January 2009 Archives

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Assorted Links 1/31/09

"Why are you just deciding to do this now?" - from Macho Sauce Productions (YouTube Channel)

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, February 10, 2009
  
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
  
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
  
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
  
• A Week With Gregory Cochran: Day Four
  
• Is bank nationalization cheaper?
  
• Confidence tricks
  
• FDR Spent Too Little; Obama Has to Spend More
  
• Ecobee's eco-saving, WiFi-enabled Smart Thermostat now available for order
  
• Hardball politics stays in the Oval
  
• The Business Jet Industry: Don't They Get It?
  
• Davos Love Fest
  
• Valley Buzz: Google's Good News and Bad News, a New Obama Techy, Glam Media's Glamorous Growth, and Michael Dell Gets an Earful at Davos
  
• Sayonara Blackwater
  
• I just flew back to the East Coast from one of the most exciting reviewing trips in my six-year-long career as The Wall Street Journal's drama critic.
  
• Charter Launches 60 Mbps Service
  
• A News Corp. Bull Throws in the Towel; WSJ Layoffs Coming?
  
• Q4 GDP Forecasts: Consensus 5.4% Decline
  
• Global Crisis Destroys 40% of World Wealth; Bailout to Hit $4 Trillion
  
• The New Bipartisanship: Vote With the Majority, or Die
  
• Visualizing the Growth of Target (Stores)

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January 31, 2009 09:57 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/30/09

Chabad House Frozen In Time.

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, February 10, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Toyota Shows Its Hypermiling iQ
• Boo!
• My Dinner with Andre in 30 seconds, re-enacted by bunnies.
• Irrational Intelligence; Get Smarter
• Che: The Ronald McDonald of Revolution
• I Just Don't Get It
• showTIME Connects Your iPhone To Any TV
• Continued Unemployment Claims at Record High
• CQ goes on the market
• Of Babies and Bathwater: Congressional Quarterly is the Healthy Bait for Rescuing the Ailing St. Pete Times
• CQ [Congressional Quarterly] is Up for Sale | Press Release
• Geithner Discusses Nationalization In $2 Trillion Bailout Proposal
• Politics (and FEC Enforcement) Make Strange Bedfellows: The Soros Book Matter
• Hi, I'm Beth, and I'm Dating an I-Banker
• At first they came for the Irish oatmeal, and no one spoke up..
• US-EU trade war looms as Barack Obama bill urges 'Buy American'
• Al-Marri is (Probably) a Terrorist -- We Should Have Tried Him
• Amazon expands as etail shrinks: Post-Meltdown sales up 18 per cent
• Reason.tv at Sundance: Shouting Fire!--First Amendment Attorney Martin Garbus on Free Speech Under Obama
• The yellow line
• How we reduced chargebacks by 30% (as a percentage of sales)
• The $300 Million Button

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January 30, 2009 07:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/29/09

How to Repaint a Jumbo Jet in 3 Minutes

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, February 10, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• How Stimulus Spending Puts the "Con" Back in Congress
• Released Gitmo detainees threaten Jews, West, Arab countries
• Madoff and his sons: walking the perp walk alone?
• Still Not Getting It
• Amazon Kindle 2 may be coming on February 9th
• House Panel Approves Cram Downs
• The case for doing nothing
• Online Publications Still Think They Can Get Away With Charging For Access
• An 18-Wheeler That Feels Like Home
• College Newspapers Finally Hit by Economic Downturn
• Stuff Journalists Like: Trends
• Let's try snow days (weeks) for legislators
• The [College] Bookstore Conundrum
• Creativity without content
• CIA station chief a serial rapist?
• The Scariest Blog Post Ever

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January 29, 2009 08:17 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

You have two cows - additions from Patrick

Here are four new "You have two cows...." from Patrick in Woodinville, Washington

DARWINISM: You have two cows. They develop opposable thumbs and milk you.

DARWINISM (social): You have two cows. They evolve to a stronger species and exterminate all humans and lesser breeds of cow because they can't produce as much milk.

ALEXANDER POPE-ISM: To err is human, to forgive bovine.

CUBISM: Fifteen shapes of varying sizes and color, the essence of cow.

For more Two Cows, see YouHave2Cows.com

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January 28, 2009 06:07 PM   Link    You Have 2 Cows    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/28/09

Agricultural Subsidies: Corporate Welfare for Farmers

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, February 10, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Into the Wild
• Shark Fin Ice Tray
• The Scourge of Redshirting. Kindergarteners... Not Athletes
• AT&T Announces First Femtocell For 3G Users
• eBay comes around, begins to realize Skype needs to go
• Eleanor Roosevelt vs. Randy Komisar on Failure
• Bi-Curious: Now we'll get to see what Obama means when he calls for "bipartisanship."
• Guantanamo’s manipulators leading the new Jihad
• Politics from the point of view of the Kennedy Clan?
• More On Criticism Of Israel
• You're Gonna Miss Me - a documentary about the musician Roky Erickson
• Dives into river on dare, jury awards $76 million
• 31 Laws of Fun
• Why local-news aggregation is useful information, not information overload
• How to Stay Sane as the Job Market Plots Against You
• Markets in everything?
• If I Were A Buddhist I Would Blow Something Up (Maybe Myself)
• Not so much mad as just really pissed off
• Deleted in Boise
• [Nation States as] Protection Rackets
• My Year in Twitter

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January 28, 2009 08:27 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Best Twitter sentence I've read the past 7 days

How to explain to someone that the attraction you feel towards them is strictly gravitational?

