An Economic Sigh of Relief? . . . maybe

The veritable patchwork nation blog at the Christian Science Monitor just published a new economic report looking at the changes in economic conditions in the last month across different types of communities. Unsurprisingly, Michigan, California and Florida could really use some good news, and as always, living in Alaska: bad choice. Otherwise, plenty of interesting tidbits remain. I'm sure the last 8 Americans with internet hookups in their cardboard boxes will appreciate the news.

Condi Rice gave verbal OK to torture

The Obama Administration's recent release of the secret torture memos has revealed that then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice approved the CIA's request to waterboard an alleged terrorist. While Ms. Rice did not necessarily lie to the Senate Armed Services Committee, the memo indicates that her role in approving torture was far greater than what she admitted to.

NY Times asks: Is Obama Selling Out?

Professor Eric Alterman takes a look at a recent New York Times piece that asks whether Obama is selling out due to recent political moves, rhetoric, and his softening of stance on some issues.

::SPOILER ALERT::
The answer is not really.

Obama cutting $100m in spending

Obama is expected to order his cabinet members to find a way to cut $100 million in spending at their first meeting today. Some of the cost-cutting measures include video-conferencing instead of holding conferences and DHS expects to save around $52 million simply by ordering office supplies in bulk. While $100 million seems like chump change, he's setting the tone and we can expect more cuts to follow.

Champagne sabering - Flying Dutchman Style

In which a young man fulfills his dream - his dream of sabering a bottle of champagne. [insert Christopher Walken-esque over-pronunciation of champagne]

Obverse of the coin: Same-sex divorce

While the fight for marriage equality rages on, there is another side to the issue: same-sex divorce. Same-sex couples experience divorce at about the same rate as opposite-sex couples, but the process of untying the knot is often much more complicated, and, in some cases, legally impossible.

TPFD: Crapped in the Break Room

Debunking 6 common wine myths

To smell or not to smell - and other corky questions are answered in this quick and easy article about a half dozen common wine myths. Your oenological guide, Kurt Michael Friese leads the way to pretense free wine enjoyment.

Hale Stewart explains why the tax code is so complicated

A century of legislation, often poorly written, cluttered by special interest groups, and mangled by individuals and entities trying to get out of payment is the complicated and confusing state of the United State's current tax code.  Tax lawyer Hale "Bonddad" Stewart explains just why exactly the US Tax Code is so complicated.

Image is a visual depiction of US Tax Code as a network.

Stanley Cup Playoffs Start Tonight...

The best tournament in sports, in my opinion, kicks off tonight and that is the quest for Lord Stanley's Cup.

Well, here is my hopeful prediction for sports' most sought after trophy: Washington Capitals defeat San Jose Sharks in the finals in 6 games. Offer your predictions if you choose.

Right-wing extremist groups gaining membership

Looks like it's official: right-wing extremism in the United States is on the rise (and Nazis are, in fact, a right-wing organization, btw).  The Department of Homeland Security has released a report detailing the movements and how the economic troubles as well as the election of Barack Obama may be rallying the base.  Fortunately, the DHS report found no evidence that any of these organizations were planning violence.

Time Warner doesn't want Net Neutrality

Time Warner Cable is in a spat with the Federal Communications Commission over a provision that prevents stimulus money from going to companies accused of being in violation of FCC non-discrimination regulations (i.e. price-gouging bandwidth caps). TWC lawyers are telling the government to watch what it says:

"'Now is not the time, nor is this the appropriate proceeding, to engage in a debate about the need for net neutrality obligations,' two TWC lawyers warned the FCC on Monday."

A little White House Easter nostalgia

Vatican Easter Interrupted by Mardi Gras

In the Philadelphia television market, Good Friday services broadcast from the Vatican were interrupted for thirty seconds by a "Girls Gone Wild" advertisement due to a programming glitch.

MSNBC has the whole story

America - Fuck Yeah

While those pansy Euros went gentle into that good night, the Americans raged against the dying of the light, and they took their ship back from the pirates. Once again, American sailors prove their badass credentials.

Wake + Beer + South = criminal charges and hilarity

Middle aged woman showed up to a wake at a church in Arkansas with a beer and started hitting people. When the cops showed up:

A sheriff's report claimed the woman with the beer became "passively aggressive" with deputies and said that "no backwood country cop" was going to take her to jail.

No photo was available, so I have provided an artistic rendering.

The phrase is COOKING with gas...

... not CLEANING with gas. I don't even know what else to say.

