postrad

Wow, this thing is still up?

2010-11-23T13:25:00.001-08:00

There are negligent bloggers, and then there is me and Postrad. For those who care (besides the Chinese blog bots that have filled my comment sections), I am rapidly deploying a "phase 2" plan that will bring the blog back into the world of Regular Posts.

Stay tuned, Radcateers!

Why not?

2010-06-05T15:51:00.000-07:00

After over half of a year of not posting squat, why not randomly write something quick just to dust off the site?

Postrad is still alive. Go to post-rad.com and see what a busy beaver I've been.

Happy summer, y'all.

Become my friend, friend.

2009-11-20T11:17:00.001-08:00

Matthew Duffin is a fan of

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Keeping the internet neutral

2009-11-04T07:51:00.000-08:00

I've just read some disturbing news in regards to the future of the internet. It seems there are many forces at work trying to stipulate harsh controls and regulations upon the web, including (unsurprisingly) our own government. You have good old John McCain stating that a neutral internet is one that isn't truly free but controlled by the government (read on). Of course, while he is trying to paint current FCC regulations as part of a Socialist take-over of the web, the telecoms and cable companies are contributing to his campaign coffers.

Sadly, the attacks on Net Neutrality are not free from attacks on the Left, either. The Obama Administration is working hard to rewrite copyright laws that would stifle the web as we know it. Worse yet, they have been trying to keep it secret. Check out Michael Geist's fine article on the subject for an in depth look at what has been going on over in South Korea that could dramatically affect the way the internet operates.

If you don't think this is serious, I encourage you to read more about the subject of Net Neutrality.

post-rad.com is live and postrad.blogspot.com is feeling neglected.

2009-10-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

So I have been busy creating post-rad.com, which involved a lot of tough decisions. The initial site I envisioned was going to be a much larger affair. I, hoping to avoid turning my own portfolio page into a quagmire, pruned the whole project to the more stream-lined site that you now see. One of the big choices was to keep the blog off for now.

That doesn't mean that the blog isn't going to be maintained. It is. In fact, it will be brought into the pantheon of the post-rad.com domain in the future. For now, postrad the blog will continue its merry existence hosted by our good friends Google. When Google takes over the world we hope they remember how much we appreciated them. Hail Google!

I have nothing to add to this post, other than this:

Worst. Sidekick. Ever.

2009-10-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

So for those of you who thought Scrappy-Doo was a terrible sidekick, think again.

Microsoft's cloud server support of T-Mobile's Sidekick went down earlier this week, and they lost all of their user's personal data. Yup, all of it. Pictures, emails, contacts, calendars, everything. And they apparently didn't back it up, so it is as gone as gone can be.

How bad is it? I mean, the Sidekick was one of the world's leading smart phones. It was one of the hippest devices to own once-upon-a-time. And according to Seth Weintraub over at computerworld.com, the device is as good as dead.

To all the Sidekick users out there, I send my sincerest condolences. I think it may be time to buy a new smart phone. Or maybe it is time to play things safe and just go back to the LAN line.

Or you can seek out one of these sleek looking "vintage" cell phones

UPDATE! Conan made a comment worthy of reprinting in the main post regarding this Sidekick fail. Looks like Microsoft managed to fix things with that limited budget of theirs:

"Data recovery was possible it turns out. You can follow that end of the story here: http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/09/10/15/1855200/MS-Says-All-Sidekick-Data-Recovered-But-Damage-Done?art_pos=1

Thanks Conan.

Ow.

2009-10-09T11:56:00.001-07:00

I fell down after nailing a pot hole that was hiding in a puddle on my trusty (and rusty) Le Tour Wednesday Night. It was a good thing I was wearing a helmet, because I would have gotten a little love tap from mother earth had I not. Unfortunately, I strained my right wrist, not bad enough that I can't use it to type, just bad enough to make riding my bike uncomfortable.

Whattya do.

Bad news for Paypal

2009-10-07T07:13:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I use Paypal regularly. I've been paid by clients with Paypal, and eBay just wouldn't be eBay without the convenience of Paypal. Of course, using an online service to access your bank to eith deposit or withdraw money is something that could make a person a little uncomfortable. Heck, it could even make you a bit paranoid. Well, like Joseph Heller once wrote, just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you. Sadly, the case is true with Paypal.

The link below will take you to an article that discusses how a Windows-based vulnerability allows hackers to use a false SSL certificate (a special encryption that is supposed to keep people from snooping through your private info after you hit the "send" button) to steal your information. Awesome. Just what you wanted to hear, right?

The link.

Oh, if you are using a Mac or a Linux-based machine, you're fine. Which isn't a big surprise, now is it?

Another fun (and pointless) Flash piece

2009-10-02T06:57:00.000-07:00

Check it out!

Blogger, you've been swell...

