World of Suck

It's not exactly Caveat Emptor, but a digital version of it. The difference in this case is that the buyer isn't accidentally naive but deliberately so. If you choose to ignore the rules, then getting burned by them isn't anyone's fault but your own. At least that's what logic would dictate, but no, we live in America where blame is an anathema and getting money for blame is the holy grail.

The girl is being called "Julie Doe". Why? Because she's 14. But when she went on MySpace she claimed to be 18. She decided to meet up with someone she'd met online and the guy decided (who knows what she was thinking) to have a go at it anyway. The parents found out and got him thrown in jail (20 years is a long time to think about "Well maybe I should have booted her out when I found out how old she was").

Now the parents want $30 million, yes thirty million, from My Space because they should have done "more". More? How exactly do they do that? How to you validate someone's age online? Believe me I'm 21! Actually, ok, you got me I'm only 11 but a genius! Ok, ok, actually I'm 57, but I've still got it... How do you "ask" someone without demanding proof that's impossible to provide?

Gregory Coleman, a lawyer for the girl's family, said the law only gives MySpace a ''limited shield'' from liability.

''It has a responsibility to (protect) children,'' he said.

Wrong dickhead. The *parents* have the responsibility, not MySpace, and not when little Jezebel decides to lie about her age in the first place. Parents need to get a grip, maybe they should take a paddle to their fourteen year hold who decided to go see some guy alone in his truck in a parking lot. The only criminals I see in this picture are the parents who want to make some money off their daughters stupid decision. Honestly, they're the ones that need some social adjustment, even more than their daughter.

Abstinence, the dysfunctional solution to teen-pregnancy, is back in the news. This time with a bouncy Harvard student who feels compelled to tell everyone why she's frigid. Ok, well it's super that you found a solution in throwing away the prettiest and most attractive years of your life because you don't want sex, but being a poster-girl for bullshit like: "abstinence makes for better marital-sex", or "it improves your health is"... just that bullshit. Personally I'd love to see how a lack of experience makes you a better lover. I suppose if you're marrying some fumble-fingered virgin guy you'll both be excited enough to cream your pants just undressing for the first time, but trust me, that's not "good" sex.

On one hand I don't understand why these sexless-evangelicals can't just go about being abstinent silently. On the other hand, I'm very glad they don't, because it gives me something to laugh about.

"virginity is extremely alluring, though its mysterious allure . . . is not rooted in an image of innocence and purity, but rather in the notion of strength." As she told me later, "It takes a strong woman to be abstinent, and that’s the sort of woman I want to be."

Here - let me sum it up in one word: "Spinster".

Honey, you're really narrowing your field by limiting yourself to men who haven't had sex in their lives (or so they may claim). Part of growing up is developing your skills with the opposite gender, kissing, cuddling and yes, learning how to make-love with a degree of skill.

If you want to pass that up, fine, be our guest, but please... don't think you're unique or special. And by the way, hon? Oral sex is called oral sex for a reason, even if you choose to think of it otherwise. Still that might be the one saving grace for the abstinence followers: "Abstinence - you may be a lousy fuck but boy can you give great head."

I don't get it. How goddamn lazy can a person be that they can't turn their engine off while fueling their car? There are stickers on every pump that state in bold lettering: 1. Do Not Smoke and 2. Shut Off Engine. If you managed to turn your car on to get it to the pump, I imagine you should be able to restart it to leave.

It's a safety issue, more from the point of accidentally knocking your car into gear than blowing something up from a spark, but still... You're not saving yourself any time, realistically speaking, by leaving your car running while fueling.

Why can't people fucking shut off their ignition while gassing up their cars?

Damn I wish Chelsea was running for president instead of mummy. . . . Someone asked her about how her mother handled the whole Monica issue. Here was her answer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCAO6bZa31o

All I have to say is - You go girl! Daddy should have said that under oath and the country would have had nothing to gossip about.

You have to love Microsoft. After decades of training MS Office users in where to find menu options, settings and adjustments Microsoft in their grand wisdom decided to throw it all away for a completely ghey look and feel. Maybe someone needs to have at them with the big-ass cluebat because apparently "give the customer what they want" is worth dick when your motto is "we'll cram this down your throat whether you like it or not".

The UI sucks. I'd say tt looks like a fucking clown-car, only that's insulting to clown-cars. Screen real estate is wasted, colors are over the top, and useful menu items are fucking lost.

It's so bad that more than one company has sprung up to provide "add-ons" to make 2007 look like classic office 2003. Yeah it's that bad.

Hey Microsoft, way to fuck up a good product.

Open Office here I come!

Parents who pick "the power of prayer" over medicine deserve to be thrown in jail. It doesn't get any simpler. You can't believe someone into good health, I'm sorry. This is the real world.

WESTON, Wis. (AP) -- Police are investigating an 11-year-old girl's death from an undiagnosed, treatable form of diabetes after her parents chose to pray for her rather than take her to a doctor.

The Aunt called 911 eventually, but by then the daughter was in a coma. I mean how far does someone have to go before religious idiots will realize that they're not helping, they're killing someone by their lack of action?

The sickly funny part is the mother's statement on the matter:

The girl's mother, Leilani Neumann, said that she and her family believe in the Bible and that healing comes from God, but that they do not belong to an organized religion or faith, are not fanatics and have nothing against doctors.

