gregladen | March 19, 2009Paul Schemlzer has a writeup in Minnesota Independent covering the fallout from the exposure of the exposure of Norm Coleman's donor database. Paul addresses the mean spirited Republican reactions to professional IT consultant Adria Richards, who...
...has been the target of anger from Coleman supporters, including some who had their personal information revealed in the Web site breach. She received a phone call on Friday from one such man. The caller was irate, offering the vague threat, "I live less than a mile away from you!" She later calmed him down.
This report makes it very clear…
gregladen | March 19, 2009
Totally stolen from Betul at Counter Minds. Who also has the latest on Darwin's plight in Turkey.
Also, see this follow up on the women in careers discussion by A K8, A Cat, A Mission.
gregladen | March 19, 2009And I'm not talking about new building projects such as the Bell Museum, though such projects certainly are shovel ready as well.
I'm speaking about the simple fact that funding higher education, mainly by funding students, is one of the best possible ways to stimulate the economy.
The American workforce is under educated and under trained. This is almost always true to some extent, but in times when the centers of gravity in industry and business are shifting, it becomes even more true. The simple fact that the nature of the job market has changed dramatically over the last 20 years…
gregladen | March 19, 2009This is interesting, if true, and it is mostly about legislation regulating access to reproductive services at the federal and state level.
I have a column written by conservative Charles Biggs that makes the claim that Senator Tom Coburn, Republican of Oklahoma, is "telling us that if the federal government tries to lift all restrictions on abortion, our only option is to disobey that law" as stated by Biggs. Coburn allegedly used the phrase "Civil Disobedience."
This is interesting because up to now the Republican position on "Civil Disobedience" has been that it is the same thing as…
gregladen | March 18, 2009First, draw a circle. Then, assemble your most incompetent boobs and make sure anyone who is competent you undermine. Such as the case of RNC Chairman Tom Steele ... keep him in power only long enough to demonstrate (because you've totally undermined him) that his sort should be avoided in the future, once and for all.
The most amazing bit of news we've heard since the Party of Racism cynically and quite temporarily appointed a black man to lead them, is that Minnesota's Norm Coleman could be appointed to replace Steele. The reaction of one Democratic Party official when asked what the Dems…
gregladen | March 18, 2009Police officers in northern Scotland have been accused of vandalising a Bronze Age site through ignorance after they removed bones and textiles from the 4,000-year-old burial chamber, apparently because they thought they were investigating a crime scene.
The burial chamber, or cist, was discovered intact, in a field near Oykel Bridge in Sutherland. The area is rich in Bronze Age remains, but this find was of huge importance to archaeologists. Unlike the vast chambered cairns of the earlier Neolithic period, burials from the metal-working people of the Bronze Age are modest affairs with…
gregladen | March 18, 2009According to this film, lifted from ABATC
I made a list using whatever gender cues were given of what was seemingly suggesed for boys vs. girls to aspire to. No great surprizes. Well, actually, there are few slightly surprising items on the girls' list. 1
For Boys:
astro-scientist/Astronaut
chemist
biology
physics
sports star who knows about science
musician who knows about science
medicine
security
destruction/evil scientist
Nobel peace prize
cure world hunger
civil engineer
professor
agricultural science
electrochemical engineer
astronomy
pharmacology
philosophy
statesmen
minister…
gregladen | March 18, 2009False starts and cold snaps. A sign of warm weather followed by an icy slap in the face. That's a Minnesota spring. Native Minnesotans pretend this does not bother them, but it does. I can see it in their eyes, and every now and then someone will let out a plaintive wail or even just grunt to themselves when they hit the cold outdoors. That's how I know it bothers even the wizened old timers who grew up before indoor heating and learned to love the winter by walking to school across the frozen lake every day...uphill in both directions....
Read the rest at QM.com
gregladen | March 18, 2009Open source healthcare is forging forward quickly on the Internet. But, fast developments often produce many failures. But, many medicinal open source projects that have gained success development. This success shows that open source alone is not the solitary factor in development. Instead, look to great management, public relations, marketing and a sound program that stands up under the scrutiny of a growing number of peer users and, often, patients.