2009-09-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of switching over to a Wordpress blog for the new and improved Postrad site and just wanted to say thanks to Blogger. You are a fine blog platform. But it is time to grow up and I need my space.

The difference between Arial and Helvetica

2009-09-27T18:46:00.001-07:00

Here's cool image I found on reddit.com (sadly, without any info as to who created it). This chart shows you how little difference there is between Arial (which Microsoft created to avoid paying royalties for the use of Helvetica in its software) and Helvetica.

New site is getting closer everyday...

2009-09-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

I should document all of the cups of coffee that are going into my system as I build the new postrad website. I'm getting jittery just thinking about it. As of now I am expecting to go live sometime in mid- to late-October. I plan on having a little launch party, probably at one my new favorite local bar, Kings. I will post more info as it becomes available.

Also, just to let you know, thanks for checking in on my little blog.

Better safe than sorry.

2009-09-24T10:47:00.001-07:00

From the CRC Cykel Garage:

Almanzo Bound

2009-09-17T12:43:00.001-07:00

This Saturday I will, for some dumb reason, ride 100 miles of gravel road in the name of fun. Okay, that sentence isn't properly enthusiastic. *Ahem* This Saturday I will be taking part in a Gentleman's Ride that will take me through the beautiful rolling hills of the South Minnesota country-side. We will be following the same course friends of mine slogged through this past Spring when the Almanzo is a race. I'm glad this isn't a race, because I have no desire to receive the DFL award and I would definitely be a man in danger of that dubious honor.

Here is the site with all of the pertinent details:

http://www.almanzo100.com/

Go check it out and maybe next year you can have your butt handed to you in God's Country.

Fall is coming.

2009-09-14T10:32:00.000-07:00

And that isn't such a bad thing. Just ask Smurfette.

Or the Swiss Miss Girl.

Or... Schreiner?!?

Summer '09 comes to an end in 8 days. Make the most of it.

Word(de)pressed

2009-09-13T09:13:00.000-07:00

So last week, if you have a self-hosted Wordpress site (like XXL Magazine and Harvard Law School) you may have noticed that your site has been hacked. The signs are pretty clear if your site has been compromised, since you probably won't be able to log in. The attack, orchestrated by someone who wanted to be the Debbie Downer for bloggers on a holiday weekend, only affects older versions of Wordpress, so if you are one of those diligent people who updates their software regularly, you are in the clear. If you are still coasting along on anything less than version 2.8.4, go to your dashboard now and updates ASAP.

I happen to have a client who had 3 sites that needed immediate update last weekend. I got the call 3 hours into a 7 hour drive, which is not what you want to hear when you've put your brain on Stand By for a 3 day weekend with the family. Fortunately, none of the sites had been hacked. And double-fortunately, Wordpress is easy to update, even if you have to do it manually. Everything should have as helpful a FAQ as Wordpress.

If you want to read more about this bit of interweb nastiness, check out what Wordpress has to say.

All Hail Unexpected Exposure (That Wasn't)

2009-09-09T09:38:00.000-07:00

So yesterday I commented about how someday I might feel the power of the Stevil Bump by him linking to my site again. He did it once for reasons I can't remember (it probably had something to do with bacon) and it was fun to watch my little blog get all sorts of new visitors. It made Google Analytics fun again. Well, what should I see right afterwards when I checked out All Hail the Black Market but myself in the banner image for the site.

photo allegedly by Steve Smith

CORRECTION: that ain't me. Balls. Steve Smith was kind enough to send me a bigger pic, which under further examination revealed that bike and its rider to be someone else. Clearly, the person I mistook for myself has great taste and is strikingly handsome. At this point in the derby, I was probably licking my wounds from being knocked out by none other than Gene-O. Que sera sera. This is a cool pic, all things considered. It was a stellar homie.

I'm the guy on the gold bike behind the fella in the middle, front and center. I wasn't quite sure it was me, to be honest. But I knew that the bike was mine, and eventually I became convinced that the knucklehead on the bike could be none other than myself. I guess I will call it serendipity.

I am excited about getting my real site up soon. It will be nice to show off some of the work I've done on the web. Heck, I might even get a little work out of it. I also plan on devoting part of the site to helping the DIY-set who don't want to pay someone like me to build them a site. Being a fan and advocate of the open source philosophy, I look forward to it. Some might call this counter-productive, but methinks they miss the point about the web. It is about possibility. It is about creativity. It is about (cue the theremin music) the future.

Postrad for a better tomorrow. It's like the WWF, except with less pandas. Or Macho Man Randy Savages, depending on which WWF you think of first. Which is why I leave you with this image:

Oh yeah, snap into a Zhen Zhen!

