Otay, so I was watching my beloved Cubbies play they Brewers today on TV (they won by the way go Cubs) when the color commenter for WGN (Bob Brenely) had one of the greatest one liners I've heard in a while. The context was the catcher hustling down the first base line to leg out an infield single.
"Running like he was mad at the ground"
Outstanding! As someone who has been described as "deceptively slow" in the foot speed department I salute the imagery.
Peace out...
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
A nice work environment
Otay, so its been another week since previous posts . Its because (insert lame excuse here). Anyways onwards.
I was reading an article on MSNBC about George Hotz. For those of you in a closet, this 17 year wiz kid (with obviously to much time on his hands) cracked the iphone and posted the instructions on a blog. Meaning that if you follow the instructions, have some skill with a soldering iron, and have a lot of luck you can make the iphone work on a network other than AT&T.
Now what I find very interesting is the quote below from the article when they asked about this kid's future:
"I want to intern at Google next summer if I can. I've got a friend there and he's, like, 'Dude, they have a cafeteria 24/7. You can go in there and eat whatever you want. You can go to sleep, hack for a couple of hours and go eat some more'." Who said kids today don't dream big?
Yeah Google is sexy to work for, but if you read between the lines, here's what I see. People want to go work for Google because of the work environment and campus. Google "googleplex" and see the results (yeah it is odd to google google but so be it). Workout facilities, 24 hours free food, massage areas, and letting you bring you dog to work. Google has invested in its future by creating a work environment that employees want to go to.
Now I know a lot of business people think this is crazy to invest this kind of money into a facilities that don't directly increase the bottom line. The thought of grad-students with dot com dollars come to mind. But if Google is crazy, they're crazy like a fox. Here's how I see this type of campus adding to the bottom line:
1) From the quote from Hotz we can see it attracts talent. A kid that cracks the iphone can't be dumb, and attracting this kind of talent will increase revenues in the future.
2) Employees will stay at work longer. This means more productivity per week.
3) Employees are healthier. This means less sick time.
4) Employees are less likely to leave for other places. Meaning you retain your talent and don't have to pay the heavy expense of hiring new people. I know personally one of the biggest down sides to place I work is a dreary work environment. If I were to ever leave, this is one of the big reasons.
5) Employees are more likely to bond as teams, and again increasing productivity.
Anyways, just my ramblings.
Peace out.
I was reading an article on MSNBC about George Hotz. For those of you in a closet, this 17 year wiz kid (with obviously to much time on his hands) cracked the iphone and posted the instructions on a blog. Meaning that if you follow the instructions, have some skill with a soldering iron, and have a lot of luck you can make the iphone work on a network other than AT&T.
Now what I find very interesting is the quote below from the article when they asked about this kid's future:
Yeah Google is sexy to work for, but if you read between the lines, here's what I see. People want to go work for Google because of the work environment and campus. Google "googleplex" and see the results (yeah it is odd to google google but so be it). Workout facilities, 24 hours free food, massage areas, and letting you bring you dog to work. Google has invested in its future by creating a work environment that employees want to go to.
Now I know a lot of business people think this is crazy to invest this kind of money into a facilities that don't directly increase the bottom line. The thought of grad-students with dot com dollars come to mind. But if Google is crazy, they're crazy like a fox. Here's how I see this type of campus adding to the bottom line:
1) From the quote from Hotz we can see it attracts talent. A kid that cracks the iphone can't be dumb, and attracting this kind of talent will increase revenues in the future.
2) Employees will stay at work longer. This means more productivity per week.
3) Employees are healthier. This means less sick time.
4) Employees are less likely to leave for other places. Meaning you retain your talent and don't have to pay the heavy expense of hiring new people. I know personally one of the biggest down sides to place I work is a dreary work environment. If I were to ever leave, this is one of the big reasons.
5) Employees are more likely to bond as teams, and again increasing productivity.
Anyways, just my ramblings.
Peace out.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
The Democractic Debate
Otay, so first I need to apologize for not posting in a while. I've had things to say, but not time to say them. My Bad...
