Oil Rig Coincidence

Two oil rig explosions in one summer. Makes you wonder. Really, what are the chances!

Stand Up America

Why are people not paying attention to the ruination of our country? Obama is not looking out for Americans. He is trying to run this country into the ground. Americans must stand up for America before the America we know is a thing of the past!

Tmobile Call Them Irresponsible

Tmobile has reached a new level of irresponsible advertising. DEAR TMOBILE, texting your friends to gather at a grocery store and have cart races (terrorizing shoppers and knocking over displays) is not cool! Grow up!

________________________________________________________________________________

Squashing The News

While I don't like to see the media dwell, I find it disturbing that
the media can follow a story like the mine collapse only to drop it
completely when there is still the story of the miner's families to
tell.

Google and the Gphone

Rumors of a low cost Google phone are all over the internet. In my opinion the big thing that should have the likes of Verizon and AT&T worried is the possibility of Google offering free phone service paid for by ad sales. At first everyone who is still under contract with one of the other companies will get a "Gphone" as an extra phone, figuring it's a one time cost. As Google's phone coverage proves to be as good as Verizon and AT&T customers will let their pricey plans lapse and Google will have acheived success and dominance  in yet another market. 

And for the record, this blog entry has been posted via (yes, you've guessed it) Gmail. 

You Can't Help But Wonder

It's understandable to follow the career of a talented person who possesses the ability to inspire you by the mastery of their craft. What then causes people to follow and clamour for people like Paris Hilton or anyone who has ever appeared on reality TV? They have acheived nothing to make them worthy of following them around or being a "fan." Why do people spend their time on people who do nothing more than make empty headed headlines? It makes you wonder how much you can tell about a person by paying attention to their favorites. Have I mentioned I'm a fan of Albert Einstein? 

When Is An Email A Text Message?

If Yahoo! is going to allow email users to send text messages to phones will the users be emailing or texting? Who gets charged what fee? If the person responds are they texting or emailing? If you have a phone with web 2.0 and you use your email via web 2.0 to send a text message to a person with unlimited texting does that mean you sort of have unlimited texting too?

Taramadol The Next Drug Problem for America?

Is Taramadol the next drug we all have to worry about? Will people get addicted to Taramadol the way they do to everything else. Next they will be holding up pharmacies for Taramadol instead of Oxycontin.

Jeb Bush Quiet

"Jeb Bush Quiet" That was the recent presidential campaign headline on Drudge.
Okay, makes sense. What is he going to do, threaten to run the country like Bro and dear old dad? When you are a Bush, the best thing to do is say nothing.

An answer without blind faith please

Here is a question I would like any christian to answer without saying the term "gods will" I mean I want a REAL answer not a blind faith answer. Why does someone like Steve Irwin die at 44 when he is doing such good things for animals and the environment, and we still have drug dealers and mean people running around on this earth polluting it and making good people miserable? Why?

Illegal means Illegal

Illegal means Illegal.
Loved a response I heard when some whiney boy was saying "what happened to give me your tired, your Poor?"
The Response: What happened to people waiting in line at Ellis Island with DOCUMENTATION?
Amen!
Yes, my Ancestors were immigrants. But they were DOCUMENTED and LEGAL!!!

Calif. bill would bar toxins in cell phones, iPods on Yahoo! News

Calif. bill would bar toxins in cell phones, iPods 2 hours, 23 minutes ago



California would require manufacturers to phase out the use of hazardous materials in making cell phones, iPods and other electronic devices under a bill introduced by a state lawmaker.

The bill unveiled on Thursday by Assembly Member Lori Saldana, a Democrat from San Diego, would apply to any electronic or battery-operated device. The bill, which was introduced on Wednesday, would require manufacturers to stop using the substances in devices sold in California by 2008.

"We know that the manufacturers of these products are able to produce them without including harmful toxic materials," Saldana said in a written statement. "California deserves to be included among the markets that receive this cleaner stream of consumer electronics."

California already requires manufacturers of video displays in devices to phase out the use of toxic materials.

Environmental groups with clout in the state's Democrat-led legislature support the bill.

They are concerned about pollution from electronic devices discarded in landfills and want California to follow the example of the European Union, which has called for phasing out the use of toxic materials in making consumer electronics.

"Cell phones, iPods, computers and many other modern electronic devices have a useful life of maybe a year or two before they become obsolete," said Mark Murray, executive director of the group Californians Against Waste. "It doesn't make sense to use hazardous materials in these disposable devices."

About 70 percent of toxic heavy metals found in landfills come from electronic products, which may contain lead, cadmium, chromium and mercury, according to Californians Against Waste.

"This brew of toxic substances can damage nervous, kidney and reproductive systems, while some of the metals contain carcinogens," according a statement released by the group.

Apple Computer Inc. last year started a program at its retail stores to encourage consumers to recycle their iPod music- and video-playing devices in exchange for a discount on new devices.


Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited.

