A few links...

An amusing look at the smiley icons 8-) that Japanese use...

And an amusing article from Scott Adams...from the Dilbert Blog:

Intelligence is Overrated

With all the debate about Intelligent Design, I started to wonder if intelligence is overrated. In particular, are intelligent people happier than unintelligent people?

If you were to rank the following two hypothetical individuals by happiness, what order would you put them in?

1. Bob the dentist

2. Snowflake the dog

Dentists are generally pretty smart and they have the highest suicide rate of any profession. In stark contrast, dogs are goofy and they always look happy. You almost never hear about a dog trying to shoot himself.

I know you want me to make a joke along the lines of “Dentists would be happy too if they could lick themselves.” But this is a serious discussion and I won’t have it. Plus that’s why dentists have office assistants.
(*^_^*) heheh!

Why is this on the BBC Site, not most US ones?

US 'failing to stem terror risk'
"The most striking thing to us is that the size of the problem still totally dwarfs the policy response."
Thomas Kean - Chairman of the 9/11 Public Discourse Project

The group also criticised the Bush administration's efforts to improve its global image, tarnished by reports of the mistreatment of terror suspects.
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And here is a commentary listing "Five questions non-Muslims would like answered". It's a little raw, but the points he makes are valid... Where is the rightous Muslim's voice in all this terror nonsense, and "Why is only one of the 47 Muslim-majority countries a free country?"

I think there is a real opportunity for someone to stand up and share that Islam is not completely a mess.

Thoughts?

Have a Peaceful Veteran's Day. Shalom.

The Links Between the Dalai Lama and Neuroscience
The Dalai Lama will present a lecture to the world's largest group of brain scientists this weekend.
Some small studies have suggested that meditating on compassion can affect parts of the brain associated with positive thoughts. The Dalai Lama's talk will discuss meditation as a way to promote well-being and compassion.
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Also, this weird situation:
"Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, took a rare swipe at the United States, saying he was puzzled why residents in the capital of the world's oldest democracy have no Congressional voting rights."

Interesting eh?
Charlie

Ratbikes and Topix

A few things today...

"RatBikes?" what the hell? Actually a fairly kool concept, keep yer moto full-on grunge. "Ratbikes are the ultimate distilled evolution of motorcycling: No Bullsh*t involved. Just do the minimum to keep them healthy and Ride. Let your bike wear it's visual history with pride. No time consuming cleaning, washing, polishing, adding shiny parts that do nothing. None of that, forget about it! Embrace The Pure and Essential Essence of Riding - Ride A Ratbike!"
A Preeeety wild gallery of RatBikes. Not sure one of these is right for me, but they sure look funny. 8-)
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We were curious how the breakdown of posts by topic from blogs would differ from mainstream media, and were blown away by the contrasts.

Hope you are well!
Charlie

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

Awesome post from the Best of CraigsList. I guess Texas is voting on this now/soon? Rock on!

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

1. Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

2. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

3. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

4. Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

5. Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britany Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

6. Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

7. Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

8. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

9. Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

a few links to kool stuff...

"What the fuck is in the box?!" This is bloody hilarious! I love Shatner.

WOW. This is nasty... "Why haven't we seen this?" So do you think Bush's actions help this situation or stoke the fires?

"We have a strategy drawn up for the destruction of Anglo-Saxon civilization... we must make use of everything we have at hand to strike at this front by means of our suicide operations or by means of our missiles. There are 29 sensitive sites in the U.S. and in the West. We have already spied on these sites and we know how we are going to attack them."
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We're packaging together some of the world's coolest and funniest cartoons and sending them straight to your iPod each week. - NICE!
http://www.channelfrederator.com
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Nice... Info on new developments in Absinthe.
Absinthe was first distilled in 1792 in Switzerland, where it was marketed as a medicinal elixir, a cure for stomach ailments. High concentrations of chlorophyll gave it a rich olive color. In the 19th century, people began turning to the minty drink less for pains of the stomach than for pains of the soul. Absinthe came to be associated with artists and Moulin Rouge bohemians. Baudelaire, Rimbaud, Van Gogh, and Picasso were devotees. Toulouse-Lautrec carried some in a hollowed-out cane. Oscar Wilde wrote, "What difference is there between a glass of absinthe and a sunset?" Soon absinthe was the social lubricant of choice for a broad swath of Europeans - artists and otherwise. In 1874, the French sipped 700,000 liters of the stuff; by the turn of the century, consumption had shot up to 36 million liters, driven in part by a phylloxera infestation that had devastated the wine-grape harvest.

