September 30, 2010

Obama, a very divisive president.


Thanks CNN.

Molson Canadian Beer Advertising


While it is not the best version of this commercial. I came across it a few years back when I was in Canada. Last year I heard some kids reciting it word for word. Some other kid stated that everyone knows that rant.

Anyways I think it is pretty funny and effective.

September 28, 2010

Mainstream Polling.

From Politico:

According to a recent poll, likely voters get their political news primarily from cable television. Among cable channels, 42 percent, a plurality, watch Fox News for its political coverage. Only 12 percent said they watched MSNBC. What's more, most likely voters don't like or have never heard of MSNBC's prime time talent.

The poll, conducted by Politico and George Washington University, used a sample split evenly between political parties - even slightly favoring Democrats in some areas: 41 percent of respondents identified as Republicans, while 42 percent said they were Democrats. Forty-four percent said they usually vote for Republicans, while 46 percent answered Democrats. Forty-eight percent voted for Obama, while only 45 percent voted for McCain.

Even among this group, Fox News is by far the most popular cable outlet. CNN comes in at second, with 30 percent. A sorry MSNBC brings up the rear.

Among cable news personalities, FNC's Bill O'Reilly - consistently the highest-rated cable news talker - is the most popular. Forty-nine percent of respondents said they thought O'Reilly has a positive impact on the American political conversation. Thirty-two percent said he has a negative impact.

Interestingly, respondents - again, split evenly among the two parties - thought all three of Fox's evening opinion commentators (O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, and Sean Hannity) have a net positive impact on the national debate. All three have a positive spread in the category. Also of note, for none of the three did majorities answer "never heard of".

MSNBC's hosts are a different story. Only 23 percent said Keith Olbermann has a positive impact on the debate, while 25 said he has a negative one. A plurality, 42 percent, had never heard of him

But at least it was only a plurality. Majorities said they have never heard of Ed Schultz or Rachel Maddow - 70 percent and 55 percent, respectively. The positive impact/negative impact responses were split down the middle for both.

In other words, the vast majority of likely voters either do not like MSNBC's prime time talkers, or have never heard of them (with the notable exception of Chris Matthews, whose name was not included in the poll).

"How did it get to this state?" wonders Ed Morrissey.
After all, NBC had a long history in television news, starting decades before CNN and even longer than Fox. Its partnership with Microsoft should have given the cable news network a distinct advantage in the New Media world. Their roster of news anchors, present and future, should have immediately challenged CNN for primacy and marginalized Fox, who may have had cash but relatively fewer newsgathering resources in the US when it launched.

Under the direction of GE's Jeff Immelt, though, NBC's cable network went for the full-insane demographic. Fox took CNN's talking-head format and simply reversed the bias, although Fox rightly argues that it presents more opposing viewpoints than CNN did as part of their establishment talent and not just occasional guests and party spinmeisters. NBC decided to emulate Air America with its cable lineup instead, perhaps seeing some opportunity in the last Bush term to capitalize on his unpopularity and become a center of opposition opinion.

Rather than accomplish that, the decision by NBC and its parent GE has not just destroyed MSNBC's credibility but also NBC's as well. With the exception of Joe Scarborough, who is hard to pigeonhole but certainly isn't a hard-Left hysteric, the entire lineup is exactly what one would find on the failed libtalker radio network. It's no coincidence that two of its featured hosts come straight out of Air America, Rachel Maddow and Ed Schultz. Maddow has, at least, produced a watchable show, albeit with a hard-Left tilt that clearly is out of touch with the mainstream, but Schultz is barely coherent. Top that off with a daily "news" broadcast from Keith Olbermann that almost literally consists of a Two Minute Hate (Olbermann's WPIW lists), and it's a recipe for the kind of disaster that only political hacks could love. The wonder is that GE and NBC apparently seem content to alienate 88% of the viewing audience with its trainwreck theater.

September 24, 2010

Efficiency on the fly.

At work I am finding that tasks called 'daunting' are my favorite. I got home tonight very exhilarated by my work day.

I do need to digress a bit. Thursday Night my supervisor apologetically gave me a long list of items that needed to be done before the store opened on Friday. He himself, was to arrive at 6:00 Friday morning to try to complete whatever was not finished. He pretty much dismissed the Idea that I would be able to accomplish a modicum of the list.

I finished it all. With the list in hand my mind was able to organize the job in an interlaced series of tasks that could be done prior to the close staging an efficient undertaking. It could have easily been a debacle, but the things outside of my control fell into place.

Tonight was a similar situation. This time I was not staying afterwards, so I have to pass the job onto my co-worker. I had notes and a plan of attack. We got the do-able portion either staged or done prior to close (when I had to leave). This left my co-worker with one smaller task and the awaiting of new shipments.

