4 times:
5 95lb Snatches (focus on form)
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Smart Money Mag, June 07
From the mag:
A few "Green" stock plays to watch. Is energy the next technology?
BWA - Parts manufacturer that makes parts that make engines more efficient. I think this is an interesting way for the energy efficiency business to get going.
XTO - Gas and Oil property owner, someone has to keep the oil and gas flowing while others figure out alternative energy.
Then some prison stocks. I think there is s market here, and the contracts will probably be cost plus or something close, but I just there there is far too much cost to build for me. Interesting to consider though:
CRN, CXW, GEO
An article on start ups and entrepreneurial activities mentioned the following web sites:
www.gobignetwork.com - Resource for start ups to find funding, investors, employees, etc.
www.bronzeback.net - Start up human capital firm, employment, etc.
www.angelcapitalassociation.org - As it sounds, a place for angel investors, apparently there is a place here for non accredited investors as well.
A few "Green" stock plays to watch. Is energy the next technology?
BWA - Parts manufacturer that makes parts that make engines more efficient. I think this is an interesting way for the energy efficiency business to get going.
XTO - Gas and Oil property owner, someone has to keep the oil and gas flowing while others figure out alternative energy.
Then some prison stocks. I think there is s market here, and the contracts will probably be cost plus or something close, but I just there there is far too much cost to build for me. Interesting to consider though:
CRN, CXW, GEO
An article on start ups and entrepreneurial activities mentioned the following web sites:
www.gobignetwork.com - Resource for start ups to find funding, investors, employees, etc.
www.bronzeback.net - Start up human capital firm, employment, etc.
www.angelcapitalassociation.org - As it sounds, a place for angel investors, apparently there is a place here for non accredited investors as well.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Article: Foreign Markets
Here, there and everywhere Economist.com
Investment banks are of course investing global and the growth of such markets will clearly outpace U.S. markets for awhile. There is a lot of catching up to do, after all. However, the road will have some pitfalls as transparency is created in those markets. Additionally, it just isn't simple for small time investors to buy foreign stocks. It will be nice when it is all piped into Ameritrade or Etrade.
Investment banks are of course investing global and the growth of such markets will clearly outpace U.S. markets for awhile. There is a lot of catching up to do, after all. However, the road will have some pitfalls as transparency is created in those markets. Additionally, it just isn't simple for small time investors to buy foreign stocks. It will be nice when it is all piped into Ameritrade or Etrade.
"Almost all of them are now increasingly involved in the so-called BRIC economies, Brazil, Russia, India and China. Next in line may be some of those Goldman has dubbed the N11 (for next 11); in alphabetical order, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, South Korea, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Turkey and Vietnam."
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
Article: Press Problems in Iraq
Not to See the Fallen Is No Favor - New York Times
The military wants the story told one way and a reporter might see it another. In my view, the military has the tendency to look at the press as a guest to their war. No doubt the press is powerful, both at home, abroad, and in the war zone. The sensitivities of publishing a photo of a wounded or killed solder are high. I agree that privacy and the write of the family to receive military notification, but at the same time, it is appropriate for the story, no matter how bloody, to be told for those who care to read it.
It is of deep concern that the military doesn't do more for the press. Small media outlets can't afford to send their people over there, the military doesn't pick up the tab, and you can imagine that they are treated as a lesser class once they are there.
The military wants the story told one way and a reporter might see it another. In my view, the military has the tendency to look at the press as a guest to their war. No doubt the press is powerful, both at home, abroad, and in the war zone. The sensitivities of publishing a photo of a wounded or killed solder are high. I agree that privacy and the write of the family to receive military notification, but at the same time, it is appropriate for the story, no matter how bloody, to be told for those who care to read it.
It is of deep concern that the military doesn't do more for the press. Small media outlets can't afford to send their people over there, the military doesn't pick up the tab, and you can imagine that they are treated as a lesser class once they are there.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Article: Rural Terrorism
Iraq - Insurgents - Terrorism - U.S. Armament and Defense - New York Times
This one does a good job of capturing the challenges of the dispersed, live amongst the people, General Petraus counter insurgency policy as applied to rural ares. More specifically, the surrounding towns and villages that surround Baghdad: it is periodical. Less people get less soldier presence, but with all the land and the terrain is to get around/through/in, is a great place to run your insurgency from.
Also noted is how the insurgents, or freedom fighters, or what have you are quick to adapt to new American tactics. Fear and money are powerful things that the Arabs fighting against an American Iraq are far better at applying than the coalition forces.
This one does a good job of capturing the challenges of the dispersed, live amongst the people, General Petraus counter insurgency policy as applied to rural ares. More specifically, the surrounding towns and villages that surround Baghdad: it is periodical. Less people get less soldier presence, but with all the land and the terrain is to get around/through/in, is a great place to run your insurgency from.
Also noted is how the insurgents, or freedom fighters, or what have you are quick to adapt to new American tactics. Fear and money are powerful things that the Arabs fighting against an American Iraq are far better at applying than the coalition forces.
Travel: Moscow and Krakow
36 Hours in Moscow - New York Times
This is a good updated Moscow overview. A pain to get into Russia, but it has got to be fascinating.
Poland’s Second City Is First Choice for the Young - New York Times
Now this has got to be worth going, see the Warsaw, but don't miss the Krakow, sounds like I bet Prague was in the 90's.
This is a good updated Moscow overview. A pain to get into Russia, but it has got to be fascinating.
Poland’s Second City Is First Choice for the Young - New York Times
Now this has got to be worth going, see the Warsaw, but don't miss the Krakow, sounds like I bet Prague was in the 90's.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Book: Own Your Own Corporation
Own Your Own Corporation, Garrett Sutton
2/25/07
Part of the Rich Dad series, Own Your Own Corporation, discusses corporate entities from inception to dissolution. The book is less of a “how to” own your own corporation, rather it is a overview of what corporations are, how they are created, concerns of corporations, and finally dissolution of corporations. The book is an excellent primer for people who want an overview of the corporate process.
Notes:
Entities discussed:
C Corporation – Big companies, many shareholders, double taxed
S Corporation – Small, starting companies, taxes pass though
Limited Liability Company (LLC) – Member or manager managed, can be big or small
Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) – General Partner managed, can be big or small
General Partnership – No liability control, 2 or more partners
Sole Proprietorship – No liability control, 1 manager/owner
A LLC could own a small stake in an LLP, be the managing member thus limiting the liability of all parties.
Each entity is discussed and advantages that can be leverage are explained. Some discussing of formation is given. The book recommends establishing entities in Nevada for many privacy and tax reasons.
After an entity is established the book discusses how corporate formalities protect the corporate veil and then how to go about protecting the company name by trademark registration, etc.