My Year in Twitter

January 27, 2009 08:57 PM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Glossary of Legislative Terms: "Entitlement Program"

Entitlement Program: Federal program that guarantees specific benefits to individuals, businesses, or units of government that meet eligibility requirements.

This definition is from the Glossary in our Congressional Deskbook. Perfect reference tool of Congressional jargon and procedural terms. Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael Koempel and Judy Schneider.

TheCapitol.Net offers training and a Certificate in Congressional Operations and Federal Budgeting. We show you how Washington and Congress work. ^TM

January 27, 2009 07:27 AM   Link    Tips and Terms    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/27/09

Spoof of Wall St. bailout’s plea: ‘I want some TARP’

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, February 10, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Nationalization
• CHINESE ASTROLOGY: Presented in Honor of the Lunar New Year by Nergal-Sharezer the Rabmag.
• Family Plot - Rabbi Ben Zona of Congregation Lochamei Aravim receives an email from Yasser Arafat's widow
• Who Creates the Value of Labor?
• State, War, Navy: 1917
• Obama’s Constitution
• Supporting Abortion Rights is Worse than Holocaust Denial
• The Ryan Frederick Trial, Days Four and Five

January 27, 2009 07:17 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/26/09

Billions of Taxpayer Dollars Flushed Down John Thain's 35K Commode

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Virtual or and Real
• Is Big Inflation Coming?
• Obama to Take On China?
• There are no words to describe the following. (NSFW)
• Option GlobeSurfer III 3G Wi-Fi Hotspot Has a Screen and USB Port
• ABCs & 123s on TV
• Why People Don't Want More Kids, and What It Means
• Verizon gets official with Network Extender: $249, no monthly fees
• Microsoft Zune: Down 54%

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January 26, 2009 07:17 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/25/09

Football Undercover - playing in DC on January 28, 2009 as part of Film Neu

• Old whitehouse.gov down the memory hole
• The Difference Between Clinton and Obama? Their Law Schools
• Tribal Biases and the Inauguration
• Iniquity of the fathers?
• NYC Jailhouse Blues
• Ratings, Stocks, and Credibility
• Roubini: The U.K. is NOT Iceland
• Overpaid bankers and income distribution
• What instead? 2
• GM And Toyota. A Tale Of Two Losers
• Excommunications Lifted; Media Ignorance Descends
• Scariest. Headline. Evar.
• Obamaphiles: it’s only love, and that is all
• Putting a Price on Infection
• World's Fastest Car Goes Electric
• Woman "Murdered For Facebook Status" -- Or Because Her Estranged Husband Was Nuts
• Verizon's New Weapon in the War Against Churn
• From the Recent Literature
• Slacker for BlackBerry reviewed
• Use Paypal’s free disposable credit card number to manage recurring charges
• Now…What Creates the Incentives for Such Violence? The Drugs, or the Drug Laws?
• Reason Writers Around Town: Shikha Dalmia and Henry Payne in the WSJ on How Detroit Is Betting Its Future on Washington
• Econdomonomics
• Hands-On: Striker Magnetic LED Light
• Good government agenda sails into headwinds
• Not Welcome
• Monster.com suffers database breach deja vu: Millions (more) at risk
• Al Gore And Abby Cohen Discuss The Economy

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January 25, 2009 08:37 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/24/09

"Israeli missiles using special 'baby seeking technology...'"

• Pat Metheny on Kenny G
• After Gaza: what’s behind 21st-century anti-Semitism?
• Do Contribution Limits Reduce Corruption?
• Bank Failures and Commercial Real Estate
• Time For Some Top-Down Executive Head-Smacking, Mr. President, Regarding Medical Marijuana Raids
• Frog Tape: Diaper Technology Comes To Painting
• ProCom Unvented Propane Heater
• AZ Moves to Ban Speed Cameras From Highways
• Camouflage moldy sandwich bag deters lunchroom thieves
• Friendfeed is the Next Great Blogging Platform, Here's Why...
• From Email: Fairness, Life, Secrecy, Caroline

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January 24, 2009 10:47 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/23/09

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Changefest '09 - Obama's Inaugural Speech

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Changefest '09

• The New World Order
• German Economic Intervention Has No Limits
• The Most Unpleasant Post I'll Ever Write... and It Is About World Peace
• Inflatable Gladiator Combat Set Is A Better Way To Resolve Office Conflicts
• The Guantanamo Bubble Pops
• Health Care Reform Follies
• Out of an abundance of caution....
• Obama And The Black Elite
• School Marmalade
• Class action law firm announces “investigation”
• Once a Bum, ...
• Dissent
• “We cannot allow our brand to be abused”
• The mystery of the Obama Hope photo
• No Posh DC Digs for Ted Strickland
• The 2009 Dakar Rally in photos
• Cuba: 50 Years Later
• Legislature Should Get Real (Time Energy Pricing)
• Infant calls cops to dad's dope plantation
• Early Windows Mobile 6.5 Leak Hints at New Interface, Zune Integration
• How Not to Fix the New York Times
• How To Get In Wikipedia: Get An Article Written About How You Aren't In Wikipedia
• Squirrel stew
• Copenhagen Wildlife
• Sirius XM price increases coming in March

