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Hunter S. Thompson Would Have Been 73 Today
Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, the legendary creator of Gonzo journalism, would have been 73 years old today. "There he goes. One of God's own prototypes. Some kind of high powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and to...
Strange Things You Likely Didn't Know - Weird stuff!
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Surviving the World - Lesson 964 - Types of People
There's progression, unfortunately. I used to be an owl. Now I'm probably an armadillo/owl hybrid. Karl Pilkington would be proud.
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A skull belonging to a human relative of the Homo genus who lived 1.8 million years ago has been discovered in Dmanisi, Georgia.
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The Most Racist Thing That (n)Ever Happened*
The Most Racist Thing That (n)Ever Happened*
Fire and Ice - Robert Frost
by Poet . Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in
15 styles of Distorted Thinking
Test color : free of charge personality test.
Free of charge personality test.
The Secret
nobody has the strange and hidden power, nobody is exceptional or wonderful or magic, they only seem to be it's all a trick, an in, a con, don't buy it, don't believe it. the world is packed with billions of ...
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I do not resemble your other lovers, my lady
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College Liberal | quick meme
Create and share quick memes instantly.
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The 10 Rules of Change
Change isn't easy, but it is possible: an expert offers 10 rules to change.
AJG Distributing LLC. - The Unofficial Site Of EZ Pipe
40 Of The Most Powerful Photographs Ever Taken
A moving collection of iconic photographs from the last 100 years that demonstrate the heartbreak of loss, the tremendous power of loyalty, and the triumph of the human spirit. Warning: Some of the...
10 Mind-Blowing Theories That Will Change Your Perception...
8 Great Philosophical Questions That We'll Never Solve
Philosophy goes where hard science can't, or won't. Philosophers have a license to speculate about everything from metaphysics to morality, and this means they can shed light on some of the basic questions of existence.
60 of the world's happiest facts
Banksy tags LA
As the 2011 Oscar ceremony approaches, speculation has been rife about whether anonymous British street artist Banksy will make an appearance. He's ce
Click the mouth, nose, head, and each eye to create a different monoface in this Happy New Year interactive greeting from mono.
Murray Mitchell | A collection of visual inspiration and...
Envelope Drawings by Mark Powell
London-based artist has chosen the backs of old envelopes as a canvas for these delicately rendered portraits of the elderly, using nothing more than a standard Bic Biro pen to create the delicate folds and wrinkles of their skin. I love everything ...
Letting Go
One of the internet's most beautiful collections of inspirational quotes, poetry and short stories. Updated with an inspirational message every week.
Psychology Reading Test - Cognitive Psychology
Take the psychology reading test and see what cold reading could say about you
Christian knight world map, c.1596
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Iain Macarthur | Escape Into Life
Iain Macarthur - My work is described as surreal and unique in its own way.
The New York Times Says that Weed is Totally Awesome and...
The New York Times published an op-ed on their Opinionator blog this morning called "Give Pot a Chance." It's a well argued defense of marijuana legalization by author Timothy Egan.
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A photoblog by Noah Grey.
Thinking Within Paradoxes
I read a few years ago somewhere that a hallmark of a genius is being able to hold opposites together and transcend them. This stuck with me and over time I tried to make sense of it, because at first it was a very confusing concept. With some luck t...
Vintage Weight Gain Ads - Retronaut
... Image 6 scanned by Jacque Nodell (Sequential Crush)
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1x is an online photo gallery and social network. What makes 1x different is that every photo displayed has been hand picked by a curator.
Curiosities: Perplexing Pictures from the Past
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Blog entry: posted on 30 December 2009.
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Calvin and Hobbes look out into the stars and ponder infinity.
From the Archive: American Cities Pre-1950
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"The Only Moral Abortion is My Abortion"
"The Only Moral Abortion is My Abortion"
The Numbers Behind The Failed War On Drugs
An honest look at the numbers of the war on drugs, via Online Criminal Justice Degree.
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Top 20 Funny People to Follow on Twitter
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Фото и рисунки, арт и креативная...
Фото и рисунки интересных людей, гламурные фото от лучших фотографов, красивые рисунки замечательных художников. Фанстастическо мышление, рисунки в стиле фентези, сказка, красивые иллюстрации. Профессиональны фото. Фотографии начинающих профессионало...
82 Years
This pic is from the PRIDE march today. This man is the cutest ever. See the rest on SFIMC over here and the ones Evan took as well.
Mouse Party
why life has a bias to the left
As the faux conservative pundit Stephen Colbert warned President Bush, reality has a bias to the left. And interestingly enough, so does all life on Earth. We've know that all amino acids, the essential components for any terrestrial organism, have l...
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Funny Pictures - 70 Pics
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A pair of lungs breathes outside the body with the aid of a device codeveloped by the Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network, and Vitrolife. Prior to transplant, lungs can be preserved, assessed, and genetically repaired for up to 12 hou...
Does Evolution Favor People Who Are Well Connected?
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Cracked.com's new book is now on sale. What follows is one of 22 classic articles that appear in the book, along with 18 new articles that you can't r...
Awesome Quotes | HighExistence
In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.
Nietzsche: Thus Spoke Zarathustra (excerpts)
When Zarathustra arrived at the edge of the forest, he came upon a town. Many people had gathered there in the marketplace to see a tightrope walker who had promised a performance. The crowd, believing that Zarathustra was the ringmaster come to in...
1x.com - green sea turtle under the morning sun by Anders...
1x is an online photo gallery and social network. What makes 1x different is that every photo displayed has been hand picked by a curator.
1x.com - The loneliness of the swan by Luca Castagna
1x is an online photo gallery and social network. What makes 1x different is that every photo displayed has been hand picked by a curator.
Piccsy :: Top 10 Rules of Boozing
Piccsy pictures are inspiring, creative and beautiful. Share this Picc with your friends.
A4 Papercuts | Picame - Daily dose of creativity
Ogni scultura cartacea realizzata dall'artista ha un unico punto di partenza: un candido e standardizzato . Quello che accade dopo il "trattamento Callesen" lo potete vedere con i vostri occhi. Uccelli in procinto di spiccare il volo, scheletri che ...
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Totally Useless Facts in Numbers
People are valuable by the number of their education and knowledge. In the today's article you can learn 50 facts that will not help you in any way of your life
The Ultimate Movie Drinking Games List!
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Imagine a world | High Existence
Beautiful, inspiring & mind-blowing images on HighExistence
Science Says: Lungs Love Weed
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Modern Drunkard Magazine
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Einstein's Riddle
Your Daily Life in GIFs (4.9.12)
When there are free samples at the grocery store: When someone is wrong, but they insist they are right: When your test is not multiple choice: When the doorbell rings and you run to put on pants: That fake laugh you do when you don't unders...


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Silicone Column Mold...click to read more
Slim Broad Rectangle Mold...click to read more
Slim Oval Mold
Size: 3.75" x 2.5" x .75"
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Flexible Diamond Mold
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Small Ovals Flexible Mold Size: 1 3/4" x 2 1/2" Cavities: 9...click to read more
Small Rectangles Flexible Mold
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"Thank you for your prompt response. Bramble Berry has the best customer service of any company I know of. Pass the word!" -Rene
There are too few male soap artists, but maybe the work of today's soapy spotlight interview will change that. James Troia began soaping in 2013 after purchasing a $9 bar […]
The post Sudsing up with London Suds appeared first on Soap Queen.

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|America's independent, non-partisan advocate for overburdened taxpayers.
|Home | Donate | RSS | Log in
Press Release
Taxpayer Group's Database Tracks Hundreds of Congressional Candidates' Stances on Fiscal Issues
For Immediate Release October 28, 2008
Pete Sepp, (703) 683-5700
(Alexandria, VA) -- If they're running, they shouldn't be hiding -- that's the philosophy behind the 362,000-member National Taxpayers Union's (NTU) Survey of Congressional Candidates, a detailed questionnaire of office-seekers on fiscal issues whose results are online at www.ntu.org.
NTU has polled Congressional hopefuls for 20 years, but in recent election cycles, the group has been able to offer an increasingly comprehensive database that is useful for members of the public as well as the media. The 2008 NTU Survey of Congressional Candidates consisted of 14 questions (some with numerous subparts), including:
Three more questions have been added to this year's Survey in recognition of increased public concern over issues such as the financial status of the Medicare system to the practice of "earmarking" bills with special-interest spending items.
The 2008 NTU Survey database is searchable by state, chamber, Congressional district, candidate's last name, or political party. All candidates appearing on official state ballots are listed, including those who failed or declined to respond. The Survey results will be updated continuously.
The Survey findings have also proven to be of great value long after the election. NTU's lobbying team has used them in the past to seek sponsors for legislation, compile "whip lists" for pending votes, and publicize the commitments Members of Congress have made. For this reason, Survey databases from past election cycles remain accessible on the NTU Web site.
"Taxpayers deserve straight answers from Congressional hopefuls, and in order to get them we must ask equally straightforward questions," said NTU President Duane Parde. "No other candidate questionnaire can match NTU's for the breadth and depth of responses to key issues like tax cuts, tax system reform, spending restraints, and debt reduction."
NTU is a non-profit, non-partisan citizen group founded in 1969 to work for lower taxes, smaller government, and more accountability from elected officials. Note: To view NTU Survey questions and responses, visit www.ntu.org.


