TECHNOLOGY: Great stickers for social media

https://kottke.org/24/02/virtual-stickers-to-manage-replies-by

 

 

a virtual sticker that reads 'Do not reply to tell me you don't have this problem'

a virtual sticker that reads 'Do not reply unless you have direct experience'

 

a virtual sticker that reads ‘Do not reply, I’m just complaining, not asking for help’

 

a virtual sticker that reads 'This is an observation. Do not attempt to help. No reply necessary.'

*** end quote ***

Great idea!

—30—

MACBOOKAIR: Finally complete the LION upgrade

OK!

I was thanks to DRIVESLIM ($, not free) able to free enough space on the slender MACBOOKAIR which I cam McBahh1.

I was then able after 3 password resets finally get an MAC APP STORE id that would work.

I was then able to download the LION MAC OSX UPGRADE ($). That I had already paid for. Thankfully, I didn’t have to pay for it again.

I was then able to perform the UPGRADE.

An hour later, while I was doing other things, McBahh1 dinged like an oven timer and it was done.

Observation: McBahh1 is now running “sprightly”. No more performance like a nursing home resident. We’ll see if any of the old problems return (i.e.: “I’m too tired to compute; I’m taking my union break for as many minutes as I feel like”; “There’s no free disk space; deal with it.”, or my perennial favorite “Year, I rebooted; what of it?”)

Casualties: NVU (free) no longer runs; I quickly found BLUE_GRIFFON (free) to replace it. 

Observation: BLUE_GRIFFON doesn’t do file transfer like NVU did. (Argh!)

New method: FILEZILLA dusted off to upload. New version of FILEZILLA installed. Works.

Casualties: MAC OSX 10.7.3 aka LION in the FINDER utility no longer displays the amount of free space. (Or it’s not obvious how to do it.)

Opinion: Well worth it. But what a hassle. Months of hassle to get to this point. Exponential number of Arghs.

# – # – # – # – #   

INSPIRATIONAL: Every parent should see this picture!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1342580/Anorexic-model-Isabelle-Caro-appeared-shock-fashion-campaign-dies-28.html

Anorexic model who appeared in shock fashion campaign dies at 28
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 11:30 AM on 30th December 2010

*** begin quote ***

Isabelle Caro, a French actress and model whose anorexic image appeared in a shock Italian ad campaign, has died at the age of 28.

*** end quote ***

Sad.

The pictures look like she was a concentration camp victim.

We should take this as a wake up call to how we allow women to be treated.

Young girls are obviously at special risk.

“We, The Sheeple” need to speak up and not allow women to be abused.

# # # # #

RANT: We have some “yahoos” here?

*** begin quote ***

I was encouraged to learn that former President Jimmy Carter had decided to sever ties with the Southern Baptist Convention, after a lifetime in that denomination, because of its position that Eve was responsible for original sin, that wives must be subservient to their husbands, and that women were prohibited from serving as deacons, pastors, or chaplains in the military service. This is indeed an abomination and must be challenged at every opportunity. Bravo to Jimmy Carter for having the courage to speak the truth in love.

*** end quote ***

I’m thankful that the rest of the world keeps their women down. As one radio host used to say “with one hand tied behind my back”, these Yahoos manage to deprive themselves of a whole lot of human resource. Good for us! Then I read that we still have some of the same Yahoos here in country.

Wow!

How dumb?

Carrying a grudge from the beginning of time. Based on a book of unknown veracity. About a time when time began.

Reminds me of the movie about the primitive worshipping a Coke Bottle that fell out of a plane.

Makes as much sense.

# # # # #

RANT: What do WE do!

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=99055

We are out of money
Posted: May 25, 2009
Vox Day

*** begin quote ***

Steve Scully, C-Span: You know the numbers, $1.7 trillion debt, a national deficit of $11 trillion. At what point do we run out of money?

Obama: Well, we are out of money now.

*** and ***

… …  a number of contributing factors that are more important than others. Among them include:
    1. The abandonment of constitutional money
    2. The expansion of the voting franchise
    3. Global military aspirations
    4. Transformation of the labor force
    5. Mass immigration

*** and ***

The expansion of the franchise to include many parties historically denied the vote has had the inevitable, and expected, effect of permitting society’s non-productive members voting themselves the right to obtain wealth transferred from society’s productive members.

