DavidUsher

Study: Class size doesn’t matter - The Washington Post

2012-01-30T10:45:00.000-05:00

Well worth a read, although specifically focused on studies done in New York City. (Full 48-page report not readily available to the general public.) Thousands of studies have been done to show what's wrong with K-12 education and how to fix it. Will this one also wind up in the education reform dustbin? Knowing what works and penetrating the status-quo inertia of the present system is a

Barnes & Noble, Taking On Amazon in the Fight of Its Life - NYTimes.com

2012-01-30T08:52:00.000-05:00

I believe print books will become a niche market in just a few years. Why do I say that? Look at the music industry and realize that the CD is a dying breed. As young people have grown up with electronic devices, it's only natural for them to read on the devices as well as listen and view. Whether 'books' in the traditional long form survive as a popular format remains to be seen because

Sixteen Concerned Scientists: No Need to Panic About Global Warming - WSJ.com

2012-01-27T17:13:00.000-05:00

Bravo for these scientists' and engineers' willingness to speak out about climate change and for the WSJ to publish their statement. The climate is always changing, sometimes slowly and sometimes more rapidly. When advocates for rant about 'doing something' to control climate change, my first question is "What is the average temperature of the earth that you would like to reach?" With that

Camapign for Vermont Electric/Energy Policy Statement

2012-01-27T14:12:00.002-05:00

We are beginning to see some policy positions from Bruce Lisman's Campaign for Vermont Prosperity. Here is an excerpt from a recent statement about energy and electricity. There's another by Jeanne Keller recently issued about Vermont's health care direction. So far, I like what I'm reading. Whether the Campaign can generate momentum for a different direction remains to be seen because so

Google, Look Out Behind You! | TechCrunch

2012-01-27T07:12:00.001-05:00

Worth a read to understand one guru's view of the battle royal between Google, Apple and Facebook. (No mention of Microsoft) in light of Apple's 'blow 'em away' earnings reported last quarter. Apple's profit was greater than Google's revenue! In summary, it's all about mobile and the absolute control that Apple has over its ecosystem of devices and software to control the customer experience. I

North Korea threatens to punish mobile-phone users as 'war criminals' - Telegraph

2012-01-27T06:56:00.000-05:00

The leaders of North Korea are so far removed from reality as to be considered fools. How does the world negotiate with fools, nuclear fools at that?"North Korea has warned that any of its citizens caught trying to defect to China or using mobile phones during the 100-day mourning period for Kim Jong-il will be branded as "war criminals" and punished accordingly."

Judge Rules Vermont's Legislature has Overreached ...Yet Again

2012-01-20T09:01:00.000-05:00

The decision yesterday by U.S. District Judge Murtha in the case brought by Entergy against the State of Vermont is a clear victory for the plaintiff and one more rebuff of Vermont's Legislature for making laws that are unconstitutional. Vermont Attorney General Sorrell sits in an even darker shadow for apparently failing to provide proper legal guidance to the Legislature at the time these laws

No Anti-Corporate Amendment to the Constitution

2012-01-19T12:45:00.001-05:00

In Vermont we are watching an effort led by various liberal/socialist elements to amend the Constitution in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision in the Citizens United case. We have slogans such as "Money is not speech," "a corporation is not a person" and others to gin up the emotions of their followers. We see State Senators (Lyons & Campbell) leading rallies calling for a resolution

Recession in 2012? Likely Says Hoisington Investment Management Company

2012-01-18T08:59:00.002-05:00

Report by Hoisington Investment Management Company This report is commented on by John Mauldin in his 'Outside the Box' newsletter this week and is also referenced in "The Big Picture" blog/newsletter by Martin Rithotlz "...In highly indebted countries, governments have expansively taken resources from the private sector through taxing and borrowing. This leaves the private sector with less

The Rise of the New Groupthink - NYTimes.com

2012-01-16T09:14:00.000-05:00

Support for the creative introvert! Groups are useful for some tasks, but truly useful work gets done when people can focus quietly and itently on the problem or issue they are working on. Bouncing ideas off other people is essential, but inwardly motivated people do better with periods of solitude, deep thinking and intense work. They may participate in crowd-sourcing, but their

Justices Recognize ‘Ministerial Exception’ to Job Bias Laws - NYTimes.com

2012-01-12T07:57:00.000-05:00

Thankfully, the Supreme Court rejected the Executive Branch arguments that a religious group should be viewed the same as any other organized group of people under civil rights legislation and administration policy. This decision shows that the Constitution clearly protects freedom of religion and trumps the desire of the Congress or the Executive to meddle in non-secular affairs. "Many

Slow Job Recovery - More Technology, Less Labor

2012-01-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

(Chart courtesy of "The Big Picture " blog (Ritholtz); originally from thechartstore.com) The chart below shows that the recovery from this Great Recession as measured in jobs is considerably slower than the composite of all periods since WWII. Why is this? My reading and observation convinces me that we are in a period of what I'll call rapid digital productivity (RDP). We have been