Clearly her version of religion means she can lie like a bitch when she pleases. If she wasn't a fucking fanatic and wasn't against doctors then why didn't she take her child for treatment while there was still time?

Leilani Neumann said she and her husband are not worried about the investigation because ''our lives are in God's hands. We know we did not do anything criminal. We know we did the best for our daughter we knew how to do.''

No Leilei you didn't do the best for her, you did what *you* wanted to do. And your choice killed her.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A Texas woman who said she was forced to remove a nipple ring with pliers in order to board an airplane called Thursday for an apology by federal security agents and a civil rights investigation.

Ok what's up with this bullshit? Some lady goes through a metal detector without incident and then gets wanded. The wand beeps around her chest. Instead of being offered a "pat-down" the officers demand she remove her piercings. They didn't unscrew, no, they had to be removed with pliers.

Hamlin said she could not remove them and asked whether she could instead display her pierced breasts in private to the female agent. But several other male officers told her she could not board her flight until the jewelry was out, she said.

Basically a few male officers in the TSA decided to have some fun, at someone's expense. It's not mandatory to have to remove body jewelry. Like someone can fucking hijack a plane with a nipple ring? It's bullshit. Clearly someone was having some fun. You would think that the TSA would discipline the officers involved.

Hamlin filed a complaint, but the TSA's customer service manager at the Lubbock airport concluded the screening was handled properly, Allred said.

So in the end this woman was humiliated, and injured when she had to have the rings re-inserted later. TSA has had multiple incidents of officers mistreating woman, demanding patdowns, using their palm instead of the back of their hands across private areas.

You have to wonder what they do in the case of a Prince Albert...

... Free Tibet!

thank you

You know it's odd for someone like me who has been involved in martial arts for over a decade to be against a venue that involves the sport. Further, I'm all for kids learning martial arts at a very young age. But I think the "Ultimate Fighting" proponents have gone out of their fucking minds by holding matches for kids.

How old? 6 to 14 years old.

Unlike adult matches there's supposed to be plenty of supervision, and the kids wear protective gear... but there's still blows to the head and body, and submission holds. The proponents like to classify it as an extension of mixed-martial arts, but generally most reputable schools don't teach joint-locks to six year olds. Yes I have a problem with this.

You don't really have to be a psychic to see what's going to happen. Some kid is going to get hurt badly enough that he'll require surgery and may wind up crippled/dead as a result. I'd put a 90% probability on it. But until this happens people will go ahead and put this on.

I'm a dedicated martial artist, and I'm all for kids learning discipline and self defense. I don't believe they should be practicing it on each other with full-force until their bodies are ready to handle it and they can make rational decisions on their own.

To me the people behind this idea are basically the same types of people who get off on dog-fighting, since kids and animals have a certain degree of innocence... can anyone really defend two kids in a cage match with a bunch of adults around them screaming "Kill 'em!"?

Mary Wolski was PA's very first female firefighter. Mary Wolski was fired. Mary considers this a grave injustice and a violation of her rights.

This leads me to ask, why did she get fired? Silly thing. They say she poses a threat to herself and others. Why do they think that? Oh, it might be because she burned her fathers house down in a suicide attempt. Two things: One, I'd fire any firefighter who turns into an arsonist. Two, I'm not really comfortable with a suicidal firefighter being sent in to rescue me, or to support the rest of the crew.

Maybe it's just me. Maybe there are some facts out there that don't show up on google. But there ain't no way I let her back to work. Suicide is a big issue for any employer. It's even more so when the employee is responsbile for the lives of citizens, her co-workers, and herself.

Combine that with the fact she attempted to kill herself using arson as her tool? Nah, fuck you. You're fired. I don't care if you male, female, or hermaphrodite. You're fired. Shut the fuck up.

Would that I had u235's category, this would be posted under such a heading. Let's see... woman works for Wal-Mart, she has Wal-Marts health insurance, woman gets plowed by a semi truck and is left disabled. Got it?

Wal-Mart pays up for medical coverage. Hooray! Debbie Shank was left with no short term memory and pretty much needs constant care from a nursing home due to brain damage and paralysis. The Shank family says that medical bills were paid promptly. But then...

Wal-Mart decided to sue the Shank family. Why? Because of a clause in the medical coverage, claiming the right right to recoup medical expenses if the employee also receives money for damages from a lawsuit.

So here we have Mrs Shank. Her life was shattered by this accident, so the family sues and settles with the semi truck drivers company, gets some money (awarded $900k, ended up with $400k in a trust fund after legal fees were paid), along with Wal-Mart covering her medical expenses. Wal-Mart says (more or less) "Uh... guess you've got the money to handle things yourself - we need ours back now".

Wal-Mart wants just what it cost to pay for the medical bills (some $450k), plus some interest... oh, and don't forget those legal fees. You can't forget those.

Wal-Mart's excuse (and completely legal standing) is that this is necessary to protect the Wal-Mart employees who are still paying money for coverage. So they're trying to be fair to current employees, who might be scammed by others who would bilk the system for cash.

Ennnh...

You don't treat your employees like sweat shop labor, while grandstanding under the American flag with goods purchased from China and then claim to be doing "what's fair for your workers".

Every day and in every way, Wal-Mart flies its middle finger in the air at the very people who support its four red, white, and blue walls and they eat it up. Indeed... fuck you.

http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/news/20050816-spd.html

Hillary has been pushing for the primary elections in Florida and Michigan to count. She says it's important that their voice is heard, and that those people get to have their say matter.