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Updated May 2, 2013 - 12:57 pm
Stars arrive at 'The Great Gatsby' world premiere
The stars of "The Great Gatsby" were dressed to the nines at Wednesday's world premiere at Avery Fisher Hall in New York.
Tobey Maguire, Florence Welch, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jay-Z were among the celebrities who attended the red carpet event.
The film, based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, is set to hit theaters nationwide on May 10.
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NiTek Q
The NiTek Q gives you the freedom to choose the features you want. Available as a fully upgradeable, two-gas Nitrox computer, users have the ability to purchase additional features tailored to additional training and interests. Additional features include normoxic and hypoxic Trimix, a digital compass, custom gradient factors and CCR.
Housed in a mil-spec aluminum case with mineral glass viewing port and an easy to read yellow OLED display, the NiTek Q is a wrist-mounted computer that carries the tiniest of footprints, yet boldly displays dive data on a huge screen. A rechargable 3.7v lithium polymer battery is recharged using a standard mini-USB cable (provided), and can be recharged via wall outlet, desktop computer, or car charger. Intuitive, push button navigation thru options makes programming and diving the NiTek Q easy for divers of all levels.
Using the well established Buhlman ZHL-16 algorithm along with a [continued]
default gradient factor of 30/75, the NiTek Q has three pre-set GF settings to choose from that allow for deep stops or shallow stops.
Made in the USA.
*Purchase additional features by calling Dive Rite at 1-800-495-1046
Hardware Specs
Optional Accessories
Be sure to download the free version of Workbench software. Any firmware updates for the NiTek Q series of computers are easily installed from the convenience of your desktop or laptop computer.
Please click here to read our Warranty Guarantee
NiTek Q Bungee Mount Installation
For all videos see our Gear, Training & Adventure channels on DiveRite TV.
|NiTek Q Bungee Mount
An optional accessory for the NiTek Q is the bungee mount, preferred by divers who want a custom fit and the convenience of a dual strap
Dive Rite is the pioneering creator of technical SCUBA diving equipment for advanced, wreck and cave diving. Our Catalog is vast, ranging from backplates, harnesses and wings (BCDs) to regulators, lights, drysuits and rebreathers. To purchase Dive Rite technical dive gear, find a dealer near you. Also, see the Tech Tour schedule to learn if the Dive Rite team will be near you soon.


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Dodgy Call Centre in Philippines
Filipinos abroad has a reputation for being great workers. It mainly because we know how hard life is like in the Philippines. So we cherish what as Filipino overseas workers, or immigrants by working hard and also smart. Some of course will ruin our Filipino reputation as hard worker and being honest. That's just facts of life and human nature. But for the most part, we are hard working folks and are widely recognised and respected for being that. Thanks to folks like myself and a lot more Filipinos out there, who are honest and works hard to make a living.
These days, though, many companies are cutting costs to save money or increase profits. As such, many jobs are being sent off shore. Away from Australia. Philippines is one of the countries where call centre jobs are abundant because we speak English.
What's embarrassing though, is that our Filipino branding at the moment has been tarnished because of dodgy call centre operator. This could be an individual doing this or the whole company. But most likely, just a crook individual. I have met one of those right here in Australia, when I ventured out on business that flopped, well before it started. That was partially my fault too, because I saw the signs and still went ahead with it. Lesson learned.
This video below though, is segment on a current affair show and it talked about a Telstra call centre operator (who is based in Philippines), trying to make deals with people who have debts by wiping out their debts, if they are paid in cash. That is do dodgy and shames us all who lives abroad! Watch the video below.
One Response to "Dodgy Call Centre in Philippines"
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Unitech on Thursday approached the Company Law Board (CLB) against Uninor's decision to auction its business and assets.
Unitech, which owns about 33 per cent stake in Uninor, has requested CLB to stay the auction. It also sought a restraint on any sale or transfer of Uninor's business and assets.
"Pass an order restraining the respondents (Telenor) from taking any action in pursuance of sale and transfer of the business and/or assets of the respondent No. 1 company (Uninor) in any manner," said the real estate firm in its petition.
Uninor has set a minimum price of Rs 4,000 crore for the India telecom business and said Telenor would pay Rs 4,190 crore in case no other bidder evinces interest by August 6. Unitech's application was mentioned on Thursday before a CLB bench headed by its Chairman Justice DR Deshmukh, who directed it to be listed for hearing on Friday.
Unitech has been at loggerheads with Telenor over the future of Uninor. While the Norwegian firm wants to transfer Uninor's business into a new entity and bring in a new Indian partner, Unitech wants its share of the deal.
Uninor on Wednesday said that it will auction its business and assets in a bid to get maximum possible returns for its investors. The company has invited bids till August 6. Norway's Telenor is already in the race to buy the company. The move is being opposed by joint venture partner Unitech.
The company said this process will ensure that the value of Uninor business is secured beyond September 7, as the winning bidder would have the ability to continue Uninor's business as a going concern beyond September 7.
Unitech, however, said the fact that Uninor, the auctioneer and the only party to have expressed interest already are all under the direct control of the same management of Telenor, only shows that this is not a free and fair process.


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The hotel, a historic property, has a multimillion dollar view of the sea and beautiful grounds to match. Magenta bougainvillea spills from balconies, flowering pots decorate porches, huge cypress trees shade buildings and lawns. You'd expect a room to cost $500 a night or more.
So how about $120 a night?
Hard to believe, especially in a pricey tourist area like Carmel. But that's the starting rate for Eastwood's beautiful Mission Ranch, which he rescued from a developer.
Eastwood's hotel isn't the only find we discovered in the Monterey Peninsula on a recent visit. We scoured the region and unearthed five great hotels with rates beginning as low as $79 a night during the high season (summer) and $59 a night during the low season.
We also found 10 deliciously inexpensive restaurants where you can eat for $10 or less. To top it off, we list 15 free things to do, enough to keep a family happy for a weekend or a week.
Our penny-pinching tips include hotels and restaurants throughout the Monterey Peninsula, including Carmel and Carmel Valley, areas where hotel tariffs can be sky high. But you're too smart to pay those prices. So go ahead: Spend a few days with the high rollers. Just don't let them know how little it's costing you.
Five hotels that are super deals
1. Los Laureles Lodge
Looking for a great country escape? Los Laureles Lodge is the right place for you. The knotty pine-paneled rooms here were once stables for the horses of Muriel Vanderbilt Church Phelps Adams (yes, that Vanderbilt family). Now they're cozy accommodations. This California Historic Country Inn sits amid the oak-covered hills of scenic Carmel Valley. The grounds are expansive, with a pool and restaurant; the hotel is kid- and pet-friendly.
313 W. Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley; (800) 533-4404 or (831) 659-2233, http://www.loslaureles.com
Summer rates for doubles from $130 a night; off-season rates start at $100. Continental breakfast included.
2. Mission Ranch Hotel & Restaurant
While mayor of Carmel in the late '80s, Eastwood bought this historic property to save it from being turned into condos. Now he can sometimes be found in the restaurant's bar around 5 p.m. Eastwood restored the property, a ranch in the 1800s; it includes a farmhouse, bunkhouse and other original buildings. Rooms are small but charmingly furnished, and the property is beautiful.
26270 Dolores St., Carmel; (831) 624-6436, http://www.missionranchcarmel.com
Doubles from $120 a night year-round, including continental breakfast.
3. Butterfly Grove Inn
Take a step back in time for a super deal at Butterfly Grove Inn, a charming motor court-style motel that borders the monarch butterfly park in Pacific Grove. Baskets of flowering plants decorate the pink-and-white motel; it has a pool, and rooms are efficient and tidy. Another plus: It's close to Point Pinos Lighthouse and Sunset Drive, a scenic coastal byway.
1073 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove; (800) 337-9244, http://www.butterflygroveinn.com


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Legacy Chicago
72 Storeys of History and Heritage
Rising above the Windy City's Millennium Park development, Chicago's Legacy Tower is a beacon building representing the area's marriage of stunning progress and sensitive preservation.
Shaws Terra Cotta took on the challenge of creating new architectural features to complement existing elements from the turn of the previous century. The main section of Legacy is a new, mixed-use residential, retail and cultural structure, completed by Walsh Construction and offering stunning views of the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan's Burnham Harbor. As sections of the building's lower levels incorporate some historical architecture over 100 years old, developing a dovetail between new and old was paramount.
Working closely with architectural firms McGuire Igleski and Solomon Cordwell Buenz & Associates, Shaws achieved this, creating many historically accurate details to eye-catching effect.
Restoration and Tradition
As well as a stunning entrance surround to match the building's original doorway, Shaws' craftsmen recreated several first-floor store fronts to match the existing historic facades retained during construction. Many of these traditional landmarks, in pressed brick, enamelled brick, terra cotta and metal formed part of the renowned 'Jewelers Row' on Wabash Avenue. Several dated back to the late 1800s, having been completed shortly after the great Chicago Fire of 1871.
Shaws was the ideal choice to work in such a historically sensitive environment, thanks to a wealth of experience gained during numerous conservation and restoration projects both in the US and UK. The comprehensive program of work included extensive research on the facades' original design, surveys of the existing elements and design of the required restoration. In addition to the Legacy's entrance and traditional store fronts, Shaws also carried out work to replace missing elements including window surrounds and cornicing.
Legacy is perfectly placed within Chicago's 'Cultural Mile', near to several museums, galleries and performance spaces. With the Chicago School of the Art Institute occupying part of the building itself, well over a century of creativity and craftsmanship is represented by its construction. Shaws Terra Cotta contributes to this tradition perfectly.Contact us
McGuire Igleski & Associates
Walsh Construction
Mark One Waterproofing & Restoration