Embezzlement BFP Editorial DJU Response 010212 - Google Docs

2012-01-09T08:58:00.000-05:00

My comments below published on Sunday, January 8, 2012 on the Burlington Free Press Forum Page with the headline "Transparency Won't Stop Embezzlers." "Your editorial on Friday, December 30, 2011 (“As a matter of trust, state must guard public welfare”) incorrectly conflates a lack of government information transparency with state government’s failure in its responsibility to have prevented

Why Islamism Is Winning - NYTimes.com

2012-01-07T17:04:00.000-05:00

This piece makes sense. We may not like it, but the Islamist revival in some of those countries that experienced the 2011 Arab Spring may well turn into an Arab Winter. "...Political Islam, especially the strict version practiced by Salafists in Egypt, is thriving largely because it is tapping into ideological roots that were laid down long before the revolts began. Invented in the 1920s by

Internet Access Is Not a Human Right - NYTimes.com

2012-01-05T07:16:00.000-05:00

Mr. Cerf is absolutely correct in his view about the Internet. It is certainly not a human right, and arguably not a civil right, important as it is to our personal and social well-being. The same rationale applies to health care. Despite the recent campaign here in Vermont by the The Workers Center, health care is not a human right. Unfortunately too many Vermont legislators believe that

Google's New Year resolution must be Android's virtualization | ZDNet

2012-01-04T16:09:00.000-05:00

Google should fix this problem right away. While Android is an 'open' platform, to deny end users updates for their phones because of a lack of coordination between Google, phone manufacturers and carriers is a problem that should have been solved by now. This creates unnecessary ill will, finger-pointing and customer frustration "...If this Android fragmentation and update problem is left

Building Storehouses for the Sun’s Energy, for Use After Dark - NYTimes.com

2012-01-03T17:01:00.000-05:00

This approach seems sensible and likely to succeed because energy storage has always been the problem with renewable sources like the wind and the sun. However, it's probably only viable for those portions of the grid served by very high sunlight locations, i.e., the Southwest. Unlikely that this technology would ever be viable in the northeast U.S. or the Pacific Northwest where

Nobody Understands Debt - NYTimes.com

2012-01-02T09:54:00.000-05:00

Nobody Understands Debt - NYTimes.com Krugman is the ultimate Keynesian, even winning a Noble prize for his work. He seems also to posess a massive ego because he's so certain that he's right! But what if he and the Keynesians are wrong? I'm no economist, but I think he's wrong about government spending and debt because today's and tomorrow's economy is unlike that of the past where the theory

Questions About Organic Produce and Sustainability - NYTimes.com

2011-12-31T12:59:00.000-05:00

The 'organic' fad may not be sustainable as demand for products year-round seems to be creating an environmental strain in those areas where factory-scale organic farms supply U.S. supermarkets. I think 'organic' foods have not been demonstrated to provide health benefits that justify their high prices. Instead, 'organic' serves mostly as emotional comfort food for those who can afford it.

The Anti-Entitlement Strategy - NYTimes.com

2011-12-27T10:57:00.000-05:00

Romney has set out his ideas about the role of government in our lives. Should Romney be the Republican candidate facing Obama, his stance of the proper role of (big) government will be a key element in the ideological battle to be waged. With Romney as the Candidate, it'll be Wall Street Baron vs. Community Organizer and all the baggage those terms carry. Already the liberal opinionators

A Gloomy New Year and Beyond

2011-12-26T11:36:00.000-05:00

Much of my current reading promotes little optimism for the future of the United States economy, at least as it is defined by job creation and employment. The viability of our present political system, long term, is doubtful. We seem to be dysfunctional in many domains including economic, political, and cultural aggravated by a leadership vacuum that portends little positive change for the

How Harvard Shaped Mitt Romney - NYTimes.com

2011-12-25T06:58:00.000-05:00

Could we read anecdotes and vignettes from President Obama's years as a college student? Are there none or are they being suppressed? "...Invited to give a presentation on balancing work and family, he [Mitt Romney] began by telling students that they were like multinational corporations, recalled Clayton M. Christensen, who organized the event. “You have the same question as General Electric,”

The Browser Wars 2010-2011

2011-12-24T10:31:00.000-05:00

What a difference a year makes in the browser world! I use Chrome mostly with occasional forays into Firefox and Internet Explorer. IE continues to lose market share to Chrome while Firefox and Safari are relatively stable.

BP abandons solar quest - MarketWatch First Take - MarketWatch

2011-12-21T17:11:00.000-05:00

Smart business people make rational economic decisions. Kudos to BP. Meanwhile, politicians pander to the alternative energy proponents and spend our tax dollars to do it. A lump of coal for them this Christmas. "...Despite all the negative fallout from its 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, BP has had huge success developing deepwater oil fields around the world. This, combined with high oil prices

Tribe Believes that SOPA Violates the First Amendment

2011-12-21T14:46:00.000-05:00

I haven't been following the ins and outs of the proposed SOPA legislation, but I hope to read this respected legal opinion when times are quieter. Tribe Legis Memo on SOPA 12-6-11 1 (function() { var scribd = document.createElement("script"); scribd.type = "text/javascript"; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = "http://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js"; var s =

AT&T Drops T-Mobile USA Deal - WSJ.com

2011-12-19T17:31:00.000-05:00

Do 'go-backward' plans exist? 'Go-forward' plans must be the current 'corporate speak.' "T-Mobile USA chief executive Philipp Humm urged his staff Monday to remain upbeat. "We have an opportunity to write our own future," he wrote in an internal memo. "The leadership team and I will be meeting intensively in the next few weeks on our 'go-forward' plans for the business.""