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January 23, 2009 06:47 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/22/09

And Now, For The Portion Of The Show Where We Put A Reasonably-Priced Person In Our Star Car
Porsche GT3

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Blue Duck Tavern
• US aerospace giants stall Elon Musk's NASA deal: Can Falcon 9 overcome heavyweights' Washington pull?
• Seven reasons for healthy skepticism
• Inauguration or Coronation?
• National Association of Home Builders: Prices to Fall 29% in 2009
• $300 Memjet Prints Full Color Page In One Second
• The country's new robots.txt file
• Squirrel's dark legacy: How black variety are the descendants of one rogue American rodent
• On the Street....Red & Green, Milano
• Don't touch when you are shopping, or the new endowment effect
• McCain: Obama's newest advisor?
• Automotive Press Imitates Real Estate Drivel
• Stimulus and strings for schools
• Inaugural Hopes, Promises, and Red Ink
• Obama to Sign Cardholders' Bill of Rights
• Why do libertarians love Walmart?
• Want a Lower Broadband Bill? Maybe You Should Move

January 22, 2009 08:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/21/09

Dana, living near Sderot, Israel, explains how it feels to live with a fifteen-second warning of death-by-rocket for eight years. Dana recorded this in July 2008. After Hamas kept shooting rockets and mortars at Israeli civilian targets, Dana asked Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) to post her testimony on YouTube

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• Obama Inaugurated, Ex-Klansman Collapses
• Bush Mocked As He Arrives on Inauguration Dais
• I Pledge to Ridicule Celebrities Who Refuse to Recognize We Are At War With People Who Want to Kill Them, Too
• U.S. Stocks Slide in Dow Average’s Worst Inauguration Day Drop
• Happy Days are Here Again
• Inaugural as federal “emergency”
• Obama Inauguration Speech Ruined By Incessant Jackhammering
• Chinese Unemployment Jumps, May Hit 30 Year High
• Are TIPS or the Market Irresistibly Cheap?
• Kansas City barbecue bleg
• Rand McNally’s fabMAPs
• The day the newspaper died.
• Recession attack on charter schools
• Why You Don't Need Fancy Fitness Gadgets and Gym Memberships
• Incompetent Staff Feels Underappreciated
• Top 100 Tools for Learning 2008

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January 21, 2009 07:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/20/09

Using your age to close a big deal: Priceless

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• WMATA Rider Tools
• touching lives
• Teddy Bear Coat Looks Warm, Creepy
• No Regrets: Why I'm not sorry that George W. Bush beat Al Gore and John Kerry.
• Doom & Gloom in '09
• King and Nonviolence
• Civility Makes Strange Bedfellows
• Scenes from Dupont Circle, Take One
• Hamas and Hezbollah supporters return to Calgary's Jewish neighbourhood
• Not a Bad Idea
• It's okay to fly the flag again!
• House Prices Fall to Zero
• $5,000 Paper House is the World's Swankiest Hobo Pad
• VZW Network Extender femtocell to launch 25 January
• Rollin' in Hash
• Bloodbath in the Clouds Continues as RSS Email Service Shutters
• Hot or Not? Vocational Schools
• Bank Bailed Out, Let's Buy an Airport!
• Fiat and Chrysler

January 20, 2009 10:37 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Lobbying and Advocacy

Lobbying and Advocacy: Winning Strategies, Resources, Recommendations, Ethics and Ongoing Compliance for Lobbyists and Washington Advocates

The Best of Everything Lobbying and Washington Advocacy

By Deanna Gelak

Lobbying and Advocacy sample pages

January 19, 2009 12:37 PM   Link    Publications    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/19/09

Congress Debates Adding Elaborate Dance To Obama's Inauguration Ceremony

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• WMATA Rider Tools
• Forgetting Our Roots
• Calling all documentary filmmakers
• Excerpts from Great Powers, part 2
• Jailtime - The Only Answer!
• The Real Reason Obama Talked to the WaPo
• Obama naysayers speak out
• Flexible Displays Come Closer to the Consumer Market
• At confirmation, two views of Holder emerge
• Top Ten Reasons I Should Leave California
• Top 10 Ways to Save Money in a Recession
• What the Swedes did and did not do
• Still in love with Lang...
• TV is a poor college counselor
• 'Largest ever' hoard of iron age gold coins unearthed by a treasure hunter using a metal detector
• Ohio Governor Asks For Across The Board Union Pay Cuts
• Cyclists May Have More Osteoporosis

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January 19, 2009 07:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process

Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process

Congressional decision-making is driven by politics, policy and process. In this engaging workshop, Washington-based experts discuss these 3 P's and help you understand the complete policy-making process.

This intensive 3-day course is held in Washington, DC.