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You can go ahead and add another chapter to the Milton Bradley saga: on Tuesday, the troubled veteran outfielder was arrested on a felony charge in Los Angeles County. More information came courtesy of Geoff Baker, who said the LAPD confirmed that Bradley was arrested for violating California penal code section 422.
What is California penal code section 422? According to this website:
Any person who willfully threatens to commit a crime which will result in death or great bodily injury to another person, with the specific intent that the statement...is to be taken as a threat, even if there is no intent of actually carrying it out, which...is so unequivocal, unconditional, immediate, and specific as to convey to the person threatened, a gravity of purpose and an immediate prospect of execution of the threat...shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison.
There's no further information at the moment, so we can't speak to Bradley's guilt or innocence. However, he came into the offseason barely clinging to a bench spot with the Mariners, so it's possible, if not likely, that the team will decide that enough is enough and drop Bradley from the roster.
The 32-year-old Bradley was a disappointment in Seattle last season after coming over in a trade, batting .205 with eight home runs. He missed time early in the year to attend counseling, and missed the final two months with a knee injury. With left field occupied by Michael Saunders and DH occupied by Jack Cust, Bradley wasn't going to have a starting spot in 2011, and he may now not have a job at all.
Bradley is still due $12 million this year, but the remainder of his contract may be voided if he becomes unavailable to perform his duties. It isn't something for the Mariners to bank on, but it is something for the team and its fans to hope for.
For more on the story, check out Lookout Landing.


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Main Office Phone:
(803) 777-4535
Main Office Fax:
(803) 777-6610
Chairman's Office:
(803) 777-4536
Graduate Studies
Office: (803) 777-7170
Undergraduate Director: (803) 777-7171
Mailing Address:
Earth and Ocean Sciences
701 Sumter Street, EWS 617
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
The Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, a division of the School of the Earth, Ocean, and Environment, consists of highly regarded academic and research programs in a diverse range of related disciplines. Among these are: coastal processes, environmental geosciences, geochemistry, geophysics, global climate change, hydrocarbon exploration, oceanography, paleoceanography, paleoclimatology, petrology, remote sensing, sedimentology, seismology, structural geology, and tectonics. We offer B.S. degrees in Geological Sciences and Geophysics with opportunities to concentrate in many of the disciplines listed above. Our Master of Science degree in Geology has been offered for over 50 years and our Ph.D. program celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008. Both the M.S. and Ph.D. programs are the only such degrees offered in Geological Sciences in the State of South Carolina and each is recognized for being among the best programs in the southeast. Thank you for visiting us today and please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have about our Department.
Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences Undergraduate Award Winners!!
Joseph R. LeConte Outstanding Junior: Elizabeth Yankovsky
College of Arts and Sciences Rising Senior in Geophysics: Marybeth Lundquist!
Joseph R. LeConte Outstanding Senior: Trey Kahler
Stephen Taber Awards: Jessica Holm, David Mailman, Drew Tulanowski
Discovery Day Poster Presentation Award Winners
Second Place: U-Pb zircon geochronology of fore-arc volcaniclastic and other rocks, Antarctic Peninsula
Jason Titus, Geological Sciences & Russian - Senior
Dr. David Barbeau, Earth and Ocean Sciences
Honorable Mention: Plume Structures in the Central Aleutian Basin
Elizabeth Yankovsky, Physics & Geophysics - Junior
Dr. Camelia Knapp, Earth and Ocean Sciences


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"Individual investors are fed up with the stock market," writes TechTicker. "Burnt by 10 years of negative returns, two crashes, and a current economy mired with high unemployment and lackluster growth, many are throwing in the towel."
Perhaps not surprisingly, retail investors have instead poured their funds into bonds in record numbers, helping to send yields to new lows.
Treasury yields are near record lows even while the fiscal position of the United States is the worst its been since the Great Depression–and arguably worse given the looming Social Security and Medicare solvency crises that will boil over with the retirement of the Baby Boomers.
It might seem almost silly to ask. But is there an irrational bubble in bonds?
The short answer, which will be controversial to many, is "no."
This does not mean, of course, that bonds are an attractive investment at current prices. Unless you are an institutional investor whose investment mandate requires an allocation to longer-term bonds, yields are currently so low as to make Treasuries not worth owning.
But "unattractively priced" does not necessarily mean "bubble."
This is not just a matter of semantics. There are some real differences here that do matter, and tossing the word "bubble" around indiscriminately can lead you to draw the wrong conclusions.
There is no precise definition of a speculative bubble, though Hyman Minsky gives us a good outline of what to look for. In Minsky's model, a speculative mania tends to follow five stages, summarized below by Investopedia:
- Displacement: A displacement occurs when investors get enamored by a new paradigm, such as an innovative new technology or interest rates that are historically low.
- Boom: Prices rise slowly at first, following a displacement, but then gain momentum as more and more participants enter the market, setting the stage for the boom phase. During this phase, the asset in question attracts widespread media coverage. Fear of missing out on what could be an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity spurs more speculation, drawing an increasing number of participants into the fold.
- Euphoria: During this phase,caution is thrown to the wind, as asset prices skyrocket. The "greater fool" theory plays out everywhere. Valuations reach extreme levels during this phase. During the euphoric phase, new valuation measures and metrics are touted to justify the relentless rise in asset prices.
- Profit Taking: By this time, the smart money – heeding the warning signs – is generally selling out positions and taking profits. Note that it only takes a relatively minor event to prick a bubble, but once it is pricked, the bubble cannot "inflate" again.
- Panic: In the panic stage, asset prices reverse course and descend as rapidly as they had ascended. Investors and speculators, faced with margin calls and plunging values of their holdings, now want to liquidate them at any price. As supply overwhelms demand, asset prices slide sharply.
In looking at the Treasury market today, we cannot credibly say that we are following this model. Perhaps it could be argued that the housing and credit market collapse of 2007-2009 qualifies as a "displacement." But what we are seeing in the market hardly qualifies as a "boom" and certainly doesn't qualify as "euphoria."
In judging the temperament of those currently buying Treasuries, it should be obvious that these are not greedy speculators chasing returns. They are shell-shocked investors who have lost their tolerance for risk taking.
No one likes Treasuries. No one is quitting their job to day-trade bonds like they did tech stocks in 1999. No one is taking out a liar loan to "flip" Treasuries like Miami condos in 2004.
It is an entirely different mentality. Retail investors buy them for the simple reason that they are not stocks.
Furthermore, in nearly all examples of bubbles–and in the recent housing and financial bubble in particular–leverage plays a major role in inflating prices. Miami condos would have never reached the absurd prices they did without the loose mortgage financing that was available. You could argue that the Fed's loose policies are creating the leverage that is being used to buy Treasuries (thus keeping the prices high and the yields low), but this is not entirely accurate either. All else equal, loose monetary policy causes longer-term yields to rise, not fall. The Federal Reserve does not buy every bond put out by the Treasury and cannot mandate what market rates will be at all maturities of the yield curve. The Fed, though powerful, is not omnipotent. And total leverage in the U.S. financial system is continuing to shrink as the private sector deleverages faster than the Treasury can issue new debt (see Figures 1 and 2).
Figure 1: Total Debt Outstanding
Figure 2: Total Debt Outstanding–Federal vs. "Everything Else"
It would seem unlikely that we would have a bona fide "bubble" in anything during a period of financial system deleveraging.
So, while I have established that there is no "bubble," per se, in Treasuries, I want to reiterate that this does not mean that the current price is attractive or that yields can continue to fall forever. At this point the potential upside to bonds is small while the potential downside is quite large.
Bonds, unlike stocks, commodities, or other assets, do have a theoretical maximum price. Except during a period of extreme volatility, yields can never fall below zero. In a world in which discount rates across all maturities fell to zero, the theoretical value of a bond would be its face value plus the cash value of any unpaid coupon payments. We're not to that level of pricing yet, and it would be highly unlikely that we will ever get there. But as Japan's experience in the 1990s and 2000s proved, yields can stay lower than anyone thinks possible for longer than anyone thinks possible.
I'll wrap this up with some fairly straightforward trading advice. Given their current yields, Treasuries are not attractive as a "buy" right now. But given the deflationary forces still plaguing the economy, I wouldn't be shorting them either. It might be best to simply avoid them altogether.
Charles Lewis Sizemore, CFA
This blog is a free service of Sizemore Financial Publishing LLC, publisher of the Sizemore Investment Letter.
If you're not reading the Sizemore Investment Letter, then you are missing out on rock-solid investment recommendations designed to profit from the major macro trends shaping the world today.
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Chart o' the Day: The Stocks / Commodities Disconnect
- Joshua M Brown
- May 14th, 2013
This disconnect is certainly one of the more remarkable features of the risk-on rally since 2011.
Here's an illustration from Julian Jessop at Capital Economics via FT Alphaville:
It seems as though this makes no sense at all – shouldn't commodities be benefiting from the same easy money policies as stocks are? – but the explanation can be found, according to Jessop and FT's Paul Murphy, in the weakness of China:
The moves are logical. Stocks are up because of rampant QE, which is squeezing investor flows out of bond markets and into equities. And the reason we've got rampant QE is the continued lack of near-term economic recovery globally, which is manifestly bad for industrial commodities.
Jessop notes that industrial metals are particularly sensitive to Chinese growth prospects and it seems noteworthy that Shanghai is one stock market that is not rising at present…
That equities / commodities disconnect (FT Alphaville)
Full Disclosure: Nothing on this site should ever be considered to be advice, research or an invitation to buy or sell any securities, please see my Terms & Conditions page for a full disclaimer.blog comments powered by Disqus
The Reformed Broker is a blog about financial markets and the economy. Joshua Brown is a New York City-based investment advisor for high net worth individuals, charitable foundations, retirement plans and corporations... More.