Port Authority suing to halt sale

Port Authority suing to halt sale

February 23, 2006

BY KAREN MATTHEWS ASSOCIATED PRESS



NEW YORK-- The Port Authority said Thursday it will file suit to block a Dubai-based firm from taking over operations at a Port Newark container terminal, saying the federal government has not given them assurances about security issues.

Anthony Coscia, chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said the agency would file a lawsuit later Thursday or Friday in New Jersey's Essex County state court.

"We as owners of that facility should be made comfortable that whoever operates it is capable of it," Coscia said.

Coscia wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff asking for details about how the federal government determined it was safe to allow Dubai Ports World, a state-run firm out of the United Arab Emirates, to buy a British company now doing business at the terminal.

The agency said it is not filing suit because of specific concerns about the Dubai company, but based on concerns that the government's secret vetting process was now thorough enough.

Many in Congress, including New York lawmakers, have complained the government did not do a comprehensive security review of the port operations purchase.

"To compare pre-9/11 reviews with post-9/11 reviews is difficult because we are in a very different environment," Coscia said.

The British firm, P&O, signed a 30-year lease with the Port Authority, and that lease would be assumed by DP World on March 2 unless Congress intervenes. President Bush has promised to veto any legislation blocking the sale.

Copyright 2006 Associated Press.

BMW falls foul of Google ‘web spam’ rules

Blogger's Note: If Google really cracked down on web spam most of their content would be gone. MSN is a far superior search engine and delivers MUCH MORE relevant results.
BMW falls foul of Google ‘web spam’ rules
By Kate Mackenzie in London
Published: February 6 2006 16:10 | Last updated: February 6 2006 17:02

The German website of BMW, the carmaker, has been removed from Google’s search results as part of the web company’s crack down on the manipulation of its search engine.

Google confirmed on Monday that BMW.de had been removed from all search engine results. A spokeswoman said the company could not comment on specific cases but said: “We cannot tolerate websites trying to manipulate search results as we aim to provide users with the relevant and objective search results”.

The website used “doorway” pages, which can be employed to trick search engines into leading their users to websites that are not directly related to the search terms.

Marc Hassinger, spokesperson for business and finance communications at BMW Deutschland, said the BMW.de doorway pages only redirected users to relevant pages - for example, one doorway page that frequently used the German word for “used car” redirected users to a page about BMW used car sales. He said this was done so that German web users searching for a second-hand BMW car dealership would find an index of dealerships around the country.

“We can’t see a ‘manipulation’ which they said was happening regarding those websites,” Mr Hassinger said.

Matt Cutts, a software engineer at Google, wrote last month in his weblog that the company would begin to take a tougher line on web spamming by non-English language websites.

On Saturday Mr Cutts wrote that BMW.de had been removed, for violating the guideline: “Don’t deceive your users or present different content to search engines than you display to users.”

However Mr Hassinger said the “doorway” pages had been removed last Thursday after BMW noticed criticism on some blogs.

“Nevertheless Google has decided to spread this information which has created this, I’d almost say, media hype,” he said. “They spread it on Saturday, a few days after the pages had been taken off. They hadn’t talked to us beforehand which we found a bit surprising.”

He said there had been talks between BMW and Google and that he was confident the website would soon be re-included by Google.

Mr Hassinger added that only 0.4 per cent of BMW.de’s traffic came from search engines such as Google, because most people wanting to visit the site either knew or could guess the correct address.

Mr Cutts also wrote on his blog that Ricoh.de, the German website of the Japanese electronics and office equipment company, would be removed from Google for similar reasons. The website could not be found on a Google search on Monday, but Google’s spokeswoman said she could not comment on whether that site had also

Groundhog Day quote:

Groundhog Day quote:

This year, both Groundhog Day and the State of the Union address occur in the same week. It is an ironic juxtaposition of events: one involves a meaningless ritual in which we look to a creature of little intelligence for prognostication while the other involves a groundhog.

BREITBART.COM - Chevron's 4Q Profit Soars to Record High

BREITBART.COM - Chevron's 4Q Profit Soars to Record High

Blogger's Note: So if PROFITS are up this much and the average american is struggling with uel costs, shouldn't PRICE GOUGING in the oil industry be investigated?

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE
AP Business Writer
SAN RAMON, Calif.

Chevron Corp.'s fourth-quarter profit climbed 20 percent to $4.14 billion, a company record that continued the most prosperous stretch in the oil company's 126-year history as it capitalizes on high fuel prices that are squeezing consumers and ruffling politicians.

Its profit of $14.1 billion for the full year was also a company record.

Avoid Chase Credit Cards!