So I watched the Democratic debate today on ABC news. My first impression is that the Democrats are being pretty vicious. They immediately were attacking each other, while the Republican debate seemed to be more civil. As Barack mentioned he was preparing for the debate by riding in bumper cars. Not far from the truth. Kudos to John Kerry who tried to corral the debate in and make it more positive. Some of my other impressions:
1) Obama was kinda a none factor. He really doesn't grab the spot light like you would expect him to. My opinion is that he's starting to lose some of his early momentum. We'll see...
2) Is it just me or does Dennis Kucinich look like Golem from The Lord of the Rings? I kept waiting for a "Yes, my precious." Speaking of precious, is it just me or is his wife Elizabeth way to pretty to be married to Golem? Here is a link to an article about her. Also here is her MySpace site. If I thought Dennis had an outside shot to win, I would vote for him just to have her in the White House. A first lady with a tongue stud, the evening news would be much more interesting!
3) Mike Gravel wins the "not quite on kilter" award. He is the most adamant about pulling our boys home ASAP. And his voice suits his name, Gravely.
4) Hillary was, well Hillary. Love her or hate her she is a good debater, smooth and on target. She's apparently learned a lot from her husband.
5) John Kerry was also pretty smooth, and major Kudos for his positiveness. He's a little to "blue" collar for my tastes but I do believe he believes in what he says. One of my big concerns is with is wife. With her having a high chance of dying in the near term, do we want a president in office grieving for his lost wife? I know that's not very sensitive but...
6) I thought Joe Biden was the most impressive of the bunch. In my opinion he has the most credibility and I think he knows something about foreign affairs. Which frankly our country really needs right now.
So one of my communication professors, Chad Hermann here's his blog, once noted that the person who tends to win the election is the guy you'd most like to go out and drink with. Think about it some time. Based on that I that if I had to vote democrat, and as I listen to Coldplay from Elizabeth's MySpace site, I think it would have to pick Dennis Kucinich. But only if he brought is wife...
Peace out.
So I watched the Democratic debate today on ABC news. My first impression is that the Democrats are being pretty vicious. They immediately were attacking each other, while the Republican debate seemed to be more civil. As Barack mentioned he was preparing for the debate by riding in bumper cars. Not far from the truth. Kudos to John Kerry who tried to corral the debate in and make it more positive. Some of my other impressions:
1) Obama was kinda a none factor. He really doesn't grab the spot light like you would expect him to. My opinion is that he's starting to lose some of his early momentum. We'll see...
2) Is it just me or does Dennis Kucinich look like Golem from The Lord of the Rings? I kept waiting for a "Yes, my precious." Speaking of precious, is it just me or is his wife Elizabeth way to pretty to be married to Golem? Here is a link to an article about her. Also here is her MySpace site. If I thought Dennis had an outside shot to win, I would vote for him just to have her in the White House. A first lady with a tongue stud, the evening news would be much more interesting!
3) Mike Gravel wins the "not quite on kilter" award. He is the most adamant about pulling our boys home ASAP. And his voice suits his name, Gravely.
4) Hillary was, well Hillary. Love her or hate her she is a good debater, smooth and on target. She's apparently learned a lot from her husband.
5) John Kerry was also pretty smooth, and major Kudos for his positiveness. He's a little to "blue" collar for my tastes but I do believe he believes in what he says. One of my big concerns is with is wife. With her having a high chance of dying in the near term, do we want a president in office grieving for his lost wife? I know that's not very sensitive but...
6) I thought Joe Biden was the most impressive of the bunch. In my opinion he has the most credibility and I think he knows something about foreign affairs. Which frankly our country really needs right now.
So one of my communication professors, Chad Hermann here's his blog, once noted that the person who tends to win the election is the guy you'd most like to go out and drink with. Think about it some time. Based on that I that if I had to vote democrat, and as I listen to Coldplay from Elizabeth's MySpace site, I think it would have to pick Dennis Kucinich. But only if he brought is wife...