IBM's 2011 Big Five Predictions

2011-12-19T09:54:00.000-05:00

Congress Occupied Wall Street First!

2011-12-16T16:24:00.000-05:00

Think what you will about Sarah Palin who has taken a back seat to others in the media recently. Congress is a problem that needs a remedy. Here's the reasons why. I have always laid blame with Congress rather than the President for our fiscal pain because they are in control of spending under our Constitution. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ How Congress Occupied Wall Street

Amazon: We're selling over 1 million Kindles per week | Nanotech - The Circuits Blog - CNET News

2011-12-16T16:13:00.000-05:00

Amazon seems to have struck a sweet spot with consumers, leading to rumors that Apple will launch a similar sized tablet sometime next year. I have a Kindle Fire and it performs as advertised. I can do what I want with it as long as I'm tolerant of its quirks. It's not fat finger friendly, but tolerable. I don't regret shelling out the 200 bucks for it. It's quick, quirky and easy to use. Could

Google Working On Siri Response Codenamed Majel; Aiming For End of Year Release

2011-12-14T17:14:00.000-05:00

I love it! The computing horsepower provided by the cloud enables this wonderful world of voice activation for all that we seek to know and do! Go Apple! Go Google! Go Microsoft! "“Our approach is more like Star Trek, right, starship Enterprise; every piece of computing surface, everything is voice-aware. It’s not that there’s a personality, it doesn’t have a name, it’s just Computer.”"

Gmail Calling Stays Free Through 2012 | PCWorld

2011-12-14T16:16:00.000-05:00

Wonderful, useful, and Google Voice remains FREE for another year! I love it. "...The main difference between Gmail and Skype is that Google allows users to call mobile phones and landlines for free, whereas Skype only allows free calls to other Skype accounts. Skype, however, offers mobile apps for calling other users. Google doesn't offer any free voice calling on mobile phones. Both services

Speed of Light Lingers in Face of M.I.T. Media Lab Camera - NYTimes.com

2011-12-13T16:01:00.000-05:00

In the early 1960s, I worked in a laboratory that used Doc Edgerton's ultra high speed strobe lights to measure the elongation (and breaking strength via deflection of a pendulum of know mass and period) of nylon cargo parachute webbing. It was a simple method to capture stretching/elongation characteristics of the various webbing samples sent to us by the Army and the Air Force. We set up a

The Gingrich Tragedy - NYTimes.com

2011-12-09T05:21:00.000-05:00

Now that Mr. Gingrich has surged in the polls and is now the front runner, the gloves are coming off as the Republican 'establishment' aims to take him down a peg or two. Noonan in the Wall Street Journal today and here by David Brooks. Fascinating to observe this pre-primary battle for the Republican nomination. Lots of hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth as we watch Democracy at work! It is

The Health Risks Of Being Left-Handed - WSJ.com

2011-12-08T03:36:00.000-05:00

The Health Risks Of Being Left-Handed - WSJ.com: A fascinating story in the WSJ (may be behind the paywall) about the research and implications of left-handedness. "•Six of the last 12 U.S. presidents, including Barack Obama and George H. W. Bush, have been lefties.• Left-handed people earn on average 10% lower salaries than righties, according to a recent study. Findings of some earlier

Blagovich Sentenced!

2011-12-07T14:30:00.001-05:00

Bravo! Seems justice has been done. from the Wall Street Journal (may be behind the paywall): "A federal judge sentenced former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to 14 years in prison nearly three years after he was arrested and charged with a wide-ranging corruption spree that included trying to auction off President Barack Obama's former Senate seat.Mr. Blagojevich, a onetime rising star in

The Eurozone 's Stark Choices

2011-12-04T08:36:00.001-05:00

Below is an excerpt from writings of John Mauldin, a financial analyst which sums up the choices facing the EuroZone. December 9 is shaping up as a very big day for Europe and world financial markets. "...Merkel and Sarkozy have told us they will meet Monday and announce a plan on December 9, when the full eurozone meets. Forget bazookas, this needs the equivalent of a

Internet Access and the New Divide - NYTimes.com

2011-12-04T06:11:00.001-05:00

This story begins with a recounting that Cyber Monday's online sales volume in 2011 exceeded that of Black Friday's retail sales setting a new record. I thought I'd read about the good news that America's online experience was only getting better. Nope. We've got to do better... "Such numbers may seem proof that America is, indeed, online. But they mask an emerging division, one that has

The Personal Computer Is Dead - Technology Review

2011-12-01T10:55:00.001-05:00

A lawyer/technolgist's take on the swing to 'closed gardens' of smartphones, particularly Apple's practices and how different the present and future is from the 'old' days of the open PC. Will government step in or is competition sufficient to keep the markets open? "The PC is dead. Rising numbers of mobile, lightweight, cloud-centric devices don't merely represent a change in form factor.