Now that the corporation is established the book explains how raising money works. It explains the SEC rules that govern how different rounds of stock can be offered. It is important to note that in most states; only 35 non-accredited investors (people who are not millionaires) are allowed to be involved in funding of companies, etc. The road to an IPO is also briefly explained.
Once the money has been raised, protection of the companies with respect to employee issues, buy sell agreements (what if a partner leaves, etc.)
The appendix reviews each state’s corporation laws.
2/25/07
Part of the Rich Dad series, Own Your Own Corporation, discusses corporate entities from inception to dissolution. The book is less of a “how to” own your own corporation, rather it is a overview of what corporations are, how they are created, concerns of corporations, and finally dissolution of corporations. The book is an excellent primer for people who want an overview of the corporate process.
Notes:
Entities discussed:
C Corporation – Big companies, many shareholders, double taxed
S Corporation – Small, starting companies, taxes pass though
Limited Liability Company (LLC) – Member or manager managed, can be big or small
Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) – General Partner managed, can be big or small
General Partnership – No liability control, 2 or more partners
Sole Proprietorship – No liability control, 1 manager/owner
A LLC could own a small stake in an LLP, be the managing member thus limiting the liability of all parties.
Each entity is discussed and advantages that can be leverage are explained. Some discussing of formation is given. The book recommends establishing entities in Nevada for many privacy and tax reasons.
After an entity is established the book discusses how corporate formalities protect the corporate veil and then how to go about protecting the company name by trademark registration, etc.
Now that the corporation is established the book explains how raising money works. It explains the SEC rules that govern how different rounds of stock can be offered. It is important to note that in most states; only 35 non-accredited investors (people who are not millionaires) are allowed to be involved in funding of companies, etc. The road to an IPO is also briefly explained.
Once the money has been raised, protection of the companies with respect to employee issues, buy sell agreements (what if a partner leaves, etc.)
The appendix reviews each state’s corporation laws.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Crossfit Workout
400 meter Run
15 Kettlebell Swings (do 21 next time)
12 Pull Ups
400 meter Run
12 Overhead Squats (do 15 next time)
400 meter Run
3 rounds:
5 Pull Up
10 Push Up
15 Squat
Time: 14 min
Cool down from Men's Health:
3 times:
30 sec, abs to ground, feet and hands to sky, 30 sec rest
Night Workout:
2 rounds:
450m Hill Run
300m Hill Run
150m Hill Run
15 Kettlebell Swings (do 21 next time)
12 Pull Ups
400 meter Run
12 Overhead Squats (do 15 next time)
400 meter Run
3 rounds:
5 Pull Up
10 Push Up
15 Squat
Time: 14 min
Cool down from Men's Health:
3 times:
30 sec, abs to ground, feet and hands to sky, 30 sec rest
Night Workout:
2 rounds:
450m Hill Run
300m Hill Run
150m Hill Run
No Restaurant Dining
From the July 07 GQ, "The Wandering Chef" discusses how Jim Denevan who goes from farm to farm, garden to garden, putting on dinners that celebrate farmer's ingredients. Imagine a table in the middle of a field with 70 folks enjoying the creations of famous local chefs using famous local ingredients. You can go too, or simply enjoy the photos at his web site Outstanding in the Field.
If above ground dining isn't doing it, the April 07 Bon Appetit magazine covers Underground dinning highlighting the growing emergence of underground dining clubs springing up. Makes great sense, someone who loves to cook, putting on a dinner for friends of friends of friends, and now via the web, complete strangers. But certainly a more interesting environment to make new friends and enjoy great cooking that isn't produced by a commercial kitchen. Supper Underground in Austin, The Ghetto Gourmet in San Francisco, and Homeslice West in NYC.
If above ground dining isn't doing it, the April 07 Bon Appetit magazine covers Underground dinning highlighting the growing emergence of underground dining clubs springing up. Makes great sense, someone who loves to cook, putting on a dinner for friends of friends of friends, and now via the web, complete strangers. But certainly a more interesting environment to make new friends and enjoy great cooking that isn't produced by a commercial kitchen. Supper Underground in Austin, The Ghetto Gourmet in San Francisco, and Homeslice West in NYC.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Article: Cellphone Banking
Cellphone Banking Is Coming of Age - New York Times
The banks take their online mobile. I see cell phones as a extension of the laptop when it is inconvenient to tote the whole thing around. No doubt Intuit will come up with a way to sync the desktop Quicken with yet to be developed cell phone Quicken (they already have mobile/PDA based).
What I think is a ways off, but were we should be going, is to base all of this off some XML and an established security standard. That way we don't have to deal with Citibank and Bank of America's different web sites and applications, rather, it is all driven by a third party client (like Quicken).
From my own experience, Quicken (desktop), is almost there. It is really a matter of the banks building the technology into their online banking systems. However, I don't think it is ready for full blown "controlling" of your bank account. I would just like to see all this interaction be streamlined in a single interface. Downside being less innovation from the banks building new ways to bank online.
The banks take their online mobile. I see cell phones as a extension of the laptop when it is inconvenient to tote the whole thing around. No doubt Intuit will come up with a way to sync the desktop Quicken with yet to be developed cell phone Quicken (they already have mobile/PDA based).
What I think is a ways off, but were we should be going, is to base all of this off some XML and an established security standard. That way we don't have to deal with Citibank and Bank of America's different web sites and applications, rather, it is all driven by a third party client (like Quicken).
From my own experience, Quicken (desktop), is almost there. It is really a matter of the banks building the technology into their online banking systems. However, I don't think it is ready for full blown "controlling" of your bank account. I would just like to see all this interaction be streamlined in a single interface. Downside being less innovation from the banks building new ways to bank online.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Crossfit Workout
20 min, max rounds:
15 Double Unders
15 Burpies
15 Box Jumps
15 Jumping Pull Ups
Did 3.25, wow, very hard
15 Double Unders
15 Burpies
15 Box Jumps
15 Jumping Pull Ups
Did 3.25, wow, very hard
Monday, May 21, 2007
Article: Iraq Today
Iraq - Reconstruction - Intelligence - Insurgency - Terrorism - New York Times
About once every two to three weeks the NYT (usually James Glanz, who I met once, several years ago, under unusual circumstances, very sharp) publishes an article that takes stock of the "State of Iraq." Today, he reports the unclear picture painted by the meshing of the pessimists and the optimists and the confusion that can lead to: in Baghdad, and in, say, Omaha. Improving here, getting worse there, and then the opposite next week. Watching statistics in Iraq is like watching the stock market.
It would be interesting to see snapshots of all of these snapshot articles over the 5 or so years of the Iraq War and see how tones and outlooks have varied.