Peace out.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Subprime Basics
Otay, so I've been asked by several people to explain to them what is going on with the subprime mortgages, and specifically why its affecting the market. I thought it might be useful to explain the basics. Note while I having been doing a lot of studying of finance and economics during my MBA classes, I am not an expert or an industry expert. So take everything I say with a few grains of salt...
Let us start by taking a look at what happens when Jane Q Public goes to the bank to get a loan on a house. Jane will apply for the mortgage at a local bank or mortgage broker. The banker will then look at Jane's application looking at the amount requested, the value of the home, her employment and income history, and her credit history. If her credit score is below 620, or if the requested loan is larger than normal for her income level, she will be labeled as sub-prime. This means that lending to her is considered more risky and will result in higher interest rates.
Lets fast forward a little and assume the mortgage was issued and the house was closed on. This now means that Jane has a house, monthly mortgage payments and the bank has a loan to an individual which has a higher than average possibility of defaulting on the loan. Now in the olden days the local bank would hold the loan and that would be that. However, today's investors have found that they can mitigate risk by pooling a bunch of loans together. So a company, such as Countrywide, will buy the loans from the bank from all over the country and the world and assume the risk.
This of course goes another step. The company will then pool all the like risk mortgages together and then sell a percentage of that pool to an individual investor, hedge fund, or retirement fund in the form of bonds. Effectively what is happening is that investors are funding the loans to consumer through a number of steps.
Now fast forward to today. Many of the subprime loans are being defaulted on because, surprise, the loan was high risk and the individual couldn't afford the payments, etc. Now the company that holds the loan will foreclose on the property and then resell the home to recoup the loses on the mortgage. This is expected thus the higher interest rates to help recoup the losses (remember its a numbers game). Everything should be fine because they planned for a percentage of the loans to default, right. Sort of, but now comes the rub. The value of homes has been dropping recently and more than the expected number of loans are being defaulted on. This means that the subprime market is getting hammered because they are losing more loans than expected and they recouping less from each foreclosed on house.
Many of the subprime lenders are declaring bankruptcy, meaning basically that the bond that the investor purchased is now effectively valueless. This is rippling through the markets as investors are reevaluating their portfolios and their returns.
Hope this helps. Heres a link to wikipedia that has a description of the subprime crisis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subprime_meltdown
Peace out..
Let us start by taking a look at what happens when Jane Q Public goes to the bank to get a loan on a house. Jane will apply for the mortgage at a local bank or mortgage broker. The banker will then look at Jane's application looking at the amount requested, the value of the home, her employment and income history, and her credit history. If her credit score is below 620, or if the requested loan is larger than normal for her income level, she will be labeled as sub-prime. This means that lending to her is considered more risky and will result in higher interest rates.
Lets fast forward a little and assume the mortgage was issued and the house was closed on. This now means that Jane has a house, monthly mortgage payments and the bank has a loan to an individual which has a higher than average possibility of defaulting on the loan. Now in the olden days the local bank would hold the loan and that would be that. However, today's investors have found that they can mitigate risk by pooling a bunch of loans together. So a company, such as Countrywide, will buy the loans from the bank from all over the country and the world and assume the risk.
This of course goes another step. The company will then pool all the like risk mortgages together and then sell a percentage of that pool to an individual investor, hedge fund, or retirement fund in the form of bonds. Effectively what is happening is that investors are funding the loans to consumer through a number of steps.
Now fast forward to today. Many of the subprime loans are being defaulted on because, surprise, the loan was high risk and the individual couldn't afford the payments, etc. Now the company that holds the loan will foreclose on the property and then resell the home to recoup the loses on the mortgage. This is expected thus the higher interest rates to help recoup the losses (remember its a numbers game). Everything should be fine because they planned for a percentage of the loans to default, right. Sort of, but now comes the rub. The value of homes has been dropping recently and more than the expected number of loans are being defaulted on. This means that the subprime market is getting hammered because they are losing more loans than expected and they recouping less from each foreclosed on house.
Many of the subprime lenders are declaring bankruptcy, meaning basically that the bond that the investor purchased is now effectively valueless. This is rippling through the markets as investors are reevaluating their portfolios and their returns.