Logos aren't as easy as they look

2009-09-08T12:03:00.001-07:00

So as I ratchet up for the long overdue next phase in Postrad evolution, the biggest hurdle is a simple one- a cool logo. As I mentioned last post, Kelly Mac, Our Lady of Perpetual Awesomeness, has been helping me with this process and is designing a logo for me. I am, in turn, becoming a difficult client, and surprising myself with how wishy-washy I can be when it comes to committing to a logo. In the mean-time I am playing with the overall design of the Postrad 2.0 site, and making progress that would at least impress a glacier.

No one said trying to be your own boss would be easy. Just ask the Godfather of Soul:

I'll admit I've never had to machine-gun a pool table to get a client to pay, but I'd be lying if I never thought about it.

I also think of the life I could lead if I just went for the 9-5, but then I watch this video and think twice:

I can't swallow sadness on a daily basis, amongst the many other things it apparently takes to be a boss in the corporate world. I don't know because I've never been, so I'll just have to take their word on it.

One other thing before I stick a fork in this post and call it done. Steve Smith, AKA Stevil Kinevil, blogger extraordinaire, is no longer giving the world his wonderfully off-kilter perspective via How to Avoid the Bummer Life and is now lone wolfing it at All Hail the Black Market ! Someday I hope to feel the power of the Stevil bump again like I did when he linked to postrad some months ago at the Bummer Life blog. It made my week. Anyway, check it out. As usual, his blog consists of a motley mash-up of bike culture, humor, art and general radness. If I could give his blog a big wet kiss, I would.

Long live Postrad!

2009-09-03T11:31:00.000-07:00

So there was a post I put up not too long ago about a portfolio site I was going to put up with a different name. It has since be dumped like so many other ideas that seem good at first, but ultimately don't have staying power. Kind of like MySpace. Anyway, change is coming. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight? Oh lord, indeed.

I want to also say something else- if you go to the Minnesota State Fair, ride the Zipper. It was the best rush for 3 bucks I've ever had, and I've been to Amsterdam.

So if you still for some ungodly reason still check this site from time to time, things are going to change. For better or for worse, things are going to change...

I would also like to thank Kelly Mac for being my spiritual adviser on all things visual and awesome. She took the picture below, and as you can see, she clearly meant to take it of me:

Check out her web-site and give her your business.

Stay tuned for more cha-cha-cha-changes.

Coolest Flash Thing Ever

2009-06-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

Check this out. It is awesome.

Awesomeness here.

Help the Hot Tomato!

2009-06-06T07:35:00.000-07:00

You like pizza, right? You like bikes, right? You like Fruita, right? Okay, you might not know what a Fruita is, but if you do your mind probably sets adrift a memory bliss. Hot Tomato Cafe, one of the most bestest pizza places on God's green earth, is getting a kick in the pants by their landlord. They need to move their venerable pizza Mecca somewhere else, and they need the money to do it. I can't imagine a world without their "hot pie" double entendres.

Click the pretty image and buy a shirt or something. You will be a better person for it.

Swedish Athiests Are Hardcore

2009-05-31T07:46:00.000-07:00

If this billboard, the product of close-minded fear-mongers, is correct (which it isn't), then I finally understand why Sweden is so goddamn metal!

Sociopathic gun-toting kids murdering for candy- if this isn't the subject of a Swedish death metal song, it should be.

Must... Not... Buy...

2009-05-19T10:24:00.000-07:00

$43 for a 2 gig flash drive? I know, that's insane. But $43 for a flash drive that transforms into Ravage from the Transformers? Must... Resist... After all, you know that he's going to tell Megatron what kind of data you're storing. Or worse yet, he'll tell Michael Bay. *shudder*

Also, in the world of bikes, is an example of "unique" riding form leading to a silly accident with a speed bump. Enjoy.

Postrad has gone semi-legit

2009-05-10T11:23:00.000-07:00

I have used the Postrad moniker for the first time on a web-site I built. I didn't link to the blog, because it really isn't *ahem* a serious web-site. I realized after I went live with Dragonfly Coffee that if someone googled "postrad," this silly blog would be the first hit. Go ahead, check it out. I finally beat out the site with the vosotros conjugation of the word "postrar!" Celebrate good times, come on! So I figured it was worth noting to anyone visiting in regards to the Dragonfly Coffee site understand that I will have a real portfolio site up soon, and that I am a diligent professional.

Like this guy:

Deadwood + Family Circus = Win

2009-05-05T07:48:00.001-07:00

My friend David sent this to me in a response to my Al Swearengen post a while back. My life has been filled with heart-ache and misery as of late, so the curt wisdom of Al (the Tao of Deadwood, if you will) definitely resonates with me. It's also good to see those little bastards from Family Circus getting a dose of unfiltered reality.