Attend a congressional hearing and see the process in action. Materials include the Early Edition of the Congressional Directory and the Training Edition of the award-winning Congressional Deskbook. This course is designed for GS-12 and above, military officers, supervisory personnel, and Leadership Development participants.

• February 11-13, 2009
• 8:30 am to 4:00 pm all three days
• More information here

. . .

January 18, 2009 12:47 PM   Link    Congress ~   Legislative Process ~   Real World Research ~   Research ~   Training    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/18/09

"Snopes Before You Send" - Please, please, please, check Snopes BEFORE you forward warning emails to everyone you know....

• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress, January 27, 2009
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process, February 11-13, 2009
• The President's Budget, February 24, 2009
• The Defense Budget, February 27, 2009
• WMATA Rider Tools
• Hysteria over Blair House
• The Commemorative Barack Obama Sunbeam
• Snopes: Obama Acceptance Speech Real Virus
• Scam O Rama: The Lads from Lagos - Advance Fee Fraud, 419 Scams
• Bird and Fortune: Silly Money (video)
• We're All Subprime Now! *
• Itty bitty banks
• Treasury/Fed: All Goldman Sachs, All the Time
• Economic Potpourri January 17, 2009
• Obama's Dangerous Detainees
• Little Trees Air Freshener Company Ads Warn People Not To Mess With Its Trademark
• The Super Awesome Right Wing News Twitter Guide For Newbies
• Being a nun is a balancing act.
• Patent Trolls Are a Symptom of Deeper Problems
• Bailout Watch 348: Jet-Gate Becomes Jet Hate
• Belkin Rep Pays For Positive Reviews of Belkin Products on Amazon
• McCaffrey on Mexico

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January 18, 2009 08:57 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Glossary of Legislative Terms: "Cost Estimate"

Cost Estimate: A Congressional Budget Office estimate of outlays from reported legislation.

This definition is from the Glossary in our Congressional Deskbook. Perfect reference tool of Congressional jargon and procedural terms. Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael Koempel and Judy Schneider.

TheCapitol.Net offers training and a Certificate in Congressional Operations and Federal Budgeting. We show you how Washington and Congress work. ^TM

January 17, 2009 09:37 AM   Link    Tips and Terms    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/17/09

Robots at War: The New Battlefield

• The American Character (see also this review)
• Fitch Foresees "Hard Landing" for China
• Worst News of the Day
• People of the Screen
• Another Yelp lawsuit
• An Education Fantasy Come True
• Countrywide: “Don’t believe everything you see on TV”
• U-Fizz Adds Carbonation To Any Drink
• Connecticut Government Bails Out Newspapers
• The Economy is Not a Machine
• Instant Coffee is Far Out, Causes Hallucinations...
• Prof. Kmiec accuses 'right wing' Catholic bloggers of character assassination
• What To Do With Terrorist Aliens?
• Surgeon General-To-Be Votes No on Pot, Will Wear Epaulets
• Where is Bernie's Trade Book? Who Were His Partners?
• China: Lunar New Year to See World’s Largest Human Migration

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January 17, 2009 09:27 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/16/09

Child Abuse in Gaza

• A Country in a Hostile Region
• Fed's Yellen: "Worldwide Recession"
• Universities as Starbucks
• FujiFilm Teams Up With The Smithsonian's National Zoo To Offer A Photo Challenge And Sweepstakes
• With Google Killing Products, Is Reader Next?
• Recommended Readings From Michael Barone
• Movies Are Your Best Entertainment Value
• Senator Cuomo looms as Dame Caroline fades
• RealtyTrac: Foreclosure Filings Increase 81% in 2008
• Stuff Journalists Like: #181 Firefox
• My “I Told You So” Post
• Do You Remember Where You Were...
• Archaeology of a hippie commune
• The Train in Spain Replaces the Plane
• Boost Mobile to offer $50 unlimited iDEN plan starting January 22nd
• Bumpits: Big Happie Hair
• No. 15.--The Emperor Penguin.
• A Tale of Two LDL's

January 16, 2009 07:27 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/15/09

Exquisite Craftsman Type Home

• Question of the Day: Best Car Ever?
• The Oldest Hatred
• From Gaza to Guantanamo
• Greenpeace Buys Land To Block New Heathrow Runway
• Cold? Throw a politician on the fire.
• He Tried Using the Fourth, But It Was Full of Holes
• Poll finds low trust in feds
• Zune 120 Review at JAMM
• What Happens When College Cafeterias Go Trayless?
• Google Adds Time Stamps, Inches Closer to Real-Time Web Search
• Why I resumed Netflix
• How to turn your MP3 player into an e-reader or easy-to-use jukebox: Rockbox’s free open source firmware
• The Power Law of Scientific Dismissiveness

January 15, 2009 11:27 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/14/09

Arab journalist: 'Israelis value human life more than we do'