Hope this helps. Heres a link to wikipedia that has a description of the subprime crisis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subprime_meltdown
Peace out..
Friday, August 10, 2007
Golden Day
Otay, so the current house I live in has dog doors that lead to the outside. To take advantage of these doors I also happen to have two fuzzy, tail wagging, shoe chewing, fur shedding, 95 pound golden retrievers, named Mieka and Sage. Living with these sweet hearted, fun loving demons has taught me many things. For example:
1) If its not nailed down its fair game for a good chewing (someday I will post a comprehensive list of everything that has suffered this fate, however I just don’t have that much time right now!)
2) However the corollary is not true; just because it is nailed down doesn’t mean it won’t get chewed.
3) The phrase “Working like a dog” apparently means sleeping on the couch all day
4) Just because the squirrel they brought in looks dead doesn’t mean it is!
5) A golden always has the location of the six nearest tennis balls committed to memory.
Of the many lessons I have learned, one of them may surprise you. Goldens are excellent at telling what the weather is outside. You see every morning around 6:30 when my alarm goes off, my canine’s wakeup, stretch, and then go outside to do whatever Goldens do outside at 6:30 in the morning. When they come in I am instantly aware of the current meteorological conditions. Here are some of the indicators:
A) If there is a wet dog in my bed—Its raining
B) If I have a cold nose pressed against my side—Its cold
C) If they are rolled over on their backs under the air conditioning vent—Its hot
D) If they have wet feet—There’s dew on the grass
E) If they have wet feet and chest—There’s dew on the grass and I need to mow
F) If they are white—Its snowing (I’m guessing at this one)
This morning, however, was my favorite indicator. Head on bed, tail wagging, and tennis ball resting against my side. For those that don’t know, that’s the it’s-a-perfect-time-to-go-out-and-throw-the-ball-and-play day. And that is my favorite lesson I have learned from Mieka and Sage. Take a moment out of everyday to be a kid, run around, laugh, jump, throw a ball, whatever, but don’t forget to play.
So have a great day, smile, and don’t forget to take a moment out of your day to just throw the proverbial tennis ball around for a couple of minutes with those you love. Have a Golden Day!
Peace out…
1) If its not nailed down its fair game for a good chewing (someday I will post a comprehensive list of everything that has suffered this fate, however I just don’t have that much time right now!)
2) However the corollary is not true; just because it is nailed down doesn’t mean it won’t get chewed.
3) The phrase “Working like a dog” apparently means sleeping on the couch all day
4) Just because the squirrel they brought in looks dead doesn’t mean it is!
5) A golden always has the location of the six nearest tennis balls committed to memory.
Of the many lessons I have learned, one of them may surprise you. Goldens are excellent at telling what the weather is outside. You see every morning around 6:30 when my alarm goes off, my canine’s wakeup, stretch, and then go outside to do whatever Goldens do outside at 6:30 in the morning. When they come in I am instantly aware of the current meteorological conditions. Here are some of the indicators:
A) If there is a wet dog in my bed—Its raining
B) If I have a cold nose pressed against my side—Its cold
C) If they are rolled over on their backs under the air conditioning vent—Its hot
D) If they have wet feet—There’s dew on the grass
E) If they have wet feet and chest—There’s dew on the grass and I need to mow
F) If they are white—Its snowing (I’m guessing at this one)
This morning, however, was my favorite indicator. Head on bed, tail wagging, and tennis ball resting against my side. For those that don’t know, that’s the it’s-a-perfect-time-to-go-out-and-throw-the-ball-and-play day. And that is my favorite lesson I have learned from Mieka and Sage. Take a moment out of everyday to be a kid, run around, laugh, jump, throw a ball, whatever, but don’t forget to play.
So have a great day, smile, and don’t forget to take a moment out of your day to just throw the proverbial tennis ball around for a couple of minutes with those you love. Have a Golden Day!
Peace out…
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Some Tunes
Otay, so for those of you who enjoy good lyrics and good singing, here are two female artists that I recently "discovered." Hope you enjoy as much as I did...
