfer your music library, you will be offered this option.

Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions for more information:

http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/music/jukebox/update/update02.html

*if your problem persists please follow the steps below.

We are having difficulty pinpointing the cause of your problem based on the information you’ve provided. If you could provide answers to the questions below in your response, that will help us provide you with more assistance:

1. Can you describe the problem in more detail?
2. What error message(s) are you receiving, if any? Please send us the exact wording of the error message if you see one.
3. Please describe what happened leading up to this problem, and provide as much detail as possible.

For complete Yahoo! Music Jukebox online help, visit:

http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/music/jukebox/index.html

Once again, we regret the problem you’re having with Yahoo! Music services. If the solution provided here does not resolve your concern, please reply to this email so we may further assist you. Thank you again for writing Yahoo! Music.

Regards,

Bob
Yahoo! Music Customer Care

For assistance with all Yahoo! services, please visit:

http://help.yahoo.com/

***End Quote***

15 Comments | SERVICE | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

INTERESTING: they’ll bemoan they were just a few votes

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

http://cernigsnewshog.blogspot.com/2007/07/governance-as-theatre.html

Monday, July 16, 2007
Governance as Theatre

***Begin Quote***

I have to congratulate Senator Harry Reid for having the common sense and the uncommon gumption of forcing an actual filibuster on the Reed-Levin amendment on a phased withdrawal of most combat formations from Iraq by April of 2008. The procedure that Sen. Reid will use will require sixty votes to end debate and if the debate is not ended, then at least thirty more hours of debate before another cloture attempt can be made.

***End Quote***

Interesting for the D’s to not realize that they can use this lever. Then, when the elections come, short. Silly, the Constitution vest considerable power in the minority.

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: Hey Governor Corzine … … still wanna hear about state cars? … (continued) …

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

You don’t? TOO BAD!

This morning 17 July at about 645 am edst on Route 295 milepost 51 … …

… … a big white state pickup truck (monster size) TD 10342 … …

… … tailgating the poor peon (me!) in his way (who got the hell out of the way before being pushed out)

… … who never left the left lane (Do you teach them to do that, or is that a qualification for working for the state of nujerzee!?)

Any way I am sure that he was hurrying to get away I assume trenton to protect and serve me.

Or, perhaps to escape the scene of the crime!

Arghhh!

Arghhhhhhh!

P.S.: Dear reader, I don’t write these every day. Just when I ARRIVE early for work, particularly agitated aggravated and have to wait for my employer workstation to get online.

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: currency should be backed by a commodity

Monday, July 16, 2007

A statist, who must like the “inflation tax”:

*** begin quote ***

There is a new comment on the post “Independence Day”.

http://www.homelandstupidity.us/2007/07/04/
independence-day-3/

Author: Ace Duggery
Comment: I want everyone that thinks the United States currency should be backed by a commodity to check the historical prices of gold and silver. The volatility of these commodities is high, so much higher than the dollar that it makes me laugh to listen to your arguments. If our currency was backed by a commodity, you would be complaining about that too.

See all comments on this post here:

http://www.homelandstupidity.us/2007/07/04/
independence-day-3/#comments

*** end quote ***

I think “Ace” that you are missing the point. (And, I think it says something when people need to use an alter ego.)

It really doesn’t matter if it’s backed by a commodity or backed by something like tiki statues on Easter Island. With a non-fiat currency, the gooferment can NOT impose an “inflation tax” on all holders of “money”.

Gooferment wants to have social program, they can’t just print more but have to impose a tax. Gooferment wants to fight a war, they can’t just print more and have to impose a tax.

We want a commodity as money because the gooferment can’t wave it’s magic printing press and make more. Remember that greenbacks were originally redeemable in gold and silver. So the scrap of paper was really a receipt. Since 1970, the value of a dollar as depreciated 95% due to inflation. That’s a hell of a tax! If they tried to impose such, they have been lynched.

Inflation did it silently for them politicians. A commodity money would have prevented that, and made us all wealthier.

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LINKEDIN: FACEBOOK elbows in?

Monday, July 16, 2007

http://segala.com/blog/please-no-more-linkedin-invites/

Please, no more LinkedIn invites
on July 16, 2007 at 10:47 am | By Paul Walsh

*** begin quote ***

LinkedIn Out and Facebook In logo

Ok, for the last time and to put an end to some speculation, I’m no longer updating my LinkedIn profile (full stop).