About once every two to three weeks the NYT (usually James Glanz, who I met once, several years ago, under unusual circumstances, very sharp) publishes an article that takes stock of the "State of Iraq." Today, he reports the unclear picture painted by the meshing of the pessimists and the optimists and the confusion that can lead to: in Baghdad, and in, say, Omaha. Improving here, getting worse there, and then the opposite next week. Watching statistics in Iraq is like watching the stock market.
It would be interesting to see snapshots of all of these snapshot articles over the 5 or so years of the Iraq War and see how tones and outlooks have varied.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Blog: Realtor's Fight Back
Open House - $50,000 fine for Redfin
Washington Multiple Listing Service has fined Redfin $50,000 for a little "breach of agreement." Let's be honest, this is the "system" trying to hold the new, yet threatening, more innovative online guy down.
I blogged about Redfin on May 14. You'll remember that they are a http://www.zillow.com/ site that shows real estate listings and then allows you to make an offer, etc. via online connection to a real agent. Additionally, you can sell a place with them as well (for $3000) they list you in MLS and provide marketing materials, prepare paperwork, etc. Fantastic model that is the future of real estate.
Update: Redfin Blogs a response here.
Washington Multiple Listing Service has fined Redfin $50,000 for a little "breach of agreement." Let's be honest, this is the "system" trying to hold the new, yet threatening, more innovative online guy down.
I blogged about Redfin on May 14. You'll remember that they are a http://www.zillow.com/ site that shows real estate listings and then allows you to make an offer, etc. via online connection to a real agent. Additionally, you can sell a place with them as well (for $3000) they list you in MLS and provide marketing materials, prepare paperwork, etc. Fantastic model that is the future of real estate.
Update: Redfin Blogs a response here.
Men's Health Workout
3 sets of each group's exercises, alternating, rest 1 min between each group:
Group 1:
12 50lb DB Chest Press
12 35lb DB Row
Group 2:
8 50lb DB Incline Press
12 Wide Grip Deadlift
Group 3:
12 (155, 135, 115)lb Bench Press
45sec Swiss Ball Plank
Compare with Mar 10th.
Group 1:
12 50lb DB Chest Press
12 35lb DB Row
Group 2:
8 50lb DB Incline Press
12 Wide Grip Deadlift
Group 3:
12 (155, 135, 115)lb Bench Press
45sec Swiss Ball Plank
Compare with Mar 10th.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Book: The World is Flat
The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman
5/18/07
Perhaps the best book I've ever read. Mind expanding yet gelling it all together and at the same time thought provoking and awe inspiring. As it turns out, the world is flat, and it is getting flatter everyday. By this, Friedman implies that the world is connecting in ways that are unobstructed: pick up a phone, step into a VTC, language matters less (and more all at the same time), business, supply chains, they don't care about boarders or distance; they are globalized, and getting more so everyday.
The result of this global flatness is deep. Global supply chains ensure security. Through global connectivity, business knows no bound, yet at the same time, the business of terrorism is allowed to thrive at the same rate as commerce. Fortunately, I believe that this greater connectivity will eventually allow most all to prosper. It will take time, and much change, but the world is connecting. And as Barnett would agree, the Gap is shrinking.
Fair treatment is paid to how the flattened, connected world, allows those who do not have opportunity in their own countries to see the opportunity of others. As they themselves are not allowed to achieve, they become frustrated, and frustration breads violence and all the other terrible, unflat, disconnected nightmares.
So much of the discussion of how the world has become flat and what that flatness allowed is obvious. However, Friedman throws it all in front of you amazingly meshing of statistics, common sense, and revealing examples. A tremendous journalistic work that, perhaps as he has set out to do, ignites your imagination.
In Summary:
The book begins by talking about events that occurred to “flatten” the world. In all, it started when the Berlin Wall came down and a huge chunk of the world was able to connect. This moves on to the development of the internet, outsourcing, open sourcing, off-shoring, supply chaining, in-sourcing, informing, and the steroids that are making it all go faster. All this is tied together by what is called a triple convergence of all of these technologies though out the world.
Some fascinating examples are how Dell Computers pulls form a hugely global, just in time supply chain. How UPS is delivering not just packages, but supply chaining, warehousing, etc. You could be a company and have UPS manage all of your inventory and its delivery; you don’t even need a warehouse. Toshiba even has UPS take care of their actual computer maintenance activities.
Friedman then goes on to explain the implications of this flattened world and how it pertains to the U.S., developing nations, companies, and geopolitics. The flattening is allowing the growth of business where there countries that have rule sets allow it. At the same time those who are disallowed to watch the process in plan view. Friedman uses this to provide an excellent analysis of what is driving the Islamist movement that is so degrading the development of the Middle East. He then explains how radicals can use the connectedness to further disconnect their societies. Paradoxical in essence, but plainly obvious after consideration.
Examples are provided of all kinds of different rules about forming businesses, hiring and firing. In the US, it is pretty easy, in other countries it may take a year to start a business and law may require more capital that is realistic. Innovation stifled by archaic rules.
The conclusion is that Imagination is the key ingredient in prospering in these flattened times. Imagination in America to keep us leading the charge, imagination in developing nations to bring their poorest people with them as they prosper, and imagination in disconnected states to find a way to connect (and remove the power grubbing elites).
5/18/07
Perhaps the best book I've ever read. Mind expanding yet gelling it all together and at the same time thought provoking and awe inspiring. As it turns out, the world is flat, and it is getting flatter everyday. By this, Friedman implies that the world is connecting in ways that are unobstructed: pick up a phone, step into a VTC, language matters less (and more all at the same time), business, supply chains, they don't care about boarders or distance; they are globalized, and getting more so everyday.
The result of this global flatness is deep. Global supply chains ensure security. Through global connectivity, business knows no bound, yet at the same time, the business of terrorism is allowed to thrive at the same rate as commerce. Fortunately, I believe that this greater connectivity will eventually allow most all to prosper. It will take time, and much change, but the world is connecting. And as Barnett would agree, the Gap is shrinking.
Fair treatment is paid to how the flattened, connected world, allows those who do not have opportunity in their own countries to see the opportunity of others. As they themselves are not allowed to achieve, they become frustrated, and frustration breads violence and all the other terrible, unflat, disconnected nightmares.
So much of the discussion of how the world has become flat and what that flatness allowed is obvious. However, Friedman throws it all in front of you amazingly meshing of statistics, common sense, and revealing examples. A tremendous journalistic work that, perhaps as he has set out to do, ignites your imagination.