Bruno

Bruno coming to theaters..... absolutely hilarious

You Can't Hug With Nuclear Arms...

Obama to rid the world of nuclear weapons? Only time will tell http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30053670/

Happy (Belated) Birthday Gmail!!!

Gmail turned 5 on Wednesday and it's still in Beta (though that may change soon?). Half of a decade old and it still doesn't know what it wants to be when it grows up. Google marked the special day by introducing some new features for Gmail, including CADIE - an artificial intelligence system that can automatically respond to your emails. Now your correspondence can live on auto-pilot.

Bad Decision Blocker

An iPhone application prevents the user from calling certain contacts for a specified period of time. This is probably useful for the perennial drunk-dialer and that pain-in-the-ass friend of yours who plays with your iPhone apps.

Air Car - coming to a dealership near you!

The Air Car is a near-zero emission vehicle that runs almost entirely on compressed air. The car is going to be available by late 2009 or early 2010 for around $17,800.

Tired of prostitots? Make 'em read Lolita

This author submits an intriguing argument why, in a world full of teen pregnancy and sexual assault, Nabakov's highly controversial, modern classic Lolita should be a part of the American high school English curriculum.

Among the myriad reasons: Literature offers a safe starting point for discussion and required reading like Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet also deal with teen sex and incest.

Food for thought.

Ever wonder what exactly a porter is?

That's okay - here's an article telling you anyway.


The beer so nice they named it... once... but lots of pr0n comes up when you search for pictures of it.

Earth Hour: pictures before and during

The Boston Globe gives us pictures from around the world during Earth Hour, an effort to raise awareness about human energy consumption. Major buildings shut their lights off for an hour. Click on the images to see the lights fade.

Super Mario Bros theme on a Tesla coil

Nikolai Tesla's wonders are all around us, everyday. He was a visionary who sought to revolutionize the world, but he probably didn't have music in mind when he invented his coils. Submitted for your enjoyment: Super Mario Bros theme on a Tesla Coil in C.

XKCD: Parking

"Police reported three dozen cheerful bystanders, yet no one claims to have seen who did it."

You know you've always wanted to do this.

Japanese man had a really bad week

A 93-year-old Japanese man recently became the first person to be certified as a survivor of both the Nagasaki and Hiroshima bombings. The man was in Hiroshima on a business trip when the first bomb hit, and he made it back to Nagasaki in time for round two. Some people have all the luck.

New Math (A little comedy never hurt anyone)

So much for Maryland NOT being the south...

For those of you who did not grow up in Maryland have to learn the words to "Maryland, My Maryland" in 3rd grade, let me give you a little crash course. It's the state song of Maryland, and it's a little, shall we say... outdated. (Not as much as the German national anthem, but that's a different story). Anyways, it makes several references to revenge on the patriotic gore that flecked the streets of Baltimore and basically challenges Virginia to a battle. Here's the kicker:

"She is not dead, nor deaf, nor dumb-
Huzza! she spurns the Northern scum!"

That's right- the Northern scum. Well, a committee of the Maryland House of Delegates thought that maybe we should make some sort of an effort to pretend that it's no longer 1861 and maybe be a little nicer to those yankee rebels and change the lyrics of the song. Well, for all of us Marylanders who have fought hard our entire lives to escape the stereotypes of being thought of as "part of the south" are out of luck- the bill was voted down and it looks like "Northern Scum" will remain a part of the Maryland state song. Wow.

Why don't they ever build the cool concept cars?

Hyundai is releasing a concept plug-in hybrid full of plant-based plastics and enough eco-crap to make a Prius look like a Hummer, and yet look at this thing. THEY'LL NEVER BUILD IT. Why? Seems like a good idea, and that would be a crazy decision.

Dan Rather on Afghanistan

Dan Rather has spent three decades reporting on Afghanistan. He offers insight into the current strategy and where America can and should go in the coming years in order to create a stable Afghanistan.

$2000 Car, anyone?

Indian superconglomerate Tata released the world's least expensive car today, the Tata Nano. At 50 mpg and 33 hp this tiny little car will get your family somewhere, eventually, probably.

I kind of want one, I'm not gonna lie.

NYT Columnist Paul Krugman *Sighs*

In this morning's New York Times, Op-Ed columnist Paul Krugman hated on the Administration's toxic asset program. I suppose I can't blame him, it's way easier to make easy arguments than defend complex ones.