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Route Guide - iPhone / Android - Partners - Forum - Photos - Deals - What's New - School of Rock
Routes Sorted
L to R R to L Alpha
A fun, albight short route up an arete just right of Top Rope route. The crux is positioning yourself to clip the bolts.
Climb the Arete 10 foot left of Top Rope Route. See pic.
Two bolts and size 5-7 stoppers (one of each) if you don't want to run it out. Bring long webbing (10+ feet) to sling boulder at top, or climb up further to the tree above to make an anchor.


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Posted in News on 12/27/2012 By Mark Glaser & Courtney Lowery Cowgill
Top 10 Stories of 2012
2012 was a big year for publishers in navigating the rapidly shifting sands of digital media. Monetizing content became less about the promise of pay walls and more about the concrete success of them. And mobile delivery – of both content and advertising – became an ingrained part of most publishing strategies, with some big wins and a lot of expectations. The year also brought two big boosts to traffic and ad revenues: the presidential election and the Summer Olympic Games. In 2013, big data is going to give publishers an edge, once they get a handle on all the metrics. While new viewability standards bring new hoops to jump through, they also provide more accountability to advertisers. It was another year of of big change and challenges, but change for good and challenges met. Here's to another exciting, promising year in publishing in 2013!
1. Pay walls become de rigueur
When the New York Times first launched a metered pay wall in 2011, Times writer Jeremy Peters called it the "most watched experiment in American journalism." In 2012, that experiment paid off – for the Times, for those who followed it and maybe, just maybe, for American journalism in general. In the fall, 15 months after erecting the pay wall, the Times had counted 509,000 digital subscribers, which helped boost overall circulation revenue 8.3 percent, offsetting the declines it has seen in print circulation. That was certainly encouraging. Combined with the success of the Financial Times' pay wall and the Wall Street Journal's pay wall, "encouraging" turned into "emboldened." Late in the year, Poynter reported that as we close out 2012 and ring in 2013, more than 360 U.S. papers will be charging for digital content. That includes big and small papers. Already, the likes of Gannet, Tribune, MediaNews and Media General papers are on board as well as papers like the Houston Chronicle and Boston Globe. And then there are others like Crain's New York and the newly digital Newsweek. In 2013, even the Washington Post, one of the last big holdouts, is planning a pay wall.
Gannett, the newspaper chain, reported in its anxiously-awaited third quarter earnings that its 33 percent jump in net income was partially due to the rollout of metered pay walls at 71 of its newspapers across the country. Circulation revenue overall was up 10 percent and CEO Gracia Martore told Bloomberg that she expects circulation sales will jump 25 percent to $100 million next year. Naysayers presisted, however. The New York Times' David Carr, for example, writes, "For different reasons, The New York Times's positive experience with online subscriptions is probably not one that will scale across the industry." And GigaOm's Mathew Ingram writes, "I've tried to make the case before that pay walls are a sandbag strategy—one that can help keep the rising waters (in this case, the ongoing rapid decline in print advertising revenue) at bay, but not much else."
2. Online video comes to the fore
Online video has arrived not just as a cat playing a keyboard, but as a true bottom-line addition to the revenue mix. That means that publishers and brands alike have started to incorporate online video into their strategies. comScore reported in 2012 that more than 88 percent of online users watched at least one online video a month. And 22 percent of online videos seen were ads. Early in the year, eMarketer predicted that the online video space will grow more than 40 percent annually for the next few years. David Cohen, the chief media officer at Universal McCann told Ad Age's Michael Learmonth and Nat Ives that online video "represents the most explosive growth area in the digital space in the next three years." It's so promising that for the first time, an online publisher went all out with online video this year – and not just nicely packaged pieces here and there, but a full-time live video endeavor: HuffPost Live. HuffPost Live features original programming 12 hours per day, 5 days per week, including live Google+ Hangouts with audience members as well as experts – all staffed by 100 people, which the Huffington Post hired for launch. The experiment is being watched ever so closely because everyone wants to know: Can the talk radio model translate to streaming video and online chat?
For their part, brands are anxious to capitalize on more video inventory – and drive it as well. According to Adap.tv, video ad spending rose on average 27 percent in 2012. And the company says it could grow another 20 percent in 2013. But what loses as video gains? That's the surprising part. The company's research showed that the money isn't coming from TV ad budgets – rather, from print and display ads. No matter how meteoric the rise of online video, it's still tiny compared to traditional TV advertising. A Kantar Media study showed that of the more than 4,100 brands that advertised nationally in 2012 with video (both on TV and online), 77 percent use only TV ads. Just 11 percent use online video exclusively and 23 percent said they were mixing TV and online.
3. Elections make rain for media biz
Barack Obama wasn't the only one who won Nov. 6. In the media industry, there were big winners too, including advertising revenues and digital journalism. Combined, the Obama and Romney campaigns spent more than any other election in history on advertising—upwards of $1 billion. And the entire election season, which included tight congressional races and other high-stakes down-ticket fights, brought in $6 billion overall to the advertising market. But TV still took the most of that pie – $1.1 billion on local TV in 12 states for the presidential race alone, plus another $200 million for local cable, according to a report from Kantar Media. That means that as quickly as online election spending is rising – IAB says it was up to $160 million this year, compared to $20 million in 2008— it's still just a small segment of the overall spend. But, as targeting online gains momentum, that is bound to change.
Traffic-wise, though, this was an election that played out online like no other. Across the board, online publishers shattered traffic records with political coverage. CNN had a four-year traffic record on election night. FoxNews.com had its biggest night ever with 17.6 million unique visitors. And Politico reported 9.4 million uniques for its biggest day ever.
4. Olympics boost ad revs
Despite the criticisms (even the viral ones on social media such as #NBCFail), NBC and the media business scored big time with the 2012 Summer Olympics. It was the first to be called the "Social Olympics" and indeed, the Games were experienced, perhaps for the first time, fully cross-platform. More tweets were sent in one day during the 2012 Games than all 17 days of the Beijing Games in 2008. Fans got to interact with athletes and the games themselves in ways unheard of four years ago. NBC's multi-platform push brought the games to 7.6 million online – or "second screen"—devices. And NBC TV dominated, too. In the first 10 days alone, Nielsen reported that 33.6 million viewers tuned their TVs to NBC during prime time – the most for any non-U.S. Summer Games in 36 years. According to Kantar Media, Olympic ad spending brought NBC's ad revenues up 30 percent, bringing the network and its cable channels nearly $1 billion in advertising.
5. Mobile ownership, expectations soar
2012 really was the year of mobile. Pew research tells us that nearly a third of all American adults now own a tablet or e-reader. In 2012 alone, tablet ownership doubled, according to end-of-the-year Forrester research. Forrester also estimates that 50 percent of U.S. adults now own a smartphone. Analyst Mary Meeker's year-end report estimates that globally, mobile traffic now accounts for 13 percent of all Internet traffic. That's not just fun and games. Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Economist Group found that nearly half of adults have mobile web access and their most popular activity, after email, is checking the news. The Online Publishers Association (OPA) released a report in 2012 that shows a large majority, 93%, use their phones to check in with content regularly. Twenty-nine percent use their phones to get local news and 24 percent to get national news.
Are publishers and brands taking full advantage of all those eyeballs? They're getting there. The OPA report shows great promise: 42 percent of people who buy content on a smartphone said advertisements are hard to ignore and 25 percent said smartphone ads motivate them to research or purchase items. And 79 percent of those who buy content took an action after seeing a smartphone ad. The research firm eMarketer forecasts mobile ad spend in the U.S. will reach $2.3 billion in 2012, up from $1.17 billion in 2011. eMarketer's Clark Fredricksen told GigaOm's Ki Mae Heussner, "The big underlying reason is that smartphone growth and mobile Internet usage is growing very quickly in the U.S. and you're starting to see a tipping point where a majority of people are starting to use smartphones…or mobile Internet. That's causing a lot of interest from advertisers."
6. Native advertising rises
While banner ads are losing their luster, native ads became the trendy idea for 2012. Well, really a retread of an old idea: advertorials. In this new twist, native advertising runs in the editorial stream as branded content or sponsored packages. Native ads include any approach that integrates fully into the design or content of the website or app. So what's bringing native ads to prominence? Business Insider was the most recent to jump on the wagon, along with Atlantic Media, BuzzFeed, Gawker and Forbes – all of which are now offering advertisers an opportunity to brand in-stream content on their site. Business Insider's president and COO Julie Hansen hopes that in a couple years, branded content could account for half of the site's total revenue. According to a study from Solve Media, 49 percent of media buyers say they will allocate money in 2013 to native advertising. "It's not a trend, it's a reality," Solve Media CEO Ari Jacoby told PaidContent's Jeff John Roberts. Two out of five media buyers told Solve they will put more than 10 percent of their budget toward native advertising.
7. Big Data gets bigger
Data and how it's collected is going to change the nature of everything online, particularly publishing, and 2012 was just the start of that. Whether it was an increased ability to measure traffic or the push on the advertising side to collect as much information about readers as possible to help campaign effectiveness, 2012 saw a love affair with data for publishers and brands alike. Why is it a big deal? NPR explained: "What's new is the way data is generated and processed. It's like dust in that regard, too. We kick up clouds of it wherever we go." For publishers, Vikram Somaya, a former VP of operations and audience at Reuters, put it this way to PaidContent: "Anyone who hasn't picked an [audience data] product, is behind… it's not an option to ignore anymore." Expect 2013 to take Big Data even bigger, but not without some murky waters to wade through. Privacy concerns have spurred interest to regulate just how much data can be collected and how – which is bound to be a sticky debate.
8. Facebook: a roller coaster year
It was one of the most anticipated tech IPOs in recent history. But when Facebook went public in May, there were fireworks alright, but not all were celebratory. First, there were the trading glitches that had traders and investors on edge. And that would set the tone for the rest of the year for the social giant. At first, the company opened at $38 per share and raised about $16 billion, with a valuation at $104 billion. But by the time the company's first earnings reports came out in July, the stock was dropping. Even though that first report was positive – revenue grew 32 percent to $1.18 billion in the second quarter – investors weren't overjoyed. Most of the shakiness has come from Facebook's inability to really show two things: a sustainable revenue plan and a mobile strategy. Toward the end of the year, though, the company had started to show progress in both areas with a few new advertising ideas, including the Facebook Exchange – a crack at real-time ad bidding—Facebook Gifts, a better mobile ad plan and even a new way for users to pay to promote their posts. By the end of the year, its stock was hovering at about $26.
9. A new plan for measuring viewability
Marketers, industry analysts and publishers spent 2012 working on something that could change the very nature of online advertising in the blink of an eye – viewability standards. Until now, impressions were the main measure for a campaign's success, but the problem is that many visitors to a page don't see the ad that is clocking the impression. And so, in late 2012, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released its "Making Measurement Make Sense (3MS) Initiative," meant to give all players a roadmap to measure not just impressions, but viewable impressions. What will this mean for publishers? That depends on how the new standards are adopted. "It's not a situation where you have everyone signed on and magically, on Jan. 1, everyone sees the light," David Rittenhouse, media director at Razorfish told Adweek. "Certainly there will be more jumping on board as there is more data and viewability proves itself." At the outset, it could mean a drop in some revenue for publishers as advertisers shun "nonviewable" inventory. But Curt Hecht, chief global revenue officer at The Weather Company told Adweek: "The real story in 2013 will be about more effective advertising. Why wouldn't we embrace this? A world without a focus on effectiveness becomes a world defined by cheap impressions. We can increase quality."
10. Newsweek ends print run
When Newsweek announced this fall that 2012 would be its last year in print after 80 years – and that it would begin anew with a digital-only strategy—naturally, the big question it raised was: What does this mean for the future of print magazines? Will it prove that content is content, no matter the delivery? Or is it a harbinger of less print pubs? According to a New York Times story, Newsweek's total paid circulation in 2001 topped 3,158,480. By June of 2012, circulation had fallen by more than half to 1,527,157. The writing was on the wall. Tina Brown, editor-in-chief of the now combined Newsweek/Daily Beast Company, and Baba Shetty, its CEO, wrote in a statement on The Daily Beast: "In our judgment, we have reached a tipping point at which we can most efficiently and effectively reach our readers in all-digital format." Brown has been bullish that Newsweek can reinvent itself, but what will that look like? No one knows for sure, but it will be behind a pay wall and it's certainly going to mean less staff. What does this mean for others in the newsweekly game? We may see the answer in 2013.