*** and ***

Rather than lamenting the national mistakes of the past, Americans who value freedom, liberty and prosperity would do well to look to the possibilities of the post-American future.

*** end quote ***

You need the pitchfork and torch for all the congresscritters!

# # # # #

SERVICE: domain email appears down via smtp

Need to figure out what to do when the mail client can’t seem to pull mail.

# # # # #

Opened up a new email on GMail. It can’t reach imap.1and1.com or smtp.1and1.com.

# # # # #

Went up on VWBBIE (Verizon Wireless Broadband)! <Why didn’t I think of that sooner?> Picked up one of the accounts but not the others. Now I’m really confused.

# # # # #

ping works. everything working. confused!

# # # # #

GOVEROTRAGEOUS: Obama’s birth certificate

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=91283

BORN IN THE USA?
What congressmen say about eligibility
Lawmakers’ letters insist ‘president was born in Hawaii’
Posted: March 10, 2009 9:29 pm Eastern
By Bob Unruh

*** begin quote ***

Hawaiian officials have confirmed they have a birth certificate on file for Obama, but it cannot be released without his permission. He has refused that permission. And Hawaiian officials have not revealed what information the certificate contains.

*** end quote ***

Well, adjust my tin foil hat and call me kooky.

I guess that makes me a “birthist”.

See the first thing that the media does is give you a label and then they can dismiss you.

My fear is that I guess, like FDR and Pearl Harbor, we’ll have to wait 50 years to find out that O was NOT a US citizen!

Just because they label you, doesn’t make you wrong.

All to often today, they denigrate people who ask, often too politely, WTF!

“Quo Warranto”

Or in my parlance, “sez who!”
See the essence of the argument is the prima facie case, “What are you hiding Mister Obama?”
Until that is answered, it is not moot. It’s a scandal!
So much for “running the most open and transparent government”!
# # # # #

POLITICAL: State of Civil Rights

http://townhall.com/columnists/WalterEWilliams/2009/02/25/a_nation_of_cowards

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

A Nation of Cowards

by Walter E. Williams :: Townhall.com Columnist

*** begin quote ***

The bottom line is that the civil rights struggle is over and it is won. At one time black Americans didn’t share the constitutional guarantees shared by whites; today we do. That does not mean that there are not major problems that confront a large segment of the black community, but they are not civil rights problems nor can they be solved through a “conversation on race.” Black illegitimacy stands at 70 percent; nearly 50 percent of black students drop out of high school; and only 30 percent of black youngsters reside in two-parent families. In 2005, while 13 percent of the population, blacks committed over 52 percent of the nation’s homicides and were 46 percent of the homicide victims. Ninety-four percent of black homicide victims had a black person as their murderer. Such pathology, I think much of it precipitated by family breakdown, is entirely new among blacks. In 1940, black illegitimacy was 19 percent; in 1950, only 18 percent of black households were female-headed compared with today’s 70 percent. Both during slavery and as late as 1920, a teenage girl raising a child without a man present was rare among blacks.

If black people continue to accept the corrupt blame game agenda of liberal whites, black politicians and assorted hustlers, as opposed to accepting personal responsibility, the future for many black Americans will remain bleak.

*** end quote ***

# – # – #

I like Walter Williams. He calls them as he sees them.

One of his most memorable quotes was: “The primary victims of Philadelphia’s public schools are black students whose chances for upward mobility are being systematically destroyed by callous politicians and teacher’s unions. If the Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan set out to destroy black academic excellence in Philadelphia, I doubt whether he could achieve as much damage.”

Yup, I sneer at the Islamic fundamentalists, who in denying women their right “to be all they can be”, “poke out their own eye”. They deny themselves the productivity of half their “human resources”.

But, here at home, we are doing something similar to all the minority children as well as most of the non-minority.

We are criminally stupid allowing the gooferment to be involved in education. Specicially the politicians and the teacher’s union should be the outlaws!

# # # # #  

SOFTWARE: NVU has a frustrating “feature”

Defective index?

I use NVU an open source (i.e., free) package to compose Jasper Jottings. This week, as well as in some past weeks, the index (i.e., the table of contents) does not have links just a plain text listing of the contents. I couldn’t make NVU generate the required index.

Now, I’m annoyed.

So, I’m going to either figure out why or get a better solution.

Sorry for the inconvenience, but I figured it was better to push the issue out the door than hold it for a fix.