That's an interesting position for her. It opens her up to a number of not so obvious points. If any of the pundits took their heads out of their ass long enough to realize it, it would be a clear death kneel for her candidacy.

First, she's focusing on making sure they count because it's the democratic thing to do. We don't want to disenfranchise them. However, the rest of her campaign is focused on making sure the rest of the countries votes do NOT count. Obama has the popular vote, the delegate count, and the state count. The majority of the country has spoken, and they didn't choose Hillary.

Second, she didn't get on this high horse until after Super Tuesday. If she had made these points early on, that would be ok. But she didn't. She decided that she needed a LOT of help to even make it close, and this would go her way. She's clearly making the point that she's willing to support anything if it gets her elected.

Third, she doesn't want a re-vote. She's begrudgingly willing to consider it, but she really wants the current vote to stand. She's been fighting for that because she wins big that way. She's let it leak out that she may be open to other options, but the vote standing is her clear preference. Again, understandable because it helps her win, but it's two faced because it's equally obvious that she wouldn't do the same if the vote was against her.

It all adds up to the same thing. She's lost, and unwilling to admit it. She's willing to stoop to any level to change the results of the primaries. Even if I supported her, I would draw the line here. I don't want a candidate that is willing to use those tactics.

LA JOYA, Texas — Authorities suspect a 2-year-old boy who died with a fractured skull was accidentally crushed by a morbidly obese relative.

Hidalgo County Justice of the Peace Bobby Contreras, who pronounced the child dead Tuesday night, said that investigators believe the woman fell on the child.

"It didn't look like there was any foul play from what I saw," he said.

An autopsy was scheduled for Friday afternoon with the official cause of death to be released Monday.

Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Trevino, who termed the death "suspicious," said he would wait for the official cause of death before deciding whether to file charges.

The child's identity has not been released. He was believed to have been dropped off by his mother to spend the day with the bedridden relative, The McAllen Monitor reported Friday.

My question is - what moron leaves a 2-yr old with someone that is bed-ridden, obese or skinny as a rail? 2-yr olds are active,very active, and they need someone that will keep up with them.

... that ordinary people aren't experts.

Ok, that's trite, but still it's the heart of the matter when "ordinary people" (read patients) decide to do their own testing. You can test at home for all sorts of genetic things these days - inclination towards specific types of cancer, bipolar disorder, and more. The problem, as the "experts" like to put it, is that by finding this information out on your own you might draw the wrong conclusion... or the right conclusion.

''People are always rushing to the market on the basis of one or two studies,'' said Dr. Muin Khoury, director of the National Office of Public Health Genomics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ''We have very little evidence that telling people their genetic information is going to make any difference.''

Is that so? Is ignorance bliss? I don't really understand it (perhaps because I'm not an expert) but if I were bipolar wouldn't it be a good thing to know? If I were destined for a fatal cancer wouldn't it be better to be aware before it developed?

Some people are taking action on this information, and it's fascinating how when a woman decides to have a double mastectomy based on information her doctor gave her - that's all well and good. If someone were to walk into a doctor's office and demand a double mastectomy based on a test, where she sent her own samples to the lab and received the results herself, she'd be called a psycho.

There's a new trend, actually, where doctors have been dumping patients who do too much research on their own, and try and influence their own health decisions. The cornucopia of information available to the ordinary web-user is enormous, and unlike any time in the past, patients are able to share their information directly with the entire world: "This happened to me, learn from it."

Patients taking Psynomics' bipolar test may feel branded by a positive result, even if they are not ultimately diagnosed with the disorder, said Hank Greely, a professor of law and genetics with the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics. Or they may feel false hope from a negative result, despite the company's disclaimers.

But how is this different from the same results given to them by their doctor? Well for one, there's less indirection. Giving the patient the direct results means there's no chance for the doctor to screw up their records and misdiagnose or misread the results. But what else? Oh yeah, there is the second big difference - cost.

The medical industry will circle the wagons, even as the pharmaceutical industry tries to end-run by marketing stuff directly to the consumer ("ask your Doctor if blahblahblah is right for you..."). Testing is a new tweak on giving ordinary people access to information about themselves that they never could have obtained without paying for at least two office visits (one to schedule the test, one to get the results). Doctors don't like this. I'm pretty sure the tiebreaker will come down from how insurance companies decide to weigh in.

Until then, most of us are probably better off getting these tests but keeping the results to ourselves, and keeping a watchful eye on our doctors.

"Parents like Linda Palmer [...], Julie Chiariello and Sybil Carlson believe vaccines are dangerous. "

... and so they don't vaccinate their kids. You know I really don't give a flying fuck if these retarded bitches kill their own kids but it should be a crime equal to murder if their sick kids kill someone else's.

Media hype non-withstanding, there has been no definitive link between immunization and anything (other than the ability to prevent the spread of infectious and fatal diseases).

Had I the power I'd deport these women and their brats to Nigeria where polio made a massive recurrence due to exactly the same butt-headed fears. You want to live in a first-world nation? Then you need to comply with the rules of living in a first-world nation. Yeah it's fucking nice that everyone ELSE immunizes their kids so yours doesn't get sick... now how about returning the favor?