Stocks Surge After Central Banks’ Action on Debt Crisis - NYTimes.com

2011-11-30T16:48:00.001-05:00

Sounds like another big bank bailout to me! Let's see what all the talking heads have to say. "“They are trying to prevent them from seizing up global liquidity and capital flows and impacting banks and financial institutions throughout the world,” he said. Burt White, the chief investment officer for LPL Financial, called the liquidity move “a Band-Aid.” “It helps to prop up the banks for a

Radio Interview with a High School Classmate

2011-11-30T16:35:00.001-05:00

A fascinating radio interview with a high school friend, Michael Manoogian, who went to the RI School of Design then moved to LA to become a first rate logo designer. Listen to internet radio with Help 2 Succeed on Blog Talk Radio

U.S.Now a Net Exporter of Oil-Based Fuels

2011-11-30T09:21:00.001-05:00

[This story is behind the WSJ paywall, so access may be limited] An interesting and potent development for the U.S., a net importer of refined oil-based products for more than 60 years. I wonder about the economics of this. We are still a huge importer of crude oil at 9 million barrels per day. Yet, after refining, we turn an increasingly larger portion of that into exported products like

Secret Fed Loans Helped Banks Net $13B - Bloomberg

2011-11-29T06:40:00.001-05:00

A fascinating, well researched story by Bloomberg of the massive bailout of banks during the 2008-2009 financial crisis and the secrecy surrounding it. Kudos to Bloomberg and their authors and editors for doing this. Clearly, the financial system was in jeopardy at the time and bold action was necessary. It's the secrecy that surrounded it that we find so egregious along with the fact that far

Banks Build Contingencies for Euro Zone Breakup - NYTimes.com

2011-11-26T16:38:00.001-05:00

Markets rule, not Governments! "On Friday, Standard & Poor’s downgraded Belgium’s credit standing to AA from AA+, saying it might not be able to cut its towering debt load any time soon. Ratings agencies this week cautioned that France could lose its AAA rating if the crisis grew. On Thursday, agencies lowered the ratings of Portugal and Hungary to junk. While European leaders still say there is

The Two Moons - NYTimes.com

2011-11-22T06:16:00.001-05:00

David Brooks provides a clear explanation of the political funk we're in, but fails to to offer a way out, except via a fiscal calamity. "...Ronald Brownstein summarized the underlying typography recently in The National Journal: “In Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor polls over the past two years, up to 40 percent of Americans have consistently expressed support for the conservative

xkcd: Money Chart

2011-11-22T05:54:00.000-05:00

xkcd: Money Chart: A hat tip to The Big Picture for this massive money chart. Check out xkcd.com website to see various comical stuff if you enjoy their humor.

How Do You Spell Dysfunctional?

2011-11-21T20:15:00.001-05:00

BULLSHIT is the proper noun for this statement from the co-chairs of the Select/Special/Super Committee charged with finding $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction in the next 10 years as reported in the WSJ (see below). Obama is the easy target, but it's our Congress that has failed us. No visible leadership will stand up and vote what must be done to correct our fiscal path. The only credible

VJ Day Video in Hawaii

2011-11-20T07:42:00.001-05:00

A special thank-you to my childhood friend, Mike, now an accomplished graphics artist, for sharing this superb video of the spontaneous celebration when the news broke in August 1945 that Japan had surrendered after years of of bitter warfare in the Pacific region. As a child, I distinctly remember my father celebrating by blasting the leaves off a tree in the yard with his shotgun. America

Search can't scale without social, and Bing has Facebook and Twitter on its side | TechRepublic

2011-11-15T06:37:00.000-05:00

The massive amount of information that humankind creates is becoming evermore difficult for search engines to master. This story examines what Bing and Google are up to to. " throughout all of human history up until 2003 we created 5 exabytes of data (five billion gigabytes). We now create that much every day. In 2011, we’ll create 1.8 zettabytes of data (a zettabyte is a 1000 exabytes). That’s

Face Recognition Moves From Sci-Fi to Social Media - NYTimes.com

2011-11-13T11:01:00.000-05:00

People have no inherent right to anonymity that I can find in our Constitution. Nevertheless, we all hope that we can have it in this electronic age. In my view, our anonymity evaporated the day we ordered Caller ID or began participating on the Internet. You can pretend to be anonymous, but that's a pipe dream given today's data mining technology. "...As SceneTap suggests, techniques like

A Gold Rush of Subsidies in Clean Energy Search - NYTimes.com

2011-11-13T09:37:00.000-05:00

Corporate welfare based more on ideology than realistic economics is not good for America's fiscal health. Any policy that builds in a no-fail parameter is simply bad public policy, except for projects that are for the military, or health, or the environment, or... pick your favorite. "...The government support — which includes loan guarantees, cash grants and contracts that require electric