If, or when, I do get a fix, I’ll replace it where possible. That usually would mean everywhere but the Yahoo Group and it’s associated email.

Argh! Somethings sometimes this is more frustrating than a real job. At least at a real job, I’d get paid and it wouldn’t be my problem,

# # # # #

POLITICIAL: Ron Paul on Bill Mahr simple and direct!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5lb0l3sYBo&eurl=http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/025457.html&feature=player_embedded

Ron Paul rocks on Bill Mahr’s show!

# # # # #

MONEY: What is a dollar?

http://www.lewrockwell.com/rajiva/rajiva12.html

Fiat Law and Fiat Currencies – the Relic of Barbarians
by Lila Rajiva

*** begin quote ***

The free market arose wherever there were laws and systems like that – whether in Europe or Africa or Asia. One way to think about this difference would be to see it as the difference between a fiat money, like paper, and a real store of value, like gold. You can print all the money you want, but if there’s nothing to back it up, then you’re in a bit of trouble. Your creditors are unlikely to put much store in you as a credit risk, just as the world’s wringing its hands today over the dollar. Pretty soon, they come calling for their loans with cudgels and pitchforks.

Gold does not have the same problem, because there’s a limited supply of it. It has to occur in nature. It has to be found somewhere underground and then mined and refined. It’s an expensive business – that takes risk, time, and money. There are costs attached to it that someone has to pay. Paper money, on the other hand, can be printed any time you want. Just ask Ben Bernanke. He’s dropping it by the helicopter load from the clouds.

*** end quote ***

They are “counterfeiting value” by printing more money electronically. It’s slight of hand. To understand, you have to understand the answer to the question: “What is a dollar?” and proceed from there.

The answer is it’s NOW an imaginary unit, backed by the belief that you can exchange a green peice of paper for something. A Keynesian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keynesian) will never talk about what the definition of money is. An Austrian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrian_School) will insist that the pricing mechanism in the economy have commodity money. It USED to be tied to gold.

Sadly, as an Austrian, I think you are in for hard times. O is going to “finance” 2T$ in current spending. By monetizing it. A fancy word for counterfeiting. And, the value of the dollar is going down even further.

To understand, you have to go to Robinson Crusoe’s island, that economist’s use to simplify ideas. A fisherman, egg gatherer, and a fruit gatherer are on the island. (Magic; don’t ask questions yet!) They barter between themselves. After a while, 1 fish = 2 eggs = 4 coconuts. Due to the relative difficulty of effort. But the fisherman and fruit gatherer don’t deal directly. The egg gather is the middle man. Then a banker arrives. He creates money so that the Fisherman can deal directly with the Egg guy. He uses seashells. Then the value equation is 1 fish = 2 eggs = 4 coconuts = 8 seashells. The evil banker after a while introduces more seashells into circulation by spending them. So he get more stuff. Similarly through out the ages, the King (Government) seeks to enrich itself that way. When the currency is gold coins, it’s much harder. (I first learned this when I saw an exhibit at the Smithsonian of French Francs over time. The French Franc of Louis I was a gold hockey puck; Louis XIV’s was a very thin button. Inflation!) When the currency is pretty green pieces of paper, it’s much easier.

So there you have how O44 is goign to spend 2T$ that we don’t have.

Basically, it’s a “tax” on anyone who has a dollar or dollar denominated assets. By adding a “seashell”, the value of all the other seashells is adulterated. Watered down.

So who get’s screwed?

The Chinese have 5T$. There’s a lot of dollars out there. The poor and people on fixed incomes (i.e., the purchasing power of their few dollars goes down) get less for their money.

Who makes out?

The US Government mostly. People who have “valuable stuff”. Commodities, commodity producers, land owners, people who produce stuff that others want.

So that’s how O will spend what he ain’t got.

He’s betting that before the inflation comes, the economy will “restart” and we won’t notice. (Think LBJ and Carter!) It worked for Kennedy because he lowered taxes on the productive class and everyone was motivated to get to work. His quote was: “A rising tide raise all boats!”

Sadly, I don’t see O or his staff being that smart.

# # # # #

POLITICAL: The “Chesley Sullenberger” yardstick for assessing “leadership”, Politicians found wanting!

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/01/the_sullenberger_combination.html

January 17, 2009
The Sullenberger Combination
Lee Cary

*** begin quote ***

Captain Chesley Sullenberger gave us a glimpse of what’s long been lacking in our national political leadership — the complete combination of competence, leadership and courage.