• Pretty Talk and Ugly Realities
• "When you have an integrated global economy…there are not many places to hide because markets [and economies] become correlated"
• Bernanke Hints Banks, Economy In Much Worse Shape Than Previously Admitted
• What is a "Threat"?
• Anonymous Political Campaign Spending
• Who's the Partisan Hack?
• Industrial Education?
• Educator Droning
• Your Google search is killing Earth
• [Drunk] Aliens Send a Message to UK: Wind Power Sucks
• Catching the Last Train Home
• Montgomery County Changes Sanctuary Tune
• The EU getting smarter on Russia's energy supply
• Marijuana Monopoly Maintained
• Senator Corker Comes To Detroit, Cavorts With Ze Germans
• Joy Ride: 1920
• The Sashimi Tabernacle Choir, aka the Fish Volvo, aka The Most Annoying Thing Ever
• Markets in everything, Japan edition
• Dogs and Demons
• Ugly Betty, Tina Fey, and the cultural mechanics of comedy last night
• Why Text Remains King of the Web
• Windows 7 on the MacBook- runs pretty darn well
• Mouse Computer LB-F1500 netbook has a Super Multi Drive
• A New Twist On Wire Connectors
• Wavecam: A way to watch sports from a different perspective

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January 14, 2009 06:27 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Key Changes to House Rules 2009, 111th Congress

In one of the first official acts of the 111th Congress, the House adopted a Democratic package (H Res 5) setting the chamber’s rules for operation. In the resolution, adopted 242-181 on the opening day of the session, January 6, 2009, Democrats made several significant changes to previous chamber rules.

Term Limits for Committee Chairs

Elimination of the six-year term limit for committee chairmen, established in 1995 when Republicans took control of the House.

Motions to Recommit

Restrictions on the minority’s ability to order a bill reported back to committee. Under the new rules, the bills can no longer be reported back “promptly,” a vague term that has meant “never” in practice. Now, any vote to recommit an amended bill must include instructions that it be returned to the floor “forthwith,” meaning the House must vote on the amended bill within minutes.

Time Limit on Roll Calls

Rescission of a rule adopted in the 110th Congress that barred holding votes open with the intent of changing the outcome.

Pay-As-You-Go Budget Requirements

The ability to attach an emergency designation to entitlement spending bills that exempts those measures from pay-as-you-go mandates. A bill that does not meet pay-as-you-go requirements will be allowed to be linked procedurally with another piece of legislation that does have offsets. Legislation may receive an emergency designation “if such provisions are necessary to respond to an act of war, an act of terrorism, a natural disaster, or a period of sustained low economic growth.”

Medicare ‘Trigger’

Nullification, for the purposes of the 111th Congress, the requirement in the 2003 prescription drug law (PL 108-173) that if 45 percent or more of Medicare’s funding comes from general tax revenues for two years in a row, the president must submit -- and Congress debate -- legislation to slow spending.

Source: CQ Weekly, January 12, 2009

Additional Resources

• "The Motion to Recommit in the House of Representatives: Effects, Recent Trends, and Options for Change," by Megan S. Lynch, CRS Report for Congress RL34757, November 20, 2008 (28-page pdf )
• The New Congress 2009: Understanding The 111th Congress
• Capitol Hill Workshop: Politics, Policy, and Process
• The President's Budget
• Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process
• Understanding Congressional Budgeting and Appropriations
• Capitol Learning Audio Courses
  • Congress, the Legislative Process, and the Fundamentals of Lawmaking Series: How the House and Senate Establish Policy, Make Law, and Reconcile Differences, a 9-part course
  • The House Rules Committee: Gatekeeper to the Floor
  • The Appropriations Process in a Nutshell
  • Authorizations and Appropriations in a Nutshell
  • Congressional Committees and Party Leadership: Who Controls the Congressional Agenda

January 13, 2009 11:07 AM   Link    Congress    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/13/09

Toronto 2009: "Jewish child, you are gonna fuckin' die!"

• Surprise!... Hamas Supporters Use Children as Human Shields At Protests, Too (Video)
• Zandi: The "Lost Economic Decade"
• Economics the 60 Minutes Way
• Remember Obama's Pledge Not to Let Earmarks Get Into His Massive Stimulus Package?
• Comparing Recessions
• The Best of Times, the Worst of Times
• 6 Terrible Ways to Handle Getting Fired
• Obama to reverse Bush executive orders
• Advanced Nonsense: The Politics of Alternative Energy
• "The time is ripe for rethinking the First Amendment as a positive call for non-market support of a meaningful journalism"
• Stuff Journalists Like: # 10 drinking
• TT: Forty years with Nero Wolfe
• Computer keyboard you can pop in the dishwasher could eradicate superbugs in hospitals
• Manolo the Columnist
• Deaf persons on juries
• Next-Gen Prius Boasts More Power, Better Fuel Economy
• Safety Benefits of Yellow Timing Increase Documented in Denver

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January 13, 2009 07:47 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Glossary of Legislative Terms: "Discretionary Spending"

Discretionary Spending: Spending that is conrolled through annual appropriations measures. (Contrast to Direct Spending).

This definition is from the Glossary in our Congressional Deskbook. Perfect reference tool of Congressional jargon and procedural terms. Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael Koempel and Judy Schneider.