We have a shuttle bus that takes us to our parking lot at work. It is frequently on the fritz and we get a mini-van in its place. A co-worker was waiting patiently when I came down to wait. Another co-worker was waiting outside. Just as the van pulls up another co-worker comes down. Typically, the first person waiting getting first choice. The last person to come down quickly jumps in the coveted front seat, leaving the three of use to decide who will crawl into the sorry excuse for a seat stuffed in the rear of all mini-vans.

Here's the rub - little miss front seat grabber is half the age of the rest of us and she looks like she could put her legs behind her head in one stroke. Thankfully, one of my other 40-something co-workers was willing to crawl in the way back or the van. I was about to say something to her as he volunteered - something to the effect of "Where's your manners?".

Personally, I would rather walk the 10 minutes and cross a busy road Frogger style - than attempt to get in that way back seat. If I ever did attempt to get in that space they call a "seat", I'm sure they would need the jaws of life to get me out 'cause the old knees just don't work they way they used to - the way they did when I was little miss front seat grabber's age.

Straight from the pages of the National Post, a Canadian newspaper:

A British Columbia father has sued his son's Grade 2 Montessori teacher claiming that she "purposely and maliciously worked to damage the self-esteem" of his son over such things as failing to encourage the child's spelling, not sending home a daily homework list and, in one case, displaying an unfinished poem in the school hallway.

Okay, just from that one paragraph, I'm getting a very nice picture of what kind of parent this tool is. But I digress...shall we continue?

This latest case involves Kenneth H. Finkelstein, a management consultant in Victoria who is suing his son's private school teacher for "intentional infliction of emotional distress."

In a statement of claim first filed in court last fall, Mr. Finkelstein said that his son "suffered and will continue to suffer loss and damages" -- including anguish, suffering, humiliation, embarrassment, anxiety, worry and loss of dignity --because Susan Rialp, the boy's teacher at Selkirk Montessori School, did not make him do his homework or coax his reading and comprehension, and in one case, put his unfinished poem in a hallway for all to see. Ms. Rialp "falsely created and attempted to reinforce artificial differences between his son and his peers and falsely asserted the son exhibits behavioural difficulties," according to the writ.

In the lawsuit, Mr. Finkelstein says the teacher also failed to protect the boy when he was bullied by another student, blaming his son instead.

"Intentional infliction of emotional distress"? Back when I was that kid's age, that was called "motivation to do your damn homework". I had a teacher that would make you recite essays even if you didn't finish them. How often did that happen? Maybe twice...because the students knew they would have to read them regardless of whether they were complete or not!

YOU accepted the responsibility of parenting a child, YOU need to help motivate them. The teacher cannot be responsible for 30 (or more) pupils and whether their homework is done or not. If the kid needs help, the parent should GET him help. Just because you're paying big bucks to send the kid to a private school won't guarantee the kid will not need help with homework!

Oh, from the same article - figured I'd post it just for giggles.

In May, 2002, an Arizona high school student sued her English teacher one day before senior graduation because the teacher had failed her. A parents' letter stated unless "whatever action is necessary to correct this situation" was taken, they would file a lawsuit.

I was snooping around on Google when I decided to look up an RPG I'd only vagely heard about. I found this review. My gods, this boy can WRITE! Here, cast your eyes on just the intro...

Contrary to my expectations, the World of Synnibarr did not suck all of the flesh off of my face, leaving behind only a screaming skull. It did not rape my other gaming products, leaving them pregnant with “neomods”, McCracken-speak for something as simple as a gaming module. It did not shoot twin streams of hydrochloric acid into my eyes, nor did it squat on my chest and stare at me when I was trying to sleep.

But it God-Damn well should have, because any of the above would have been better than actually trying to review this bastard.

My hat is off to you Sir! An outrageous and eloquent use of prose! Author, author!!

The whole article...

So, a college student in Canada studying chemistry starts a help group on Facebook. He gets a 'B' in the class which is then changed to an 'F' when the teacher discovers the site. Why? Because the teacher (unnamed at this time) considers electronic sharing of thoughts and ideas as cheating. Here's the scoop:

TORONTO (AP) -- A Canadian university ruled Tuesday against expelling a first-year engineering student accused of cheating through an online study group on Facebook.

Chris Avenir's apparent exhortation to fellow Ryerson University engineering students to ''input solutions'' to assignment problems on the social networking site raised the ire of a professor.

On Tuesday, the 18-year-old was told that while he wouldn't be expelled he would receive a zero on the assignment section of the chemistry course, which was worth 10 percent of his final grade. Despite that, Avenir still passed the course.

Hello old fashioned? I remember when calculators in math classes were considered "cheating" (slide rules probably weren't). This is a great example of how universities and their mouldering, doddering old teachers can't keep up and fear what they don't understand.

The site was never hidden, and all the content is available to *anyone*. Chris not only got slapped for creating the site, but also for 146 charges of "enabling misconduct". Awesome... Supposedly the university embraces the use of technology in learning, I'm guessing that applies only to abacuses and 5" floppies.

So in this crappy economy of wonderfulness, we have this lovely tidbit of information from Tampa:

TAMPA, Fla., March 18 (UPI) -- A woman is suing the city of Tampa, Fla., over a $299.58 loan her great-grandfather gave the city during the U.S. Civil War, and she is seeking $22.7 million.

Joan Kennedy Biddle, 77, said a promissory note given to her ancestor, Thomas Pugh Kennedy, on June 21, 1861, documents that Kennedy loaned the money to the city, but she and her family claim the debt was never repaid, the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times reported Tuesday.