Scuffer Syndrome Ends

2011-11-12T13:55:00.001-05:00

Our male Airedale Terrier, Scuffer (age 9), several years ago was infected with Lyme Disease. The primary symptom was an inability to walk normally. His rear end would not function properly and he would drag himself along with mostly his fore legs. This 2006 video shows how it affects him.He also will sometimes cry in pain when he moves. He had a few episodes of this starting in 2005, but for the

Italy Struggles with Austerity, Growth, Debt and New Leadership

2011-11-12T11:09:00.001-05:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/13/world/europe/silvio-berlusconi-resign-italy-austerity-measures.html Italy's politics are far more complicated than ours. This brief summary of the austerity and stimulus measures shows how deeply ingrained is patronage and spending. Italy would benefit enormously if people just paid their legitimate taxes. It's estimated that tax avoidance/evasion in the '

The Inequality Map - NYTimes.com

2011-11-11T10:29:00.000-05:00

I had never experienced the humorous side of David Brooks. This is hilarious AND poignant. "Foreign tourists are coming up to me on the streets and asking, “David, you have so many different kinds of inequality in your country. How can I tell which are socially acceptable and which are not?”" 'via Blog this'

Obama Administration Delays Decision on Keystone XL Pipeline - NYTimes.com

2011-11-11T07:22:00.000-05:00

TeamObama punts an important decision, seemingly for political reasons. Will the real leaders please stand up? "“I support the State Department’s announcement today regarding the need to seek additional information about the Keystone XL pipeline proposal,” the president said in a statement. “Because this permit decision could affect the health and safety of the American people as well as the

European economies: Europe's deepening crisis | The Economist

2011-11-11T07:07:00.000-05:00

European economies: Europe's deepening crisis | The Economist: Contains a map of Europe including the Euro zone and how other countries' currencies are connected ...or not. Norway, Switzerland and Great Britain seem less affected. 'via Blog this'

Google Buys Contextual Rich News Browsing Startup Apture To Beef Up Chrome | TechCrunch

2011-11-10T17:16:00.000-05:00

My blog incorporates Apture. Highlight a word or phrase and Apture will enable you to click on other media sources to increase the richness of the content. It's a really robust service. Google is wise to buy them and incorporate their technology. "Apture Highlights allows you to highlight any word or phrase on a page and instantly bring up search results in a window. The startup brings results

The Affordable Housing Scam - Reason Magazine

2011-11-10T15:16:00.000-05:00

The Affordable Housing Scam - Reason Magazine: John McClaughry's excellent review of the recent book, Reckless Endangerment, provides a realistic appraisal of the leaders, groups and and policies that moved the appealing notion of expanding home ownership as a part of the American Dream to the near-collapse of the banking system and the economy. This is well worth reading for a thumbnail sketch

Taking Aim at Internet Rules - NYTimes.com

2011-11-10T11:35:00.001-05:00

The New York Times supports more regulation of the Internet pathways that are provided by private companies. Thankfully, they are not owned by the Government. These are not monopolies and the heavy hand of regulation is not needed. The term 'telecommunications services' that they argue includes the Internet is an artifact of a bygone age when voice communications were essentially a monopoly,

Bailey: Are Super PACs to political parties as asteroids were to dinosaurs?

2011-11-08T09:00:00.001-05:00

The fundamental truth in all this is that ‘money is the mother’s milk of politics.’ Always has been and will continue to be. The present system of political parties adds great comfort to the politicians and voters who embrace them. Politicians have a source of ideological and financial support and too many voters are relieved of the responsibility of thinking for themselves. When information and

End Bonuses for Bankers - NYTimes.com

2011-11-08T07:32:00.002-05:00

I favor less regulation rather than more for most business activity, but the Wall Street bailouts by the Federal government have persuaded me that this has led to yet more severe excesses in the finance sector. Taleb's simple proposal makes eminently good sense. The bonus excesses, particularly in 2010, simply are not warranted given the bailout these bankers received during the collapse of the

Excerpt: Mike Mayo's Exile on Wall Street - WSJ.com

2011-11-07T17:10:00.001-05:00

A recently popular opinion from one of the few analysts who early on called out the banking sector for too-risky investments/activities and was chastised for it before the bottom fell out of bank stocks and the financial crisis precipitated by their house of cards. "To fix the banking sector, should we rely more on government regulation and oversight or let the market figure it out? Tougher

Milton Friedman on Capitalism and the Nature of Man

2011-11-05T16:42:00.000-04:00

Milton Friedman understood the fundamental nature of man and his arguments for the economic/political system they should live under...capitalism... is only rebutted by idealists, who wish for something different, not realists. The argument is really about which worldview one embraces: a.) man is inherently good and with the proper governance, can become better; or b.) man is fundamentally

United States Headed for Massive Decline in Carbon Emissions

2011-11-05T15:32:00.001-04:00

This would appear to be good news, but how much of the carbon reduction is from the economic slowdown vs. serious efforts to reduce emissions?"For a country where oil and coal use have been growing for more than a century, the fall since 2007 is startling. In 2008, oil use dropped 5 percent, coal 1 percent, and carbon emissions by 3 percent. Estimates for 2009, based on U.S. Department of Energy

