Steamd

By now you’ve probably heard that Sarah Palin has chosen to resign as Alaska governor. She has stated many reasons for why this decision was made and, while they are likely all highly legitimate reasons, the main question that still has not been answered is this: Does this mean you’re out of politics?

Right out of the gate, even before the crux of this announcement has been reached, Republican pundits are already defending her decision to resign as governor. Now, I don’t know if there are other circumstances surrounding her resignation because it’s too early to tell. Regardless, why others within her party would be so quick to defend her is rather perplexing. Seems a little hypocritical to me because, let’s face it, if any Democratic governor decided to do the very same thing you can be sure they would be criticized to the hilt by Republican pundits.

Aside from any reason for the resignation, the fact of the matter is that Sarah Palin has proved that she can’t finish what she started. As an elected official, unless there are extenuating circumstances, you have an obligation to do your job and finish your term. By failing that obligation, Palin is breaking her promise to the Alaskan citizens who voted for her. Any way you slice it, there is no positive spin to this resignation. It’s a bad decision through and through.

What makes this decision so bad is that it makes it difficult to see her realistically run for President in 2012. If she does plan on running for President then she has a lot of explaining to do. How can anyone expect her to run the country as President when she can’t even finish the job as Governor of Alaska? As far as I’m concerned, this is the death of Palin’s political career. Yet another grand example of how the Republican party is retreating into insanity.

When I read this story it just pissed me off. Here’s the part that really did it for me:

….Late in the hearing, [Bart] Stupak, the committee chairman, put the executives on the spot. Stupak asked each of them whether he would at least commit his company to immediately stop rescissions except where they could show “intentional fraud.”

The answer from all three executives: “No.”

Lord forbid that executives will be required to reduce their compensation to ensure that patients can actually pay their medical bills. All it does is further support my argument that a public healthcare option isn’t optional. Personally I’m more for a single-payer system. Sorry execs but my body isn’t a commodity.  More on that soon.

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Been a while since I’ve posted anything on my blog. It’s not that I haven’t had time or had anything to write about. Honestly, I’ve been dealing with some health issues lately and have found it hard to really write anything. I’m getting back in the swing of things though.

Just today, I stumbled on a few videos with right-wing neo-cons Michelle Malkin and Rush Limbaugh claiming that Obama might possibly have something to do with Chrysler closing down mostly Republican dealerships:

What a crock of shit! These guys lack any common sense whatsoever. Why on Earth would Chrysler allow Obama or anyone on Capital Hill to dictate to them who they can and cannot allow to sell their cars? That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of. It’s not Obama’s job anyways to dictate how Chrysler runs their business. The only thing Obama asked for was a business plan before he allows for bailout funds. That’s just common sense.

No one really knows exactly what the criteria was for which dealership contracts Chrysler was renewing and not renewing. My guess is that they went down the line city by city and picked the ones that provided the most consistent sales and profitability. Chrysler is a business first and foremost. As such, they’re not going to cancel the contract on a successful dealership on the basis of their political affiliation. That’s just stupid.

As usual, this is just the usual crap Malkin and Limbaugh spit out. Their spin consists of taking an array of disparate facts and coincidences and throwing them out there as proof that Obama and liberals suck. These guys really need to get a grip. Jeez!

Thanks to memo released by the Obama administration, we now learn that at least two suspected al Qaeda leaders were waterboarded at least 266 times. Here’s how I feel about torture…

I don’t believe that torture should be used no matter what the circumstances. This is real life dealing with real human beings. This isn’t an “us vs. them” issue. It’s an issue of humanity. This isn’t the TV show “24“. People really need to get that kind of destructive thinking out of their heads.

The so-called “War on Terror” isn’t about fighting terrorists as much as it is about fighting an ideology. In order to fight an ideology you have to refrain from activities that the enemy is accusing you of doing. By committing any acts of torture we are only adding fuel to the flames.