In Summary:
The book begins by talking about events that occurred to “flatten” the world. In all, it started when the Berlin Wall came down and a huge chunk of the world was able to connect. This moves on to the development of the internet, outsourcing, open sourcing, off-shoring, supply chaining, in-sourcing, informing, and the steroids that are making it all go faster. All this is tied together by what is called a triple convergence of all of these technologies though out the world.
Some fascinating examples are how Dell Computers pulls form a hugely global, just in time supply chain. How UPS is delivering not just packages, but supply chaining, warehousing, etc. You could be a company and have UPS manage all of your inventory and its delivery; you don’t even need a warehouse. Toshiba even has UPS take care of their actual computer maintenance activities.
Friedman then goes on to explain the implications of this flattened world and how it pertains to the U.S., developing nations, companies, and geopolitics. The flattening is allowing the growth of business where there countries that have rule sets allow it. At the same time those who are disallowed to watch the process in plan view. Friedman uses this to provide an excellent analysis of what is driving the Islamist movement that is so degrading the development of the Middle East. He then explains how radicals can use the connectedness to further disconnect their societies. Paradoxical in essence, but plainly obvious after consideration.
Examples are provided of all kinds of different rules about forming businesses, hiring and firing. In the US, it is pretty easy, in other countries it may take a year to start a business and law may require more capital that is realistic. Innovation stifled by archaic rules.
The conclusion is that Imagination is the key ingredient in prospering in these flattened times. Imagination in America to keep us leading the charge, imagination in developing nations to bring their poorest people with them as they prosper, and imagination in disconnected states to find a way to connect (and remove the power grubbing elites).
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Crossfit Workout
2 Rounds:
3 155lb Hanging Clean Squats
10 Dips
50 Pull Ups
2 Rounds:
3 75lb Hanging Snatchs
3 Handstand Push Ups
3 155lb Hanging Clean Squats
10 Dips
50 Pull Ups
2 Rounds:
3 75lb Hanging Snatchs
3 Handstand Push Ups
Blog: New Google
As is not uncommon, we all wake up to a slightly improved Google today. They have added a "universal search" right where the regular search has always been. It transparently goes through all the different Googles: news, scholar, etc. and provides the search results as easily digestible as possible, at their recomendation, try Steve Jobs. Indeed, Google simply takes a small step ahead.
While most users will simply say "Gee, it's about time all that was linked together," this Google Blog Post does a great job of discussing just how large a challenge this sort of stuff is. When they mention "frying a few server farms" I doubt they are joking. The other interesting note is to hear how Google continues to attempt to find ways to keep the company thinking like a innovating start up and not get carried away into slower to react, "big corporation."
With all this said, my iGoogle home page title bar (that has my login id, and my various Google services) is in white over my "beach theme." Before this improvement it blended into the background, which I preferred. Wonder how long it will take to see that "reintegrated."
While most users will simply say "Gee, it's about time all that was linked together," this Google Blog Post does a great job of discussing just how large a challenge this sort of stuff is. When they mention "frying a few server farms" I doubt they are joking. The other interesting note is to hear how Google continues to attempt to find ways to keep the company thinking like a innovating start up and not get carried away into slower to react, "big corporation."
With all this said, my iGoogle home page title bar (that has my login id, and my various Google services) is in white over my "beach theme." Before this improvement it blended into the background, which I preferred. Wonder how long it will take to see that "reintegrated."
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Article: Divide at Home, Unite in Iraq
More Friedman on how divisive politics at home beg failure as we try to unite in Iraq. I was particularly intrigued, and concerned as the Democrats grow their political capital of Friedman's cautions at the end of the column:
In full:
The New York Times
May 16, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Failing by Example
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
If you want to know why we are losing in Iraq, go back and read this story that ran on the front page of The Times on Saturday. It began like this:
“Two years ago, Robin C. Ashton, a seasoned criminal prosecutor at the Department of Justice, learned from her boss that a promised promotion was no longer hers. ‘You have a Monica problem,’ Ms. Ashton was told. Referring to Monica M. Goodling, a 31-year-old, relatively inexperienced lawyer who had only recently arrived in the office, the boss added, ‘She believes you’re a Democrat and doesn’t feel you can be trusted.’ Ms. Ashton’s ouster — she left for another Justice Department post two weeks later — was a critical early step in a plan that would later culminate in the ouster of nine United States attorneys last year.
“Ms. Goodling would soon be quizzing applicants for civil service jobs at Justice Department headquarters with questions that several United States attorneys said were inappropriate, like who was their favorite president and Supreme Court justice. One department official said an applicant was even asked, ‘Have you ever cheated on your wife?’ Ms. Goodling also moved to block the hiring of prosecutors with résumés that suggested they might be Democrats, even though they were seeking posts that were supposed to be nonpartisan.”
What does this have to do with Iraq? A lot. One benchmark the Bush team has been urging the Iraqi government to meet is to rescind its broad “de-Baathification” program — the wholesale purging of Baathists after the fall of Saddam — which has alienated many Sunnis and hampered national reconciliation.
But while the Bush team has been lecturing the Iraqi Shiites to limit de-Baathification in Baghdad, it was carrying out its own de-Democratization in the Justice Department in Washington. We would feel that we had failed in Iraq if we read that Sunnis were being purged from Iraq’s Ministry of Justice by Shiite hard-liners loyal to Moktada al-Sadr — but the moral equivalent of that is exactly what the Bush administration was doing here. What kind of example does that set for Iraqis?
And this wasn’t only a Washington problem. Read Rajiv Chandrasekaran’s outstanding “Imperial Life in the Emerald City,” which details the extent to which Americans recruited to work for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad were chosen, at times, for their loyalty toward Republicanism rather than expertise on Islamism. “Two C.P.A. staffers said that they were asked if they supported Roe v. Wade and if they had voted for George W. Bush,” he wrote.
But this degree of partisanship — loyalty over competence — was destructive in a much bigger way. It also deprived the Bush team of the support it needed when things in Iraq didn’t turn out to be as easy as it expected.
Only a united America could have the patience and fortitude to heal a divided Iraq — and we simply don’t have that today. Why? Because George Bush and Dick Cheney asked everyone to check their politics at the door when it came to Iraq, because victory there was so important — everyone but themselves. They argued that the war in Iraq was the central front of the central struggle of our age — an unusual war, a war against terrorism and the pathologies that produce it — but then they indulged in the most rancid politics as usual at home.
They actually thought they could unite Iraq, while dividing America.
Whenever Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney had a choice between seeking political advantage at home or acting in a bipartisan fashion to buy more unity, time and space to do all the heavy lifting needed in Iraq, they opted for political advantage.
When Franklin Roosevelt fought World War II, he made a conservative Republican, Henry Stimson, his secretary of war and did all he could to hold the country together. The Bush- Cheney team, by contrast, summoned us to D-Day and then treated it like it was just another political wedge issue, whenever it suited them.