Keyboard Cat is my favorite new artist

2009-05-04T12:35:00.000-07:00

Over at reddit someone posted a link to a sad Youtube video which has a very real set of parents having a very real and hostile "talk" with their teenage son who has just announced he is an atheist. Heavy subject matter. The most harrowing moment is when the mom says "you aren't getting anything for Christmas, because Christmas is about Jesus." But then Keyboard Cat plays the video out and I felt better. Don't know what that means? Well, instead of the video of the dysfunctional family, I found another one where Keyboard Cat plays out a video in which a dude hits himself in the nuts with a set of nunchucks. Enjoy.

UPDATE:

Keyboard Cat died a long time ago. The video of that fabulous feline piano maestro is 20 years old. We never knew ya, Keyboard Cat, but you live on in our hearts.

The more you know

2009-05-03T15:06:00.001-07:00

I have lapsed in my blogging duties. Again. Nobody is probably reading this. Anyway, if you are reading this, and you aren't a web bot simply gathering info, then let me get to the point. A man used Youtube to help him deliver a baby. No shit- read it here. Who needs universal health care? All you need is a wifi connection.

I blame part of my lapse on Spring time. I know I blamed my last lapse on the Winter, but I mean it this time. Because of Spring I actually do activities that do not require a laptop. Like biking, bbqs, going to shows (Mastodon melted my face last Wednesday). I am behind on Hurl's guitar lesson, but I think we will be having a real one soon, so I don't feel so bad.

Well blow me down

2009-04-29T12:19:00.000-07:00

We are on the verge of a flue pandemic but holy shit, it appears to be Popeye's failed fried chicken special that seems to be the real news. First, Mark Emery shoots me the following Youtube link:

Is the story really about Popeye's not having enough chicken, or is it about black people getting mad about not getting cheap fried chicken. I don't know. It's weird in an uncomfortable way. So naturally it's time to watch a similar video, except this time the action is just down the street:

I don't know what is more contemptuous- the fact that the story was deemed newsworthy in the first place, or the demonic glee in the Fox reporters face as he rains condescension on everyone involved, from the consumer ("well, it looks like they got you to buy some chicken anyway"), the store manager, and the franchise owner. He seemed overjoyed by it. I hope Walter Kronkite's ghost haunts this man and punishes him for the highest crimes of douche-baggery.

Hurl's guitar lesson will be posted tomorrow.

Hurls' Guitar Lesson Week 2: the Rudiments

2009-04-22T07:40:00.000-07:00

OK, now that we are inspired, it is time to look at the rudiments. The rudiments are the all-important basics that comprise the core of a player's technique. You have your right hand technique, you have your left hand technique. If you are left handed, you can reverse those two, or you can just give us all a break and learn the instrument like a right handed person. You might think you are Tony Iommi or Jimi Hendrix, but you are better off just learning the goddamn instrument the way most of us do.

Let's start with the left hand.

Hurl has already been shown the pentatonic (aka "pentagramic") scale. With it you can start on the path of invoking the power of Satan. Here's Mei with a fine introduction to the scale:

Next thing you know, you'll be moving on to sweep arpeggios:

Lori Linstruth, I want to be your man. I will move to Sweden or where ever you are, and we can make babies that will one day be in neo-classical power metal bands like Helloween. Yeah, fucking Helloween!

Next, we look at the right hand. The following is an example of something Youtube is full of, which is videos of young Asian kids tearing it up on guitar. This is young Sungha playing a solo guitar version of the Beatles' song Blackbird. Hurl, I expect you to study this carefully.

Okay Hurl, take the barrel of the gun out of your mouth. This child is a prodigy. He's probably already quit the guitar and started studying super-string theory at MIT.

If all else fails, you can start playing Guitar Hero. Here's an excellent primer on how to best play Guitar Hero:

I hope this helps.

Bikes confer superpowers to mere mortals

2009-04-19T22:35:00.000-07:00

I like to think that bikes grant their riders super-human powers. Nothing too super-human, like invulnerability or heat-vision. The super-human powers I'm thinking of are a bit humbler, like the ability to move at high speeds and to leap tall log piles in a single bound. The following video shows just how super-human a bike can make you. Well, maybe not you.

Hurl's Guitar Lesson Week 1: Inspiration

2009-04-14T22:16:00.000-07:00

So I gave my friend Hurl some guitar lessons and what was set up to be a weekly meeting has since gone a little pear-shaped. Blame it on conflicting schedules, changing tides or the sad state of the economy, what it comes down to is that Hurl isn't getting the guitar spiritual guidance he needs to find six six six string nirvana.

To resolve this issue, I have decided to at least post a blog once a week for the edification of Hurl, as well as anyone else looking to unravel the mysteries of the guitar. Before we dive into technique, I figured we ought to look for inspiration instead.

First, we have this Japanese youtube video featuring a player whose sparse description of the video is simply "play 'Mr. Crowley' on guitar in order to let METAL be popular." Is this really a woman, or is daljr2009 right in asserting that, more or less, it is a man, baby. Regardless, this anonymous, androgynous guitarist pulls off an impressive tribute to Randy Rhoads and reminds us all that Ozzy Osbourne is a man whose talent isn't so much as a singer, but as a scout for bad ass guitarists.