The pilot of US Airways Flight 1549 had, in multiple ways, prepared all his life to save the crew and 150 passengers on his aircraft. When the moment came to apply all that preparation, he calmly announced over the aircraft’s intercom, “Brace for impact.”

*** end quote ***

An excellent comparison to ALL the current political leadership!

Running around yelling: ‘the sky is falling’ is what comes to mind in DC!

Argh!

# # # # #

POLITICAL: Unwinding the Social Security Ponzi scheme

http://tslrf.blogspot.com/2009/01/entitlements-part-15-social-security.html

Friday, January 9, 2009

Entitlements Part 1.5- Social Security

*** begin quote ***

This brought up enough discussion that some things deserve to be addressed in a venue more public then the comments section. I will address as much as I can in no particular order. Here it goes.

First of all I did not mean anything seriously bad to the older folks who read the blog or your peer group. I poked some fun but it is just that, fun. I take a few friendly shots at just about everyone given the right setting. I am enough of am asshole that if I wanted to say something really mean I would.

*** and ***

The most interesting idea that came out of the comments was what happened in Chile with their SS plan in the 1970’s. If you are as familiar with that as I was three hours ago then read this. I think that is sort of idea is probably the best chance of making our system viable but I still have the same big question/ concern I had about going to a privatized system before reading that article.

*** end quote ***

# – # – #

Guess who made that comment? It is a good discussion about the Social Security Ponzi scheme and how to plan around it. No need to rehash it here or repeat my comments. You can read them over there.

# # # # #

POLITICAL: Lincoln may not have approved of O, but Lincoln wasn’t so great imho

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/338/story/59958.html

Pitts: Lincoln might not have welcomed Obama’s election

*** begin quote ***

Actually, Lincoln likely would have been appalled. How could he not? He was a 19th century white man who famously said in 1858 that “there is a physical difference between the white and black races, which . . . will forever forbid the two races living together upon terms of social and political equality.”

How do you reconcile that with all those cartoons of Lincoln congratulating Obama? You don’t. You simply recognize it for what it is: yet another illustration of how shallow our comprehension of history is, yet another instance where myth supersedes reality.

*** and ***

Of course, Lincoln freed no slaves. That’s the myth. His Emancipation Proclamation was a military measure to demoralize and destabilize the rebellious South; it covered states he did not govern but did not apply in slaveholding states that remained under his jurisdiction.

None of which is to deny or diminish the greatness of the 16th president. His greatness stands unquestioned, unquestionable. We would be a very different nation, a lesser nation, without his political genius, his dogged faith in the unsundered Union, his refusal to accept less than Union, even when haunted by reversals and setbacks that would have broken anyone else.

No, the argument is not about Lincoln’s greatness.

*** end quote ***

But, it should be!

Lincoln is up there on my list of “Worst American Presidents”.

As a corrupt Illinois politician who was in bed with more than the railroads, one has to take not of the following:

(1) The War of Northern Aggression. What you call the Civil War. What some call the Second American Revolution. The is no Constitutional, legal, or moral justification for this war. That alone would rocket him too the top of the list.

(2) Income tax to pay for that war. Government debt too.

(3) Freedom of Press savaged when editors dared to criticism him.

(4) Atrocities against civilian populations like Sherman’s “March to the Sea”.

(5) Single handedly destroying the concept of a Union of Equals amd morphing into the USA as the tyrant state.

And, don’t forget, he want to send all the “Negros” back to Africa. A racist among his other “endearing” qualities.

Those are just my uneducated points. There are much smarted folks than I who can give you “Chapter and Verse” about Lincoln.

But, don’t disturb the sheeple.

One of these days I should codify my “worst list”!

But that’s hard on the old BP.

# # # # #

RANT: Officials at Occidental College challenged on Obama

http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=86325

OBAMA WATCH CENTRAL
Eligibility battle rages on 3 fronts
Court, Congress and college challenged on constitutionality
Posted: January 18, 2009
12:05 am Eastern
By Bob Unruh

*** begin quote ***

Officials at Occidental College in Los Angeles, Calif., have been served with a demand to produce records concerning Barack Obama’s attendance there during the 1980s because they could document whether he was attending as a foreign national – in one of three fronts now established by those contesting the president-elect’s constitutional eligibility for the Oval Office.