It has not worked. As Leon Wieseltier, literary editor of The New Republic, put it: “You cannot govern like Winston Churchill some of the time and like Grover Norquist most of the time.”
Democrats need to be careful, though, that they don’t let their rage with the hypocrisy of Mr. Bush make them totally crazy, and blind them to the fact that they — we — still need a credible plan to deal with the very real threat to open societies posed by Islamist terrorism. But I understand that rage. After all, who can ask more soldiers to sacrifice their lives in Iraq for an administration that wouldn’t even sacrifice its politics?
As Leon Wieseltier, literary editor of The New Republic, put it: “You cannot govern like Winston Churchill some of the time and like Grover Norquist most of the time.” Democrats need to be careful, though, that they don’t let their rage with the hypocrisy of Mr. Bush make them totally crazy, and blind them to the fact that they — we — still need a credible plan to deal with the very real threat to open societies posed by Islamist terrorism. But I understand that rage. After all, who can ask more soldiers to sacrifice their lives in Iraq for an administration that wouldn’t even sacrifice its politics?
In full:
The New York Times
May 16, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Failing by Example
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
If you want to know why we are losing in Iraq, go back and read this story that ran on the front page of The Times on Saturday. It began like this:
“Two years ago, Robin C. Ashton, a seasoned criminal prosecutor at the Department of Justice, learned from her boss that a promised promotion was no longer hers. ‘You have a Monica problem,’ Ms. Ashton was told. Referring to Monica M. Goodling, a 31-year-old, relatively inexperienced lawyer who had only recently arrived in the office, the boss added, ‘She believes you’re a Democrat and doesn’t feel you can be trusted.’ Ms. Ashton’s ouster — she left for another Justice Department post two weeks later — was a critical early step in a plan that would later culminate in the ouster of nine United States attorneys last year.
“Ms. Goodling would soon be quizzing applicants for civil service jobs at Justice Department headquarters with questions that several United States attorneys said were inappropriate, like who was their favorite president and Supreme Court justice. One department official said an applicant was even asked, ‘Have you ever cheated on your wife?’ Ms. Goodling also moved to block the hiring of prosecutors with résumés that suggested they might be Democrats, even though they were seeking posts that were supposed to be nonpartisan.”
What does this have to do with Iraq? A lot. One benchmark the Bush team has been urging the Iraqi government to meet is to rescind its broad “de-Baathification” program — the wholesale purging of Baathists after the fall of Saddam — which has alienated many Sunnis and hampered national reconciliation.
But while the Bush team has been lecturing the Iraqi Shiites to limit de-Baathification in Baghdad, it was carrying out its own de-Democratization in the Justice Department in Washington. We would feel that we had failed in Iraq if we read that Sunnis were being purged from Iraq’s Ministry of Justice by Shiite hard-liners loyal to Moktada al-Sadr — but the moral equivalent of that is exactly what the Bush administration was doing here. What kind of example does that set for Iraqis?
And this wasn’t only a Washington problem. Read Rajiv Chandrasekaran’s outstanding “Imperial Life in the Emerald City,” which details the extent to which Americans recruited to work for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad were chosen, at times, for their loyalty toward Republicanism rather than expertise on Islamism. “Two C.P.A. staffers said that they were asked if they supported Roe v. Wade and if they had voted for George W. Bush,” he wrote.
But this degree of partisanship — loyalty over competence — was destructive in a much bigger way. It also deprived the Bush team of the support it needed when things in Iraq didn’t turn out to be as easy as it expected.
Only a united America could have the patience and fortitude to heal a divided Iraq — and we simply don’t have that today. Why? Because George Bush and Dick Cheney asked everyone to check their politics at the door when it came to Iraq, because victory there was so important — everyone but themselves. They argued that the war in Iraq was the central front of the central struggle of our age — an unusual war, a war against terrorism and the pathologies that produce it — but then they indulged in the most rancid politics as usual at home.
They actually thought they could unite Iraq, while dividing America.
Whenever Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney had a choice between seeking political advantage at home or acting in a bipartisan fashion to buy more unity, time and space to do all the heavy lifting needed in Iraq, they opted for political advantage.
When Franklin Roosevelt fought World War II, he made a conservative Republican, Henry Stimson, his secretary of war and did all he could to hold the country together. The Bush- Cheney team, by contrast, summoned us to D-Day and then treated it like it was just another political wedge issue, whenever it suited them.
It has not worked. As Leon Wieseltier, literary editor of The New Republic, put it: “You cannot govern like Winston Churchill some of the time and like Grover Norquist most of the time.”
Democrats need to be careful, though, that they don’t let their rage with the hypocrisy of Mr. Bush make them totally crazy, and blind them to the fact that they — we — still need a credible plan to deal with the very real threat to open societies posed by Islamist terrorism. But I understand that rage. After all, who can ask more soldiers to sacrifice their lives in Iraq for an administration that wouldn’t even sacrifice its politics?
Old Books, New Posts
I've been spending time typing old journals, specifically, notes that I have taken as I have read books over the past several years. 18 new posts that review old books dating back to 2001 are posted. View by clicking here (which is just viewing my posts tagged with "Books"). Figure having them in Blog form and easily downloadable via XML is a fine way to store the data vice totting old composition books around. I've also back dated the posts to reflect when they were actually written. I'll admit that all the posts could likely use a good dose of proofreading.
In addition to downloading the XML via MS IE 7.0 RSS reader and backing up that data, I have blogger email me each of my blog posts which I then save in Windows Mail (the MS Vista generic mail client).
In addition to downloading the XML via MS IE 7.0 RSS reader and backing up that data, I have blogger email me each of my blog posts which I then save in Windows Mail (the MS Vista generic mail client).
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Crossfit Workout
Tabata Push Ups
800m Run
Tabata Sit Ups
800m Run
Tabata Jumping Pull Ups
800m Run
Time: 26min
800m Run
Tabata Sit Ups
800m Run
Tabata Jumping Pull Ups
800m Run
Time: 26min
Monday, May 14, 2007
Crossfit Workout
21-15-9:
95lb Deadlift
95lb Split Jerk
Knees to Elbows
50lb Dumbbell Swing
95lb Push Press
Feet to Hands
95lb Deadlift
95lb Split Jerk
Knees to Elbows
50lb Dumbbell Swing
95lb Push Press
Feet to Hands
Redfin
www.redfin.com is a site a lot like www.zillow.com that taps into MLS and shows residential real estate for sale. It does less to estimate the value like Zillow but will act as your buyer's agent in a deal and kick back 2/3ds the commissions (1% of the sale price) to the buyer.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Article: General Says Iraq is Broke
Army Career Behind Him, General Critical of Bush - New York Times
I'm always stricken when I read an article about U.S. Military Generals criticizing policy, etc. You don't see it often because it is counter culture of the Military, and when you do see it, I always take heed. Every general I have ever met has blown me away with both charisma and intellect. These guys don't get to where they are with out being the very best in their profession and I assume they are hugely driven by personal success as the monetary rewards are not that great. What that in mind, when a guy like General Batiste says this war is broken I think that is a big deal.