"This thing has been in the family since the date on the note, and it has never been repaid," she said. "My daddy told me, and I certainly believe him."

The suit, which seeks the amount of the loan plus 8 percent annual interest, was filed in the Hillsborough Circuit Court.

Now, I'll admit I'm not a big history buff, but I believe that puts the timeframe of that note as during the Civil War. And being in the South, Florida would have most likely used Confederate money which today is worth less than nothing...

Yet somehow this 77 year old woman wants to cash in on it with real money? $22.7 million dollars worth? And they sat on it for over 140 years without so much as bringing it up to the government?

Mommy, my head hurts...make the stupidity stop...

Some might simply tell the man who lost his wife in 2005 to move on after Verizon lost a recording of her voice during an upgrade. However, Verizon dug through its archives and found the recording and restored it.

IRVINGTON, N.Y. — An 80-year-old man who thought he'd lost the only recording of his dead wife's voice can hear her again, any time he wants. When Verizon upgraded Charles Whiting's telephone service, his wife's voice, saying, "Catherine Whiting," disappeared from his voicemail system.

She had died in 2005 and Whiting said he listened to her voice every day for comfort. He blamed Verizon for the loss, saying, "Now they took her voice away."

But Verizon had archived all the old greetings and messages. Company spokesman John Bonomo said Tuesday that a contractor found the recording and restored it to the new voicemail system.

"I'm glad they rescued it," Whiting said. "I'm very happy."

Kudos to you Verizon for having a heart.

This just seemed so funny to me that I had to post it. This actually is a town not far from where I live.

CARMEL, Ind. -- A proposal to designate Carmel as a "family friendly city" failed in City Council Monday, despite pleas from several residents asking leaders to adopt it.

The defeated resolution stated that the City Council supports a "wholesome environment" for the city's children and families and encourages residents, businesses and groups within the city to maintain that environment.

By 5 to 2 vote, the Council voted it down, with co-sponsors Eric Seidensticker and John Accetturo supporting it and Rick Sharp, Kevin Rider, Luci Snyder, Joe Griffiths and Ron Carter voting against it.

"This was all about 'let's make Carmel a G-rated city,'" Seidensticker said. "It was an opinion of council it was non-binding."

Supporters such as Lori Baxter, a Carmel mother who spearheaded a campaign last fall to remove lingerie-clad models from Victoria's Secret windows at Clay Terrace Mall, said the resolution would be the beginning of a dialogue among businesses in the community about the proliferation of sexual images.

In a passionate speech, she said those images lead to the prevalence of sexually transmitted disease and increased sexual activity among teenagers.

But some opponents of the ban, who also showed up to speak at the meeting, said the resolution would sacrifice civil liberties and free speech and would set a bad precedent for the community.

First off...you've GOT to be kidding me. Some plastic mannequins with Victoria Secret bras are part of the reason that 1 in 4 kids have STDs now? DAMN! How could we have missed that!? I suppose next they're going to try to ban the local TV stations because of the "sexual" images that they air on their prime-time shows. Let's not even touch the cable networks. Banning things will NOT take the place of education and good parenting.

I can say with honesty that even in my adolescent years, a plastic female counterpart never did it for me. Regardless of what it was or was not wearing.

Some people's children (and mothers)...

Why is anyone surprised? I mean really - if nothing else our president is thoroughly consistent. Denial that there's any serious problem with the economy, after years of raping it silly, is in the same vein as telling everyone that the war was worth it.

The administration was elected, re-elected and has continuously operated on the principle that they are only answerable to god, and not the public that elected them. As a result, if lying, ignoring the facts, violating the agreed upon laws - both national and international - are useful in justifying their actions, then so be it.

Torture is necessary. Killing is necessary. It's always the same old bullshit "do what we say or the terrorists will get you", or, "following the laws is too complicated, just do what we say". Pollution laws enacted by states are "burdens" or "too confusing". And unemployment can be solved by "tax rebates". Evidence of how decisions are made, what people were consulted or what emails were sent are either "privileged" or "unimportant". On and on and on.

2009 can't come quickly enough. I don't care who wins this time, so long as they have education and a conscience. Anything has got to be better than this...

So I've started a new job. It's not a bad gig really...doing support and some web development for a mid-size physician group with a handful of offices scattered around town. I find it much better than my previous consulting gig due to the serious cutback on travel.

There are downsides though. When I took this job, I knew I wouldn't be at the "main office" where my boss spends his days. I'm in one of the larger satellite offices where most of the clerical work is done. "This won't be bad," I thought...

Turns out I'm in gossip central. My cubicle is in the scheduling department for the clinics and I'm SURROUNDED by people who would rather gossip all day than actually answer the phones. I have to listen to the phones ringing off the hook while someone leaves their cubicle to complain about how one of the doctors' assistants talked bad about them one day 2 weeks ago. Or how one of the doctors might be sleeping with his secretary. They also like to complain that we have them blocked from such sites as MySpace, Facebook and Sirius/XM. I know it's pure hell that they can't go and post pointless comments to their friends while their phones ring off the hook or listen to music instead of making appointments with people that pay both my salary and theirs.

I've just never understood what people get out of gossip and I most likely never will. Headphones are my friend right now. :)

John Adams lives and breathes. Maybe it's just a man using a pseudonym, but I think Adams would smile to think that his name would be attached to this work.

In Whitewater, Wisconsin, a man pens a blog under the name John Adams. His main goal seem to be to point out the failures of the local government in general. Basically, his site is just like this one, but more focused and localized.