Next we come to the band Boris. Boris has a guitarist that is definitely a woman. Her name is Wata. The following video is for the song "Smile," which is funny because Wata never does:

That is all for this week. Hurl, play your 12 bar blues and practice your pentagramic scale.

BaRRRRRack Obama

2009-04-13T22:33:00.000-07:00

Cyclist hit by corpse

2009-04-10T21:59:00.000-07:00

Blogging is often an exercise of picking the low hanging fruit. At least for this blogger it is. I regret nothing.

Follow the link. Then scratch your chin and ponder the mysteries of life.

Cyclist hit by corpse.

If you're not indie..

2009-04-10T16:36:00.001-07:00

Sleestak Lightning

2009-04-08T07:01:00.000-07:00

I have something new to look forward to this Summer- a new album from one of my favorite bands Clutch (more info here). The band is back as a 4 piece and they are going for a leaner sound than their last couple of albums. I for one loved their last album, From Beale Street to Oblivion, but Clutch have never disappointed me, so if they want to go lean and mean, they have my blessing.

So mark July 7th on your calendars, boys and girls.

In other news, I found this video over at the always awesome failblog:

I was impressed but the insane head tube fail, but B Rose tells me it looks staged. By the way that the tubes separate, I can't argue with him. If you have your own theory, I welcome you to comment.

Mr. Rogers ruined my life

2009-04-07T08:56:00.000-07:00

Wow, I've never seriously thought Mr. Rogers was evil. Maybe in a sort of ironic "what if" scenario could I see him as some kind of Machiavellian bad guy. I mean, he did have a clean-cut, well-mannered, holy-shit-there's-a-head-in-the-freezer kind of vibe about him. But let's face it, ideas like that are born out of cynicism and fear because this guy seemed too Saint-like for most people's tastes. Sets the bar too high.

But who loves fear and cynicism more than Fox News? My mind draws a blank- I don't think anyone loves fear and cynicism more. Take for example the clip below. Fox News anchors discuss a study that claims Mr. Rogers is responsible for a generation of kids growing up to be lazy adults with entitlement issues. They take it even further by apparently accepting this one study as indisputable proof that Mr. Rogers is, indeed, "evil." Wow. I love it when the female anchor, who probably causes children to cry, dogs to bark, and cats to hiss when she enters a room, states that he ruined a "crop" of children. It's as if Mr. Rogers was some kind of famine that blighted the land's bounty of delicious children. I almost don't want to post this blog because, in a way, Fox News just seems desperate for attention, willing to say anything to get it.

It's not easy to ignore, though. Enjoy...

Blogging- more than just a waste of time.

2009-04-06T12:30:00.000-07:00

So I haven't been blogging much in recent months. Not so much for a lack of things to say, but perhaps because a lack of direction. I mean, a good blog has to have some kind of point, whether it is espousing the bummer life, a youngster's love of music, or general misanthropy. I thought initially I would write about observations from behind the coffee bar. Miscellaneous bike subjects then followed. Next thing I know, I'm writing about web browsers and going a more tech direction. Then I stuck a fork in it and said "done." More like "over-cooked."

In the time since, I've received occasional queries as to why I'm not writing (i.e. "why did you stop writing your stupid blog"). I consider these reason to renew my commitment to scavenging my brain for writing ideas. It also shows how desperate I am for your attention. Love me, dammit! I'm all alone here with nothing but a laptop, a wifi connection, and an empty goddamn french press. Pay attention or else I might do something drastic, like buying a moped or getting a face tattoo. Hell, I might even log into my MySpace account. I know- sounds like sheer desperation!

What I've learned in these months of blog inactivity is that blogging is more than just a waste of my time or your time. It is a collective waste of all our time! I know, pretty heavy shit I'm laying down here, like a labrador successfully passing a bunch of ball bearings. Blogging isn't about subject matter as much as it is about avoiding work, and if this isn't something you didn't feel in your heart to be true, you wouldn't have read this far. And is as much as I am avoiding work to write this, you are avoiding something far more important (like picking your nose) to read this tripe. And even if you are multitasking while you read (like picking your nose) or winding down from a long day, this isn't going to contribute a greater overall well-being, so just admit it. I have, and brothers and sisters, I feel rejuvenated.

So stay tuned to more meaningless banter coming from a man who has no more reason to be allocating resources to this blog than you have visiting it regularly.

And thanks for stopping buy.

Stay Tuned!

2009-03-26T16:11:00.000-07:00

I have come out of hibernation *YAWN* after a brutal winter and I am set to once again blog like the wind. I am inspired by the fact that people like Mark Emery still acknowledge my blog by keeping me alive in their links.