I'm always stricken when I read an article about U.S. Military Generals criticizing policy, etc. You don't see it often because it is counter culture of the Military, and when you do see it, I always take heed. Every general I have ever met has blown me away with both charisma and intellect. These guys don't get to where they are with out being the very best in their profession and I assume they are hugely driven by personal success as the monetary rewards are not that great. What that in mind, when a guy like General Batiste says this war is broken I think that is a big deal.
Barnett: Iraq is no Vietnam
Iraq is no Vietnam ScrippsNews
If not Friedman, Barnett. Thomas Barnett does a great job of explaining how Iraq is not at all like Vietnam and then goes on to suggest how to speed the Iraqi conflict up. Retreat to northern Iraq; Saudi and Iran are forced into peace talks or the killing process is sped. Perhaps the later is a bit dramatic, but the U.S. is just slowing the process now and if we were to leave all together the region would destabilize even further. Americans may not realize what that means: a continued dependence on pricier middle eastern oil that funds destabilizing regimes.
If not Friedman, Barnett. Thomas Barnett does a great job of explaining how Iraq is not at all like Vietnam and then goes on to suggest how to speed the Iraqi conflict up. Retreat to northern Iraq; Saudi and Iran are forced into peace talks or the killing process is sped. Perhaps the later is a bit dramatic, but the U.S. is just slowing the process now and if we were to leave all together the region would destabilize even further. Americans may not realize what that means: a continued dependence on pricier middle eastern oil that funds destabilizing regimes.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Investment Mistakes
Morningstar.com - Avoid These Three Investment Mistakes
Nice review of a behavioral economics study that makes the following suggestions:
Nice review of a behavioral economics study that makes the following suggestions:
- Don't read too much into the recent past
- Realize that you don't know as much as you think you do
- Keep your winners longer and dump your losers sooner
- It's all about discipline
Easy to say, harder to implement.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Crossfit Workout
Run 400m
50 45lb Thrusters
Run 400m
50 Burpies
Run 400m
50 45lb Hanging Clean Squats
Run 400m
Time: 20:51
50 45lb Thrusters
Run 400m
50 Burpies
Run 400m
50 45lb Hanging Clean Squats
Run 400m
Time: 20:51
Naked Puts
Getting Naked With Puts - Forbes.com
A short one on writing naked puts as a way of hedging into a stock position. Helps to have a bit of understanding as to how the options work (the 4 sides to the options market, etc.), but basically, you are looking to make a slight profit as you enter a stock position, or if the price of the stock trickles up, you continue to make a small profit from your naked puts as you wait for the price of the stock to drop a bit.
Found at Investor Trip
A short one on writing naked puts as a way of hedging into a stock position. Helps to have a bit of understanding as to how the options work (the 4 sides to the options market, etc.), but basically, you are looking to make a slight profit as you enter a stock position, or if the price of the stock trickles up, you continue to make a small profit from your naked puts as you wait for the price of the stock to drop a bit.
Found at Investor Trip
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Google Reader
If you don't use Google Reader, you probably should. While I make no secret of my Google devotion and I await the day when I can drive my Google to the Google to get some Google, Google Reader is worth the time.
If you have a Gmail account, you are half way there (if not, go to www.gmail.com), just click "reader" up at the top and you are directed to the interface. Google Reader allows you to "read" RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds throughout the web. RSS is the little orange speaker icon that you'll see on almost any web page. (You might get RSS or XML instead of the speaker box, or, scroll to the bottom of this blog and you get "subscribe: atom," just another kind of RSS)
All that technical stuff aside and you're left with a way to view things that people are posting to all over the web in one place.
So, what you have to do is capture the address to those "feeds." For example, if you scrolled to the bottom of this page, right clicked on the "Subscribe: Atom" link and chose copy shortcut you have got that address. Then by clicking "Add subscription" in Google Reader you will now get my blog entries much like emails in your Google Reader.
You can do the same thing to the New York Times web site, other blogs, stock news (via Google Finance) for a specific stock, etc. Just a matter of collecting and adding these feeds. Now you don't have to surf all over the place to find the content you like.
The downside to RSS is that a lot of newspaper sites don't post the whole story to RSS, you have to click a link and view via their web site. They need those ad clicks, after all, but at least you know there is new content that you have an interest in.
Google Reader is worth the try, spend time finding feeds and you'll be glad you did. Several feeds I read are listed to the right.
If you have a Gmail account, you are half way there (if not, go to www.gmail.com), just click "reader" up at the top and you are directed to the interface. Google Reader allows you to "read" RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds throughout the web. RSS is the little orange speaker icon that you'll see on almost any web page. (You might get RSS or XML instead of the speaker box, or, scroll to the bottom of this blog and you get "subscribe: atom," just another kind of RSS)
All that technical stuff aside and you're left with a way to view things that people are posting to all over the web in one place.
So, what you have to do is capture the address to those "feeds." For example, if you scrolled to the bottom of this page, right clicked on the "Subscribe: Atom" link and chose copy shortcut you have got that address. Then by clicking "Add subscription" in Google Reader you will now get my blog entries much like emails in your Google Reader.
You can do the same thing to the New York Times web site, other blogs, stock news (via Google Finance) for a specific stock, etc. Just a matter of collecting and adding these feeds. Now you don't have to surf all over the place to find the content you like.
The downside to RSS is that a lot of newspaper sites don't post the whole story to RSS, you have to click a link and view via their web site. They need those ad clicks, after all, but at least you know there is new content that you have an interest in.
Google Reader is worth the try, spend time finding feeds and you'll be glad you did. Several feeds I read are listed to the right.