The reason is simple. I use Facebook as my shop window, into which you can see who I am, who I know, what I stand for, what I’m working on, where I am and anything else I’d like you to know. If I write a blog post, send a twitter or have pictures taken of me talking at an event, you’ll see them via my RSS feeds which are pulled in from various Web sites.

*** end quote ***

Is the bloom off the rose with LinkedIn? I’m not so sure one way or the other, I continue to use both, fwiw.

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RANT: America’s schools aren’t failing

Monday, July 16, 2007

http://www.lvrj.com/opinion/8517012.html

Jul. 15, 2007
VIN SUPRYNOWICZ: Helping students become ‘responsible citizens’?

*** begin quote ***

America’s schools aren’t failing, Gatto discovered. They’re doing precisely what they were re-designed to do between the 1850s and the early 1900s, when America embarked on our current imperial/mercantilist adventure — that is, to churn out little soldiers and factory workers with mindless obedience drilled in and with the higher critical faculties burned out of them through the process of feeding them learning in small unrelated bits like pre-digested gruel, till they neither know how nor feel any inclination to discern higher patterns, which might lead them to challenge the “party line.”

Who dreamed up such a system?

John Dewey and Horace Mann brought this form of “compulsion schooling” home from Prussia, Gatto learned.

*** end quote ***

When will the taxpayers and parents realize what they are doing to their children?

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YahooAnswers: Status: “BEST” awarded

Monday, July 16, 2007

*** begin quote ***

http:// answers.yahoo.com/question/
index;_ylt=AlOVOvqTuYWX2IG
1H.3X4lCTxQt.?qid=20070710084124AAgp4XQ

http://tinyurl.com/2hrg3p

payment from a deadbeat

QUESTION

Asked by “euroteacher0”

Try to get payments from a student or give up?

*** end quote ***

Just received word that this was selected “best by voters”.

One vote among one answer.

Ten meaningless points brings me to 826.

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: The state gooferment “protects” us

Monday, July 16, 2007

NJ1015 radio is now reporting that the state is enforcing some sort of food regulations that prevent the roadside farm markets from selling anything but fresh veggies.

Jim Gearhart notes that he has NOT heard of anyone getting sick from such purchases. Neither have I.

So here’s another infringement that will probably just slip into place.

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LIBERTY: New Hampshire, which has no general income tax, no general sales tax

Monday, July 16, 2007

http://www.mercurynews.com/businessheadlines/
ci_6380600?source=sb-digg

Best states for retirees seeking low taxes, costs
By Shannon Buggs
McClatchy-Tribune Services
Article Launched: 07/15/2007 01:47:06 AM PDT

***Begin Quote***

Or join the Free State Project, the Libertarian-influenced movement to recruit 20,000 people to move to New Hampshire because of its low taxes and loose regulations.

Go to www.freestateproject.org to learn more about New Hampshire, which has no general income tax, no general sales tax and the lowest taxes as a percentage of gross income nationwide, according to the project’s analysis.

Finally, to avoid paying state income taxes on retirement fund withdrawals, move to or remain in the seven states without a state income tax: Alaska, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Two others – New Hampshire and Tennessee – tax only dividend and interest income.

***End Quote***

FSP making inroards in the public’s mind?

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FUN: Nu Jerzee

Monday, July 16, 2007

http://www.nj1015.com/personalities/jim-gearhart/bits/a-few-things.htm

A few things you might not know about the great state of NEW JERSEY…

* New Jersey is a peninsula.

* Highlands, New Jersey has the highest elevation along the entire eastern seaboard, from Maine to Florida.

* New Jersey is the only state where all of its counties are classified as metropolitan areas.

* New Jersey has more race horses than Kentucky.

* New Jersey has the oldest lighthouse in the USA. The Sandy Hook Lighthouse was built in 1764.

* New Jersey has more Cubans in Union City (1 sq. mi.) than Havana, Cuba.

* New Jersey has the most dense system of highways and railroads in the US.

* New Jersey has the most diners in the world and is sometimes referred to as the Diner Capital of the World.

* North Jersey has the most shopping malls in one area in the world, with seven major shopping malls in a 25 square mile radius.

* New Jersey is home to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

* The Passaic River was the site of the first submarine ride by inventor John P. Holland.

* New Jersey has 50+ resort cities & towns, some of the nations’ most famous: Asbury Park, Wildwood, Atlantic City, Seaside Heights, Long Branch & Cape May.

* New Jersey has the most stringent testing along our coastline for Water Quality Control than any other seaboard state in the entire country.