I even anticipated a number of problems that would occur and pre-solved them as well. It was my brain firing on all cylinders. Solving complex, real life, real time problems like these certainly appeals to me. My favorite command is "Just get it done"

Juxtaposed is my not wanting to create any problems. That is to say, leaving well enough alone, keep it simple stupid, if it aint broke... Are more the motto's that guide me.

As I sit here on the brink of a Saturday, I am really looking forward to work in the morning and skating in the evening. Sadly I miss out on Connors swimming. Sunday Connor and I are going on a bike ride... It is going to be a nice weekend.

55 inches!

Maybe its the shorts...

The powers that be decided that our neck of the woods would like 26" to 37" Televisions. We got the obligatory Samsung Series 7 3D sets (which some of the other store imports for opening told us would be a tough sell). We sold them all in the first four weeks of being opened.

Other stores have not seen any inventory go out the door.

Also the 55" 240 hz LED LCD have been nigh impossible to sell at other locations. We sold all of ours and we have been getting in other stores inventory (which, by the dust on top, have been stored for a while). We cannot seem to keep the things in stock. We got four last night, two already are spoken for.

The TV's we carry are all the newfangled flat HD televisions. There are a few things to know about them.

The size is still measured diagonally, so getting the height and length requires some searching the literature or having a tape measure at the store.

1080p is the top resolution for High Definition. It refers to the number of lines that make up the image. You may see 720p or 1080i as well. The 'p' stands for progress, the 'i' stands for interlaced. Progressive is better as it displays the full image faster.

120hz is the speed at which the images are displayed. 120 frames per second is about the best on a bigger screen. up to 32" a 60hz would be fine the hz rating seems to be noticeable at 37" and up. There are some 240hz machines out there that would provide the smoothest action.

However, that is more Dependant on how your brain and eyes are wired.

Finally the way the TV displays the image. Plasma, LCD or LED. Plasma gives a good big picture at a lower price. The plasma gets rather hot and uses more electricity then other sets. Also, most of the ones are still at 720p.

LCD is lighter but require a back light. There are limits to how bright you can get these sets. So they may require more shading.

LED are LCD screens that use LED's for the light source. These are brighter then your LCD and can even fight the suns glare. These also have the lowest electrical consumption and are the thinnest at under 2" in some cases.

The interesting bit to me is how these numbers compare to broadcasts. Nothing broadcasts in 1080p at 120hz. The best is 1080i at 60hz. The 120hz sets do something kind of cool. They take the current image and the next image and create a new frame that is inserted in the mix. This makes the motion look better.


September 23, 2010

Fox .VS. MSNBC

We keep hearing how Fox is extreme Right in its viewpoint etc. Further, we hear how dangerous it can be etc. At the same time MSNBC is given a pass. Yes, Fox news has some Right wing shows.

The lineup at night:
FNC features "The Glenn Beck Show" which is Libertarian (conservative).

"Special Report" which a UCLA study a depicted as one of the most fair and balanced straight evening news broadcasts on television.

"Fox Report" with Shepard Smith, by far FNC's most liberal anchor.

Next is Bill O'Reilly who is right of center. He regularly features opposing viewpoints.

Then Hannity who is certainly right of center. Who also features opposing views.

Finally "On the Record" with Greta Van Susteren whose political leaning is unknown and who appears straight down the middle in her reporting.

What does MSNBC offer?
"Hardball" with Chris Matthews - left
"The Ed Show" with Ed Schultz - far to the left
"Hardball" rerun
"Countdown" with Keith Olbermann - far to the left
"The Rachel Maddow Show" - far to the left
"Countdown" rerun, soon to be "The Last Word" with Lawrence O'Donnell - far to the left

So FOX in percentage terms, 50 percent is conservative, 33 percent is neutral, and 17 percent is liberal.

September 21, 2010

Steven Hawking believes in spontaneous generation.

The laws governing our universe seem finely tuned to allow the existence of life. There are any number of constants that are set at just the value needed to allow life to exist.. If any of these constants were off by even a small amount, life would not be possible. It appears that our universe has been designed to allow for life, which implies the existence of an intelligent designer.

In apologetics, this argument is sometimes called the argument from design from cosmological constants.

Hawking proposes that ours is only one of a vast number of universes, all of which pop into existence out of nothing as spontaneous creations. What’s more, the laws of physics take on every possible permutation in these universes, so there are vast numbers of them out there where the cosmological constants are different.

In regards to God The Grand Design is long on assertion and short on argument.

Two, easy?

Myth #1: Tax revenues remain low.
Fact: Tax revenues are above the historical average, even after the tax cuts.

Myth #2: The Bush tax cuts substantially reduced 2006 revenues and expanded the budget deficit.
Fact: Nearly all of the 2006 budget deficit resulted from additional spending above the baseline.

Myth #3: Supply-side economics assumes that all tax cuts immediately pay for themselves.
Fact: It assumes replenishment of some but not necessarily all lost revenues.

Myth #4: Capital gains tax cuts do not pay for themselves.
Fact: Capital gains tax revenues doubled following the 2003 tax cut.