TheCapitol.Net offers training and a Certificate in Congressional Operations and Federal Budgeting. We show you how Washington and Congress work. ^TM

January 12, 2009 08:17 AM   Link    Tips and Terms    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/12/09

2007 UAV Outback Challenge

• Amazing solar-powered fridge invented by British student in a potting shed helps poverty-stricken Africans
• Border Bullies
• Federalized Air Power
• When Flattops Encountered Jets
• [CES 2009] E-Cig Makes Smoking Good For You
• The Madoff Whistleblower
• Government will create how many jobs?
• Demolition as Stimulus
• Citigroup Starts to Break Apart
• A Warning from Hamas
• Tell it to Bar-Kochba
• State Counterterror Chief Says UBL/Zawahiri 'in a Hole.'
• US Told Israel “No” When They Asked To Bomb Iran
• CAIR's Silence on Hamas
• Mexico's Bazaar of Violence
• ABG First Drive: 2010 Honda Insight, 63.4 mpg!
• Beijing Shopping (the Beijing Zoo)
• Cat Wanders Into a Live Weather Broadcast
• C.E.S. Interview: Reed Hastings of Netflix on TV’s Future
• Book Review: The Deniers
• The end of the Christmas Season
• Quality Counts Lacks Quality
• Italian priest creates iBreviary
• You Gotta Problem

. . . . . . . . .

January 12, 2009 08:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/11/09

The Realtor

• Live Audience Polling
• How to Profit From Your Country's Financial Ruin
• Bungling the Bank Bailout
• Henry And The Cape Buffalo
• Schwarzenegger's Failure
• Hey, Obama, What Happened to "Buying American?"
• Homeownership should not be subsidized
• The antithesis of anti-imperialism
• Whose war is it anyway?
• Oakland BART Officer Who Shot Pinned, Unarmed Man Resigns
• Twitter Squatters Take Over Where Domain Squatters Left Off: Resolution Policy Needed?
• After Credentials
• Clint Eastwood, admitting he voted Republican, said "but Republicans are supposed to be libertarians, aren't they?"
• Gum Disease Worsens Diabetes: Another Crazy Bernstein Idea Validated
• FDA Cracks Down on Crushed Beetles in Food

January 11, 2009 09:47 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Media Tip 18

Media Tip 18: Conduct a resource assessment. List the hardware and software you have to work with.

This tip is from our booklet, Media Relations Tips: 102 Secrets for Finding Success in Public Relations. Practical tips for anyone who works with the media, works with someone who works with the media, or who works at an organization that is covered in the media.  An easy handout for everyone in your group to make sure that they are prepared and confident if they ever have to deal with the media. 4 x 9 inches, 15 pages Based on the Media Relations Handbook, by Brad Fitch. The cover and inside pages of this booklet can be customized with your logo and information. For more information, see our Booklets page.

TheCapitol.Net offers Media Training and Communication and Advocacy Training, and is the exclusive provider of Congressional Quarterly (CQ) Executive Conferences.

January 10, 2009 11:17 AM   Link    Tips and Terms    Comments (0)

The New Congress 2009: Understanding the 111th Congress

The New Congress 2009: Understanding the 111th Congress

Held in January and February of every odd-numbered year, in this 1-day course our experienced faculty provide an overview of the new Congress and explore how major issues are likely to fare in the first session.

** Space is limited. **

WHERE: Goethe-Institut, 812 Seventh Street NW, Washington, DC

WHEN: January 27, 2009, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm

More information and secure online registration here.

January 10, 2009 07:17 AM   Link    Congress ~   Training    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/10/09

Geosystems Situational Awareness Mast (aka Zippermast)
The Little Bot that Could

• Serious Stories
• The War Against the Jews
• Economists v. Historians on the New Deal and the Great Depression
• Obama’s choice: FDR or Reagan?
• Baltimore mayor indicted on theft, perjury charges
• Office Vacancy Rates Rising
• Dems stew in botched Burris imbroglio
• The Residential Rental Market
• 'Lord of the Universe' disciple exits Wikipedia: Scientologists entrench
• The Cost Of Not Being Online
• In Defense of Carbs
• Pressure Irons
• Facebook's valuation (in Whoppers)

January 10, 2009 07:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/9/09

Branford Marsalis on students today

• Good jobs, bad jobs
• Murder in Oakland
• LAPD Pressured Coroner to Change Findings in Police Shooting
• Why Commodity Bull Eric Bolling Is Short Gold
• Commercial Delinquencies Double over last 90 days
• Roubini: Two Year Recession
• E85 Boondoggle Of The Day: Ethanol Dominates Renewable Energy Subsidies
• The Smart Grid and the Fiscal Stimulus
• Thinking about (and with Some Sympathy for) the Federal Election Commission
• Girl Talk
• How The NCAA Funds Research Into Itself
• It’s Just Cool: Dump Truck Drags
• Skype Lite Heading to Android, iPhone Not Far Off
• Does an iPhone Make You Less Productive?
• Speech recognition for Mac users
• How Singapore Sells Co-Payment
• Private jets and their image problem
• [Google Maps] Street View Finds Kidnapped Child
• Toll Trap: Why a Fee for E-ZPass is NOT a Good Idea
• No sleeping allowed in DC public libraries
• STILL for well-stocked national digital libraries--and local p-libraries, too
• Murder, Marriage, and Hamster Wheels
• Why you can't trust your gut in this market

. . . . . . . . .