But when you hold a Phd. in Economics from MIT, and have been a distinguished academic at the London School of Economics and Princeton University, I expect you to use microeconomics and calculus to minimize the amount of fuel, calories and time needed to mow your own lawn, not to mention if you don't do your job, who else can the New York Times pay to tell liberals what to think.

The problem, Paul (if we can be so familiar) is that you claim to use economics to explain your skepticism, but I can't find any of that Krugian goodness.

Lets start with some basics. Lousy mortgages and other suspect financial instruments are being used to back supposedly high-quality bonds. Bond markets trade largely on information provided by bond rating agencies. A consumer will buy a mislabeled turd in a Tiffany's bag exactly one time before realizing there are better things to do with hard-earned money. Similarly, supposed "assets" have burned buyers in the marketplace, and without a source for accurate information, the market cannot correctly assign a price to these assets. Interestingly, Krugman seems to identify this, suggesting that no-one knows what the value of these assets are, but then retracting into his tortoise shell of paranoia, suggesting that no effort to pull these assets from bank balance sheets will improve the lending industry. I'll address each below.

Modern Economists believe there is a price for everything. The ability of that price to represent 'actual' value can vary according to availability of markets, clarity of property rights, or accurate information about what you are buying. Think about Ebay for a moment. You the bidder have a chance to participate in an excellent forum for developing price, and truth be told information plays a huge role on what you do or don't bid on. Suppose for a moment you would like to buy a Maserati. Two ebay listings catch your eye. One Maserati includes a real photo, mechanic's records, traffax vehicle history and the other post says one Maserati with a photo of a matchbox car labeled "artist rendering". Chances are, only one of those cars will sell for more than three years of law school tuition. Similarly, when thousands of mystery bonds are all labeled 'mystery' flavored, the market must know surely this bond tastes like something, but I'm not willing to risk ending up with black licorice again. But then, the government comes in and offers a loan guarantee and says, my boy, if you buy that bond and give it a lick, and its black licorice, I'll let you buy another one and we'll see how that one works out, all I ask, is when you score some strawberry, I get a lick. Then, the whole game changes. Moral hazard? Surely. But then again, lose your car insurance and you'll realize in 10 seconds how much moral hazard you store in your lead foot. If you don't think a distribution of risk adds marketable value to an asset, then you're probably dumb enough to think that warranty on your new car was "free" too.

So fine, lets say these assets fly off the shelves like umbrellas in Oregon, then what? Does the banking industry see any benefit? Or should we believe, as Kranky-Kurmudgeon would have us believe, that Sisyphus has a better chance of getting the boulder up the mountain? I'm not here to tell you its Oliver-the-omnipotent's terrific tonic of total market correction, but surely its worth something. For one, it ends the waterboarding of corporate balance sheets. When mark-to-market forces banks to post impossibly large losses on assets of questionable value, Banks are traded according to fear of the unknown. Fresh balance sheets will allow banks to re-enter the markets and participate as creditors backed by known value. This is exactly how the market treats you. Own a house? You can use it to access credit backed by the knowledge that you have a certain ability to pay. Own nothing and addicted to heroine? You probably have to borrow money from a loan shark who knows you can't pay, since no one else will give you money, you'll agree to anything. So unless you want Wal-Mart to post payroll by running down Johnny the Squeeler, we all have an interest in the restoration of credit markets.

Or, you know, you can just complain about stuff.

Drink more, worry less

Every now and then there is a study that indicates possible severe health problems from drinking, but there are plenty of studies showing a strong causal relationship between moderate drinking and good health. Author and freelance writer Laura Fraser has done a little research on the studies and writes a short treatise in defense of her drinking habit.

Madoff employee tells all

An unnamed employee of the legitimate front of Bernie Madoff's ponzi scheme has granted an interview.

"In a Daily Beast exclusive, one of the fraudster’s employees tells Lucinda Franks that the supposedly legitimate brokerage operations were in fact just money-losing fronts for the fraudster's scheme. Plus, what Madoff’s sons told staff the day after Bernie’s arrest, trips to the company’s secretive 17th floor, Bernie’s obsession with the color black and employee neatness, the roles of other family members, and visits to the founder’s Montauk home."

Sheep Art. God I hope this is real

Watch this in High Quality

Steele the Mic . . . Wha!!??!?!

The ultimate hippity hoppity throw down:

COLBERT VERSUS STEELE

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Michael Steele's Rap Battle Response
comedycentral.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Mark Sanford

Waterless urinals - more eco-friendly, more sanitary

A single waterless urinal can save tens of thousands of gallons of fresh, pure drinking water every year. The waterless urinals are also more sanitary than standard flush urinals and don't require the same amount of maintenance and don't cause plumbing emergencies like flooding.