Growing-Gap-Between-Contributions-and-Benefits-for-Social-Security-and-Medicare-August-2011.jpg (809×452)

2011-11-01T07:11:00.001-04:00

Despite the facts shown on the chart below, our Vermont Senator Bernie ('Outrageous') Sanders makes outlandish statements like this: "...The truth is that the Social Security Trust Fund has run surpluses for the last quarter century. Today’s $2.5 trillion cushion is projected to grow to $4 trillion in 2023. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, experts in this area, say Social Security

State officials say Irene transportation repairs will cost less than half what they anticipated

2011-11-01T06:57:00.002-04:00

I have long maintained that Vermont's very high 'transaction costs' (the overheads including regulatory and environmental compliance, permitting, administrative and judicial delays for reviews, appeals, etc.) that are incurred to build anything of consequence in this state add unnecessary delays, expense and increase the costs of doing business here. The exceptional work done recovering from

Halloween Snowstorm in New London NH

2011-10-31T07:45:00.001-04:00

At a friend's home for the weekend in New London, NH, we awoke to find that our cars had accumulated a February-like 'dusting.' No trick-or-treaters that night!

ARM CTO Predicts Chips the Size of Blood Cells | PCWorld

2011-10-29T09:20:00.001-04:00

Technology gallops on, nano-technolgy and rapid advances in manufacturing processes yielding incredible miniaturization and capabilities. Now if we could only find a way to charge all those batteries effectively without wires... "In less than a decade, that smartphone you're holding could have 32 times the memory, 20 times the bandwidth and a microprocessor core no bigger than a red blood cell,

The Divider vs. the Thinker - WSJ.com

2011-10-29T08:52:00.001-04:00

Sounds like a statement that thoughtful Occupy Wall Street folks could buy into and adopt as their own. But it comes from a conservative Republican who understands our national disease and speaks openly about it. "Rather than raise taxes on individuals, we should "lower the amount of government spending the wealthy now receive." The "true sources of inequity in this country," he continued, are

My Droid 2 Now Working with my Home WiFi

2011-10-27T10:46:00.000-04:00

I previously reported problems connecting to my home Wifi network on a Motorola users forum. My D2 worked fine on open WiFi or other encrypted networks tested. I determined, with help from several posts on the forum, that my D2 did not like the old (2003 vintage) WPA encryption on my Microsoft wireless router. I tried WEP and D2 didn't like that either. There were no firmware upgrades. MS got

Galaxy Nexus vs. iPhone 4S vs. Droid RAZR: Smartphone Battle Royale | PCWorld

2011-10-23T09:53:00.001-04:00

One of many comparisons that are sure to come of the newest smartphones from Samsung (Android Ice Cream Sandwich, 4G), Motorola (Android Gingerbread, 4G) and Apple (iOS5, 3G). VZ/Moto recently upgraded my Droid2 to Android Gingerbread. While there are many nice new features, I and many other D2 users have various glitches and performance shortcomings. "Google’s Galaxy Nexus is the latest

The GOP Wins by Bruising - WSJ.com

2011-10-22T05:34:00.001-04:00

Peggy Noonan's take on the OWS folks. Henninger's opinion is similar. Without commenting on the gatherings in other places in the U.S., my impression of the Zuccotti Plaza group matches Noonan's. These protesters are unhappy and disorganized but only as relevant as the media circus makes them. "...They are not funneling their energy into the democratic process because there is no market

2011-10-19T10:20:00.001-04:00

A very powerful new 4G phone from Samsung and Google. Will watch closely and decide whether to upgrade my DROID 2 on Verizon...when 4G is available in my area. More here on Google's Mobile Blog

The Great Restoration - NYTimes.com

2011-10-18T09:37:00.002-04:00

Mainstream America gets it. David Brooks emphasizes that America has the ability to economically self-correct. Let's hope he's right and that his colleague at the NY Times, Mr. Krugman, is wrong as cheerleader for the OWS protestors while advocating for yet more government deficit spending. Fortunately, most Americans disagree with Krugman."...Quietly but decisively, Americans are trying to

Poll: Washington to blame more than Wall Street for economy | Burlington Free Press | burlingtonfreepress.com

2011-10-18T07:09:00.001-04:00

Congress , even more that Presidents, deserves the reproach for spending America into deep debt. That means we, the people have ourselves to blame since we elect them. The Constitution gives only Congress the purse strings of government, and they have far too freely opened that purse to 'provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare...' "Most Americans blame Wall Street for the

Dear Android: This is your last chance | Molly Rants - CNET News

2011-10-17T15:44:00.001-04:00

Android may be wildly popular based on the number of phone manufacturers using Google's Android software. Wood's rant is pretty serious and I can attest to a problem after my phone was upgraded from Froyo to Gingerbread in September. My Verizon 3G signal varies from lousy to non-existent where I live so I had relied on WiFi via my wireless router for data and web use of my phone. Yet after