The Supreme Court and Congress also both are being challenged to address the worries that Obama doesn’t meet the requirements of the U.S. Constitution that the president be a “natural born” citizen.

WND has reported on a long list of legal cases raising questions over the issue, and several of those have reached the U.S. Supreme Court already. Justices have so far declined to give any of the cases full hearings on their merits, but another conference remains on the Supreme Court docket for Jan. 23 on the issue.

“If Obama is sworn in as president, we will file a Petition for Writ of ‘Quo Warranto,’ a case that will challenge Obama as being ineligible to serve as president because he is ‘not qualified,'” said Philip J. Berg, a lawyer who has brought several cases to court. Berg, whose information is on his ObamaCrimes.com website, indicated the issue isn’t going away.

Orly Taitz, a California lawyer whose dispute remains pending before the high court, agreed, noting that one of the hearings already is scheduled for the days following Obama’s inaugural on Tuesday.

Taitz said her arguments rest on precedents from both the California Supreme Court, which years ago removed a candidate for president from the ballot because he was only 34, and the U.S. Supreme Court’s affirmation of that ruling. The Constitution requires a president to be 35.

*** and ***

The biggest question was why, if a Hawaii birth certificate exists as his campaign has stated, Obama hasn’t simply ordered it made available to settle the rumors.

*** end quote ***

Why indeed? What’s to hide? Why not?

On Tuesday, do we have the final nail in the Constitution?

If at some point down the road, like all the other Presidential “dirty linen” it comes out that he was not a US citizen, it will proove Spponer correct about the Constitution.

Fascinating stuff!

# # # # #

NJ: Budget “cuts” are too late, too little, and don’t “solve” the problem

http://lonegan.com/Where_Steve_Stands.aspx

*** begin quote ***

CORZINE’S BUDGET “CUTS” — A SCALPEL WHEN AN AX IS NEEDED

Governor Corzine yesterday issued a budget proposal that tinkers around the edges when real solid cuts are needed. While the Corzine proposal requiring unions give up a scheduled pay raise is a good one, the Governor refuses to eliminate any of the thousands of state government bureaucratic fiefdoms that helped (along with the Governor’s own mismanagement and ineptitude) created this budget crisis.

Unfortunately, Corzine refuses to end the mandates on local communities through the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) — the group currently pushing 100,000 Low Income Housing units on every New Jersey town. And Corzine continues to support the Abbott court decision that has led to exploding per pupil costs in (Democrat-run) urban areas as high as $25,000 per student.

Meanwhile, suburban towns have had their state aid nearly eliminated — even though the sales tax and the income tax was sold on Garden State residents as a way to reduce “high property taxes.”

*** end quote ***

The State Gooferment politicians should be in jail.

Corzine, the financial genius from Goldman Sachs, earlier said “no problem”. Some genius. Anyone with an IQ higher than a rock knew that the state was out of control.

If a private business didn’t make it’s pension contribution for decades, then the corporate officers would be Bubba’s girlfriend.

But the State can just ignore it. And the State Workers’ Union is in the bag going along with it. Bubba should have them as well.

And, state pensions shouldn’t be for anyone who makes more than 75k. Or, any political appointee.

Argh!

# # # # #

RANT: Judge Green’s Bell breakup did more than ruin people’s lives.

FROM LINKEDIN

News Discussion: AT&T Alumni
Does the AT&T Break UP Still Matter? – NYTimes.com
From: New York Times | December 19, 2008

*** begin quote ***

   When AT&T grudgingly agreed to break itself up 25 years ago, it was seen as a truly momentous event in the history of the teleco Read more at New York Times »

*** end quote ***

Gene Russell
   * This article was submitted on December 19, 2008 at 09:00 AM PST

*** begin quote ***

I wrote the marketing and financial sections of the Pacific Telephone & Telegraph “Evaluation of Post Divestiture Provision of Customer Premises Equipment” Business Plan while on Jim Moberg’s team reporting to Sam Ginn. Ultimately many of Judge Green’s rules and regulations destroyed a lot of business strength and growth opportunities. For example the newly minted baby Bells were prohibited from manufacturing telephone equipment i.e. CPE. Ultimately we went off shore and created an intense stream of jobs to go away. We went to LG in Korea, some minor players in Hong Kong and ultimately to China. This lightly written and short article needs a much more serious study and review of all aspects of the break up, the restrictive rules imposed by a Judge without a business background. Many people speak about the break up in terms of their personal experience with their phone and phone service. The deeper industrial and corporate wastage and inefficiencies need to be given serous academic review. PhD proposal anyone?