Colby Calliat
Colbie Caillat (aka CoCo) is an admitted California beach girl, and she sings like it. Her songs and voice reflect her bubbly and dare I say innocent personality. Really good music when you want to be uplifted or are in a fun mood.
http://www.colbiecaillatmusic.com/default.asp
Amy Winehouse
Imagine yourself in a hole in the wall New Orleans jazz bar. The room is dimly lit and cigar and cigarette smoke fill the air. The floor is slightly sticky, the beer is cold, a small stage is in front, and a pool table with a shark willing to play for cash is in back. Now imagine the perfect performer for the place and you got Amy Winehouse. Amy Winehouse, is a polar opposite to CoCo. She sings like she's forty years older, and her lyrics are as blues as it gets. Great music if your in a chill'in blues mood.
http://www.amywinehouse.com/
Peace out...
Colby Calliat
Colbie Caillat (aka CoCo) is an admitted California beach girl, and she sings like it. Her songs and voice reflect her bubbly and dare I say innocent personality. Really good music when you want to be uplifted or are in a fun mood.
http://www.colbiecaillatmusic.com/default.asp
Amy Winehouse
Imagine yourself in a hole in the wall New Orleans jazz bar. The room is dimly lit and cigar and cigarette smoke fill the air. The floor is slightly sticky, the beer is cold, a small stage is in front, and a pool table with a shark willing to play for cash is in back. Now imagine the perfect performer for the place and you got Amy Winehouse. Amy Winehouse, is a polar opposite to CoCo. She sings like she's forty years older, and her lyrics are as blues as it gets. Great music if your in a chill'in blues mood.
http://www.amywinehouse.com/
Peace out...
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Launched into Space
Otay, teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan was successfully launched into space. For those of you who don't know, Ms. Morgan has had, in the words of the Dead, a long strange trip to get there. Ms. Morgan was the back-up to Christa McAuliffe for the ill fated Challenger mission. Ten years later she was scheduled to be on the flight after the Columbia mission which also ended tragically in a break-up over Texas.
Yet despite all of that Ms. Morgan has finally made it into space. I would like to take a minute to pay tribute to Ms. Morgan and all of the hero's we call astronauts. Their dedication to a singular goal, unflinching determination, and won't give up spirit are something that we as a human race can feel proud over. In a day and age where our nation's role models are me, me, me hotel heiresses and athletes that break records* by taking roids, these people are real heros that all of us can aspire to be like.
So to all of you who have risked your lives to push our understanding of the space around us, I salute you. And to all our fallen brothers and sisters, your bravery and sacrifice is not forgotten. This world is better because of you.
Peace out.
Yet despite all of that Ms. Morgan has finally made it into space. I would like to take a minute to pay tribute to Ms. Morgan and all of the hero's we call astronauts. Their dedication to a singular goal, unflinching determination, and won't give up spirit are something that we as a human race can feel proud over. In a day and age where our nation's role models are me, me, me hotel heiresses and athletes that break records* by taking roids, these people are real heros that all of us can aspire to be like.
So to all of you who have risked your lives to push our understanding of the space around us, I salute you. And to all our fallen brothers and sisters, your bravery and sacrifice is not forgotten. This world is better because of you.
Peace out.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
iPhone-- Yawn
Otay, so before I get started I have a confession to make. I'm a crack head. Thats right, I can't go anywhere without my Blackberry. In fact I left my charger at work and my life line is down to almost nothing on battery charge. The thought of it dying makes me more stressed than a golden retriever being away from a tennis ball. Not pretty. So take my review below with a grain of salt...
So I went into the AT&T (Cingular, it was orange?) shop the other day to look at the iPhone. They had 3 or 4 of them on display. My first thought was, otay where are all the people. There were a couple people in the store but none of them were looking at Apple's hope for future profitability. So I strolled over to take a look. It's kinda sleek looking, although it has the same look as the iPod or the Mac. It's really not that much smaller than a regular cell, but hey if you want small get something else.