Default Choices Are Hard to Resist, Online or Not - NYTimes.com

2011-10-17T06:28:00.002-04:00

I use both the Chrome and Internet Explorer browsers. Just for the hell of it, I set Google as the default search engine on IE and Bing as the default on Chrome. I find both are excellent. I guess it's just not in my psyche to be defaulted. I wonder if there's a correlation for those that accept the 'system' defaults and not voting in elections? "...Most economists agree that Google’s

Grandson Isaiah on Horseback in Mongolia

2011-10-16T16:05:00.001-04:00

My oldest grandson is working for a bank in Mongolia after graduating college this past June. He tells me he's working very hard, but seems to have a bit of free time to enjoy the countryside. He had never ridden a horse before arriving in Mongolia. He's the one on the right. This countryside looks like the American West.

Rough Fractals: Unified Theory Of Capital Management

2011-10-16T10:25:00.001-04:00

Rough Fractals: Unified Theory Of Capital Management Some of the best advice any business entrepreneur or investor can find.

The Weekend Interview with Mortimer Zuckerman: The Exasperation of the Democratic Billionaire - WSJ.com

2011-10-16T09:57:00.001-04:00

Strong talk from a highly successful real estate capitalist disenchanted with TeamObama. "...The Boston Properties CEO is trying to understand why Mr. Obama has made little effort to build relationships on Capitol Hill or negotiate a bipartisan economic plan. A longtime supporter of the Democratic Party, Mr. Zuckerman wrote in these pages two months ago that the entire business community was "

Around the World, Protests Against Economic Policies - NYTimes.com

2011-10-15T14:59:00.001-04:00

What are the Wallstreeters and bankers around the world thinking, especially as some of the protests turn violent, besides hoping this will all blow over? "...In Rome, a protest thick with tension spread over several miles. Protesters set fire to at least one building and clashed violently with the police, who responded with water cannons and tear gas... In other European cities, including

From Google's Larry Page About Google+

2011-10-15T12:02:00.000-04:00

Larry Page Remarks on 3rd Quarter 2011 Earnings "Our ultimate ambition is to transform the overall Google experience, making it beautifully simple, almost automagical as we understand what you want and can deliver it instantly. This means making identity and sharing into all of our products so that we build a real relationship with our users. Sharing on the web will be like sharing in real-life

Egypt’s Military Expands Power, Raising Alarms - NYTimes.com

2011-10-15T10:01:00.001-04:00

The 'Arab Spring' may not be yielding the hoped-for results. As in Pakistan, the country is controlled by the military rather than civilians. In terms of stability after the uprisings, this may be necessary, but certainly not the direction most of the rest of the world hoped for. However, if such a tactic keeps the Muslim Brotherhood [The Brotherhood's credo was and is, "God is our objective;

A New Pakistan Policy - Containment - NYTimes.com

2011-10-15T09:51:00.001-04:00

A blunt assessment by Mr. Riedel of the U.S. relationship with Pakistan and recommendations for what should be done. Pakistan is a dangerous country and only marginally supportive of some or our efforts in Afghanistan and in the region. Our present policies are not working well, yet we cannot afford to isolate them and totally alienate the people. Targeting bad actors may offer some relief, but

The Thing Itself - NYTimes.com

2011-10-14T11:10:00.002-04:00

Oh for leaders with practical solutions that could cut through the ideological shields that are thrown up by the adherents and reinforced by the various media talking heads and writing fingers. "Many issues that were once concrete and practical are distorted because they have become symbolic and spiritual. Tax policy isn’t just about how to raise revenue anymore. Liberals see it as a way to

Peter Wallison: Wall Street's Gullible Occupiers - WSJ.com

2011-10-12T16:23:00.002-04:00

And the beat goes on... the blame game is rampant on the pages of both the NYTimes and the WSJ. Are some real leaders available who can brush aside this noise and get on with moving this country in a healthy direction? TeamObama has failed his rabid liberal supporters and the country at the same time. We need some real leadership. Where is it? We need a groundswell of sanity, not partisan

Grrr! Printer Problem Today. Happy Result

2011-10-12T14:58:00.000-04:00

After being unable to print from my four year old HP 6980 printer connected to my home network, I have spent most of today with Windows 7 error messages that said the driver would not install after multiple attempts to re-install the printer and the software, (which is supposed to be baked into Windows 7) many PC and printer reboots, and lots of web research. I tried connecting to my PC via USB

CHARTS: Here's What The Wall Street Protesters Are So Angry About...