Naturally, the authorities in his area don't like to be criticized. The chief of police, James Coan, decided he didn't like the site. He and others on his staff, spent time at work, using police and country resources to try to identify the man behind the pseudonym. They ran license plates, and they conducted surveillance, all in an attempt to violate his rights. They even went so far as to get a judge to issue a subpoena demanding his identity.

As you might recall from my recent post, anonymous posting online is a protected right, guaranteed by the constitution, and upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. Any attempt by a government body to identify a person posting online without probably cause of a crime is a violation of that person's first amendment rights. Pure and simple.

So, our friendly neighborhood incompetent cop has already made my shit list. I have this silly thing about cops... you know... obeying the law. And police chiefs even more so. So The next part makes me love him all the more.

He thought he figured out who John Adams was. So, Mr Legally Challenged police chief dropped by for a "talk". He brought a police lieutenant with him. Nice, friendly cat right? I mean, there is nothing intimidating about two armed cops knocking on your door and demanding a discussion about your posts online. I believe the Supreme Court describes that as a "chilling" effect on free speech. It's made worse by the fact that they were wrong. They were "questioning" the wrong guy. He was not "John Adams".

But they did eventually find the right guy. Had the same setup. Chief and a cop come to the door and demand to talk about the website. Some intimidation occurs, and the conversation ends. The Chief claims that he didn't try to stop Adams from publishing. He just wanted Adams to "provide him with answers to his questions and concerns." Never mind he could have just emailed the website to get those answers.

The only reason I can see for face to face over email is intimidation.

Quite frankly, Coan seems to be the kind of cop that give cops a bad name. He's abusing his power in an attempt to silence a critic. I'm extremely glad he doesn't have any power where I live. For those poor readers that do suffer under his tyranny, I can only say I feel bad for you.

Mr Coan, I sincerely hope you're fired. The sooner the better. And I hope Mr Adams and his community get someone more qualified, and professional to run their police department.

In an attempt to "do something" about the fact that people keep re-printing the cartoon about muahammad muslim nations have banded together to come up with a solution. That solution is to take offending nations to court.

It's fabulously funny, that nations who have no issues with burning flags, stomping living presidents in effigy, and desecrating and destroying symbols of other religions (remember when the Taliban blew up an ancient sculpture of Buddha?) simply can't take it when the shoe is on the other foot. One might even recall that Iran hosted an anti-restOfTheWorld cartoon contest to strike back. Yet that's completely acceptable.

''I don't think freedom of expression should mean freedom from blasphemy,'' said Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade, the chairman of the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference. ''There can be no freedom without limits.''

Freedom from blasphemy? Freedom of speech is just that, freedom of speech. It means people can express themselves how they like. This is why muslim nations can't ever support a democracy, because they can't conceive of what a democracy really means. Nor can they understand how multiple cultures can co-exist. Of course, they're also the ones that insist that if you leave their religion you must be put to death.

''Muslims are being targeted by a campaign of defamation, denigration, stereotyping, intolerance and discrimination,'' charged Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the secretary general of the group.

Hello Pot? This is the Kettle Calling... of course the difference being that in first-world nations we're big enough to take it and keep smiling.

Danield J. Collins, 39, told his children during a visit to his home on Sunday that he wanted them to ''learn how to kill'' and gave his 11-year-old son a knife to do it, according to an affidavit filed in the case.

The boy tried to save the cat by hiding it under a sofa bed and putting ketchup on a knife when Collins went to the bathroom. But when the father realized the cat was not dead, he forced his daughter to hold the knife and then held her hand tightly as he drove the knife into the animal, Muncie police Detective Jami Brown said.

Police said Collins stabbed and strangled the cat himself, and told his son to throw the dead pet in the trash. Officers retrieved the carcass to be used as evidence.

Words cannot describe the hatred I have for this man. All I can say is that I hope Karma runs true. If it does then life has an awful, painful, horrible future for Daniel. I hope the news captures it because when it does I plan on celebrating.

WICHITA, Kansas (AP) -- A 35-year-old woman who sat on her boyfriend's toilet for so long that her body was stuck to the seat had a phobia about leaving the bathroom, the boyfriend said.

She was there for so long, her skin grew around the seat. I'll leave you with that.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/13/woman.in.bathroom.ap/index.html

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) -- Contraband candy has led to big trouble for an eighth-grade honors student in Connecticut.

Michael Sheridan was stripped of his title as class vice president, barred from attending an honors student dinner and suspended for a day after buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate.

It used to be guns that were the issue. Then it was a picture of a gun. Now it's healthiness. The idea that a top student would be suspended and stripped of his class-VP title for a bag of skittles is fucking moronic. What about a warning? What about just taking the candy away?

Banning candy is one thing, being mentally retarded about how you implement the ban is another.

Here's the story: It's Christmas time. A lady wants to let her children donate money to the Salvation Army kettle. It's cold and snowy out - so she pulls up in a spot 10 yards away, with a direct line of sight to the bell ringers. Her two year old is asleep in the back, so she puts on her flashers, locks the doors, and sets the alarm. Then she walks her kids across the street, puts in the money and walks back.

Next thing, she's sitting in a patrol car being arrested for neglect.