That's it. More to come. Happy Spring.

A Monster bug

2009-01-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

It seems that one thing that the future holds for the internet for certain, alongside the rising bandwidth consumption by the average household and a heightened demand for interactivity, is that there are going to be more and more criminals trying to hack sites and steal sensitive (i.e. valuable) information. Worse yet, the innovations of legitimate programmers will only be equaled to that of unethical ones.

Case in point- Monster.com just got hacked hard, and the resumes of millions of users world-wide have fallen into the hands of thieves. The reality of internet security is that there is no infallible encryption. The only way to hide info is to keep it completely inaccessible from the web- then thieves can only get it the old fashioned way! But as our lives are increasingly tied into the web, the ability to keep all of your private information in the hands of the organizations you entrust it becomes harder and harder to keep track of.

I conduct a lot of business on the web- I do my banking on the web, I am an eBay regular, I use a wide array of online services from logmein.com to Facebook. If a dedicated hacker wanted to steal my identity, I have left the trail of breadcrumbs on the web to do it. It seems kind of grim, doesn't it? Ever blog about your hometown? A hacker might save that info to hack your "forget password" question. Not only that, but your potential perpetrator could be anywhere on Earth with a telephone line. Right now there could be a gang of Lithuanian thugs with incredible math skills hacking your PayPal account! Good God, maybe its time to burn all of the hard-drives!

Now that's a bit much, isn't it? And anyway, at this point there are probably too many hard-drives in the world that have too much info about you anyway, swirling in an ocean of binary code that is the rest of our digitized personal information. Nope, it is time to suck it up and play smart. It won't save your Monster account, but nobody said this world wasn't going to be without any risk.

So what's a person to do? First, if you are a business owner, be smart. Don't go for the cheapest web developer when you are building a site. Shop around and remember that a reputable, well-established company is probably hip to the most recent security needs on the web. Online forms are often the way most criminals will hack into your databases. This can be avoided if the forms are built up to modern standards. And by "modern," I mean the past 6 months (or maybe days... hours?). There are always good, inexpensive freelancers available, too. Just check their references and make sure you are going with someone you can trust.

Second, don't get lazy with usernames or passwords.

Third, any email that may be spam should be considered spam. Any offer via email that seems too good to be true is spam. Third, if an email received from a friend or family's email account doesn't seem to "sound" like them, it is spam.

Fourth, if you don't know what spam is, stop using email, have a tech savvy friend remove and destroy your hard-drive. Then sell your computer. Use the proceeds to buy yourself some stamps.

Remember that you are never perfectly safe, with or without the internet. Don't react like the sky is falling because sites like Monster get hacked. There isn't much you can do other than to check your credit status every now and again to make sure someone isn't robbing you blind. And remember, a little caution can prevent you from making some big mistakes.

"All persons, living and dead, are purely coincidental."

2009-01-23T10:06:00.000-08:00

There are few writers I have admired as much as Kurt Vonnegut. Besides being very funny, he managed to be simple and poignant while at the same time plumbing the depths of the human heart and mind. His death in 2007 at the age of 84 was one of those rare passing of a human being that I have never known that made me grieve. He was a literary giant who never tried to be one, and whose humility was only matched by his wit. Like a more taciturn Mark Twain, his often short, whimsical novels are still some of the few that I consistently reread.

Below is a link to an AV Club list of 15 memorable Vonnegut quotes. It makes me want to find my copy of Cat's Cradle so I can read it for the umpteenth time.

Check it out.

I wonder if I'm her doctype

2009-01-20T10:19:00.000-08:00

Things are getting kind of geeky around here.

The History of the Internet

2009-01-19T12:56:00.000-08:00

History of the Internet from PICOL on Vimeo.

Need some extra energy this Xmas?

2008-12-21T10:51:00.001-08:00

Powerthirst - watch more funny videos

Mark Twain on bikes

2008-12-16T07:21:00.000-08:00

"Learn to ride a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live." - Mark Twain

Merry Solstice.

2008-12-14T10:17:00.000-08:00

Wow.

2008-12-13T07:19:00.000-08:00

People actually read this blog. I just checked my Google Analytics for the first time in ages and I've had over 100 people check it out over the past month, including some Germans and Swiss. Wunderbar! For those of you who are reading my blog regularly, thanks! I feel I should give something back...

How about a cute picture of my kitten Oreo?

Aww, isn't she cute. This is moments before tearing my hand apart in the name of "play."

Better yet, how about this highlight real from my current favorite tv show, Deadwood?

That's more like it.

Google maps has never been so depressing...

