Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Deceit

Heather Martens is either illiterate, stupid, or a lying, power-hungry panic-monger.

She is also wrong, conceptually and factually. More later.

Stock tip:

Don't buy into JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, or Morgan Stanley. They hold the vast majority of the derivatives that did so much to tank the market. If unicornfart-based legislation doesn't fix the market(Tip #2: It can't.), these companies will have major problems. The kind of major problems that lead to total buyouts and liquidation.

H/T SurvivalBlog.

Monday, July 27, 2009

The future is now


That is nothing short of awesome. I wouldn’t get a 1st gen version, but once it is bug-tested and customizable, that would be great. Connect it to a smartphone and a bluetooth earpiece and leave Dick Tracy drooling with jealousy. That’d even make Leela cry, and she’s only got one eye.

Welcome to the future.

Friday, July 24, 2009

To all 9/11 Troofers:

My apologies. I have uncovered proof that jet fuel couldn't possible have taken down the towers. It was all Bush, working in his underwear between 3 and 4 am for 2 weeks before 9/11. Using the magic of the illuminati and herds of trained sheep(not "sheeple", actual wool-bearing farm-dates), he shrunk himself and his stooges(baah!) small enough to navigate inside the walls and lay the demolition materials without anyone noticing.

This had to be the case, because this guy couldn't melt his rabbit cage.

Seriously, is there a stick that can be used to beat 9/11 truther nonsense out of people?
Like a rolled-up engineering degree or something?

It's a basic truth of human nature that 13 people can keep a secret if 12 of them are dead.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Irritating vegetarians

Tree rats

Geez

All linky, no thinky. It's not even thinky linkies. Dangit.

I do have some bigger, better posts percolating.

Important Invention

[zybl0re] get up
[zybl0re] get on up
[zybl0re] get up
[zybl0re] get on up
[phxl|paper] and DANCE
* nmp3bot dances :D\-<
* nmp3bot dances :D|-<
* nmp3bot dances :D/-<
[[SA]HatfulOfHollow] i'm going to become rich and famous after i invent a device that allows you to stab people in the face over the internet

Bye, Dot

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

NASCAR Safety

Monday, July 20, 2009

Next week's headline:

Low-wage workers in highest demographic of newly unemployed.

Lowest-wage workers to get pay increase as minimum wage rises - TwinCities.com
WASHINGTON — The final installment of a three-part increase in the federal minimum wage is proving to be the most controversial.

Two previous wage hikes, one in 2007, the other in 2008, pushed the federal wage to $5.85 and then to the current $6.55 an hour. The third, which goes into effect Friday, will push it to $7.25 an hour.

Quote of the Day

Someday, the leftists will wake up and realize that reality doesn't care how they feel about it.

- Me

Friday, July 17, 2009

The invitation sent from my house this week:

Announcing:

The Third Annual

2nd Deadly Sin* Barbecue of Doom!

Where: My house

When: Saturday, July 25th

No, really, when: Lunchtime-ish

What: Enough meat to kill a small army.

Seriously?

Yes. We've depopulated a small farmstead for your gastronomical amusement.

Burgers, brats, hot dogs, lamb, pork chops and more.

How: I recommend a fork.

RSVP: Or else. xxx-xxx-xxxx



* That's Gluttony

A Presidential* Message

I approve of:

President Barack Obama delivered a fiery sermon to black America Thursday night, warning black parents that they must accept their own responsibilities by "putting away the Xbox and putting our kids to bed at a reasonable hour," and telling black children that growing up poor is no reason to get bad grades.

"No one has written your destiny for you," he said, directing his remarks to "all the other Barack Obamas out there" who might one day grow up to be president. "Your destiny is in your hands, and don't you forget that. That's what we have to teach all of our children! No excuses! No excuses!"

Logical Sequel

Piranhas on an Escalator. You might want to take the stairs.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Guerilla Book Review


I found a new hobby.

6 minutes

To the Apollo 11 launch.

http://www.wechoosethemoon.org/#

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Who is John Galt?

There are more than a few of these for sale.
Seen on the rear of a vehicle in a supermarket parking lot:


If you don't know the answer, get reading, as Rand's classic novel has never been more relevant than since the Messiah was sworn into office.


Found onThe Northern Muckraker

Misunderstanding of the concept of racism

Sotomayor couldn't possibly have meant exactly what she said, could she?

Commentary: What the 'wise Latina' remark meant
Entitled "Raising the Bar: Latino and Latina Presence in the Judiciary and the Struggle for Representation," the conference brought together -- for the first time, to my knowledge -- judges, lawyers, scholars and law students to consider the state of Latinos in the judiciary.

By 2050, Hispanics will be 30 percent of the U.S. population, and yet the number of Latino judges remains tiny. The number of female Hispanic judges is even smaller; Sotomayor is one of two Hispanic women among federal appellate judges, and there are not much more than that among the hundreds of federal district judges.