Crossfit Workout
4 times:
Run 400m
10 115lbs Hanging Power Clean
10 Pull Ups
1 Tabata Plank
1 Tabata Side Plank (4 each side)
Run 400m
10 115lbs Hanging Power Clean
10 Pull Ups
1 Tabata Plank
1 Tabata Side Plank (4 each side)
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Monday, May 7, 2007
Crossfit Workout
Afternoon:
Tabatas (8 Rounds each, 20 sec work, 10 sec rest):
Push Ups
Sumo Deadlift Highpulls
Box Jumps
Pull Ups
Wall Balls
Sit Ups
Evening:
Run 3.8 mi. (Pushed hard for first 2 mi)
Time 32:50
Tabatas (8 Rounds each, 20 sec work, 10 sec rest):
Push Ups
Sumo Deadlift Highpulls
Box Jumps
Pull Ups
Wall Balls
Sit Ups
Evening:
Run 3.8 mi. (Pushed hard for first 2 mi)
Time 32:50
Article: DoD Taping into Small Inovators
Tech Investors Cull Start-Ups for Pentagon - New York Times
The idea of connection small time technology innovators to the DoD via the Defence Venture Capital Initiative is fantastic for the small guys. That is, VC finds a good idea, can fund it, and then connect it to a HUGE buyer, the DoD. What will be interesting to watch (if one can even watch it) will be how the game gets played and what gets overlooked. What is best for DoD might not always be best from a profit or innovation standpoint.
The idea of connection small time technology innovators to the DoD via the Defence Venture Capital Initiative is fantastic for the small guys. That is, VC finds a good idea, can fund it, and then connect it to a HUGE buyer, the DoD. What will be interesting to watch (if one can even watch it) will be how the game gets played and what gets overlooked. What is best for DoD might not always be best from a profit or innovation standpoint.
Article: Bar vs. Coffehouse
The Joy of Drinking - Barbara Holland - Books - Review - New York Times
Fun one about the history of drinking and the influences of the coffee house. The adage that booze is social lubricant likely holds as true today as it did two hundred years ago, even if we have traded in whiskys for flavored vodkas.
Fun one about the history of drinking and the influences of the coffee house. The adage that booze is social lubricant likely holds as true today as it did two hundred years ago, even if we have traded in whiskys for flavored vodkas.
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Article: Live France
France - Elections - Nicolas Sarkozy - Ségolène Royal - Social Welfare - New York Times
While backed by the premise of reform after elections, the article highlights the depth of enjoyment that the French take in their lives. Perhaps many can learn from the French living to live vs. living to work or something else.
While backed by the premise of reform after elections, the article highlights the depth of enjoyment that the French take in their lives. Perhaps many can learn from the French living to live vs. living to work or something else.
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Crossfit Workout
Jog 3.8 miles,
Stop 3 times:
10 Pull Ups
20 Push Ups
30 Squats
Time 40 min.
Bought a Garmin Forerunner 305, enjoy keeping the statistics.
Stop 3 times:
10 Pull Ups
20 Push Ups
30 Squats
Time 40 min.
Bought a Garmin Forerunner 305, enjoy keeping the statistics.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Article: Small Business 101
Small Business 101: How to Get Started - New York Times
Solid collection of web sites for small businesses. Naturally, www.sba.gov is a good place to start. Additionally, www.pwcmoneytree.com is an interesting collection of venture capital distributions. While I don't know if you can bank on it, I would imagine companies that are getting VC right now have a fair chance of making it. Makes for good investment finding.
Solid collection of web sites for small businesses. Naturally, www.sba.gov is a good place to start. Additionally, www.pwcmoneytree.com is an interesting collection of venture capital distributions. While I don't know if you can bank on it, I would imagine companies that are getting VC right now have a fair chance of making it. Makes for good investment finding.
Crossfit
Today:
7 sets:
3 95lb snatches, for form
7 sets:
3 115lb cleans, for form
Tonight
6 rounds:
150m hill sprint
jog down 150m
350m flat sprint
jog 350m
7 sets:
3 95lb snatches, for form
7 sets:
3 115lb cleans, for form
Tonight
6 rounds:
150m hill sprint
jog down 150m
350m flat sprint
jog 350m
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Article: If Bush did some PR
I make no secret of my devotion to Friedman, but this piece in today's NYT is particularly good. I just wish I was reading it not as a "what if," rather, as a report on what President Bush actually said. We need to do some PR, and we need to be upfront with everyone else in the world.
In Full:
The New York Times
The Hail Mary Pass
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
On Thursday there will be a regional conference in Egypt to discuss stabilizing Iraq, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will represent the U.S. President Bush should go instead and give this speech:
I want to take this opportunity to speak to the Arab and Muslim nations gathered here today and to the world at large. I begin with a simple message: I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I rushed into the invasion of Iraq. I honestly believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. I was wrong, and I now realize that in unilaterally launching the war the way I did, you all feel that I breached a bond of trust between America and the world. Not only did that alienate you from us, it made us less effective in Iraq. We had too few allies and too little legitimacy. I apologize — sincerely.
I’m most sorry, though, because my bungling of the war has prompted all of us to take our eye off the ball. I messed up the treatment so badly that people have forgotten the patient really does have a disease. Now that I’ve apologized, I hope you will stop fixating on me and look closely at what is happening in your backyard: the forces and pathologies that brought us 9/11 are still there and multiplying.
Friends, we are losing in Iraq. But whom are we losing to? Is it to the Iraqi “Vietcong” — the authentic carriers of Iraqi nationalism? No, it is not. We are being defeated by nihilistic Islamist suicide bombers, who are proliferating across the Muslim world. We are losing to people who blow up mosques, markets, hospital emergency wards and girls’ schools. They don’t even tell us their names, let alone offer a future.
Look at the past two weeks: On Thursday, at least nine Iraqi soldiers were found dead after a suicide car bomber rammed a checkpoint. Two suicide car bombers crashed into a Kurdistan Democratic Party office in Zamar. A day earlier, a suicide bomber killed four policemen in Balad Ruz. Two days earlier, nine U.S. soldiers were killed by a pair of suicide attackers driving garbage trucks packed with explosives. A few days earlier, five bomb attacks killed nearly 200 people in Baghdad. On Monday this week, a suicide bomber blew up a funeral in Khalis, killing at least 30.
That’s 12 suicide bombers in a little over a week. And it’s been like that every month. These suicide jihadists are so hard to defeat because they have no desire to build anything. Their only goal is to make sure that America fails in its effort to bring decent, pluralistic, progressive politics to Iraq. They will kill any number of Muslims to ensure that we fail.
Do not delude yourselves that this is only about Iraq. In March, a suicide bomber blew up an Internet cafe in Morocco, and on April 10 four more suicide bombers struck there. On April 11, a pair of suicide bombers, claimed by Al Qaeda, killed 24 people or more in separate attacks in Algiers. In February, a suicide bomber in Quetta, Pakistan, blew up a courtroom, killing the judge and at least 14 other people — the sixth suicide bombing in that country in a month. Last Friday, Saudi police arrested 172 who they said were jihadists who planned to do things like flying airplanes into oil fields. On Saturday, a suicide bomber in Pakistan killed at least 28 people while trying to blow up the interior minister.