January 9, 2009 07:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/8/09

Laura Nyro - - Save the Country

• Cancer and Statistical Illusion
• Fact for the Day: Toothlessness
• Talking Joe: Biden makes news
• The Problem of Media Economics: Value Equations Have Radically Changed
• Reid Is Backing Down As Fast As He Can
• College Football Star Highlights the Poverty of a Public Education Monopoly
• Three Reasons the Internet is Eroding Apple's Mojo
• More Post-Holiday Detox Diet Suggestions
• Mall Vacancies Reach 10-Year High
• Forever babies
• [CES 2009] Meade ETX-LS Telescope With LightSwitch Technology Is Actually Affordable
• Obama's wheels: Secret Service to unveil new presidential limo
• Man Demands Return of Kidney, Redefines "Messy Divorce"
• Cappuccino costs Chicago schools $67,000

January 8, 2009 07:47 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

January - February 2009 Legislative, Communication, and Media Training from TheCapitol.Net

January - February 2009 Legislative, Communication, and Media Training from TheCapitol.Net

Our latest email update:
http://www.thecapitol.net/PublicPrograms/email2009/email_2009_January6.html

Also see our Audio Course Bundles, money-saving packages of our popular Capitol Learning Audio Courses.

TheCapitol.Net, Inc.
>> Exclusive provider of Congressional Quarterly Executive Conferences.
>> Non-partisan training and publications that show how Washington works. TM

January 7, 2009 10:07 AM   Link    Training    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/7/09

Karl Haas (1913-2005), host of "Adventures in Good Music"

• Havoc
• Cut the Waste - Tres Chic!
• The Stimulus: Price and Process (A.B. Stoddard)
• Prisoners against the Stimulus
• Fed Fears Long Recession
• Factory Orders Tumble, Retail Sales Fall, Foreclosure Sales Triple
• Department of No
• CES 2009 Preview: Whole-home 1080p60 HD via Wi-Fi
• Bailout Watch 321: UAW Boss: “GM, Chrysler May Not Need More Bailout Bucks”
• On the Street....Pink & Grey, Paris
• Nearly Instant Messaging - "Call Us When the Net Goes Down"
• Clay Shirky on traditional media: "2009 is going to be a bloodbath."
• Madoff mess raises interesting white-collar bail issues
• Switching to MyFax (from eFax)
• Burris, Rejected by Senate, 'Weighs Options'
• Murkowski Would Crush Palin
• Help Me Explain Twitter to Eggheads
• A farewell to Quaker
• PBS in Action
• Nothing new in black & white
• Tips for discovering the best local eateries around the world
• What's It Like To Race A Motorcycle-Engined Geo Metro?
• Best Buy punts resurrected Jesus Phones
• Is the iPhone’s small screen actually better for e-reading? And how about Stanza-ePub for newspaper reading?
• Lowering the Bar “Best of 2008″ (legal humor)
• Is Kids' Openness About Risky Activities Good Or Bad?

January 7, 2009 07:17 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/6/09

No one talks about Jewish refugees in the Middle East. Because Israel resettled them. Also see "Zbig on the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict"

• Orwell, blinding tribalism, selective Terrorism, and Israel/Gaza
• Ignoring the Oracles: You Are With the Free Markets, or Against Them
• Mitch McConnell Suddenly Determines That When It Comes to Bailouts and Stimulus Packages, More Time Is Better Than Less
• Why being President-elect is a difficult job
• Nuclear Proliferation, One More Thing to Read About and Worry About
• No Permanent Majorities in America
• How the system works
• The Last Lecture, from Victor Niederhoffer
• Japanese Delivery Bikes Feature Bowl Balancing Contraptions
• Comcast's Internet Slowdown System Fully Armed and Operational (and Avoidable)
• Does Matt Labash Have The Best Job In Journalism?
• Credit Crisis Indicators: Improvement
• Where is the geographic center of Johnny Cash's moral and musical universe?
• The Incredible Shrinking Air-Traffic System
• What’s the Best Netbook for the Price Right Now?
• Dancing With The Router
• The long tail
• The Mitsubishi LaserVue Makes HDTV Better With Lasers

. . . . . . . . .

January 6, 2009 07:37 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/5/09

Darwin Award Dimwits 2 - Attack of the Dimwit

• 2008 Darwin Awards
• Israel Eyes a "Real and Serious Lesson"
• Burris puts Senate Dems in tough spot
• The Illinois Senate Appointment and the Reach of Powell v. McCormack
• Beware the Necco Smoothie
• eBay Find of the Day: 1982 Ford Escort Exp EV
• Global Corporate Profits to Drop in ’09; More Bankruptcies Loom
• The Austrian and Chicago Schools
• A bad idea whose time has come--to go away!
• 44 States Face Huge Budget Shortfalls
• Chicago Fed Says Take Interest Rates "Below Zero" and Monetize Debt (to Devalue Dollar)
• New Home Sales and Unemployment
• Private Jet Indicator, from James Sogi (More fuel-efficient planes expected to hold value)
• Taxi strategies to beat the scams
• How a Customized F-150 Portends Immigration Trends
• What is gluttony and why is it a sin?
• Having a holy tongue
• "Court action sought on Massey-Benjamin; Brief asks justices be barred from voting on cases involving large campaign contributors"
• Consumer Reports takes a look at cell phone based GPS
• “Is Google’s culture grab unstoppable?” - editorial in The Register
• 12 Changes For 2009
• Choping
• Learn about Different Screw Types
• Copenhagen Aerodynamics
• Harry Reid is a racist
• Loose change
• Orville Wright Did Not Have A Pilot's License
• Nick Gillespie on Why Joseph Priestley, "The Father of Modern Chemistry," Was A Gas

. . . . . . . . .