I played with it a little and was mildly impressed, although in my not so humble opinion, it didn't live up to the hype. And I'll be frank, the "keyless" keyboard sucked. Maybe I'm a clumsy-fat-fingered caveman but I couldn't get but about every other letter right. I really missed the tactile feel of the real thing. Being able to play your voice mail in any order is cool, and the iPod feature is nice, but you know what? I have an iPod and its got more storage than the phone.
If you can't tell by now I really didn't like the iPhone. Frankly, I like my Blackberry a lot more. Now I'm not an analyst but I honestly think this isn't going to help Apple like the street thinks. In fact I'm seriously thinking about shorting Apple stock. Here's why:
1) What's new in this? Everything in the iPhone has already been done. Its been neatly packaged but all in all I don't see the killer "app" here. The iPod has done awesome, but thats because Apple attacked the market first, it was new concept.
2) Apple prides itself on having unique easy to use interfaces. But guess what, thats what the Blackberry has also hung its hat on. The wheel on the side is pretty damn handy, and Blackberry's new interface on the front is really easy to use as well. Plus I can use the "keyless" keyboard without cussing every other letter.
3) Who are they targeting with this? Blackberry went after the business man/women market first and have done really well there. But the iPod's success seems to be mainly driven (caution totally unbacked up truthiness) by high school and college students. Are they really going to fork up the money for this?
4)iPhone is only usable with one provider, ouch!
5) Blackberry provides and actual service. For those that don't know Blackberry handles the email transfer and PIN. The provider provides the wireless network. What is Apple really adding to the equation?
Anyways thats my twisted opinion. And I think, OH MY GOD! MY BLACKBERRY HAS RUN OUT OF JUICE. HELPPPPP!!!!!!
Peace out...
So I went into the AT&T (Cingular, it was orange?) shop the other day to look at the iPhone. They had 3 or 4 of them on display. My first thought was, otay where are all the people. There were a couple people in the store but none of them were looking at Apple's hope for future profitability. So I strolled over to take a look. It's kinda sleek looking, although it has the same look as the iPod or the Mac. It's really not that much smaller than a regular cell, but hey if you want small get something else.
I played with it a little and was mildly impressed, although in my not so humble opinion, it didn't live up to the hype. And I'll be frank, the "keyless" keyboard sucked. Maybe I'm a clumsy-fat-fingered caveman but I couldn't get but about every other letter right. I really missed the tactile feel of the real thing. Being able to play your voice mail in any order is cool, and the iPod feature is nice, but you know what? I have an iPod and its got more storage than the phone.
If you can't tell by now I really didn't like the iPhone. Frankly, I like my Blackberry a lot more. Now I'm not an analyst but I honestly think this isn't going to help Apple like the street thinks. In fact I'm seriously thinking about shorting Apple stock. Here's why:
1) What's new in this? Everything in the iPhone has already been done. Its been neatly packaged but all in all I don't see the killer "app" here. The iPod has done awesome, but thats because Apple attacked the market first, it was new concept.
2) Apple prides itself on having unique easy to use interfaces. But guess what, thats what the Blackberry has also hung its hat on. The wheel on the side is pretty damn handy, and Blackberry's new interface on the front is really easy to use as well. Plus I can use the "keyless" keyboard without cussing every other letter.
3) Who are they targeting with this? Blackberry went after the business man/women market first and have done really well there. But the iPod's success seems to be mainly driven (caution totally unbacked up truthiness) by high school and college students. Are they really going to fork up the money for this?
4)iPhone is only usable with one provider, ouch!
5) Blackberry provides and actual service. For those that don't know Blackberry handles the email transfer and PIN. The provider provides the wireless network. What is Apple really adding to the equation?
Anyways thats my twisted opinion. And I think, OH MY GOD! MY BLACKBERRY HAS RUN OUT OF JUICE. HELPPPPP!!!!!!
Peace out...
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Otay, so I broke down and watched the republican Iowa debate today. Now I promise this blog won't be overally political for two reasons. First I'm on the fence on a lot of issues, which is really boring. Second, I may not be awake long enough to finish those posts.