Think of it like this: Allowing torture in certain circumstances is the equivalent of Mahandas Gandhi saying that there are times when it’s ok to shoot someone with a gun in self defense. To fight terror you have to change the way you think and take a much more worldly view of the problem. This isn’t an issue that you can make go away by simply torturing and bombing suspected and/or known terrorists.

Knowing that the Bush administration allowed for this level of torture does nothing but illustrate just how much of a failure the Bush administration was on the war against terror.

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What occurred at the University of Utah is scary. I mean, the Conficker worm could be a lot worse that it is. Even now, nobody is really sure what kind of damage the worm is capable. Here’s the really scary part:

University health sciences spokesman Chris Nelson said the outbreak of the Conficker worm, which can slow computers and steal personal information, was first detected Thursday. By Friday, the virus had infiltrated computers at the hospitals, medical school, and colleges of nursing, pharmacy and health.

It infiltrated computers at a hospital? Holy shnikes, that’s scary! Can you imagine all the problems that would occur if patient data and medical records were compromised? I’m sure it wouldn’t be that big of a problem, but I bet some patients wouldn’t find it funny.

The staggering reality of the Conficker worm is that at least one in every three Windows-based PC’s are susceptible to the worm. Why? It all boils down to people not keeping their computers up to date. Either they’re not installing the updates or they’re ignoring them. How many times have you looked on someone’s Windows machine only to see that yellow shield glaring at you in the system tray? Also, how many times have you noticed that someone’s antivirus software is out of date? It’s ridiculous considering the sheer number of people who don’t keep their systems up to date.

The Conficker worm is just one more thing that shows just how much Windows is due for a serious overhaul. Those that don’t know well enough to keep their systems up to date would fare better with a Mac or Linux system. Granted, no system is 100% safe but at least with a Mac you don’t have to worry as much about this stuff.

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AppleInsider reports that Apple retail stores are finally looking to move away from their Windows Mobile-based handheld checkout devices for a system that revolves around the iPod Touch. I’ve always thought it was weird that Apple had to use a Windows-based POS system in their stores. There’s a bit of an irony there. So, yeah, it’s good to hear that they’re finally able to eat their own dogfood.  ;)

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Wrote a lot of comments on theAppleBlog about the latest Microsoft ad.

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I swear, I wonder why my wife and I live in Farmers Branch. Thanks to our lovely mayor, Tim O’Hare, our city has to pay out a million dollars in fines due to the shitty way he and the rest of city hall dealt with some stupid immigration laws they were trying to pass. Sorry, Timmy, but regardless of how you feel you’re not above the Federal government! So now our city is forced to pay out a million dollars of our taxes to the advocacy groups who paid out the ass to ensure that Farmers Branch didn’t pass these laws. Thanks, Tim, for wasting our tax dollars for no reason. Very much appreciate it.  

And here’s the part that really gets under my skin:

“Mayor Tim O’Hare did not return a call for comment Wednesday to The Associated Press.”

Yeah, when you have nothing to say, no real answer, and no way to defend yourself, you go hide in your hole and refuse to answer to the press for your actions. Good job. Tim, I think you owe it to the city that elected you to step up, be a man, and take the heat. Otherwise, your city is gonna look really bad publicity wise. 

Since 2006, the city has spent some $2 million on legal fees related to illegal immigration rules and rental ordinances it has not been able to enforce, the newspaper reported.

So with the recent fees, does that mean our city has spent $3 million on this nonsense?  Argh!  There are far more productive projects to spend $3 million on, Tim. Immigration might be a hot topic in this country but it’s not up to Farmers Branch to lead the charge in change. Want to really change things? How about putting together a coalition between other cities in Texas and other states and rally our Senators and Representatives to actually represent us and put up bills to change things. Ever thought about that? It’s called the internet, Tim!  And theres this thing on it called social networking! Use it, dumbass!

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A couple of days ago, I lambasted Microsoft on their new ads and said that I believed that you get what you pay for. To illustrate this, let’s look at a product that many have seen advertised: the Dyson vacuum. 