Just heard from a friend about a balance transfer situation involving CHASE, CITICARD, and DISCOVER.
Balances were transferred from these three cards. DISCOVER and CITICARD both had superior customer service. They were very willing to waive the residual interest charges on the accounts.
Not only did CHASE have the worst interest fees, but they also refused to waive the residual charges. When asked why their customer service level was not up to the quality of CITICARD and DISCOVER the supervisor basically said they are in it to make make money. When asked why they were not willing to rise to the customer service of the other cards they said WE ARE NOT CITICARD or DISCOVER.
NO THEY ARE CERTAINLY NOT!!!
Moral of the story: CHASE Credit Card services are in it for the money and not to help the customer AT ALL .
While ALL credit card companies are in it for the money. CHASE has proven a few dollars in residual fees is more important than good customer relations. After hearing this story I will be doing any business I have with CITICARD and DISCOVER. The only call I will be making to CHASE it to CANCEL my card with them.

amauvecoffeecup at gmail. com

New Orleans Mayor Says God Mad at U.S.

Bloggers Note: Stop trying to second guess God you twit. If anyone was mad at anyone they should be mad at YOU Mayor Nagin. Why? One for being too unprepared to have the buses running to evacuate people. And two for using the phrase "chocolate town" and helping to keep racism alive. You are not a Stupid Black Man. You are just a stupid man who happens to be black.
By BRETT MARTEL
Associated Press Writer

NEW ORLEANS

Mayor Ray Nagin suggested Monday that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and other storms were a sign that "God is mad at America" and at black communities, too, for tearing themselves apart with violence and political infighting.

"Surely God is mad at America. He sent us hurricane after hurricane after hurricane, and it's destroyed and put stress on this country," Nagin, who is black, said as he and other city leaders marked Martin Luther King Day.

"Surely he doesn't approve of us being in Iraq under false pretenses. But surely he is upset at black America also. We're not taking care of ourselves."

Nagin also promised that New Orleans will be a "chocolate" city again. Many of the city's black neighborhoods were heavily damaged by Katrina.

"It's time for us to come together. It's time for us to rebuild New Orleans _ the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans," the mayor said. "This city will be a majority African American city. It's the way God wants it to be. You can't have New Orleans no other way. It wouldn't be New Orleans."

Nagin described an imaginary conversation with King, the late civil rights leader.

"I said, `What is it going to take for us to move on and live your dream and make it a reality?' He said, `I don't think that we need to pay attention any more as much about other folks and racists on the other side.' He said, `The thing we need to focus on as a community _ black folks I'm talking about _ is ourselves.'"

Nagin said he also asked: "Why is black-on-black crime such an issue? Why do our young men hate each other so much that they look their brother in the face and they will take a gun and kill him in cold blood?"

The reply, Nagin said, was: "We as a people need to fix ourselves first."

Nagin also said King would have been dismayed with black leaders who are "most of the time tearing each other down publicly for the delight of many."

A day earlier, gunfire erupted at a parade to commemorate King's birthday. Three people were wounded in the daylight shooting amid a throng of mostly black spectators, but police said there were no immediate suspects or witnesses.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.

Tax credit for hybrid cars

From whatistheword.com
DETROIT - The U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow has announced far reaching tax breaks for people who opt to buy hybrid cars. These gasoline-electric vehicles could end up saving as much as $3,400 for consumers.

'Development and use of hybrid vehicles is a key step toward reducing gasoline consumption, emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions,' Snow said. He was speaking at a Ford Motor research center in Detroit. This tax credit scheme also applies to vehicles that use 'green' or alternative fuel systems.

Under the bill, which was signed into a law in August, if a person or a business has more than one hybrid car, each of these would be eligible for the tax credit. The rule applies to vehicles that were brought into service after January 1. These tax breaks are sure to be welcomed since they are designed to boost sales. Companies like Ford and General Motors, which are struggling against competition by Asian carmakers would be relieved with these tax concessions."

"I commend the manufacturers who are making these energy-efficient and environment-friendly vehicles and hope that the President's energy bill proves to be an important step in their rising prominence on American roads," said Snow. "We're hopeful that with these credits we'll see a burst of interest in the hybrid vehicles."

In the US, hybrid cars are manufactured by Toyota Corp, Ford Motors and Honda Motor Co. Ford is determined to push through its hybrid car segment and has targeted a production of 250,000 cars by 2010. It has two models namely the Escape and the Mercury Mariner on the market at present, but the winner in the hybrid stakes has been Toyota Motor's Prius.

Police shoot teen in school standoff: South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Blogger's Note: See, this is where the system is failing. It's not the fault of the deputy who shot this kid. The blame lies in the people who aren't teaching our youth that video games are not real. Consequenses are much more serious in real life.

Police shoot teen in school standoff
Student pointed pellet gun at deputy

Gary Taylor and Rene Stutzman
Sentinel Staff Writers

January 13, 2006, 11:26 PM EST

LONGWOOD -- A Milwee Middle School eighth-grader, who last year threatened to blow up a school bus, showed up for class Friday with a pistol in his backpack.

However, classmates of Chris Penley, 15, didn't know it was a pellet gun.

Neither did a veteran Seminole County deputy sheriff, who made a split-second decision to open fire when Chris pointed the weapon at him.

The deputy's single shot gravely wounded the boy, who was on life support Friday at Orlando Regional Medical Center.

The midmorning incident plunged the Longwood-area school into chaos, as frightened and weeping students gathered outside, awaiting anxious parents or school buses to take them home.