Book Of Norm

To put it simply... why do we let so many idiots be elected? Anyway - this is an interesting a brief history of the US congress in graphical terms, from xkcd. Click to em-biggen.

How is Sprint doing? Not good.  http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/25/sprint-2012-q3/ Why are they doing so badly? They decided it was a great idea to put billions of dollars into buying Apple phones and selling them at a loss. Now the iPhone accounts for 40% of their smartphone sales, which TERRIBLE for the company (contrary to the idiot pro-Apple people out there who try and claim this somehow has increased sales). iPhone sales have simply cannibalized other sales at a huge cost.  To make up for it, Sprint has been increasing the prices on all of its plans ($20/mo more now than 1.5yrs ago) - which sucks. It is also a big reason I am using Virgin Mobile for my company, and I recently found out that Ting (another MVNO on Sprint) seems to get access to Verizon roaming just like Sprint would - need to find out more on that one.  Anyway - wtf were you thinking Sprint? 

This is actually quite a good speech. However, read it now and honestly say that he has achieved anything in the last 4 years. What a disaster of a President. ( download .mp4 )  Inaugural Address   By President Barack Hussein Obama My fellow citizens:  I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you've bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors.  I thank President Bush for his service to our nation -- (applause) -- as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition. Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath.  The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace.  Yet, every so often, the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms.  At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we, the people, have remained faithful to th...

So, a lot of what was said last night was stupid. Obama claimed all kinds of ridiculous things, but given he is arguing from a pretty crappy position, he pretty much has to make things up to make his side sound decent. But the worst? We "deployed sanctions" in Syria. What the fuck does that mean? It sounds like we are doing something with the military but really says were are doing not a damn thing. Oh wait, he explained, it means "we are doing everything possible." Because "deploying sanctions" is all the US is capable of. Right. Fucking idiot. He also said "who could have seen the rising wave of pro-Democracy sentiment in the Middle East"... hmm.... let me think about it.... oh yeah, George Bush. I can stand listening to him anymore. I don't know how anyone does it. Your mind must be immune to bullshit and cognitive dissonance.

Yes, some people choose to roll around Moscow in Hummers. Some choose G wagons, or even specialty armored vehicles. But really, none of them are as badass as this. Simply put, if you see this behind you, get the hell out of the way. 

After just blasting Microsoft for their idiotic pricing of the Surface tablet - let me bring you over to something I really like. The PCD Venture. I call mine the "Crapberry" Right now Virgin mobile has a pretty amazing deal going: a real Android smartphone for only $29.99. And I have one of them. As far as I know, this is the cheapest Android phone you can buy, anywhere, from anyone. And the reality is, it's not bad.  Yes, I call it the crapberry. It's like Blackberry's cousin who never managed to graduate school and still hangs around talking about how cool it is to be a portrait keyboard phone. But, I actually really like portrait keyboards - they are the fastest texting and emailing phones out there - no flippy flippy, no slidey slidey, just type away. It reminds me of my Palm Pre: outdated screen, small buttons, slow response times... and it's adorable.  Now, for all of you saying "I paid $0 for my phone" - no, you didn't. You...

Ahh the "surface" There were credible rumors you were going to start at only $199 - the cool new price point for small tablets. A 10' tab for the price of a 7'? It would be Christmas in October. "I'm blue" But it was not to be. Microsoft has announced the pricing of the surface and it is... stupid. $499 for the regular tablet and $120 for the keyboard cover. WTF. Ok, it comes with Office. Big freaking deal. To make Office worth anything, you need the keyboard case, which makes this $620 - which means you could get a really nice laptop instead. So let's recap. This tablet is for people who need Office, want a keyboard, are willing to spend over $600 but think that ultrabooks are just too big and bulky... So, once those 7 people have bought this thing, who else will? I just don't see it. I can get a Nexus 7 or Kindle Firebolt 2001 (yes - a Harry Potter reference, and botched one at that) for $199. I can get all kinds of still really goo...

Apple Growers Turn to Cider Article Video Stock Quotes Comments (1) MORE IN  NEW YORK  » smaller Larger By  SOPHIA HOLLANDER STONE RIDGE, N.Y.—Elizabeth Ryan knows the ax could fall on Stone Ridge Orchard any moment. The sweeping 117-acre property that she has rented and operated for the past five years is for sale, its cresting hills and thousands of crooked, fruit-heavy trees at risk to be razed by the first approved buyer. Enlarge Image Mark Abramson for The Wall Street Journal Applewood Orchards and its winery in Warwick, N.Y. New York state is the second-largest producer of apples in the country, but in recent years orchards have struggled economically. For some apple farms, cider could potentially turn a money losing part of the business into a profitable one. Now, like many apple growers, Ms. Ryan is looking in part to an unlikely savior: hard cider. Ms. Ryan has raised $1 million to buy the farm hers...

My mind is probably a pretty interesting place. Hard to compare as one person can never see inside the mind of another person, but still, I'm a little bit crazy and that's a good thing. However, I also agree with this article on the libertarian mind. Rational discussion has always been appealing to me, and the value of "the greatest common good" has been my core value. I believe that value is reached through a protection of freedom. Inside the Cold, Calculating Libertarian Mind By MATT RIDLEY Article Comments (173) MORE IN  LIFE & CULTURE  » smaller Larger An individual's personality shapes his or her political ideology at least as much as circumstances, background and influences. That is the gist of a recent strand of psychological research identified especially with the work of Jonathan Haidt. The baffling (to liberals) fact that a large minority of working-class white people vote for conservative candidates is ex...

Apple recently sucked it up when it comes to mapping. I would say that this would cause customers to be pissed off and move away from Apple, but like a gimp in a sadomasochistic romance, Apple customers just seem to love punishment. However, there is a "new" player in the mapping space - and it turns out they are the original. Win8 might just have found a nice trump card (actually - Microsoft has always known this, and it is one of the reasons they went after Nokia so strongly). The Forgotten Mapmaker: Nokia Has Better Maps Than Apple and Maybe Even Google in Share 120 OCT 3 2012, 12:03 PM ET   33 It's impossible to create a perfect map, but that hasn't stopped Nokia from trying. Here, we go inside the company's neverending drive to create a digital copy of the world. Apple's maps are bad. Even Tim Cook knows this and  apologized for them . Google's maps are good, thanks to years of work, massive computing resources, and thousands of peop...