2011-10-12T06:43:00.001-04:00

CHARTS: Here's What The Wall Street Protesters Are So Angry About...: Some startling data here. Worth reviewing and thinking about the implications. 'via Blog this'

Wall Street Shrinkage - WSJ.com

2011-10-11T09:37:00.001-04:00

Is this good news or bad for the Occupy Wall Street protesters?"New York City's securities industry could lose nearly 10,000 jobs by the end of 2012, New York state's comptroller predicted, a painful blow to the area's economy and government budgets.In a report set to be released Tuesday, Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli also said bonuses are likely to shrink this year, reflecting lower profits on

FCC plan to revamp broken USF shifts focus to rural broadband

2011-10-07T16:01:00.001-04:00

A good summary of what the FCC has up its sleeve to revamp the outdated inter-carrier compensation scheme of the 1980's and 90's. I'll bet a dollar that consumers will not pay less. I agree with the unidentified FCC source who leaked it. "The last 15 years have seen three major changes that rendered this scheme anachronistic. First, long-distance rates have plummeted, which has made ICC fees a

New Samsung Phone with Android Ice Cream Sandwich

2011-10-06T18:01:00.000-04:00

I like this ad. I hope the phone is as good when it arrives on Verizon.

Apple's iCloud Ups the Ante With Amazon

2011-10-05T11:00:00.000-04:00

Apple's iCloud Ups the Ante with Amazon The race is on for control of consumers' digital media content purchases, storage and access. Amazon and Apple seem to be in the lead but so far Apple certainly has captured the the public's imagination and momentum with its iPhones and iPads. Meanwhile, Amazon's recent launch of new devices, particularly its Fire tablet along with its successful

Fractals of Change: Where Did All the Tax Revenue Go?

2011-10-04T06:07:00.001-04:00

Tom Evslin takes on the federal revenue/spending issue and concludes with these recommendations for how to get the economy chugging again. Some clear thinking here, but his energy recommendation will fall on mostly deaf ears because of the present Administration's infatuation with expensive alternative energy which is not the answer to creating jobs for America. "We need a booming economy! More

Amazon's Silk Browser Plays Another Role - NYTimes.com

2011-09-30T08:25:00.001-04:00

Amazon's SILK browser is a VERY big deal. Expect others who have committed to cloud computing to emulate it. "...All this is possible now in part because Silk is only inside the Fire tablet, and connects to Amazon’s cloud. But in learning how better to manage cloud tasks — a little computing here in the hand, a lot of computing up there in the cloud — Amazon is gaining precious skills in newer

Vermont Tiger: Facing the Inevitable

2011-09-28T14:20:00.001-04:00

Tom Pelham, Vermont’s budget commissioner in the Dean administration and tax commissioner in the Douglas administration, has it right in his advice to Congress and particularly, to Vermont's Congressional delegation. It's time for leadership, not politics to reshape our national fiscal insanity. "...America needs leaders, of all political stripes, to accept responsibility for their accumulated

Vermont Tiger: "Electric Cars" - Still Shorted to Ground (cont.)

2011-09-26T19:23:00.002-04:00

Well worth reading the full posting by Dan Foty. We simply cannot become victims to the hype that flows from the fervent advocates when reality tells a different story. "The continuing attempts to overcome basic physics and basic engineering with ideology and money-throwing raise a deeper concern: Is this a serious symptom of a more-fundamental problem? One can be alarmed that we've reached a

Brutal Haqqani Clan Bedevils U.S. in Afghanistan - NYTimes.com

2011-09-25T07:30:00.001-04:00

From this article and other reports, I conclude that the chances of a political settlement in Afghanistan are negligible. We simply cannot deal with the radical Islamists, whether in Pakistan or Afghanistan, because they have more to gain by waiting until we tire of the war. So much agony and death, so few options. "...But as Washington struggles to broker an endgame for the Afghan war, there

The Weekend Interview with Robert Lucas: Chicago Economics on Trial - WSJ.com

2011-09-24T13:48:00.001-04:00

A good piece by Mr. Jenkins well worth reading. The notion of 'rational expectations' rings soundly for me as a possible explanation why the economy remains in the doldrums."Let's face it, the "Chicago School" of economics—the one with all the Nobel Prizes, the one associated with Milton Friedman, the one known for its t rust of markets and skepticism about government—has taken a drubbing in

More Trouble for Groupon IPO: Groupon Restates Revenue, COO Exits - WSJ.com

2011-09-24T08:36:00.001-04:00

This announcement should alert investors to be very wary should Groupon initiate an IPO. Was this high flying company cooking the books? "On Friday, Groupon said it would change what it books as revenue after discussions with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It will now only count as revenue its commission on sales, rather than the total value of an online coupon. Previously, when it sold

Mullen - Pakistan’s Spy Agency Supported U.S. Embassy Attack - NYTimes.com

2011-09-23T06:46:00.001-04:00

Such bold and frank talk by Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, signals to me that the U.S. may be considering some bold move in Pakistan. "“In choosing to use violent extremism as an instrument of policy, the government of Pakistan, and most especially the Pakistani Army and ISI, jeopardizes not only the prospect of our strategic partnership but Pakistan’s opportunity to

Why Even Resolute Dieters Often Fail - NYTimes.com

2011-09-21T05:15:00.001-04:00

This article is well worth reading if you, as I, struggle to manage body weight. I can relate to its advice and conclusions. "If you’ve been trying for years to lose unwanted pounds and keep them off, unrealistic goals may be the reason you’ve failed. It turns out that a long-used rule of weight loss — reduce 3,500 calories (or burn an extra 3,500) to lose one pound of body fat — is