2008-12-12T17:12:00.000-08:00

I was checking out Minneapolis's own dying newspaper's web-site (which is, ironically enough, why the newspaper is dying) for what was turned out to be a feast of tragedy and disappointment in mankind. A man in Bloomington was arrested in a hit-and-run of a 66 year old woman who was in front of a Sam's Club. He had a blood alcohol of .41, which I believe means he was functionally brain dead at the time. It boggles the mind to think that someone could be that drunk and still manage to get the goddamn keys in the ignition, let alone get the fucking truck over to Sam's Club.

*Sigh*

Then I read about a long-standing Minneapolis school teacher who was recently arrested for child porn after his wife turned him in. Dark and lurid subject matter for the Holiday Season indeed.

But then, in the side bar of the page that was informing about the pedophile teacher, I saw the cherry on top of the desolation sundae: a Homicide Map for the state of Minnesota. Utilizing the power of Google Maps, you can conveniently track the grisliest of human nature with options of seeing it in the Map, Satellite and Hybrid View. I guess Street View would have been in bad taste to include.

Happy weekend everyone, and take solace in knowing that if you get stabbed in the throat on your moped for what appeared to be a robbery gone bad, at least your family can get directions to your blood stain.

More attacks on the Greenway

2008-12-11T08:18:00.000-08:00

The Greenway, a former railroad line converted into a bike path that is an important resource to bike commuters, has always been a little dangerous. I've heard stories about people getting mugged at night, as the trail is in a trench that makes it all too easy for thieves to set up ambushes. Well, apparently these ambushes are in the rise. The Star Tribune reports today (check it out here) about this unsettling trend.

Minneapolis Bike Love has been organizing rides to generate awareness (check it out here) and there are ways for people to volunteer help at midtowngreenway.org

And in case you want to see for yourself what reported incidents have occurred, check this link out. We need some Judge Dredd-type out there.

Be safe out there people!

Cheers, Al.

2008-12-08T12:35:00.001-08:00

"Prop 8: The Musical!"

2008-12-03T13:14:00.000-08:00

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What the hell.

2008-11-30T07:59:00.000-08:00

I think Concrete Blonde were a good band. There, I said it.

My Trek 800 (AKA the T-Rek Beater)

2008-11-25T09:49:00.000-08:00

Like many bike-minded people, I own more than one bike. Furthermore, each bike has a degree of specialization and purpose in mind. Of the three functional bikes I own, the most multi-purpose of them is my Trek 800. It is a winter bike, cargo bike, and commuter bike all rolled into one. I heap abuse on it on a regular basis. For a while I even used it as my off road bike (until I got my tricked out Kona Munimula, my dirt bike deluxe).

What I love about the bike is the fact that it has been through almost as many incarnations as David Bowie. I've had 4 different types of bars on it, from mustache to giant cruiser bars. I had it set up as a single speed for awhile. I've had a basket on it, and I think at some point soon it will again. Basically, I love the fact that I can play with its configuration and beat the shit out of it and not feel the least pang of regret. It is meant to be ridden and to be creatively tweaked, and I like that freedom from limitation.

Currently, I have it set up as the multi-purpose-cargo-commuter. The bars are cruiser like in rise and sweep, but are also aggro enough to allow me to heap a little off-road abuse on it if the need should arise. It is back to multi-gear glory, which I realize loses me some cool points in the single speed world. I've never been one for pigeon holes and I love variety, so not having a multi-geared bike when I already have a single-speed mountain bike and a fixed gear road bike seemed inappropriate for my own tastes. Plus it forces me to unlock the mystery of the derailleur, which curiosity insists I understand. I love the rear rack which allows me to carry a fair amount of cargo. Someday I might add an Xtracycle to the mix (in fact, I see it as inevitable). It ain't the fastest bike or the lightest, but I'm no professional rider nor am I looking for expensive components. Hell, that would go against the sort of DIY concept of the bike. If I were looking to build something a little fancier, I sure as hell wouldn't do that with a Trek 800 frame. It's a mule, and it is meant to be treated with all of the grace and dignity that pack animal requires. It's official model name is Antelope, but that isn't a very appropriate animal to compare it to, unless this antelope is built more like an elk or a moose.

I also love the fact that I paid nothing for the initial bike. Sure, I've invested a little money on fixing it up and on some new components. But the bike itself was all but abandoned when I first received it from an old co-worker (who I tipped in some good bottles of beer for his generosity). The idea of giving a forgotten bike a new lease on life is a pleasant one for me. Someday when I have more money maybe I'll lose sight of this outlook, but I doubt it. None of my bikes are set up the way the engineers that conceived them intended. I think that serves to exemplify the beauty of the bicycle, that it is a thing of limitless possibility while at the same time being a very mundane and practical tool. It is a device that satisfies the left and right brain, being both a creative enterprise that is grounded in time tested systems and patterns.