So back to the debate. I watched the debate. Really, its not because I'm particularly political, it really had more to do with the fact that it was really hot outside, and it was either watch the debate (you know my civic duty) or mow the lawn. So my grass is still long, and after an hour and a half here is what I know:
1) Some of the republican representatives are just plain crazy. One was advocating a preemptive nuclear bombing of Mecca. Well if you want to unite all the Muslims in the world, I guess thats a good idea. Of course they would unite in common hatred towards the US, minor detail.
2) Some of the republicans apparently don't understand the term moderation. Its like poles on a magnet. There is something in the middle.
3) Looks like McCain had a tooth ache or something because his left check was swollen. He also looks tired. I respect the guy, but I don't think he's going to last.
4) Giuliano wins the quote of the week, "List all of my mistakes in 30 seconds, not possible."
5) Romney was at one time pro-choice, now he claims to be pro-life. Frankly (and I really don't care) I'm not sure where he stands. Although his quote about Obama was cute. Something like he wants to sit down with our enemies and have tea and bomb our allies. Probably out of context, but still cute. Maybe we should change Obama to "O' Bomb Them" Romney does appear to be the most presidential looking of the bunch.
6) They talked about a flat tax, or a federal sales tax in lieu of the current tax schedule. Hey, wait a minute! I want to be rich one day, don't ruin the tax holes for me! I do agree with Giuliano on lowering taxes may actually increase collection of taxes. I'll probably dive into that thought one day, but not tonight.
7) I left wondering, why Iowa? Somebody from Iowa must have been real influential back in the day to get the initial debates there. Maybe it was all the free corn you can eat.
8) Finally, I learned that I can't get really excited about an election that is over a year away, unless of course I have to mow the lawn and then its pretty darn interesting.
Anyways, peace out.
So back to the debate. I watched the debate. Really, its not because I'm particularly political, it really had more to do with the fact that it was really hot outside, and it was either watch the debate (you know my civic duty) or mow the lawn. So my grass is still long, and after an hour and a half here is what I know:
1) Some of the republican representatives are just plain crazy. One was advocating a preemptive nuclear bombing of Mecca. Well if you want to unite all the Muslims in the world, I guess thats a good idea. Of course they would unite in common hatred towards the US, minor detail.
2) Some of the republicans apparently don't understand the term moderation. Its like poles on a magnet. There is something in the middle.
3) Looks like McCain had a tooth ache or something because his left check was swollen. He also looks tired. I respect the guy, but I don't think he's going to last.
4) Giuliano wins the quote of the week, "List all of my mistakes in 30 seconds, not possible."
5) Romney was at one time pro-choice, now he claims to be pro-life. Frankly (and I really don't care) I'm not sure where he stands. Although his quote about Obama was cute. Something like he wants to sit down with our enemies and have tea and bomb our allies. Probably out of context, but still cute. Maybe we should change Obama to "O' Bomb Them" Romney does appear to be the most presidential looking of the bunch.
6) They talked about a flat tax, or a federal sales tax in lieu of the current tax schedule. Hey, wait a minute! I want to be rich one day, don't ruin the tax holes for me! I do agree with Giuliano on lowering taxes may actually increase collection of taxes. I'll probably dive into that thought one day, but not tonight.
7) I left wondering, why Iowa? Somebody from Iowa must have been real influential back in the day to get the initial debates there. Maybe it was all the free corn you can eat.
8) Finally, I learned that I can't get really excited about an election that is over a year away, unless of course I have to mow the lawn and then its pretty darn interesting.
Anyways, peace out.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
The Start
Otay, so this seems like the thing to do. After all the technology has been around for years so I guess I should get off the technilogical fence and give this a shot. So like a teenager on a first date, I'm not sure where this blog is going to go over the days and months (assuming it goes anywhere) but it should be fun and probably embarrassing. So strap in and enjoy the show, I'll try to post thoughts everyday. Although like my commitment to workout everyday, it may not happen... Stay tuned...
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