* New Jersey is a leading industrial state and is the largest chemical producing state in the nation when you include pharmaceuticals.

* Two-thirds of the world’s eggplants are grown in New Jersey.

* Jersey tomatoes are known the world over as being the best you can buy.

* New Jersey is the world leader in blueberry and cranberry production.

* Here’s to New Jersey-the toast of the country! In 1642, the first brewery in America opened in Hoboken.

* New Jersey rocks! The famous Les Paul invented the first solid body electric guitar in Mahwah in! 1940, and he still lives there!

* New Jersey is a major seaport state with the largest seaport in the US, located in Elizabeth. Nearly 80% of what our nation imports comes through Elizabeth Seaport first.

* New Jersey is home to one of the nation’s busiest airports at Newark International.

* George Washington slept here. Several important Revolutionary War battles were fought on New Jersey soil, led by General George Washington.

* The light bulb, phonograph (record player), and motion picture projector were invented by Thomas Edison in his Menlo Park, NJ laboratory. We also boast the first town ever lit by incandescent bulbs.

* The transistor was invented in Murray Hill, NJ at Bell Laboratories.

* Bell Lab engineers in Holmdel, NJ were the first to detect the background radiation of the Big Bang.

* The first seaplane was built in Keyport, NJ.

* The first airmail (to Chicago) was started from Keyport, NJ.

* The first phonograph records were made in Camden, NJ.

* New Jersey is home to the Miss America pageant held in Atlantic City.

* The game Monopoly, played all over the world, named the streets on their playing board after the actual streets in Atlantic City.

* Atlantic City has the longest boardwalk in the world.

* New Jersey has the largest petroleum containment area outside of the Middle East countries.

* The first Indian reservation was in New Jersey, in the Watchung Mountains.

* New Jersey has the tallest water-tower in the world.

* New Jersey had the first Medical Center, in Jersey City.

* The Pulaski Sky Way, from Jersey City to Newark, was the first skyway-highway.

* NJ built the first auto tunnel under a river, the Hudson. (Holland Tunnel)

* New Jersey is the only state in the nation which offers child abuse prevention workshops to every public school.

* The first baseball game was played in Hoboken, NJ, which is also the birthplace of Frank Sinatra.

* The first intercollegiate football game was played in New Brunswick in 1889. (Rutgers College played Princeton.)

* The first Drive-in Movie theater was opened in Camden, NJ.

* New Jersey is home to both of “New York’s ” Pro Football Teams!

* The first radio station and broadcast was in Paterson, NJ.

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TECHNOLOGY: FCC wants unhackable software

Sunday, July 15, 2007

http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2007/071007-backspin.html

Technology for the People by the Money
Backspin By Mark Gibbs, Network World, 07/10/07

***Begin Quote***

A new federal rule is now in effect that means SDR/CR systems that use “open source elements” will find it hard to get FCC approval or perhaps be excluded altogether.

The FCC’s reasoning – inexplicably prompted by Cisco, of all companies – is that manufacturers should not use open source software “if doing so would increase the risk that … security measures could be defeated or otherwise circumvented to allow operation … of the radio in a manner that violates the Commission’s rules.”

This means that what the FCC and Cisco apparently want are unhackable software products! As Homer Simpson would say, “Du-oh!” Gentlemen, you must know that there is no such thing and anyone with the slightest clue will tell you that security through obscurity has never and will never work.

***End Quote***

Gooferment “protecting” you from those evil companies!?!

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Ron Paul @ Google

Sunday, July 15, 2007

He knocks the ball out oft he park. He took every liberal topic and precisely defined what he’d do. No ifs, ands, or maybes. And, he appeared to be well received. The new citizen who flew down from Seattle with a check was the most eloquent witness.

read more | digg story

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LIBERTY: Ron Paul’s Google Interview

Sunday, July 15, 2007

http://blog.lewrockwell.com/lewrw/archives/014120.html

Ron Paul’s Google Interview
Posted by David Griffus at July 14, 2007 08:41 PM

***Begin Quote***

One of Ron’s best yet!

***End Quote***

I agree that he came off as an exciting knowledgeable great guy!

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PRODUCTIVITY: Changing email addresses

Saturday, July 14, 2007

From an email to a fellow alum

***Begin Quote***

>i changed my email address

Sigh, I’ve ranted about having your own email address in your own domain.

http://tinyurl.com/2huxna

What happens if people don’t get the message of the shift.

I’ve even suggested for those, that want their email at their ISP account, that they should still use their own domain and just forward the email where ever they want it.