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Hi all. Been lurking for awhile now, and occasionally making a post here and there. I figured that my loyal following of two or three people who had accidentally read one of my posts might miss me, so, here it goes....
Between all of the hoopla about Jerry DiPoto this, Chris Ianetta that, non-tender Jeff Mathis howling, and the 7.2 on the Richter caused by Prince Fielder lumbering about the basepaths, I wonder if we haven't lost sight of some of the more subtle moves that could significantly improve our beloved Angels. I of course am not referring to the vaunted "big splash" that we seek every offseason, but rather the assorted variety of unheralded, under the radar free agent signings and trades that have made the Angels and other teams successful? For instance, how many of us truly thought that our effort to rid ourselves of a clubhouse turd like Jose Guillen would net us meaningful players? Yet here we are years later more fondly than not remembering Juan Rivera and still appreciating the skills of a player like Maicer Izturis, who even spawns such great profile names like"Of Maicer and Men". Before the jump, take a moment to consider how, in recent years, a variety of more unheralded signings have redefined certain clubs around the majors (forget Heath Bell, who'd have pegged Kyle Farnsworth and the Rays as a success story?!). If Tampa Bay can rebuild a bullpen with a total budget that is almost less than Vernon Wells's annual salary, why can't we?Jeff Francis - A pitcher once labeled as an ace with fly ball tendencies whose career was unhinged by injuries. Found a minor bit of redemption in his peripheral stats this season, and could be serviceable again. Our outfield defense (Flete Pete at least) and the generally heavy marine layer couldn't hurt. Given his recent history, he could be had for a short and cheap make good deal. Why not pursue it?
Aaron Harang - Ditto. His HR rate is a little scary, but again, mitigating defense and park factors could help.
Zach Duke - Cheap. Left-Handed. Youngish in baseball years (29).
Paul Maholm - Ditto?
Jason Marquis - Maybe we could get production similar to Joel Pineiro at a cheaper price? At least he eats innings.
Dontrelle Willis - Aaaah why not give him a flyer?
David Aardsma - Injured, sure, but addition via subtraction from the Mariners? Can't deny that he throws hard.
Todd Coffey - Big. Lumbering. Throws hard. Pitches occasionally. Fun as hell to watch while I've been out here in the DC area. His ridiculous sprint in from the bullpen would enamor him to fans. Coffey time!!
Pat Neshek - Fun. Accessible. Was good once upon a time. Why not take a flyer?
Joel Zumaya - Keep him away from Guitar Hero or helping his parents move, and we could be in business.
The point being, with all of these suggestions, is not that we would be making a potential signing to fundamentally alter the dynamic of our club. However, sign some or hell, all of these guys to cheaper incentive laden/make good deals, and see what happens! Let them battle it out, and see whose skill shows through.


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A volunteer for the Republican Party of Clay County in Florida was caught on an answering machine falsely claiming that President Barack Obama believes in Islam.
During the call, which was first obtained by WMNF community radio, the woman warned that Obama wanted to end Medicare and turn the United States into a socialist country.
"You don't want Obama," she said. "You really don't want Obama, because he'll get rid of your Medicare. You might as well say goodbye to it… I don't know if you've done any research on Obama or not, but he is a Muslim. He [has] a socialistic view on the, you know, economy, the government, the whole nine yards. If he had his way we would be a socialistic country. Really do pay attention to Fox News, if you can get out and watch that movie 2016 that has a lot of good information. Just really read the newspapers and Fox News will help you out."
The call was made as part of a phone bank for Mitt Romney's campaign. Leslie Dougher, chair of the Clay County Republican Party, said the volunteers had been given a script to follow and that the unidentified woman went far off-script.
"Those are clearly not the views of the Republican Party of Clay County or the Mitt Romney campaign," she told the Florida Times-Union.
The call was recorded by a man who identified as a Republican and wished to remain anonymous, according to News4Jax.com. He described the call as "pretty lousy."
Gallup found last year that 18 percent of Republicans believed Obama was Muslim, even though the President is a church-going Christian.
"Both Obama's religion and his birthplace have been points of controversy in his public career," Gallup noted. "These data show that in terms of his religion, most Americans do not adhere to the belief that he is a Muslim. However, the fact that almost one in five Republicans do hold this belief suggests the potential for continuing controversy on this issue in the months ahead."
By Katie Halper
By TBogg
By Amanda Marcotte
Raw Story is a progressive news site that focuses on stories often ignored in the mainstream media. While giving coverage to the big stories of the day, we also bring our readers' attention to policy, politics, legal and human rights stories that get ignored in an infotainment culture driven solely by pageviews.
Founded in 2004, Raw Story reaches 9 million unique readers per month and serves more than 30 million pageviews.
Copyright © 2004-2013 Raw Story Media, Inc. All rights reserved.