By the early 20th century, absinthe was becoming popular in America. It found a natural reception in New Orleans, where the bon temps were already rolling. Breaux's own great-grandparents were known to enjoy an occasional glass. But the drink was drawing fire for its thujone content. "It is truly madness in a bottle, and no habitual drinker can claim that he will not become a criminal," declared one politician. The anti-absinthe fervor climaxed in 1905, when Swiss farmer Jean Lanfray shot his pregnant wife and two daughters after downing two glasses. (Overlooked was what else Lanfray consumed that day: crème de menthe, cognac, seven glasses of wine, coffee with brandy, and another liter of wine.) By the end of World War I, the "green menace" was made illegal everywhere in western Europe except Spain. No reputable distillery still made it.

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Ah, what a life...

2 days, boy gets 2 toys.


Friday my new work gives me a blackberry 7100t to keep connected with the team and clients. I've wanted a email/calendar phone for a while... I was thinking a Palm 650 like most of my pals, but a free blackberry? No prob... 8-)



When we were in Argentina in September, my lovely wife Marcela gave her iPod mini to her sister... she's been without Shakira, Shania Twain, Cheyenne and Luis Miguel for a few weeks... ouch. 8-) So she's had it in her mind to pick up a new ipod... the new Nano was calling her name.... Today I took her to the Apple store, in looking them over, [DAMN they are small and sexy] I decided that I wanted a flash based player [my excuse was to get my lazy ass running/biking more, really they are just too sweet to not play with] so I wouldn't have to worry about my hard drive based 3rd generation 40 gig iPod. Plus they are soooo kool I found them difficult to resist.... I decided that I'd sell my 40gig iPod and pick up a new black 4 gig Nano, just like my woman. So we are both now owners of new black beauties. I've loaded Argentina trip pictures and tons of music on mine already... and we got one of those kool lanyard things that are headphones, and go around your neck to hold the nano... clever.

Casualties of the Bush Administration

Do your job, get busted down or fired. Ouch.
How's things with you all? We are busy, house stuff, job stuff etc. Marcela will be helping to manage a new rest/cafe downtown called the "Buenos Aires Cafe"!!! whoohoo. A friend of hers from Argentina is opening it... this lady also helped us with food and desserts for our wedding... good stuff. Argentina beer, empanadas, pastries, tea/mate, and more... It's opening in a few weeks. I'll keep you informed!

Charlie y Marcela

Wow. I really just can't believe it.

Okay I'm trying to be a little more generous with Pres. Bush and his policies, mainly because I'm SO tired of bitching about him and his actions. I'm just bloody worn out by all of it. sigh.

Then I take a look at CNN and MSNBC today... he's nomitating a person that has never even been a judge to the supreme court! Her main qualification is that she thinks Bush is "the most brilliant man I've ever met" and is unfailingly loyal to him. I just can't believe that he just has NO FREAKIN' SHAME. Wow. I'm just wondering if they'll be a bigger backlash or will she sail on to confirmation? Will democratic and republican politicians with a backbone actually say something? Will the press (that's finally asking some of the hard questions that it should have been doing all along) actually challenge the logic of this? We shall see.

On another amuzing note, you may have seen some bumper stickers in the last few months that say "How many lives per gallon?" I admit, I bought a few. To me, they represent that this Iraq thing is really about preferential treatment for Iraq's oil production (you'll see why I need to explain what it represents to me) and that it's costing american lives to drive big suv's and trucks with poor gas milage. So I drive by a gas station to get some soda yesterday, and I see this Ford Excursion with that sticker on it..... I'm a little puzzled why a huge gas guzzling suv has a sticker (to me) criticizing itself. Ideas on what the guy is thinking? 8-)

Anyway, the job hunt is on, and like the allied invasion of europe during WW2, i'm attacking it on multiple fronts: consulting for online marketing and search SEO and PPC as well as looking for a new full time marketing management job... all the while working on a few business ideas/plans. I'll let ya know how it goes. 8-)

Charlie