Uncle Sam wants YOU to weatherize your home

As part of the economic stimulus package and an overarching plan to increase the efficiency of American homes, the government is offering assistance for those willing to make the jump for greener homes. Save money on energy bills by insulating, replacing windows and doors, and changing those incandescent lightbulbs for their eco-friendlier CFL or LED brothers.

Planet green has the story along with a state-by-state guide to determine eligibility.

Societal expectations and sex: gender showdown

Two sexperts duke it out in a side-by-side article addressing societal expectations on sexual behavior and how it affects men versus women. In a battle to answer who has it worse, Susannah Breslin of Reverse Cowgirl and Grant Stoddard of Nerve.com lay the case for their respective genders.

New York Post - props to you!

I never thought I'd say it, but I must give the New York Post the props it so deserves.

Tucker Carlson: How Jon Stewart Went Bad

Since we gleefully hosted Jon Stewart's epic sauté of CNBC's Jim Cramer last Thursday, in the interest of fairness, I offer former Jon-Stewart-victim Tucker Carlson writing at the Daily Beast.

Tucker argues that Stewart has long enjoyed an untouchable position in the media's eye, he critiques last week's interview and provides some additional details about the day Jon Stewart ate Crossfire with some microgreens and a cool sauvignon blanc.

He writes:

As Stewart becomes more self-righteous, he inevitably becomes less funny. Sanctimony is the death of humor, and also of innovation. Where a show like South Park challenges its audience’s every conceivable assumption, the Daily Show has become safer than Jay Leno, pandering night after night to the converted. Can you remember the last time Stewart said anything his viewers might disagree with?

In honor of Tucker, my favorite libertarian, I think we should let the market decide. Jon Stewart's ten year run at the daily show brings in upwards of a million viewers a night, Tucker Carlson . . . well, doesn't.

XKCD: Students

"The same goes the one where you're wrestling the Green Ranger in the swimming pool full of Crisco. You guys all have that dream, right? It's not just me. Right?"

What's the plural of "virus"?

Some of us try to use a classical approach when pluralizing words taken directly from Latin - id est index becomes indices instead of indexes and minimum becomes minima instead of minimums. So how do we pluralize virus?

Well, etymologically:

"Etymology: a. L. virus slimy liquid, poison, offensive odour or taste."

So virus isn't really countable. At the end of the day, viruses is kind of okay to use, but it's probably most correct to say virus for both singular and plural.

Bush supports Obama

Former President Bush stated that he hopes President Obama succeeds and refuses to criticize him, saying Obama "deserves my silence."

In addition to giving speeches, Mr. Bush is also working on a book that will put the reader in his place during the 12 most difficult decisions he had to make. He hopes the book will help to set the record straight on his sometimes tumultuous tenure.

President Obama and Taoiseach Cowen cousins?

Nope. But Obama does have a bit of Irish in 'im.

Eat less meat, smell sexier

A study suggests that "red meat consumption has a negative impact on perceived body odor hedonicity."

So going vegetarian means you smell better? I guess that doesn't take into account the "Dirty Hippy Effect."

German fried Obama fingers

In yet another case of lost in translation, a German company seeking to jump on the Obama bandwagon and the rising popularity of American food has committed a packaging blunder. Obama Fingers are "tender, juicy pieces of chicken breast, coated and fried" and they come with curry dip.

"It was supposed to be a homage to the American lifestyle and the new US president"

XKCD: Alternative Energy Revolution

"The moment their arms spun freely in our air, they were doomed -- for Man has earned his right to hold this planet against all comers, by virtue of occasionally producing someone totally batshit insane."

Jon Stewart FTW!

In a daily show which could be described as anything but funny. Jon Stewart took Mad Money Jim Cramer to task. To his credit, Jim takes it like a man. This is the whole episode, if you want clips head on over to The Huffington Post. But trust me, you want to see the whole thing.

New battery charges in seconds

Gentleman, we can rebuild it. We have the technology. Better than it was before. Better, stronger, faster...

U.S. engineers have found a way to make lithium batteries that are smaller, lighter, longer lasting and capable of recharging in seconds.

This may have wide-ranging implications for everything from mobile phones to better electric car batteries. The process involves a new way of manufacturing the batteries that removes some of the limitations to Lithium ions, but it still uses the traditional battery materials.