......... read it here ...
This is actually quite interesting . Not every "project" is a linux app, as one might expect with the "Open Source…
gregladen | March 18, 2009No, this is not a post about which one is better. Not yet, anyway. I just want to mention that today, March 18th, the next version of Gnome is expected to come out, and yesterday, March 17th, I finished my personal test run of KDE 4.whatever.
I like KDE ... the new version .... to recommend it and to seriously consider using it just for fun on some computer somewhere. But my main desktop will remain Gnome because, well, it has not annoyed me and it works.
Keep an eye out for the new Gnome. Details here.
gregladen | March 18, 2009As has been predicted, with the economy in a down turn, businesses (and everybody) are abandoning sucky proprietary software for free and excellent OpenSource software ...
A February survey of IT managers by IDC indicated that hard times are accelerating the adoption of Linux. The open source operating system will emerge from the recession in a stronger data center position than before, concluded an IDC white paper.
Sixty-five percent of the 330 respondents said they plan to increase Linux server workloads by 10% or more this year. Sixty-three percent said they will increase their use of…
gregladen | March 18, 2009Illegal aliens are swarming across the border of Michele Bachmann's district. Which is on the border of .... nothing, actually, it is a 'landlocked' district.
Uffda. Take a breather. OK, ready? Let's keep going a minute more...
Can you handle more? Probably not, and that's OK. Nobody really can. But if you want, we've got it:
Who is the poor guy who has to stand there and listen to this crap?
gregladen | March 17, 2009An important and fascinating post by guest bloggers Shawn Lawrence and Rebecca Otto, at Quiche Moraine.
Click here to be educated and entertained.
gregladen | March 17, 2009The other day Julia and I were driving somewhere (I had the con) and The Sphynx came up. The reason it came up is not important, but as we were talking, it occurred to ask me ask, "...hey, have you been to Egypt?"
"No," she said. And after a moment, "Have you?"
I thought for moment and said "No."
"Hmm," she said, "I thought maybe you had. Maybe that was Ethiopia I was thinking of."
"Not officially." And we dropped it there.
One might think, why would a 13 year old kid and her father have to ask each other if they've ever been to a particular far away and, by American standards,…
gregladen | March 17, 2009OK, so there you are having a drink. A drink with an unbrella. Minding your own business. And checking out your Facebook page.
And suddenly....
A High Court judge today approved the serving of court papers via Facebook, the popular social network website, in what is thought to be a New Zealand first.
The High Court in Wellington was told that Axe Market Garden is trying to sue Craig Axe who is alleged to have taken $241,000 from the firm account.
Counsel for the company Daniel Vincent said the plaintiff was effectively Axe's father John and there were difficulties in serving papers on…
gregladen | March 17, 2009Oh, but wait, he wasn't. But Al Franken IS. That's Franken, zero els.
A group promoting United States-Israel ties is raising funds for Norm Coleman with an e-mail that opens by referring to Al Franken by the not-particularly-Jewish-sounding name "Franklin":
We are making an appeal for one of our friends and steadfast supporters of US-Israel relations, Senator Norm Coleman. The election in Minnesota and its recount have been distressing to follow. Coleman won the election. After the recount, Franklin came out slightly ahead, but tragically this recount was filled with many…
gregladen | March 17, 2009On March 29th the Minnesota Atheists will have a Flying Spaghetti Monster Dinner!!!!!
Come bring your pirate hat, or arrive as ye be! Minnesota Atheists will be honoring that great noodly deity, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, by dining on noodles prepared in His image. There will be salad, bread, noodles and sauces galore, including vegetarian and vegan options. We will also have dessert and drinks. If you are interested in helping out by bringing a sauce to share, or some other booty, we'll take yer treasures if you reply to this here email.
We'll be crewing up in the Party Room at the…