January 5, 2009 08:17 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Glossary of Legislative Terms: "Colloquy"

Colloquy: Discussion between members during floor proceedings, generally to put on the record a mutual understanding about the intent of a provision or amendment. The discussion is usually scripted in advance.

This definition is from the Glossary in our Congressional Deskbook. Perfect reference tool of Congressional jargon and procedural terms. Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael Koempel and Judy Schneider.

TheCapitol.Net offers training and a Certificate in Congressional Operations and Federal Budgeting. We show you how Washington and Congress work. ^TM

January 4, 2009 12:27 PM   Link    Tips and Terms    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/4/09

Wingsuit Flying from Ali on Vimeo.

• The Best and Worst of Gmail Labs
• Transparent Duct Tape Is Like Something Out Of Star Trek IV
• Museum of Communism
• The AIG Story: A Brief Introduction
• Senate Has No Right Not to Seat Roland Burris, Despite Blagojevich
• Cory Booker - Wikipedia
• London's Mayor Issues a Challenge to Gordon Brown
• VoIP: Dead or Alive?
• Gangs rule over the most crime-free America in decades
• For the Supreme Court, Tradition Is on Tap at Inaugural
• Optimate 4 Battery Charger is loaded with features and lights, but is more better?

. . . . . . . . .

January 4, 2009 08:57 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/3/09

The Pelosi GTxi SS/RT, Take 2, from Congressional Motors

• Republicans to flee DC for inauguration
• How "Something For Nothing" Ideas Become Policy
• The Madoff scandal widens
• The art market bubble
• What Do TV Anchors Do During Commercials?
• The value of a Nobel prize
• Boardwalk Boondoggle Express
• Losing Sleep Isn't a Useful Signal of Worth
• down for everyone or just me?
• Even Lawmakers Warned on Security for Obama's Inauguration
• Joint Committee on the Inaugural Ceremony
• What's the Difference Between a Recession and a Depression?
• A Look at the “New” GMAC From the Sharp End

. . . . . . . . .

January 3, 2009 08:37 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/2/09

Dianne Lennon (of the Lennon sisters) and Steve Smith, on the Lawrence Welk Show. "Very excellent"
Ah, those were the days. Cf. "Wun'erful, Wun'erful" by Stan Freberg (mp3 sample)

• Find Decaf Impostors With These Handy Strips
• No Bailouts to "Save" Industries
• Oh, Yeah: Bailouts for Newspapers!
• Science, Perverted
• Four Bad Bears: End of Year Update
• Life With The Duchess
• Accidents Double at Houston Red Light Camera Locations
• Bosphorous
• Weightbot Tracks Your Weight with Pretty Graphs, Friendly Interface
• A 16-year old enjoys Per Se
• More ‘gappers’ postpone college
• Land of Lincoln
• Netanyahu On Gaza and Hamas; Dershowitz on Moral Idiocy
• Middle Class Consumers?
• The Good News from a Bad Year
• We Drive Traffic To Your Web Site
• The current state of diabetes treatment

. . . . . . . . .

January 2, 2009 08:07 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)

Assorted Links 1/1/09

Reel Geezers- 2008 DVD movies

• “By 2060 the total population of humans on earth will be less than it is today.”
• Asus launches the Eee PC 900SD, now with less storage
• Chess is now a young man's game
• Office Rents off as much as 25% in New York
• What are the Chances of a Depression in 2009?
• Guy Tries To Pay $1.50 In Missed Sales Tax, Gets Threatened With Fines, Criminal Charges
• DIY biohackers in the news
• Go out on a limb and give us your boldest political prediction for 2009
• Another eBook reader- BeBook: phones work better
• 30GB Zunes all over the world fail en masse
• Shocker! Up to $2,500 a year said to be saved by a family of four borrowing 10 public library items a month
• On the Street....The Right Fit DB, NYC
• Angels, demons, teachers and auto workers
• The Post Prepares For Inauguration
• 73.4 Percent of All Wikipedia Edits Are Made By Roughly 1,400 People
• RAM Mount Plastic Universal Side Clamping Cradle Small (RAM-HOL-UN1 - 1.5-2.6) | Medium (RAM-HOL-UN2 - 2.2-3.75) | Large (RAM-HOL-UN3U - 2.3 - 3.3) | Large (RAMHOLUN2)
• Need A Ride Home? Zingo’s There For You
• Oh to Be Young Again
• The Best Free Web Apps for 2008
• Top 100 Products of 2008
• About "Twitter Means Business"
• 6 New Web Technologies of 2008 You Need to Use Now

. . . . . . . . .

January 1, 2009 12:37 AM   Link    Caught Our Eye    Comments (0)