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Posted on Mar 28, 2012 by admin in Alt Fuels, Liberal Fantasies
If you've been following this site, you know that it is a core DbC thesis that automobiles are far closer to their right walls of perfectibility than their sponsors admit or the deluded fans of alternative fuels understand. 100 MPG is simply never going to happen in any car, regardless of its power source, that's viable in sprawling, cars-first-transportation conditions. The laws of physics forbid it.
To wit, two pieces of news today:
According to this story in the online version of the Albany Times Union the compressed natural gas Honda Civic gets "38 mpg highway, 27 mpg city." Converting cars to CNG, in other words, would burn up natural gas at the same rate as the better petro-cars now burn oil. Hardly a potential rescue for the status quo.
Meanwhile, here's why physically tiny cars aren't as fuel-efficient as you might expect:
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — When most people look at really tiny cars they figure they must get really good fuel economy.
And when compared to trucks or family sedans, they do.
But subcompact and mini-cars — the likes of the Fiat 500 and Chevrolet Sonic — usually don't get much, if any, better fuel economy than roomier compact cars.
For instance, at 33 miles per gallon, the most efficient version of the subcompact Chevrolet Sonic gets the same overall fuel economy as the larger Chevrolet Cruze Eco compact car. Other versions of those two models differ by only small amounts in combined city and highway driving.
Same for the teeny Hyundai Accent versus the larger Hyundai Elantra. Again, both get 33 mpg in combined city and highway driving. The subcompact Ford Fiesta actually does get better mileage than the compact Ford Focus. But the Focus, with 30% more horsepower and 43% more cargo space, gets beaten by just two miles per gallon.
It's even true of hybrids. The tiny Prius C gets the same overall fuel economy (city and highway combined) as the larger Prius. Both are rated at 50 miles per gallon.
What gives?
Aerodynamics, mostly.
No matter how small it is, a car still has to hold people inside comfortably.
"You can shorten it up and make it narrower, but the height of a car can only be so small," said Scott Miller, director of mass, energy and aerodynamics at General Motors, which makes the Sonic and the even smaller Chevrolet Spark, due out soon.
That means that, once you get past compact car size — the size of an Elantra, Cruze or Focus — cars start looking like tall boxes on wheels.
That's not the best shape for pushing through the air. Slightly larger cars allow designers to refine the shape to better control airflow around the vehicle. Small cars provide less sheet metal to work with.
Posted on Nov 29, 2011 by admin in Alt Fuels, bike transportation, cars-first transportation, Public Health, Transportation Politics
Tom Murphy of Do the Math walks us through a topic that's as crucial to the future of progressive, science-and-communications aided, modern society as anything could be: the comparative energy efficiency of human muscled-powered locomotion.
Corporate capitalism presumes the continuation — and, hence, the sustainability — of present mobility arrangements in at least its core areas. Under that arrangement, a large percentage of everyday, local-area travel is accomplished via automobile. This is due to the unique demand- and profit-stimulating effects (read: wastefulness) of cars-first transportation orders.
From an energy point of view, cars-first transportation means that fueling automotive engines is a major bottleneck for normal social existence. As such, the obvious question is how well does and could the cars-first arrangement compare to its major alternative, the reconstruction of towns and cities to encourage bicycling and walking?
Tom Murphy's conclusion: On a diet of normal, mixed foodstuffs (rather than pure lard or some other means of maximizing the energy density of the comestible), short-distance bicycling yields an MPG equivalent of 290, or about 6 times the energy efficiency of a Toyota Prius. Walking, meanwhile, delivers about 160 MPG.
There is, Murphy says, one fly in the ointment here: the energy intensity of current agricultural and food delivery arrangements. Factoring that in, Murphy figures that the MPG of cycling drops to 130 and that of walking to 34.
So, even without altering the food system (via increased organic farming, localization of supply chains, moves away from food processing/packaging, improvement of the veggie/meat intake ratio, etc.), bicycles are almost four times more energy efficient than Priuses, and walking is right in the same ballpark. A blend of the two — surely a main feature of any genuinely sustainable, modern human future — would be far more energy efficient than any conceivable cars-first arrangement.
(All this, of course, leaves aside the question of the energy required to build and maintain the infrastructures involved. Cars-first requires huge streets, large parking areas, scattered building patterns, and gigantic, ornate fuel-delivery processes. Muscles-first living would imply much smaller streets, less need for parking, dense building patterns, and comparatively simple fuel-delivery processes.)
Muscles-first would, of course, also be a far healthier arrangement: Using one's own body, rather than 3,000-pound electrical or fossil-fuel combusting machines, to achieve the desired movements, would have radically positive impacts on public health, as would the accompanying reduction in exposure to the chemicals and large collisions involved in cars-first living and breathing.
Need we mention which society would be more fun and sociable and sane?
Posted on Aug 29, 2011 by admin in Alt Fuels, Electric Boondoggle
In a previous post, DbC reported that the miles-per-gallon performance of the Nissan Leaf was 38. Turns out this was a major over-estimate, as explained by physicist Tom Murphy.
If one focuses, as the peddlers of the things push and count on us to do, only on the charge-to-wheels aspect of the question, the numbers look very good. Murphy's explanation:
How do electric cars or other electric/hybrids stack up? In order of performance: the Chevy Volt gets 35 miles from a 16 kWh battery for a consumption of 45 kWh/100-mi; the Nissan Leaf gets 73 miles from its 24 kWh battery for 33 kWh/100-mi; and the pricey Tesla has a 244 mile range using a 53 kWh battery, for 22 kWh/100-mi. The MPG equivalent of these three figures is approximately 80, 110, and 170, respectively. All are much better deals than gasoline cars deliver, primarily because the electrical drive system is far more efficient than the typical 20% gasoline engine.
The reality, though, is that charge-to-wheels is only half the process. What about production-to-charge, or the question of what it takes to put the power into the so-called electric vehicle's battery? Murphy again:
In order to deliver 30 kWh to your house to fully charge the Leaf's 24 kWh battery bank, for example—incorporating the charge efficiency this time, the source of electricity becomes a highly relevant factor. Two-thirds of our electricity comes from fossil fuel plants, typically converting 35% of the fossil fuel thermal energy into electricity. Only 90% of this makes it through the transmission system, on average. If your electricity comes from a fossil fuel plant, the 30 kWh delivered to your house took about 95 kWh of fossil fuel energy. The 73 miles the Leaf travels on a full charge now puts it at an energy efficiency of 130 kWh/100-mi. The MPG equivalent number is 28 MPG. From a carbon-dioxide standpoint, you'd be better off burning the fossil fuel directly in your car.
Posted on Aug 01, 2011 by admin in Blame Game, Peak Oil, Transportation Politics
Led by Stepin Fetchit Obama, the overclass has just concluded another round of MPG charades. This time, they have reached a "deal" purportedly "requiring" car capitalists' new-vehicle fleets to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.
Given Big Money's de facto ownership of politics in the United States, this is essentially an act of self-policing, so, of course, this "deal" is next to meaningless. As Automotive News reports, there already are two yawning loopholes.
The Detroit 3 won a major exemption for their highly profitable full-sized pickups. The administration's corporate average fuel economy proposal, details of which still must be worked out, would exempt full-sized pickups from any fuel economy increases from the 2017 model year through the 2019 model year, automotive representatives said.
Even for regular passenger cars, "the plan for 5 percent annual increases could be changed if a midcourse review, planned to begin in 2018, determines that it would adversely affect industry costs and vehicles sales."
The main point of the whole endeavor, in the opinion of DbC, is actually not any kind of serious public control over miles-per-gallon. MPG is going to increase with or without any such "deals," given the realities of Peak Oil. The real point of this kabuki is perpetuating a key mis-perception of reality: the notion that the energy efficiency of automobiles is merely a matter of human intentions and political checks-and-balances. Could MPG ever be 100, 200, 300, 500, 1,000? "Sure, if only the conservatives would wake up and smell the coffee, yes." That's the intended message for greens and liberals.
Of course, as DbC has always maintained, like everything else in the known universe, automobiles are subject to the laws of physics. As such, 3,000-pound metal boxes carrying humans at highway speeds can only ever get so efficient. Indeed, after a century of intensive corporate R&D and lavish public subsidy, it is DbC's position that existing cars are much closer to the asymptote of maximum efficiency than capitalists and liberal greens acknowledge.
If you doubt this claim, take a look at this excellent post by the extremely helpful analyst Tom Murphy. Murphy's estimate of the actual top limit of highway MPG for cars that are usable under the cars-first conditions that prevail in the USA? 56 MPG.
Do you think the type of basic-physics analysis done by Murphy is unknown to the powers-that-be? That it's a mere coincidence Murphy's estmimate is almost exactly the promised ultimate MPG figure?
If so, I can still get you that excellent deal on the Brooklyn Bridge…
Posted on Jun 30, 2011 by admin in cars-first transportation, Economic Waste, Peak Oil
Having everybody in the United States use automobiles to accomplish daily travel has always been a capitalist pipe dream. That is thanks to the laws of physics and the geology of our planet. It will simply never be remotely economical, sustainable, or sane to deploy 3,000 pound objects that sit idle 95 percent of the time to accomplish what walking, cycling, and public transit could just as easily (and much more safely and healthfully) facilitate. On a planet that was fated to reach Peak Oil, awakening from this pipe dream, one way or another, was also always inevitable.
A major side note to this story is the open secret that the basic physics of automobile travel are also far more fixed than present promises from above would have you believe. Just as an acceptable level of safety in a sprawling, cars-first society like the United States will always require cars to weigh something like 2,500 pounds, so it is that moving 2,500-pound cars will only get so energy-efficient.
Evidence of this physical fact was recently helpfully analyzed by Rick Kranz of Automotive News:
On the basis of vehicle weight, how dramatic has the increase in fuel economy been over the past 45 years?
This week I was running through some old news articles, seeking information for several stories I'm writing for Automotive News' special issue devoted to Chevrolet's centennial. The issue will be published Oct. 31.
I decided to compare those cars to two 2012 cars with similar vehicle weight to see the differences in fuel economy, 45 years later. Obviously, the length, width and height of the 2012 models are somewhat reduced compared with cars in the '60s. The new models have far better aerodynamics than the Chevy and Rambler. Additionally, the 2012s compared here have four-cylinder engines.
The 1966 Chevrolet Biscayne weighed 3,294 pounds and averaged 21.04 mpg. I used a base 2012 Ford Fusion sedan with automatic transmission for the comparison. The Ford weighs 48 pounds more than the Chevy and gets 23 mpg city, 33 mpg highway and 26 mpg overall, according to the EPA.
The 1966 Rambler averaged 23.80 mpg, coast-to-coast. For a weight comparison, I used a base 2012 Honda Civic with an automatic transmission. The Civic weighs 2,608 pounds, and is rated at 28 mpg city, 39 mpg highway and 32 mpg overall.
Using the EPA's overall miles per gallon numbers, the Fusion was 5 mpg better than the Biscayne and the Civic was about 8 mpg better than the American.
Was there a dramatic difference in fuel economy 45 years later on the basis of vehicle weight?
Those numbers work out to about a 25% mpg gain for the heavier car and a 33% one for the lighter vehicle. So, despite three major oil shocks and the recent quasi-official acknowledgement of Peak Oil, automotive mpg has improved by substantially less than one percent per year since the days when everybody assumed Earth's resources were infinite and mpg ratings were not posted on sales stickers or anywhere else.
Something to keep in mind the next time you hear some Democrat or other "green car" moron bloviating about 62 mpg.
As the late Stephen Jay Gould wrote, every human endeavor is subject to "right walls," or outer limits of improvement. Here at DbC, one of our core theses is this: The automobile is already much closer to its own right wall than anybody will admit.
Posted on May 11, 2011 by admin in cars-first transportation, Greenwashing, Transportation Politics
In the United States, government devotes great energy to helping the overclass conceal the multiple disasters inherent in cars-first transportation. The agency that tracks the tens of thousands of yearly deaths in car crashes and invariably reports them as good news? That's the National Highway Traffic Safety (not Danger) Administration.
Hence, how surprised are we here at DbC by this report about the fraudulence of federal CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) mpg ratings?:
Under a 62 mpg CAFE rule, real-world fuel economy would be just under 50 mpg.
And if CAFE were 47 mpg, the real-world number would be about 38 mpg.
To know why, you have to understand what the CAFE number is — a sales-weighted average of the mpg ratings for vehicles produced in a given year. Vehicle mpg ratings are based on lab tests using a dynamometer, a sort of treadmill for cars.
Dynamometer testing produces an artificial number, but it does provide controlled conditions. No wind, no rain. And it allows for precise test protocols. For instance, the federal city-driving test cycle lasts 1,874 seconds, with an average speed of 21.1 mph, and has cold- and hot-start segments of 505 seconds each.
That's where CAFE mpg numbers come from. But — here's the curveball — those numbers don't appear on window stickers.
In an effort to get closer to real-world fuel economy, CAFE numbers are reduced by 20 to 25 percent, depending on the type of vehicle. So a car that scores 35 mpg on the laboratory test will have a window-sticker rating of 28 mpg. [Source: Automotive News, May 9, 2011]
The obvious purpose of the continued use of a test known to be unrealistic? To make the "debate" on transportation among politicians sound more serious than it is, and to thereby shift attention farther away from the real issues, which continue to be utterly unmentionable in public fora.
Posted on Oct 19, 2010 by admin in cars-first transportation, Peak Oil
I often lambaste "electric" cars in this space. My aim in doing that, however, is not to lend aid and comfort to petro cars, which are, in their actually existing form, even worse than "electrics" and hybrids, from an energy-use perspective. I am against "electric" cars because they are halo-ware, a carefully planned distraction from the only kind of reform that stands a chance of bringing transportation systems into line with the requirements of energy and ecological sustainability. Converting to "electric" cars is something that directly competes with radical reconstruction of towns and cities to favor walking, bicycling, and public transit.
Yet, as a kind email commenter on my recent re-post at CounterPunch pointed out to me, it certainly isn't enough to observe that the energy efficiency of "electric" cars is vastly exaggerated. The same is also increasingly true for petro cars.
The reason for that is the same as the reason I discussed yesterday in relation to "electric" cars: Assessing vehicle efficiency from the point of charging or filling excludes the huge energy expenditures it takes to deliver the charge or the fuel to the plug or the tank.
In the case of the "electric" car, the amount of energy (in the form of coal, natural gas, nuclear, wind turbines, or solar panels) it takes to produce an electrical charge for the car's engine is significantly larger than the energy embodied in the delivered charge.
But just as (contrary to the childish suggestions of corporate marketing on the topic) electricity is not magic, neither is petroleum. Just as it costs energy to get electricity for "electric" cars, so does it costs energy to discover, drill, process, store, and deliver every gallon of gas pumped into an automotive tank.
In the past, the EROEI for petroleum was extremely high. Over time, as the easy and obvious reserves have declined, it has taken much more energy to discover and drill for petroleum. As a result, oil's EROEI has plummeted and will undoubtedly continue to decline into the future.
As this happens, it becomes increasingly misleading to use MPG as the basis for evaluating the efficiency of petro-powered cars.
If we had an actual (rather than merely a nominal) green movement in this country, it would be pushing for a universal dust-to-dust standard for comparing the energy-use rate of various form of transportation machinery, including all cars, whatever their engine type.
That, of course, would be purest anathema to the corporate capitalist overclass, which is institutionally and psychologically addicted to perpetuating cars-first transportation right up and into Carmageddon's awful dawn. Ergo, it is squarely off-the-table, even among the greens. They prefer gestures and pathetic photo-ops and going along to feel like they're getting along.
Posted on Jul 19, 2010 by admin in Capitalism, Economic Waste
At this point, any sane society would be moving very aggressively to build its way back out of cars-first transportation. Part of that effort would be steep taxes on gas guzzlers.
In the United States, where we not only don't begrudge people getting rich, we don't even allow them to be questioned, what are we getting?
DETROIT — It's diet time for the once best-selling SUV in America.
The redesigned Ford Explorer has been slimmed down for 2011 and transferred to a car-based platform. And it no longer will be a gas-guzzling hulk with a V-8 under the hood.
Ford Motor Co. said today that the redesigned 2011 model — equipped with an optional, two-liter EcoBoost I4 engine — will achieve a 30 percent increase in fuel efficiency compared with the current V-6-equipped Explorer. EcoBoost has delivered similar fuel economy gains in other cars and trucks.
The current Explorer equipped with two-wheel drive and a four-liter V-6 is rated at 14 mpg city/20 highway. With a 30 percent increase in fuel economy, the EcoBoost-equipped Explorer should deliver 18/26.
Eighteen miles per gallon.
In the car-pushing trade, this is what's called "hitting the mark":
"We believe we've hit the mark with the next-generation Explorer," Mark Fields, head of Ford's Americas unit, said in statement. "It has the potential to change perceptions of what a modern SUV is all about."
In honest language, this is the same old same old: Capitalists selling the largest possible vehicles, the planet and its people be damned. "Hitting the mark" means figuring out how much waste you can get away with under new conditions.
Posted on Jun 11, 2010 by admin in Capitalism, cars-first transportation, Economic Waste
This, ladies and gents, is what's "new" from the Chrysler Group LLC.
This, "the first car to roll out since Chrysler's alliance with Fiat"? An SUV! An SUV that "starts at" $32,995! An SUV that gets 16 MPG in city driving!
The ad? A ham-handed raft of stale jingoism, flattery, and deceptions, made by the always atrocious Wieden and Kennedy propaganda mill.
This much is screamingly obvious: "Our" overclass (and it includes the new Italian bosses) is simply and completely incapable of doing anything new, in even the slightest degree.
Here is the Music Player. You need to installl flash player to show this cool thing!