For one particularly clueless soul, I set up his domain (and this is all sanitized so as not to embarrass anyone) as “clueless.com” with an email address of “soul @ clueless.com”. That was forwarded to “clueless soul @ gmail.com” for backup ‘n’ recovery purposes as well as their excellent spam filters. The gmail account was forwarded to the ISP where he wanted it. The return address on the gmail and the ISP account were set to his domain. So his “email address” never changes no matter how many times he changes ISPs. If he accidently deletes a message he has the gmail account to recover it from. If his ISP goes off line or their email stops working, he can fall back to gmail. And, if his ISP is bought by someone else and he is forced to change his ISP email address, it’s no big deal. Another benefit I just thought of his that he can use gmail’s filters to squelch someone.

And, he never has to worry about someone having an old email address.

***End Quote***

In my mind, it’s impossible to communicate the change to everyone who has your old email address. It may have been given to them by someone else.

Here’s my little scenario, like the economist’s island. Jane has Mary’s email address written in Jane’s address book. Jane give it to Marge who puts it in her address book. Mary changes her address and updates Jane. Marge runs into Jane’s bestest friend in college Sue who has lost touch with Mary but would love to get in touch. Marge gives Mary’s old address to Sue who sends an email that bounces. Silly? Yes!

You don’t know all the people who have your old email addresses. And, yes, there may be ways around it.

Manhattan College gave all alumni a “lifetime” email address. But, after a few years, a few changes in vendors, guess what? Yup, you should have asked who’s life time!

You can have your own domain and email for $12/year. If you’re not strapped for money, you can have your website that includes the domain and email, for $50/year.

Your ISP’s email is a trap to lock you in to their service. It can leave you high and dry at the most inopportune times. And, you can be forced to change if they get bought out or go out. Why risk it?

Your employer’s should never be used for personal purposes. Aside from morality, there are practical reasons. The average employee changes jobs every five years. In some industries, in some types of jobs, the average is 30 months. You should have your own email address for even quasi-business purposes like LinkedIn or external connections.

For example, I use a different formation of my name @ my domain for my outside business uses and forward that to my employer’s email address. It permits quick screening so that it doesn’t get lost in the morass of inside mail. I use yet another formulation for the quasi business uses. And, I assign different names to different purposes.

It just gives you a ton of flexibility at a very modest cost.

Seem obvious to me!

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INTERESTING: Immigration is a smokescreen for the welfare warfare state

Saturday, July 14, 2007

http://www.townhall.com/columnists/WalterEWilliams/
2007/07/11/illegal_immigration

http://tinyurl.com/ywxo3u

Illegal Immigration
By Walter E. Williams
Wednesday, July 11, 2007

In this I’m going to try interspersing my comments in the article.

WW> I’d like to raise some ordinary non-rocket-science questions to the pro-amnesty crowd, many of whom are my libertarian friends.
WW>
WW> Do people, anywhere in the world, have a right to enter the United States irrespective of our laws pertaining to immigration?

No, “right” implies that I have a duty. But, it has nothing to do with “laws”.

WW> If your answer is “no,” one does not have a right to enter the U.S. irrespective of our laws, what does that make a person who does so?

Just a person. Maybe they are just lost.

WW>I was summoned for jury duty some years ago, and during voir dire, the attorney asked me whether I could obey the judge’s instructions.

Jury tampering by the system to ensure it gets the verdicts it wants.

WW>Needless to say, I was dismissed from jury duty.

Lucky you weren’t held in contempt! Probably poisoned the whole pool. Good job!

WW>While our immigration laws are overly cumbersome and in urgent need of streamlining, they do not violate human rights and should be obeyed.

Your immigration laws are cruel, immoral, ineffective and inefficient. They clearly are at odds with the founding documents. And, seek to empower and enhance the welfare state.

WW>we can’t prevent every rape and murder

Maybe if we got rid of all the “victimless crime laws” and shrink the gooferment down to Constitutional size, then maybe we could.

WW>People who are here illegally should be denied access to any social service such as Medicaid, public education and food assistance programs.

I’d suggest we end the dole for EVERYONE! It’s only provided by the theft from productive people.

WW>The United States is a nation of immigrants from all over the world.

So, let’s go back to the immigration rules that cherished the Statue of Liberty.

WW>Because there was no welfare state, we were guaranteed that they’d work as opposed to living off the rest of us.

Bingo!

WW>They’ve announced that they seek to take back parts of the U.S. that were formerly Mexico.