You might have seen the commercials that show one of the latest Dyson vacuums, the Dyson Ball. One might look at a vacumm like this and go, “Oh, that’s just a gimmick! All you’re paying for is a name!” But a closer study of what went into the creation of this vacuum reveals something else: innovation.

Readers Digest has an interesting story about James Dyson, the inventor of the Dyson vacuum. The article illustrates the sheer struggle Dyson went through just to market his invention. Chances are his invention might not ever have seen the light of day had he not persevered his quest to market the first bagless vacuum that never lost any suction.

A quick look at the vacuum market, it’s clear that Dyson vacuums are the most expensive ones on the market. Yes, you could buy a cheaper vacuum from other name brands like Dirt Devil, Hoover, Bissell, Eureka, and others. But for $100 t0 $150 you’re pretty much buying into the same vacuum technology that has been around since the first electric vacuum cleaner. Most of these use filters and/or bags that require replacement. Although there are cheaper vacuums that use cyclone vacuum technology similar to the Dyson, they simply don’t hold a candle to the Dyson on account of the patented technology and innovation that goes into a Dyson. On top of that, most vacuums from other manufacturers only come with a 1-year warranty. My wife and I have owned vacuums from Dirt Devil, Hoover, and others and none of them worked well or lasted longer than three years. 

The last vacuum my wife and I bought was the Dyson D17, a vacuum that cost $549 but we got on sale for $499. We could have easily gone with a cheaper, more affordable vacuum and spent less than a third of the cost of a Dyson, so why did a $500 vacuum attracted us so much?

First, the Dyson comes with a 5-year warranty. That told us that they clearly built these vacuums to last. If the vacuum lasts longer then it’ll easily make up for the added cost. 

Second, there are no added costs. No extra bags or filters to buy. The filter that comes with the unit is washable and should last for the life of the unit. Even if you had to replace the filter, it’s still under $20.

Lastly, the Dyson isn’t the same-ole, same-ole technology. The technology found on these vacuums cannot be found anywhere. The patented cyclone technology means that the vacuum will never lose suction. So far from my experience this is true. We’ve filled our vacuum up to the brim and it never once slowed down. And, let me tell you, when I say this thing sucks, it really sucks! Out of all the vacuums I’ve ever used, I’ve never seen one that can clean a floor the way this one can. I’m amazed every time I use it.

Now we have the Dyson Ball. Is it a gimmick? Just another thing to trick people into buying a name? No, it is not. It’s clear that Dyson is a company that is about delivering a good quality product built off of innovation. While others might be happy with spending $100 to $150 every three years or so, I’ll gladly pay $500 once every 5 to 8 years if it means getting a high quality product that does the job better than the competition. 

Yes, it’s true, you get what you pay for.

AppleInsider reports on a new add by Microsoft that tries to make Macs look unaffordable next to PCs. Does their argument hold water though? Well, sort of. As AppleInsider points out, the HP laptop the lady buys in the ad lags behind a MacBook Pro in terms of quality. It lacks 902.11n wireless capabilities, doesn’t have Gigabit Ethernet, no digital audio inputs and outputs, weighs 7.75 pounds (15″ MacBook Pro only weighs 5.5 pounds), doesn’t have any more resolution than the 15″ MacBook Pro and, based on reviews, has a horrible viewing angle.

The last time my wife and I went to Costco, I took a moment to look at the latest laptops Costco was selling. I looked a few HP’s as well as a few other laptops. I don’t know if I looked at the same laptop but it definitely was one in the same price bracket (sub-$1,000). My first impression? Even without Windows Vista on it, I probably wouldn’t buy one regardless of the low price. With all the plastic covering it, it felt flimsy and cheap.

You know the old adage, “You get what you pay for”? Believe it. While a MacBook Pro might cost you twice as much as a cheap sub-$1,000 notebook, it’ll last you twice as long if not longer. That’s a good investment in my opinion. 

More on this topic tomorrow.

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