text:
United States Probation Office
Eastern District of Michigan
Flint's Probation Department is located in the Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, and the office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday thru Friday.
United States District Courthouse
600 Church Street
Rm. G-10
Flint, Michigan 48502
(810) 341-7890
(810) 341-7869 (Fax)
To contact your Probation Officer, click here for details
View Larger Map
The streets surrounding the Flint Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse are primarily one-way streets. Before turning onto a street, please note the direction of traffic flow.
Parking structure operated by Ellis Parking Co.,is directly across from the courthouse. If you use the parking structure, the entrance is on Beach Street between Second and Third Streets. Beach Street is one block east of Church Street and is a southbound one-way street.
Street Parking:
One-hour street parking is available in the general area of the Flint Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.
Non-attorneys are not permitted to bring cell phones (including BlackBerrys) or any other device with wireless communication capabilities into court facilities within the Eastern District of Michigan.
As defined in the provisions of E.D. Mich LR 83.31(f)(2) attorneys appearing in connection with any judicial proceeding or presenting evidence of bar membership may bring a cell phone or any other device with wireless communication capabilities into a court facility within the Eastern District of Michigan.
In Flint, attorneys may use cellular phones in the following locations:
Valid picture identification is required for entry into court facilities within the Eastern District of Michigan, and all persons are required to pass through security similar to airport screening.
Firearms, knives (including pocket knives), explosives, and other weapons are prohibited. Also prohibited are potential weapons such as scissors, letter openers, mace/pepper spray and screw drivers.
Shiawassee, Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, and Livingston