Local determination. Peace. Mutual respect. As recognized by the Constitution, and the other great document of civilization.

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TECH SOFTWARE: Wikis don’t do the work I list do they?

Saturday, July 14, 2007

http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/07/13/15-productive-uses-for-a-wiki/

15 Productive Uses for a Wiki
WEBWORKERDAILY

***Begin Quote***

A few of the things that are emerging about web workers is that 1) we do just about everything online; 2) we want to be able to access it from any computer, anywhere; and 3) it’s hard to organize all the stuff we use and do, in our work and personal lives.

***AND***

1) To-do list. Once you’ve learned the simple wiki markup language, creating a list is easy. And the most productive list, of course, is the to-do list. In fact, if you’re into GTD, you can set up multiple context lists for a simple GTD system — try GTD Tiddlywiki, dcubed, or MonkeyGTD for more integrated wiki solutions.

***End Quote***

Sigh, maybe I’ll try again. It’s the doing that is hard.

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text

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ALUMNI: Another week; another issue of Jasper Jottings

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Shipped! Time to start next week’s.

Interesting fury of findings.

(1) People don’t read how to update their subscriptions. And, I don’t know how to get them trained to do it. Argh!

(2) No way to copy the three tables (i.e., contents, by name, and by class) directly into the free, and unequaled, wordpressdotcom, via their web front end, blog desk, or msft live writer.

(3) MSFT particularly exasperated me. From their word processor to their blog front end! I’d have thought that was a short putt. Noooo!

(4) Live Wirter client has a help entry give feedback. (Fasten seat belts!) That takes you to an msn group. That require you to sing on with your MSFT PASSPORT. (Annoying but OK, I’ll play along. I can see that this is a train wreck. From a UI POV tooooo many steps!) So, I have a passport — real and the Microsoft kind — so I click on “sign on with my passport”. Yup, here the wreck. “Page Not Found”. (I could make this stuff up!)

SO my play time expired and I’ve left frustrated as usual. So what else is new!

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INTERESTING: discontinues support

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Maybe I’m just irritable, but I find this and it’s tone “arrogant”. “You may have heard”? If “markets are a conversation”, these folks are having a monologue. Needless to say, communications like this, reinforce my commitment to Open Source Software whenever and where ever possible. And, are there other kinds of users? Other than “business” that is. Maybe it’s me. Adios, I’m not coming along.

***Begin Quote***

From: Ceryph [mailto:do_not_reply@ceryph.com]
Sent: Friday, July 13, 2007 2:50 PM
To: Ferdinand Reinke
Subject: CmapTools – IHMC discontinues support of business users

You received this email because you are a registered user of IHMC’s CmapTools concept mapping software. If this email reached you in error, please remove yourself from our user list.

As you may have heard, IHMC will no longer provide CmapTools software, upgrades, bug fixes and technical support to business users. See IHMC’s new policy for details.

IHMC and Ceryph have partnered to ensure that business users of CmapTools continue to have access to world-class technical support. Ceryph created a commercial version of CmapTools called “Ceryph Insight” to facilitate this support. Our Insight customers will receive technical support and access to future upgrades through Ceryph.

Visit us at www.ceryph.com or contact sales@ceryph.com to learn more about Insight.

We look forward to serving you.

Bryan Clark
CEO
Ceryph
bryan.clark@ceryph.com
www.ceryph.com

***End Quote***

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INTERESTING: Democrats have the unilateral power to end the war

Friday, July 13, 2007

http://blog.lewrockwell.com/lewrw/archives/014090.html

July 13, 2007
The Democrats’ Charade
Posted by James Ostrowski at July 13, 2007 10:28 AM

***Begin Quote***

Let’s be clear on this. The Democrats have the unilateral power to end the war. Don’t believe any of the malarkey such as this article in the Washington Post that suggests they need enough votes to override a veto to end the war. That’s what they want us to think.

The Democrats were elected, not because of their sicko domestic polices, but because people thought they would end the war. Now that they can, they won’t because they don’t want to be blamed for “losing” a war that was lost before it began. That’s right, they continue to fund a war that is killing thousands so they will win future elections and stay in power so they can act like monsters in the future too.

All they need to do is stop the funding, by majority vote, in either house.

***End Quote***

Even Dick Morris agrees. And, he throws in that many R’s will join them.

But the D’s want to get a lock on power and so are content to pretend that they are helpless.

Yeah, right. It’s all a shell game between two side of the same coin.

A pox on them all!

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