By Gene Russell President and CEO

*** end quote ***

I know first hand the personal disruption this caused. Family and friends were hurt. I landed on my feet. In some ways, much better off. However, those friends and family never recovered. My mom was forced out after 45 years. She was expecting to work for another 5 years. They did give her 2 years pay. But, she was “her job” and never recovered. My friend was bounced around, ill-treated in the spin outs, and basically tossed. He was out for several years trying to find a slot. There went his “retirement”.

As a country, having been at the Labs a few times, that was the country’s crown jewel. That was nuked.

Western Electric, the manufacturing arm, was nuked as well.

A tremendous cost in people, hardware, and potential.

Down the drain by a bureaucrat in a funny dress.

Argh!

Collective stupidity.

Supposedly to save money?

I just shake my head.

# # # # #

MONEY: THe FED is the “root of all evil”!

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig2/stewart9.html

The Crisis in 10 Points
by Robert Stewart

*** begin quote ***

2. The Federal Reserve System (the Fed – created in 1913) has accommodated government’s policy of spending to excess by inflating the money supply and keeping interest rates artificially low. Today’s dollar will buy what in 1913 would cost less than a nickel. This easy-money policy has not only led to inflation but has resulted in investments taking place that would not be justified had the money supply been constrained, and had interest rates more clearly reflected economic reality.

*** end quote ***

IMHO, this is the root of so many evils since 1913. Even the “income tax” wasn’t as bad as this. The FED allows the political class to extract value from the poor and middle class without the “bother” of taxes. It’s the hidden silent tax. And, it extracts more “wealth” than even the “death tax”.

I can’t believe that people are so stupid!

# # # # #

JOBSEARCH: What rights do employers have over laid off workers?

http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/12/26/142227&from=rss

RIM Accuses Motorola of Blocking Job Offers
Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday December 26, @11:48AM
from the if-i-can-have-you-nobody-will dept.
Businesses Technology

*** begin quote ***

theodp writes “Taking a page from the insanely-jealous-husband-playbook, Motorola management has adopted an if-I-can’t-have-you-nobody-can stance on its fired employees, reportedly blocking RIM from offering jobs to laid-off workers. In a complaint filed in state court, Motorola is charged with improperly trying to expand a previous agreement ‘to prevent the RIM entities from hiring any Motorola employees, including the thousands of employees Motorola has already fired or will fire.’ Through its Compete America membership, Motorola has repeatedly warned Congress that failing to accommodate the lobbying group members’ ‘principled’ demand for timely access to talent would not be in the United States’ economic interest and would make the U.S. second-rate in education and basic research.”  

*** end quote ***

A new wrinkle to make seeker’s lives miserable. Motorola want to own their future too.

Argh!

We need to change the playing field!

# # # # #

SERVICE: Web service PLAXO should fix their limits. Then, maybe …

*** begin quote ***

Message from the Plaxo Pulse Team 1 day ago

Get more out of your Plaxo — Expand your network

There are only a few days left in 2008. At this time of year, people everywhere are re-connecting with friends, family and the professional contacts that mean most to them. Now, more than ever, it’s a great time to invest in your network. Making the right connections helps you stay in touch and can open new opportunities…

Plaxo offers many tools to help you find and connect with your friends and colleagues. Visit our connections page to see people you may know; find classmates and co-workers; or import new contacts to connect with.

Once you’ve connected with the people you care about, why not update your profile to let them know what’s new? Filling in with your professional history is a great place to start.

Investing in your network is not only enjoyable, but can pay great dividends in the new year.

Warmest wishes this holiday season!

The Plaxo Team

*** end quote ***

Maybe if they fixed their 10k limit, I might invest time on Plaxo. Not a minute before. Argh!

# # # # #

RANT: Migratory Bird Act of 1918?

“XXXXXX school in XXXXXX owns a bird collection of 300 species including several endangered species like a Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle and Eskimo Curlew. The collection was donated to the school in 1963. Is the school in violation of the Migratory Bird Act of 1918?”

Repeal the 1918 law? Isn’t there a statute of limitations.

Argh!

# # # # #

SERVICE: “TRIBUTES” emerges from beta with search still broken!