Why? Because a "community (dis)service officer" got in her face and started harassing her for "abandoning" her child. It didn't matter that she could see her child the whole time. Or that she never went in the store. Or that it was cold and snowy. Or that the baby was asleep. All that mattered is that this officer had decided to make a point and the Police chief: Timothy Sulikowski is backing her.

Crestwood Police Chief Timothy Sulikowski declined to comment about the case. But he did not dispute the contention that Coyne parked nearby or was away from her car for just a few minutes.

He did, however, suggest Coyne put her child at risk.

''A minute or two, that's when things can happen,'' he said.

Happen? What exactly is going to happen in an alarmed, locked car? Further if the car did get hit by a truck would it have mattered if the mom was inside or not? No one could get into the car, and the child was safely strapped in the child seat. Go on, tell me - what exactly could happen?

Someone needs to get a fucking grip. You're in Chicago and you're going to prosecute a decent woman who was taking her kids to donate to charity? What's the message to her other children? The police are evil? Or it's wrong to donate to charity?

The 36-year-old suburban mother is preparing to go on trial Thursday on misdemeanor charges of child endangerment and obstructing a peace officer. If convicted, she could be sentenced to a year in jail and fined $2,500, even though child welfare workers found no credible evidence of abuse or neglect.

Hey Timmy! Did your mom drop you as a baby or something? Because if she didn't she sure should have...

There is a Kentucky legislator, Tim Couch, who has a very bad idea. Because he's a legislator, he gets to make his bad ideas into bad bills.

He feels that there is a serious problem out there. Online bullying.

And he's got a solution. Of course he does. He wants to ban anonymous posting. Every post online would require it to have a real name, real address and real email associated with it. The real name would be displayed with the post. The web site owner would be liable for ensuring that his site was in compliance ($500 first offense, $1000 each additional).

Beyond the idiotic enforcement problems, this is still an moronicly stupid law. Right now, u235 would owe $500 for themself, and $1000 for each of the other contributors to this blog. Then, on top of that, another $1000 for each visitor reply.

Very quickly, you're well over 10 grand in fines from this site alone because some numbnut lawmaker doesn't like online bullying. This level of stupidity is on the order of Ted Steven's comments about tubes. Frankly, people that far out of touch with the reality of the internet shouldn't ever be in a position to make bills that regulate it. Even if those bills have a snowball's chance in hell of passing properly.

Beyond that, we really don't want MORE information about people being easy to trace online. To be honest, the government should be making more of an effort to educate people about how to protect their privacy online. Identity fraud is a big enough problem without making it easier for the thieves.

The Oklahoma House of Reps passed a bill. The State senate has not yet passed it. I hope they never do. The gist of this bill is that if a student expresses an answer that is correct in line with his or her religious beliefs, the answer should be considered correct, even if it is not in line with modern scientific theory.

The idea is that a student can bring discussion of religious ideas up in science class and not be penalized for it. They say it's protect a students freedom of religion and expression. Iffy, but understandable.I disagree, but that's me. However, this bill is so poorly written that it goes further.

A school district shall treat a student’s voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint, if any, on an otherwise permissible subject in the same manner the district treats a student’s voluntary expression of a secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject and may not discriminate against the student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.

That is worded in such a way that test and homework answers can fall under this bill. That means if a student anwsers "How old is the Earth?" with 6000 years old, the teacher is required to accept the answer as correct.

This bill is EXACTLY what I bitch about so much about not allowing religious ideas to be discussed in science class. Science is about details and correctness. We KNOW the earth is over 4 billion years old. If a student claims it's 6000 years, that answer can and must be considered WRONG. Sorry, them's the breaks.

Moreover, it invalids ANY answer as wrong. You can belief in the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and use pasta-farian answers. As long as you "believe" the answer is correct as a result of a religious belief, it must be accepted. Seriously, have you ever met a teenager who couldn't spit out some bullshit belief that supports his wrong answer? Me either.

School is about correct and incorrect. It's about instilling ideas and methodologies to assist the growth of children into adults. This bill throws all of that away in the pursuit of religious ideology. It's everything that's wrong with allowing religion and public education to mix rolled into one bill.

“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.” - Philip K. Dick

If you're not an NFL fan, you may not know or care. But Brett Farve recently announced his retirement. After 15 years with the Packers, and 17 in the NFL, he finally decided to hang it up. He holds most of the major records for quarterbacks, a Super Bowl ring, and an almost certain place in the NFL Hall of Fame. He's considered one of the best quarterbacks to play the game.

So, he held a press conference. Talked to the media, delivered a prepared speech with thank-you's and good-byes. During which, he broke down a little and cried some.

As a man and a fan, I don't have a problem with that. I don't understand why anyone would.

But, considering this is the internet, obviously people have been blasting Farve ever since as a "cry-baby" and a "wuss". That his reputation is tarnished by it. I was a bit more surprised that ESPN Radio led the chorus during their coverage of the story. I mean, those are supposed to be legitimate reporters.

Let's be honest here. Brett Favre lasted 17 years at a pro level in one of the most physically punishing sports in the world. He got hit by very large and strong men. He led his team to victory time and time again. He stood tall and respectful throughout his entire career. And you dipshits think that showing emotion and sadness at leaving that behind somehow makes him less of a man? That somehow his farewell detracts from 17 years of performance?

Honestly, some people need take a minute and put things into perspective. If I was leaving my job after 15 years, I'd be near to tears too. And I can't even imagine how much more intense that feeling would be if you had millions of fans, teammates, coaches and friends who supported you for years and years. And now it's all coming to an end.