Part of the impetus for the conference was to signal the potential crisis for our courts in the 21st century if we do not get more Latino lawyers interested in becoming judges and more appointed to the bench.

In this context, I did not find Sotomayor's comment controversial. As I look at the speech eight years later, I'm struck by how measured and careful she was in making the claim.

So, as long as your target audience is not the one you are pushing against, it's not racist? The KKK isn't racist at their rallies, until they actually light up the cross in someone's yard?

Bad Copy

Firemen

Monday, July 13, 2009

Bad Sex Ed.

Schools shouldn't be teaching sex. Period. Some people disagree. This, however, should be too extreme for any school administrator.

The authors of the guidance say that for too long, experts have concentrated on the need for "safe sex" and committed relationships while ignoring the principle reason that many people have sex.

Entitled Pleasure, the leaflet has been drawn up by NHS Sheffield, but it also being circulated outside the city.

The leaflet carries the slogan "an orgasm a day keeps the doctor away". It also says: "Health promotion experts advocate five portions of fruit and veg a day and 30 minutes' physical activity three times a week. What about sex or masturbation twice a week?"


Encouraging promiscuous behavior is NOT an acceptable function of the school system.


Found via Prof. Joseph Olson.

Unique

The Geek Trap

Friday, July 10, 2009

Don't Gloat

Your bias is showing.
If Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin thought her decision to step down might end ethics accusations against her, she quickly found out she was wrong.

SWAT Abuse

Lycanthropy

Economic Basics

If you keep a plant closed, don't be surprised when the plant goes out of business. Modern unions kill business and these employees got exactly what they were asking for.

HinaH Links

Photo essay.

Easy drinks.

Thanks, James.

Public Service Announcement


Opening bananas.

Minimum Wage

The laws of economics don't change by decree.
People often think of the minimum wage as a restriction on employers — that they cannot pay less than a certain number for a job. But it is also equally a restriction on job seekers — my son cannot legally offer to take a job for less than $7.25, even though he would probably gladly do so. For teenagers, just gaining the experience of working and building basic skills (like showing up on time, following procedures, interacting with customers and fellow employees) has enormous value, such that even a nominal payment of a few dollars an hour would more than compensate him for his labor.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Monday, July 6, 2009

PVC Sprinkler Toy


KidWash 2 : PVC Sprinkler Water Toy - More DIY How To Projects

Healthcare, debunked

Kevin quotes John Stossell heavily in this post. RTWT. Any journalist who understands the TANSTAAFL approach to healthcare and government policies can't be all bad.
As others have noted, in 2005 (the most recent data I've been able to find) Canada had 5.5 MRI scanners per million population, and 11.3 CAT scan machines per million. The U.S. had at that time 27 and 32 per million population, respectively. Canada's are still backed up for months. Here you can get an elective "heart-saver" CT scan for about $100, usually within a couple of days of calling to make the appointment.

Greedy bastards.

Quote of the Day

"I was once told by a fellow that being shot with ball is "only like being stabbed with an ice pick, while a hollow point makes a big hole." My response was that if I stabbed him in the chest three or four times with an ice pick, I would probably accomplish what I wanted to anyway."
-Hermit

How...

...Is this any of your business?
"Called “shared responsibility payments,” the fines would be set at least at half the cost of basic medical coverage, according to the legislation. The goal is to nudge people to sign up for coverage when they are healthy, not wait until they get sick."


Commie bastards. Will they be forced to use the healthcare they are trying to force on us?

Not sure I could do the job.

Damn.

Found via the Ambulance Driver.

Bad Parenting

Don't these people get screened, somehow?

A Long Island, New York, social worker is facing two misdemeanor charges after allegedly posting a sexually suggestive ad on Craigslist that gave interested parties the home phone number of a 9-year-old girl.
The sexually suggestive ad allowed parties to get a number for a 9-year-old girl.

According to prosecutors, Margery Tannenbaum posted the ad to get revenge after an argument between her daughter and the girl, who attend the same school in Hauppauge, New York.


Or at least strung up, after the fact?

A Gazillion Jobs...

...Saved or created?
And I said, "Well, to me a job sustained is if I didn't have to lay-off or fire someone because you ordered something and that's not the case." And he had a guide that the government provided that explains their logic on each line item, and they said, "No, sustained would mean that someone actually worked on the product and made it and so that counts as a job sustained." And so I said, "So the person that answers the phone would be one, the person that boxed it up would be two," and I said I can't do that."

Security Briefing

Shouldn't a basic primer on personal security be high on the list of things to do for the wife of your country's national security agency? You know, "Don't put your personal address on Facebook" would be a great start.

Screw ADT.

They just went on my list of companies to never do business with. Using a fake home invasion to drum up business. They should be ashamed of themselves.