"If manufacturers decide they want to go down this road, they could do this in a few years," Ceder said.

Note: Battery is not actually projected to cost 6 million dollars.

5 Step

15 Step + Take Five: A Radiohead-Dave Brubeck mashup.

Five Step
by overdub

Watanabe: 12MP is enough

Olympus Imaging's SLR Planning Department Manager Akira Watanabe has effectively declared the race for megapixels over, saying that 12MP is more than enough for most professionals. 12MP cameras are overkill for most users, and anything with a decent lens in the 6-8MP range is enough for most uses. Anything more just means fewer pictures will fit on your card and your hard drive.

Ars brings some insight into the digital camera market and offers a couple of good links for further reading at the end of the article.

The Rock Obama

XKCD: Pirate Bay

"We find you guilty of closing your torrents as soon as they finish. Your sentence is unremovable Hungarian subtitles on everything."

Bacon Burger... meet your match

The Bacon Burger has met its match, and it is lacking! Meet the bacon- and cheese-stuffed pizza burger. This behemoth is not only unholy, it is no doubt wholly filling and has been known to send vegetarians screaming hysterically.

A step-by-step guide to making your own.

The drawdown in Iraq begins

Two combat brigades will be heading for Afghanistan instead of Iraq this Fall, as President Obama fulfills his campaign promises to draw down the troop levels in Iraq and help the ailing Afghanistan campaign.

Two combat brigades comes to roughly 12,000 troops. Christian Science Monitor has the story.

Buy a house, only $1

Some banks are looking to unload their foreclosed homes for $150,000 Or Best Offer... and in some cases that best offer is one dollar. Rather than holding on to foreclosed homes and losing thousands in maintenance costs, the banks have taken to selling the houses for the cost of a soda. Looking to move to Detroit? They've got a house to fit your budget.

"'I think you can make this house clean, safe and functional for $500 to $1,000,' said Mason.
There are more than 40,000 vacant properties in Detroit, which has been hit hard by the foreclosure crisis, and the median home price is a stunningly low $7,000. In many neighborhoods, homes that were fetching $75,000 just three years ago are now selling for ten cents on the dollar or less."

South Ossetia, 6 months later

The International Harold Tribune brings an update to the status of South Ossetia, 6 months after Georgia and Russia fought a war over the border province. Buildings are still bombed out, burnt out tanks line streets, and not much has improved since the bullets stopped in August.

XKCD: Correlation

Correlation doesn't imply causation, but it does waggle its eyebrows suggestively mouthing 'look over there'.

Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

Today's laugh brought to you by: Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

Jon Stewart rips CNBC a new one

Jon Stewart was on a roll Wednesday night after CNBC reporter Rick Santelli canceled. As we all know, Hell hath no fury like Jon Stewart scorned. Check out the rest of the episode for more Jon Stewart gold.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

British law favors heroin addicts over diabetics

In England heroin addicts get free needles and needle disposal. It's probably even a good idea, in fact it may be why Spain's addicts are 10 times more likely to have HIV.

However, when the same pharmacists who are giving red-eyed-itchy-neck Ted a sweet deal, won't dispose Grandma's diabetes needles and she has to arrange for expensive haz-mat pick up. . .Lame.

Do the British want diabetes patients to start swapping needles? I read somewhere that that's a bad thing.

Thank you, Economist

A picture says a thousand words

Make your error messages more Zen

Haiku error messages bring the calm and serenity of Japanese poetry to your otherwise stressful technological experience.

Windows NT crashed.
I am the Blue Screen of Death.
No one hears your screams.

Three things are certain:
Death, taxes and lost data.
Guess which has occurred.

Make your own recycled material trivet

From TreeHugger:

Ciclus designs has released this great new way to reuse corks from wine bottles and turn them into a useful and artful trivet.

Coen Brothers tell Clean Coal like it is

Sean Hannity is allergic to facts

Congressman Joe Sestak went on to Sean Hannity's "news" show to discuss the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, only to have Mr. Hannity repeatedly bring up false GOP talking points about a provision to provide money to save a marsh mouse in Speaker Pelosi's district that never existed.

I thought Fox News would have stopped taking talking points from the GOP after they got burned when the public found out about it last time.

Markets: hating on Obama or laissez faire non-partisans?

Every time the president or his administration makes a major economic announcement, the Dow takes a dive. But are they actually related? Let’s go deep inside the numbers.

Spoiler Alert: No, they just want to be left alone.

XKCD: Kindle