You may think that I’m more dangerous than Bin Laden and that a strong America is more dangerous than Al Qaeda. You’re wrong. If we are defeated in Iraq, they’ll come after you. They already are. And if we’re defeated in Iraq, you’ll no longer have to contend with a world of too much American power. You’ll have to contend with a world of too little American power. You will not like it.
Don’t let your anger with me blind you to your own interests. You are holding your breath until I turn blue. But I’m not going to turn blue. You are. I want to get out of Iraq as soon as possible, but I need you Arab leaders to get off the fence. I know that you fear democracy in Iraq, but the alternative is much worse. If the jihadists win, the Arab world will have no future. I need your help in forging a settlement in Iraq and in denouncing this suicide madness from every mosque and minaret every hour of every day — with no qualifications.
And to Europe, China and Russia, I also say: Get off the fence — I can’t stabilize Iraq without your help. I don’t have the resources. I know I was a jerk in stiff-arming you. Believe me, I’m over it. I’m here to listen to what you want me to do. But unless we — the world of order — all pull together now, the forces of disorder are going to have their way, and there is no wall that will protect you.
In Full:
The New York Times
The Hail Mary Pass
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
On Thursday there will be a regional conference in Egypt to discuss stabilizing Iraq, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will represent the U.S. President Bush should go instead and give this speech:
I want to take this opportunity to speak to the Arab and Muslim nations gathered here today and to the world at large. I begin with a simple message: I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I rushed into the invasion of Iraq. I honestly believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. I was wrong, and I now realize that in unilaterally launching the war the way I did, you all feel that I breached a bond of trust between America and the world. Not only did that alienate you from us, it made us less effective in Iraq. We had too few allies and too little legitimacy. I apologize — sincerely.
I’m most sorry, though, because my bungling of the war has prompted all of us to take our eye off the ball. I messed up the treatment so badly that people have forgotten the patient really does have a disease. Now that I’ve apologized, I hope you will stop fixating on me and look closely at what is happening in your backyard: the forces and pathologies that brought us 9/11 are still there and multiplying.
Friends, we are losing in Iraq. But whom are we losing to? Is it to the Iraqi “Vietcong” — the authentic carriers of Iraqi nationalism? No, it is not. We are being defeated by nihilistic Islamist suicide bombers, who are proliferating across the Muslim world. We are losing to people who blow up mosques, markets, hospital emergency wards and girls’ schools. They don’t even tell us their names, let alone offer a future.
Look at the past two weeks: On Thursday, at least nine Iraqi soldiers were found dead after a suicide car bomber rammed a checkpoint. Two suicide car bombers crashed into a Kurdistan Democratic Party office in Zamar. A day earlier, a suicide bomber killed four policemen in Balad Ruz. Two days earlier, nine U.S. soldiers were killed by a pair of suicide attackers driving garbage trucks packed with explosives. A few days earlier, five bomb attacks killed nearly 200 people in Baghdad. On Monday this week, a suicide bomber blew up a funeral in Khalis, killing at least 30.
That’s 12 suicide bombers in a little over a week. And it’s been like that every month. These suicide jihadists are so hard to defeat because they have no desire to build anything. Their only goal is to make sure that America fails in its effort to bring decent, pluralistic, progressive politics to Iraq. They will kill any number of Muslims to ensure that we fail.
Do not delude yourselves that this is only about Iraq. In March, a suicide bomber blew up an Internet cafe in Morocco, and on April 10 four more suicide bombers struck there. On April 11, a pair of suicide bombers, claimed by Al Qaeda, killed 24 people or more in separate attacks in Algiers. In February, a suicide bomber in Quetta, Pakistan, blew up a courtroom, killing the judge and at least 14 other people — the sixth suicide bombing in that country in a month. Last Friday, Saudi police arrested 172 who they said were jihadists who planned to do things like flying airplanes into oil fields. On Saturday, a suicide bomber in Pakistan killed at least 28 people while trying to blow up the interior minister.
You may think that I’m more dangerous than Bin Laden and that a strong America is more dangerous than Al Qaeda. You’re wrong. If we are defeated in Iraq, they’ll come after you. They already are. And if we’re defeated in Iraq, you’ll no longer have to contend with a world of too much American power. You’ll have to contend with a world of too little American power. You will not like it.
Don’t let your anger with me blind you to your own interests. You are holding your breath until I turn blue. But I’m not going to turn blue. You are. I want to get out of Iraq as soon as possible, but I need you Arab leaders to get off the fence. I know that you fear democracy in Iraq, but the alternative is much worse. If the jihadists win, the Arab world will have no future. I need your help in forging a settlement in Iraq and in denouncing this suicide madness from every mosque and minaret every hour of every day — with no qualifications.
And to Europe, China and Russia, I also say: Get off the fence — I can’t stabilize Iraq without your help. I don’t have the resources. I know I was a jerk in stiff-arming you. Believe me, I’m over it. I’m here to listen to what you want me to do. But unless we — the world of order — all pull together now, the forces of disorder are going to have their way, and there is no wall that will protect you.
Silverlight
Microsoft has released a new web development environment (like java or Flash) called Silverlight and from all reviews, it will be a major development for the web. Initially this will be most exciting for developers, but better content is better for the user in the end. Faster more reliable web applications on the way and my bet is that in less than a year "Sliverlight" will be as household nameish as Java, PDF, or Flash. We'll see.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/04/30/silverlight-the-web-just-got-richer/
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/04/30/silverlight-the-web-just-got-richer/
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Crossfit Workout
21-15-9:
115lb deadlift
(1) 50 ft, 75lb dumbbells, farmers walk
push ups
Run 400m
21-15-9:
75lb thrusters
(1) 50 ft, 75lb dumbbells, farmers walk
Burpies
115lb deadlift
(1) 50 ft, 75lb dumbbells, farmers walk
push ups
Run 400m
21-15-9:
75lb thrusters
(1) 50 ft, 75lb dumbbells, farmers walk
Burpies
iGoogle
I'm a heavy user of Google personalized desktop, well actually, it has just been renamed to identify with my personalized music player, it is now iGoogle. iGoogle is pretty amazing and if you are a heavy Google user it is one stop shopping.
On my iGoogle page, which has been personalized with the "beach theme," (with a geo-synchronized rising and setting sun), I've added the following gadgets: Google finance - listing stocks I'm watching, Gmail - showing all my new emails, Google Reader - showing all the new feed postings, Google Docs - where I keep a few documents that I want to be able to quickly reference at home and at work. If you used another email client, it can do that too. Pretty sophisticated once you get started and an easy way to monitor "everything" (Stocks, Email, News/Feeds, etc.) on one page.
The new name, however, is interesting.
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