The alert was left in newspaper boxes and doors last week warning people about an overnight break-in.

The official looking fliers alarmed the neighbors at first. However, it turns out the alert was false and used as a sales tactic.

Homeowners in a well-maintained neighborhood in Brooklyn Park were concerned when this crime warning came to their door describing a home break-in through a slashed screen.

"Slashed ... and entered while the occupants were inside," said Brooklyn Park resident Deana McFee.


Contact info: 1-866-746-7238 - Sales

Friday, July 3, 2009

Out of town with...




Out of town with family for the weekend.
Powered by Dial2Do
Dial2Do
. Mp3

Bad Security Theater

Here's the plan: I'll ask you nicely to remove your hat and sunglasses to make it easier to identify you. If you don't comply, I'll serve you anyway! Take that, potential bad guy. I'm sure the actual bank robbers will be deterred by "everyone in the bank will be watching them more closely."

About as effective as "(INDICATE IDENTITY OF OPERATOR) BANS GUNS IN THESE PREMISES" signs for stopping criminal violence.

Slow Down

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Family Beds

This BS article is pimping the lies that family beds are dangerous.

For an opinion based on nothing: "And pediatricians say it's a reminder that babies have no business sleeping in beds with adults."

The real cause: "According to a search warrant, the woman uses a couple prescription drugs and she'd been drinking martinis. Police say she blew a 0.12 on a breath test."

The lesson: Don't pass out on top of your baby! That's not an accident, it's negligent.

More meaningless statistics that don't actually support the context: "The most recent numbers, two years ago, show 39 babies died from unsafe sleeping environments in Minnesota." Those 39 deaths-out of approximately 70,000 babies born per year in Minnesota; that's .05%, hardly a statistical worry-include blankets in cribs, babies left to roll off of couches, kids sleeping on floors and being stepped on, and anything else sleep related. Compare that to a rate of 57.1 per 100,000 SIDS deaths in 2002. That's not an apples-to-apples comparison. The rates are from different samples and there is an unknown amount of overlap between the two statistics.

What is clear is that, without a control group-a horrible idea-complaints about family beds are "feel good" complaints not based in reality. There is not a single person railing against family beds who knows how often parents in a family bed have woken up to see a baby having problems that would have gone unnoticed if the baby had been in a crib.

Base your decisions on reality, science and statistics, not the opinions of badly informed control-freaks.

Remodel

I am reasonably sure that if I show my wife this article, I'll be out a couple of thousand dollars this summer.
Four in ten Americans say they intend to spruce up their homes rather than tackle a full remodel. Here's what $1,000 will buy in a kitchen or bathroom that has a solid structure but a dated design. Costs don't include the contractor's overheads and profit margins, which can account for up to half of a remodeling budget.

TGIMBOEJ

It's a shame I didn't hear about this two weeks ago. I just cleaned out my parts cabinet. Anything that didn't have a realistic and identifiable use went in the trash as part of my 'simplify and downsize' plan

Zombie Chickens

This is entirely way too tempting.

The last time my wife left town for a weekend, my son and I built a trebuchet in the driveway. I feel a new project coming on.

Are you a survivor?

If only this was a bit closer to home. My kid would love it.

If you are an innovator, trailblazer, explorer or a frontiersperson who is 10 or 11 years old, the Jay C. Hormel Nature Center wants to test your pioneer skills.

Want to learn more?

Register at the nature center or by mail. Registration forms are available online at www.ci.austin.mn.us/Parkandrec/outdoor.html

Call 437-7519 for more information.




The Nature Survival Class, which has been offered for nearly two decades at the nature center, allows children to step into history to a time when survival was an everyday part of life.

Flint knapping, fire building, candle making and cooking over an open fire are some of the activities children will experience in the program.

Out

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Quote of the Day

Why should the people get something through government–that is, at the point of a gun–simply because they want it? We make that assumption reflexively, but why? Fifty-seven percent may be willing to pay higher taxes for universal health insurance, but let’s not overlook what else they are willing to do: tax the 37 percent who aren’t willing to pay higher taxes.

-Sheldon Richman

Hypocrisy

Can we overturn the other unjust laws, like selective bailouts, bailouts in general, light bulb choices being forced and all the other crap he's forcing down our throats?
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President* Obama honored Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month with a White House reception Monday where he likened the struggle for gay rights with the struggle of African-Americans for civil rights.

Call your Congress-Weasels

Thank them for raising taxes on absolutely everybody during a recession.

I'm looking at you, Ryan Winkler, and you, Ron Latz.

This article doesn't even mention all of the other "taxes on business" that are pass-through taxes to be paid by the end-consumer via higher prices. As your jobs vanish and your bank account deteriorates, call and thank the Congress-weasels responsible. "Ooh, the ship is sinking, hold this rock."

Monsters