Begin forwarded message:

From: “Tributes.com” <info@tributes-mail.com>
Date: December 18, 2008 5:20:49 PM EST
Subject: Tributes.com – Member Update

Dear Tributes Member,

The end of September marked the formal launch of Tributes.com as our site exited its testing phase and went into full production to serve families and funeral homes across the U.S. by providing the national resource on the Internet for obituary news and lasting personal tributes.

As we work to consolidate obituary news from across the country onto a single national platform, more and more people are looking to Tributes.com as a reliable place to locate service and condolence information so that they never miss the opportunity to grieve with family and friends. Obituary Alerts also ensure that you receive notification by email of any obituaries that are posted to our site for people from a particular city or town, family, school, or military unit.

Lasting Tributes to Remember Loved Ones

For those of you that have recently lost a special person or would like to remember someone that passed away months, or even years ago, we now offer a robust suite of interactive tools to help create lasting online tributes that appropriately tell the rich stories of our loved ones’ lives. You can now choose from multiple tribute offerings to create a lasting tribute, capturing and preserving special memories for generations to come. Tributes include:

Unlimited copy

Photo slideshows

Interactive memory books

Music & Video support

Custom templates

Create a tribute for your loved ones who have passed away

We take great pride at Tributes in being an important resource for our users and always are interested in your comments and feedback.

Best Regards,

Elaine Haney

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Search for “manhattan college” still doesn’t work! Argh!!

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President, Tributes.com

Tributes.com • 1 First Avenue, First Floor • Charlestown, MA • 02129

LIBERTY: Fix it before it kills us!

Monday, December 8, 2008
The End of the World…Maybe

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“Commandments” is an incorrect translation; “Utterances” or “Words” is much more accurate. I prefer “Laws,” as in “Natural Laws.” If you break them, bad things automatically happen. No cops are needed. The 20th century was a time of worshipping the false idols of Man and State, in violation of the First Law (“have no other gods but the one true God”). It doesn’t matter to me if people believe in any sort of God or not; these Ten Laws still exist, and violation of their practical wisdom brings unhappiness, destruction and death. You can say, “As you sow, you reap,” or “What goes around, comes around,” or karma (“the moral law of cause and effect”) or kismet, or the Tao, or whatever name you want to give it. Those laws are part of human nature.

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And if people can’t do it, it’s doubly forbidden for governments (which in a sense don’t really exist, since they are composed of people). The big difference is that governments try to claim a monopoly on force, which makes them unimaginably destructive. I’ve read estimates that up to 200 million people died in the 20th century at the hands of various governments. And all because of the violation of “You shall not murder.”

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If I was King, I would take all the Christians and Jews who support Israel (and send money there) and deport them all over there. I would do the same with Muslims here who support the Islamic countries. As it stands right now, the US government is involved in 4,000-year-old tribal warfare, and is in fact supporting both sides in the conflict.

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Interesting.

First, the author points out timeless principles. Then, he proceeds to break them by using force on people.

I think one of those timeless principles is the “Zero Aggression Principle”. In my mind, I am moral, as admonished by most major religions or philosophies, to not initiate force on others. ZAP as the Libertarians call it.

Government — be it Kings, Presidents, or Tyrants all the same — seeks to force youto conform to its wishes. It robs Peter to enrich Paul while deducting a huge chuck for its “services”.

Sorry, sovereign individuals need no tyrants to tell them what to do. Government’s only legitimate role is to preserve the peace and ensure rights. The jury is still out if it can do that. Not very successful so far.

Maybe it’s time for a new meme to replace “government”. Examine your paradigms and memes for a replacement? I don’t have one but I’m looking.

Fix it before it kills us!

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RANT: OJ was punished for the last crime

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/story.asp?s=9461992

O.J. Simpson and C.J. Stewart Sentenced
Updated: Dec 5, 2008 06:59 PM

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Former football great O.J. Simpson will spend anywhere from nine to 33 years in prison and his co-defendant, Clarence C.J. Stewart will spend 7.5 to 27 years for their roles in a Las Vegas armed robbery case.

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Sorry! This is a terrible result.

I’m no OJ fan.

I believe that the LA keystone kops muddied the DNA evidence and the jury righty said so.

In this case, I’m of the opinion that he didn’t get a fair trial. The Goldman’s in the court room “invited” the jury to punish him for what he “got away with”.

Sorry! I think he was railroaded.

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