Put yourself in his position. If you could hold back the tears, you're a far colder man than me. And frankly, Brett Farve is a better and tougher man than those that are taking pot shots at him now that he's leaving.

As far as successful campaign slogans go I'm not certain this is a winner, but it sure the heck got my attention...

SPRINGFIELD, Ore. (AP) -- For guys who park in front of the TV during college basketball's March Madness, the Oregon Urology Institute has a suggestion: Why not use that time to recover from a vasectomy?

''When March Madness approaches you need an excuse ... to stay at home in front of the big screen,'' the clinic's radio ad says. ''Get your vasectomy at Oregon Urology Institute the day before the tournament starts. It's snip city.''

On the one had the sheer audacity makes me smile, on the other I have to wonder if anyone at all will take them up on it.

The Times ran an article today that talked about why people weren't switching to Vista in droves. It was a pretty funny article because it gave individual vignettes of semi-anonymous users woes and crises. Later they revealed that these users were high-powered MS execs. Seems this information has come to light as a result of a class action suit against the Evil Empire resulting from the "Vista Capable" fiasco (in short - machines granted that moniker were either unable to run Vista graphics *or* were unable to run any software other than just the OS because... nothing was compatible).

I think it's funny, personally, that anyone - even an MS exec would think upgrading to Vista would be a good idea at all. Other than the "Ooooo Pretty" factor what else does it do that XP doesn't? I mean in a practical sense?

Here's what I need a machine to do:
1. Boot/Shutdown
2. Not crash in the process of booting or running (shutting down is optional unless it corrupts my drives)
3. Provide net access
4. Support my printer/ router/ camera/ flashdrives/ trackball
5. Play my games
6. Run my basic apps for word processing, image editing

That's it really. That's what I need a machine to do - sure there's more I'd like, but that's gravy in my mind. And if an OS can't suitably do all the necessities, then why the fuck would I want to use it?

But there's more... If I'm going to go through the hassle of getting a new OS installed, then I want it to take at most the same amount of RAM as the current OS, or less. Why would I want to spend more memory for the same capabilities?

Vista really doesn't offer me anything special that I'd prefer over XP. I even run 64bit XP so eh, again - nothing there in Vista-land for me in that respect either. Hell even with XP, I still use the "classic windows" look and feel, because I'm not interested in wasting even a nibble for flash that's not part of a game.

It took a long time for me to move from NT to 2k and even longer from 2k to XP (in fact I still have 2k machines around). I'm not fucking upgrading to Vista until I'm backed to the edge of the cliff with one foot wiggling in thin air... Half Life Episode 50? Fear Expansion XXIX? Unreal Tournament 2025? Dunno - but I'll post something when I get there...

They must die. They must die a lot. In evil nasty and very medieval ways.

They called me a 4:35 AM. When I receive calls before the buttfuck of dawn, it had better be fucking good. I accept work related calls for my on-call duties. Fine. I accept family emergencies, but they had better be good. That's about it for the 4am call list.

Automated calls asking me to refinance my mortgage? What the mother-scrumping fuck. You've seriously got to shitting me. That is wholly unacceptable. In fact, that is so far outside the realm of acceptable calls at 4am, I'm not sure where to start.

The caller ID? 867-5309. Somehow, I don't think Jenny was calling me. If it was her, I hope the bitch dies and takes Tommy Tutone with her.

I don't know what rat-dicked cum-stain thought that calling people at 4am was a good idea, but I would really like some time alone with them in a room. Just me, a baseball bat, and enough time to demonstrate how I feel about his marketing concept.

Holy tap dancing Buddha. I don't know what he ate. I don't know what the fuck is wrong with his internal organs.

What I do know is that the mens room has become a testing facility for biological weaponry. Seriously, send UN inspectors. It's like there is a green haze in there. If I had a canary, it would have died.

I can hold it, thanks.

"Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children..."

That's what the law says. Simply put, just because you decide to reproduce does not entitle you to raise that child in any way you see fit. American public schools are designed to provide an accepted level of education to children to ensure that kids can become functional adults who can contribute to their society. Just because a public school don't expound or enforce religious beliefs does not mean that a school is unfit to train students in the necessary skills to survive. Schools teach children to read, write, and count - the bible does not. And if it means so much to a parent, then there are religious institutions available at a premium cost.

While parents are responsible for how their children are raised they are also not entitled, as parents, to freely abuse or mistreat them. In the case of Phillip Long, a home-schooling parent from CA, his eldest child claimed "mental and physical abuse" as part of being home-schooled. This lead to a lawsuit wherein one of the Judges issued the statement at the top: Parents do not have a *right* to home school.

I'm tired of all the religious zealots in the US forgetting the fact our country was founded on the basis of religious *freedom*. The basis of this is that we allow people to practice what they want, so long as it does not interfere with the rights of others. Beating your child as part of your "religious beliefs" *is* interfering with the rights of another, and it's not allowed. Further, in order to teach your child, you must be at least as educated as you want them to be, if not significantly more. If teachers need a degree to teach, then parents have to submit to a level of certification as well.

While some of that has been mitigated by the fact that home schooled students still need to pass standardized tests, it doesn't mean that the child learned in a nurturing or encouraging environment. Learning should not be hell, and if parents are abusive in how they teach then a reporting mechanism is required. Chances are if they're at least college educated they won't be... but that's just my opinion.