Archive for March 2009

The monthlies.

• Huff Tags

  I admit it. I read the Huffington Post. (For some reason I cannot resist, and at this point, I consider it one of my four vices.) One thing that upsets me about the Huffington Post is their penchant for overtagging (much like kottke), shown as red links below… Image: Huffington Post Please note the following [...]

• A Twitter Beating

  I’ve taken a beating on Twitter, or so it seems, for whatever it is worth, regarding my controversial write-up of the Mother Jones / Rachel Maddow event. It went something like this [Note: I did not post anything to Twitter; these are other people's tweets.]… comment & photo from Mother Jones event with Rachel Maddow [...]

• Q & A

  I had a prepared question for the Mother Jones event. It went like this… There are two families in Washington DC — a dysfunctional one (the Democrats), and a crime syndicate (the GOP). [Hold for laughter.] The dysfunctional family seats 250 people around the table, they fight in public and everyone wants to do their [...]

• Recently tweeted and/or twatted

  Day four: 5 out of 8; not the best day, but I’m still standing. # 60 Minutes on TiVo. # @ryanalward Is there an iPod dock? in reply to ryanalward # I am leaning against MacHeist for ethical reasons; it is tempting. # @mrsjwns Ahh, clearing escrow. Congratulations. in reply to mrsjwns # I just [...]

• Mother Jones and Rachel Maddow

  Last night I was the guest of honor for a fundraiser event benefiting Mother Jones, headlined by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow. (Full disclosure: I have never been the biggest fan of Maddow. I also do not have expanded cable anymore, so in order for me to watch her program, I must view it online.) The event [...]

• Maddow, Live

  I just posted this to Twitter, quite literally, moments ago… I just won tickets to see Rachel Maddow speak at a Mother Jones event in San Francisco tomorrow evening. # It’s true.

• Democrat Budget

  It is not the era of proper discourse, that is for sure, but all the talk about republicans “slurring” democrats by referring to the party as the “Democrat Party,” and not the “Democratic Party,” which is correct, has been mostly overblown… Because although one could speak derogatorily about the opposing party using impish tactics, the [...]

• MacHeist

  I am battling temptation. I agree with the underlying context that the bundle is an overall rip-off for the individual developers of the applications included in the latest MacHeist bundle. However, I do not see it as a fair condemnation of the consumers that do purchase the bundle because the consumers are — in fact [...]

• The New York Times Ups The Ante

  Being on the west coast, the best chance I have to catch a press conference is on the radio during the commute home. Lo-and-behold, the New York Times now offers an interactive press conference (be it a day after) — with video, text and search capability… Image: The New York Times This is what the [...]

• Fixing the economy, one resume consult at a time

  I spent several hours at the Berkeley campus for a career fair last week. I spoke to 80 or so students, mostly seniors and graduate students, but also a handful of sophomores and juniors (or what they referred to as their “third year;” so pretentious). I have had some experience with resume writing — having [...]

• Volcano Monitoring

  This made me laugh when it was news, but now that it is not news anymore, and instead liberal blog fodder, all the better… Bobby Jindal, please run for president.

• Baer On Iran

  Speaking of Bobby Baer, the CIA operative spoke to CBS News last month on the issue of Iranian influence in terrorism today. It should be noted that Baer now lives nearby, and he walks his dog where I walk mine sometimes (Tilden Park in Berkeley), so we’re bound to meet-up* at some point… * I’d [...]

• Recently tweeted and/or twatted

  Maybe the issue is contractually-mandated bonuses. # @ryanalward The idea that AIG is contractually-mandated to hand out bonuses to individuals that performed poorly with taxpayer money. in reply to ryanalward # Q: How fast could you put a proposal together to build a privately-funded baseball stadium in downtown Oakland? # If you know anything about [...]

• Currently Reading

  Former CIA operative Robert Baer feels that the real terrorism threat lies in Iran, and that the unwillingness and political weakness in Washington and the impotence at the CIA are the reasons that America remains unsafe; after reading his story, it is hard not to see that Baer makes a strong argument. On to my [...]

• Related

  The algorithm must be messed up, or maybe my definition of “related” needs rethinking… Image: CBS Chicago

• Over Analyzed

  What can I say, I have a tendency to over analyze my brackets. After reading this ultra-important dissection of Obama’s tournament picks, I realized something about my own biases in making picks (outside of always choosing Big East teams). Following a thorough look through my bracket, I’ve realized that I am biased towards 3- and [...]

• Real-Time Time-Suck

  I mean, this is funny, right? Not everyone is complaining [about the Facebook redesign]. Russell Imrie, an unemployed machinist from Redwood Estates in the Santa Cruz Mountains, said he likes the real-time updates that now flow into his feed. Previously, users had to wait about 10 minutes, refresh the page or click on a link [...]

• Recently tweeted and/or twatted…

  If you know anything about the discovery of salt, oranges or almonds, please email me. # VMware Fusion, Parallels, Wine… anyone? #

• Bill Simmons On (Good) Blogs

  I caught this statement in an archived piece… When the goal is to keep everyone on their toes, have some fun, provide an alternate take on things and remain at least somewhat objective, that’s great. – Bill Simmons (2005) This highlights my method exactly for this blog, and my other (public) blogs, although I am [...]

• How to win NBA Jam

  Last week, I won an NBA Jam challenge.* The two of us picked five teams in draft fashion. I picked first, he picked second and third, I fourth, he fifth, etc. For no reason other than my amusement, we conducted the draft over Twitter. I picked the Hornets, Spurs, Kings, Clippers and Bullets. My opponent [...]

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