Myth #5: The Bush tax cuts are to blame for the projected long-term budget deficits.
Fact: Projections show that entitlement costs will dwarf the projected large revenue increases.

Myth #6: Raising tax rates is the best way to raise revenue.
Fact: Tax revenues correlate with economic growth, not tax rates.

Myth #7: Reversing the upper-income tax cuts would raise substantial revenues.
Fact: The low-income tax cuts reduced revenues the most.

Myth #8: Tax cuts help the economy by "putting money in people's pockets."
Fact: Pro-growth tax cuts support incentives for productive behavior.

Myth #9: The Bush tax cuts have not helped the economy.
Fact: The economy responded strongly to the 2003 tax cuts.

Myth #10: The Bush tax cuts were tilted toward the rich.
Fact: The rich are now shouldering even more of the income tax burden.

September 20, 2010

Selling Pie

It turns out my little Cost Co is pretty good at selling big TV sets. When I say big I am referring to 55" or greater. We have some pretty dynamic people.

For the holiday they moved the pumpkin pie bin up front and are giving out samples, this along with the dollar off coupon (no limit). We are letting people know we can provide for the pumpkin pie needs.

In my group we decided to let people know that we have pie, were the samples are and the coupon information, as they head through our department. It was pretty gratifying to see all the carts with two pies in them.

This was on a Saturday and the next day I learned that we had outsold our "rival" stores. So I allowed myself a small pat on the back.

September 19, 2010

talk like a pirate day!



My pirate name is:


Iron Sam Flint



A pirate's life isn't easy; it takes a tough person. That's okay with you, though, since you a tough person. Like the rock flint, you're hard and sharp. But, also like flint, you're easily chipped, and sparky. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

Islam the US media protected religion...

Check out the following headlines in the British press about the arrest of six men who may have been planning to kill the Pope during his visit to England:

"Police question six street cleaners held over plot to attack the Pope" (Daily Mail) (2nd paragraph: "Armed officers detained the men, all believed to be Muslims of North African origin, as they prepared to go on shift at a cleaning depot in Central London.")

Yet in neither of two separate articles by the Associated Press (Nicole Winfield and David Stringer/Victor L. Simpson) do the writers mention a possible extremist Muslim/Islamic connection. The writers simply identified the suspects as "London street cleaners."


September 14, 2010

zealots at play.

Next month there will be a vote that makes a statement about the current administration. There was quite a body of people who elected Obama for a number of reasons. (I did not vote for him because he did not seem to have enough experience and he was a liberal democrat. I thought McCain would be a poor president, but at least we would have the relief of gridlock)

After Obama was elected I did hold out hope that he would do as he promised and bring the country together. He promised to slash the budget and to deter the lobbyists. Also, there was to be more openly visible processes and time for we the people to weigh in on bills.

So I hoped for the best. What followed has been the exact opposite. With laughable blame being pointed for each and every failure.

The Democrats had everything and if, as I have been told, the ideology and methods were so superior then this was the chance to show us all.

One could be surprised at the number of democrats who are distancing themselves from the president. Further, one could be surprised that the wonderful landmark bills passed would not be at the forefront of various mid-term elections.

Put me back in office to complete our agenda for the people! Look what we have already accomplished with the recovery bill and the healthcare bill!

The worst thing that could happen is more RINO's get elected. IMHO

September 11, 2010

cooking tip # 23,468

In order to avoid the blackish shell and runny interior, avoid temperatures over 500 degrees when cooking pancakes.

Also, reduce the cooking time down from 15 minutes, try to stay inside the house and or kitchen...

September 09, 2010

September 03, 2010

Something to make you laugh.

A wealthy man decided to go on a safari in Africa. He took his faithful pet dog along for company. One day the dog starts chasing butterflies and before long he discovers that he is lost. So, wandering about he notices a leopard heading rapidly in his direction with the obvious intention of having lunch.
The dog thinks, "Boyo, I'm in deep doo doo." Then he noticed some bones on the ground close by, and immediately settles down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat.

Just as the leopard is about to leap, the dog exclaims loudly, "Man, that was one delicious leopard. I wonder if there are any more around here?"

Hearing this the leopard halts his attack in mid stride, as a look of terror comes over him, and slinks away into the trees. "Whew", says the leopard. "That was close. That dog nearly had me."

Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard. So, off he goes. But the dog saw him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figured that something must be up.

The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard. The cat is furious at being made a fool of and says, "Here monkey, hop on my back and see what's going to happen to that conniving canine."

Now the dog sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back, and thinks," What am I going to do now?" But instead of running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers pretending he hasn't seen them yet. And just when they get close enough to hear, the dog says, "Where's that monkey. I just can never trust him. I sent him off half an hour ago to bring me another leopard, and he's still not back!!"

Harry Reid: I won the war

Harry Reid: I won the war

Wow, talk about spin! This induces vertigo!

September 01, 2010