text:
1- Run the Active Perl setup file (APi518e). Use all default installation options.
2- Install the SDK (nS60_sdk_v1_2). Use all default installation options. Create an empty file named "ErrRd" in the
directory C:\Symbian\6.1\Series60\Epoc32\Wins\c\system\Bootdata.
3- Install Microsoft Debugging Tool (dbg_x86_184.108.40.206). Use all default installation options.
4- Create a subfolder named "MSDEV" in the directory named "Symbian" in partition C:\. Install Visual C++ Toolkit in
that subfolder, and use all other default installation options as they are. Now execute nmake15.exe, you get the files
NMAKE.exe, NMAKE.err and a ReadMe file. Neglect the ReadMe file and cut the two files NMAKE.exe and NMAKE.err and
paste them in the directory named "bin" located in C:\Symbian\MSDEV\bin. Also, copy the two files lib.exe and
dumpbin.exe to the previous directory (C:\Symbian\MSDEV\bin). Finally, add the string "C:\Symbian\MSDEV\bin;" to
the beginning of the path environment variable.
5- Install the Borland C++ BuilderX v1.5. The setup file is located in the directory named "Windows" located inside the
directory named "CBX1.5_mobile-RTM". Use all default installation options. Feed the activation file so as to get ready to
work with the C++ BuilderX. After Installation, you have to copy C:\Borland\CbuilderX1.5\bin\sdktools\bscmake.exe
into c:\symbian\MSDEV\BIN.
6- Please edit:
and change:
perl -S bldmake.pl %1 %2 %3 %4 %5 %6 %7 %8 %9
perl -Ic:\symbian\6.1\shared\epoc32\tools -S bldmake.pl %1 %2 %3 %4 %5 %6 %7 %8 %9
7- Install the JVM (java virtual machine) using the setup file named "jdk-1_5_0_01-windows-i586-p".
8- A restart is now highly recommended.
9- After restart, run C++ BuilderX and read pages number 8 and 9 from the pdf file located in the folder named
"Symbian OS Workshop". When you run your first project, you will have no errors if everything is configured properly.
10- There's a programming tutorial, named "Symbian OS Workshop" on the page:
This tutorial is excellent for beginners to Symbian programming. It contains solutions to some errors that may be encountered while building an application. Also, it contain links to download the necessary kits and tools.
..Many thank, and I wish you a great success.


text:
Routes Sorted
L to R R to L Alpha
An adventure route in the same vein as other routes in the canyon like Jungle Rot Slot, Logical Fallacy, or Air China Flight 924. No bolts or pitons were taken or placed on the route.
Climbs the bolted first pitch of Western Front on the far west side of Bad Bananas, then heads left and up into a dihedral system. The climb ends above where the other Bad Bananas routes end (see pics).
1 set of small cams to .5 Camalot. 2 each .75 Camalot to #4 (We had a #4 Friend and old #4 Camalot). 3 .75s might have been nice. 1 set of nuts. Lots of slings. Quickdraws for pitch 1 if you don�t use the slings.


text:
Next, you'll be asked to connect with Twitter. Rest assured, we will never send a tweet from your account
without your permission.
We will send you an email with an invite soon.
Download the "#UX is not UI" poster! via @Erik_UX -
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Check out new work on my @Behance portfolio: "Wedding Art Gift"
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The second floor home of the School of Rock above the in Shelton has that new carpet smell. The gear is in pristine condition, moreover, with few dents in the drumheads or nicks in the amplifiers. And though the fluorescent lights burning overhead evoke an ambience far removed from dark clubs and concert halls, there is serious work -- and rocking -- going on.
Students and teachers occupy the warren of practice rooms in a space ornamented with vinyl records, album covers and faux vintage concert posters. One space includes two drum sets with shiny cymbals, which sit side by side so the instructor can provide real world examples.
In the performance room on a typical Wednesday evening, around 13 students ages 7 to 16 take their first stab at playing Pink Floyd's landmark album The Wall. Around the end of January, each student, beginners to the big kids, will perform the work live in its entirety at a local music venue.
The Wall is a rite of passage for all new School of Rock outlets, said Frank Perrouna, music director at the School of Rock outlets in Fairfield. A nationwide franchise, the school's schedule centers on its shows, held three times a year.
Each week, students receive a private 45-minute lesson and attend a weekly three-hour show rehearsal. In the months and years to come, Shelton students can expect to put on long-form performances of Led Zeppelin, The Doors and Queen; even Yes and Frank Zappa, artists known for complicated compositions.
"We're a school, so we hold the bar high," said Perrouna. "We'll play Yes or Zappa, even though pro musicians have to work hard to master those artists. The kids will always have another level to reach and if they believe they can do it, they do it."
The school doesn't teach music to do shows, he said, "we use shows to teach music. The Wall is great to break a school in with because it's basic, but it's also meaty and advanced things can happen. Usually, for young kids with talent, the first thing they learn to do is overplay, especially drummers. We teach them to support the band. For guitar players, the focus is on what it means to have feel and tone."
There are two other School of Rock franchises in Fairfield County, including Fairfield, the busiest location in the nation with 220 students, and New Canaan. A new outlet is coming to the Stamford-Greenwich area soon, said Perrouna.
John Humes, 13, a talented drummer and guitarist attending the School of Rock in Shelton this season, played in the organization's summer camp program, where he performed a Fleetwood Mac vs. The Eagles show.
"It gives you an opportunity to play in front of a crowd without having to form your own band," said Humes, who lives in Hamden. "Most kids are not as into it as I am and going to the School of Rock, I can find people who are serious about making a band. The lessons help, but a big part of the teaching is how to play in front of a crowd."
The school gives Shelton resident Jake Salemme a platform to help develop his vocal style.
"I like to sing and I want to learn how to sing better," said Salemme, 17, who had never heard of Pink Floyd until he enrolled in the school and enjoys pop, rock and show tunes. "I like Pink Floyd now. I like the lessons and the practicing. I'm definitely getting better."
For now, Perrouna helms the school, but he is grooming Craig Sasson, a guitarist, nightclub impresario and former hair salon owner from Stamford, to learn the ropes and take over day-to-day operations.
"Since I have experience running a business, it will translate well to administering the school," said Sasson. "Plus, I've done some marketing and promotion before, so we're looking to do some big things here."
Like other faculty members, Sasson has extensive experience playing live, a requirement for instructors. "I'm looking for professional performing musicians, not formally trained educators who have only played for their doctoral committees," said Perrouna. "I can guarantee results with your child. If they do what we implement with them, they will reach their musical potential. Not everyone is destined to be virtuoso, but we'll find out if they enjoy it."


text:
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LOS ANGELES, CA - February 13, 2012 - Morgan Samuels, a leading national human capital consulting firm with a focus on retained executive search, today announced the placement of Mark R. Abruzino as Vice President and General Manager, Shared Services at BAE Systems, Inc. As one of the top professionals in this arena, Mark brings his unique expertise and experience to enhance the newly formed shared services commitment at BAE Systems, Inc.
BAE Systems, Inc. is a global defense, security, and aerospace company that delivers a full range of products and services for air, land, and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions, and customer support services. BAE Systems, Inc. is responsible for the North American operations of United Kingdom-based parent BAE Systems plc - the largest foreign player in the United States defense market.
Mr. Abruzino had most recently been the Vice President, Global Financial Shared Services at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Previous to that, Mr. Abruzino was the Vice President, Enterprise Shared Services, Finance at Limited Brands, Incorporated. Mr. Abruzino received his BS in Accounting from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.
About Morgan Samuels
Morgan Samuels is a leading human capital consulting firm, providing innovative and strategic services focused on identifying, attracting, and retaining top talent. With a focus on retained executive search, Morgan Samuels partners with clients to co-create the optimal human capital solution to drive future business objectives. Morgan Samuels mitigates risk for clients by being results driven, accountable, and transparent. Since 1969, the Firm has developed a reputation for building strong client relationships and for successfully recruiting exceptional candidates. Morgan Samuels has shifted the paradigm in executive search to unprecedented levels of quality through the use of revolutionary business process techniques based on Lean Sigma principles. This strategic and data-oriented approach ensures Morgan Samuels rapidly identifies, recruits, and places the best executive talent in the market for its clients, which include Yahoo!, T-Mobile, Fannie Mae, BAE Systems Inc., WellCare Health Plans, DaVita, Edison International, and many other Fortune 500 companies. Morgan Samuels is a generalist firm, with practice areas across multiple industries, including Healthcare, Technology, Engineering and Construction, Financial Services, Aerospace and Defense, Digital Media, Private Equity, and Consumer Products.