Gripes

AoS Season 2 Blu-ray Disappointment

I haven’t done a gripe post in a while, but I am compelled to do so today. I’ve been a fan of …

When the time of revolution arrives, the most important question is whether it’s the people who will be revolting or the government.
CJ Carter

→ November 16, 2014

Sales Barkering

Carnival barkers have nothing on smug question-pitching salespeople. It doesn’t matter what they are trying to sell or convince me of, they …

The Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats – Nick Hanauer – POLITICO Magazine

A warning and solution, from one 0.01%er to the others.

The Booby Offense

It seems all but impossible nowadays to peruse any entertainment “news” without stumbling over some boobs. You can’t ignore the constant headline …

Hyper-male Nuts, Meet Shell

This post mostly exists to link to an excellent article by John Beckett: Dude, It’s You. If a woman rejects you, maybe …

Congress is scheduled to be in session 13 days less(!) in 2014 than in 2013 — 113 days vs 126 this year, an equivalent of 22.6 5-day weeks. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Sure, they are quite the hypocrites to grouse about people living off the government teet instead of working full-time; but on the other hand, given what we have now, the less Congress the better.

I propose that Texas (and several other states’) women impose a law prohibiting urinals/troughs/etc. and that in men’s restrooms there be sensors (can be IR or ultrasonic to protect their boyish modesty) in stalls to ensure that even toilet pee-ers must sit, not stand subject to fines or arrest. If Texas (and several other states’) legislators are going to be dicks about women, then maybe it’s time the women make the men’s lives a bit less convenient. Quid pro quo.

Maybe a tax on Viagra and related drugs to fund teen and low-income post-natal care and supplies? And that’s just one easy idea. I’m sure there are many, many options available to quo men’s quids (both pro and amateur). Lysistrata, anyone?

The Photoshop CC Problem

Like many visually creative people, I use Photoshop. Not that there’s a lot of choice in the matter; it is pretty much the only respected player in the game right now. It’s annoying, then, that Adobe has thrown out a dubious marketing structure with its new “Creative Cloud”.

On April 18, the vote for H.R. 624 — CISPA (Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act) — was taken in the U.S. House of Representatives. This privacy-eroding bill passed easily. Sadly, all three NM congresspeople chose to vote in the ‘yea’ column: Michelle Lujan Grisham (D, NM 1st), Steve Pearce (R, NM 2nd), and Ben Luján (D, NM 3rd). I expect this sort of idiocy from Pearce but had higher hopes for the other two. Guess not. Let’s hope the Senate gets this one right.

Is Lew’s Signature Fit For U.S. Money?

President Obama’s second-term nominee for Secretary of the Treasury, Jack Lew, has a famously loopy signature. The question is: is it too illegible for the signature printed on U.S. paper currency?

At a Loss

I’ve been somewhat at a loss for topics to write about. We are currently in the middle of general election season — with all the silliness that goes along with that. As a result, it’s not like I’m lacking for fodder in that area from which to base blog posts. And yet I feel like I’m in the middle of the desert.

Logitech Webcam Forced Me Back to Windows

I run Linux (specifically, the Ubuntu distribution) on my laptop. For pretty much everything I want to do on my laptop it’s fantastic. Sadly, it comes up short when I want to use my USB webcam.

The Healthcare Thing

Now that the Supreme Court has declared that it’s constitutional for Congress to have passed a law requiring people to purchase health insurance or otherwise pay a fine (tax), I figured I might as well share a few thoughts on it.

Protect Our Helium

We are running out of helium. That light gas that floats kids balloons and raises the pitch of voices to heights of great hilarity is a limited natural resource on Earth. While it’s difficult to be certain, estimates has the US running out of helium by as soon as 2025 … just thirteen years from now, the worldwide supply a couple decades after that. We need to do something, quickly.

Anti-sciencers Should Stop Stealing Science

One of the things that really irks me is unabashed hypocrisy. Take, for example, the recent report that a growing number of conservatives are increasingly distrustful of science. Fine. Distrust science; you can believe what you will. All I ask is that you stand by your convictions and stop using this science that you find so onerous.

Congressman Tells NASA Rocket Science Is Simple

Some people in congress don’t seem to understand that rocket science is…well…rocket science. It’s not easy. It can be made to look that way, but it really, really isn’t.

Grasping For Sanity in a Nation Gone Mad

I’ve written a number of articles that haven’t been put out for public consumption. You see, when the world goes mad, it can be like a minefield when you try to shine a light on it. You are never completely sure when you might take a wrong step and have everything blow up in your face. And yet, silence isn’t a viable option.

Currently browsing category