Anyway, that is my Trek 800. Not something for gearheads to drool over, or hipsters to admire and envy. Just a bike that satisfies my love of riding and that desire to pull things apart and rebuild them just a little differently for no other reason than curiosity's sake. Best of all, I think it serves as a reminder that a great bike doesn't need to be an expensive bike. It doesn't take alchemy or an engineering degree, just a little motivation. A few friends with a lot more know-how doesn't hurt either.

That being said, I should check on the poor beast of burden. I mashed its rear wheel against a curb when I failed to hop it. Again. Did I mention one of the best ways to get motivated to rebuild a bike is to break it? I guess that almost goes without saying.

It's a very Maiden Monday

2008-11-23T22:32:00.000-08:00

If I could choose a way to die...

2008-11-23T07:37:00.001-08:00

Whoever made the events in this picture happened should be selected by President-elect Obama to be head of a new Cabinet position, Secretary of Awesome.

Run to the hills...

2008-11-20T10:51:00.000-08:00

This looks way harder than actually playing guitar

2008-11-19T18:47:00.000-08:00

Veteran's Day

2008-11-11T10:50:00.000-08:00

I just realized, thanks to Goathork, that today is Veteran's Day. I am an avid pacifist and strongly anti-war. I admire the work of the world's great peacekeepers, from Martin Luther King, Jr to Mahatma Ghandi. But I am also the son of a veteran. I am the grandson of a veteran. I am the brother of a veteran. I am the cousin of a veteran. If it wasn't for their sacrifices, my life would not be as rich and as meaningful. I salute them all.

Are you one in 12.5 million?

2008-11-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

Like many of you, I've wondered how on earth people can fall prey to some of the spam email that fills inboxes world-wide on a regular basis. Turns out some really smart researchers at the University of California in Berkeley and UC, San Diego wondered the same thing (really I'm just impressed they managed to put down the bongs and fish tacos long enough to get some work done). The researchers hijacked part of a giant spam network and, in effect, became proxy spammers. They even set up a fake pharmacy web-site that claimed to sell an herbal supplement to increase libido!

Which makes me feel extra bad for the people who get conned by these spammers. Besides being hopelessly gullible, they are apparently sexually frustrated and too ashamed to try legitimate medical solutions for their problems. Like Horny Goat Weed. Fortunately, our benevolent spam researchers had their scam set up so an error message would pop up whenever someone tried to enter a credit card number.

Their research determined that it took 12.5 million emails to achieve one sale. On their network, this boiled down to about one sale a day. They calculate that big spammers, like the one they infiltrated, make roughly $3,500,000 a year. Which is actually less than what people had been speculating.

You can read more here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7719281.stm

Post-Political Zeal Incites Euphoria, Absurdity

2008-11-09T11:03:00.000-08:00

Giraffes!

2008-11-06T12:40:00.000-08:00

This is awesome.

The new, politically-free Postrad

2008-11-05T13:32:00.000-08:00

Finally, Obama is officially our next President. Now we can move on with more pressing matters. Like this:

That felt good.

Um...

2008-11-04T21:41:00.000-08:00

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I refer you to:
here

Holding my breath while votes are tallied....

2008-11-04T17:58:00.001-08:00

Homie '08

2008-11-03T12:21:00.001-08:00

So here are some snapshots I took along the way this year at Homie Fall Fest '08.

That's Sammy sharing the love. If he would have flipped me off with both hands we could call it sign language for his place of employment, One on One. But he didn't. Dick.

This is B Rose schlepping his way up one of the many steep hills that weren't Big Dummy friendly.

My baby looking cute in the sun. This pristine field was filled with Homie participants who might have thought it was the final destination. Those who did were so very, very wrong.

This was the site of one of many derbies. It is also a very poor shot of the action. Just imagine a lot of people riding in a circle around a bunch of sculptures being shouted at by GenO armed with a megaphone.

This is Erika. She was a Gretel looking for a Hansel. Full-on Homie spirit!

This was the gold at the end of the rainbow. Yes, that is a donut covered in bacon. Why weren't you at Homie this year again?

Kelly Mac doing her thing.

Schreiner and Hurl doing their "thing"... Schreiner was dressed as Schreiner. Hurl was also dressed as Schreiner. It was kinda Single White Female. Remember that movie?

What? Is that the first transgendered member of the Blue Man Group?!? Nope, that's the one and only Nick Sande, handing out donuts and making sure everyone was getting smurfed up.

All in all, Homie was once again an amazing orgy of bikes, comraderie, outdoors and mind-alteration. To those chosen few who lead and (dis)organized this event, my hats off to you.

A Quickie

2008-11-03T11:26:00.001-08:00

And don't forget to vote tomorrow. As if every media outlet in the country isn't screaming that one at you.

But still, vote. You can even vote McCain.

Although I wouldn't advise it.

Two Things

2008-10-31T06:15:00.000-07:00

First, I am a much nicer barista when I only work in a cafe once a month.

Second, this Tuesday...

VOTE!!!!

Not exactly a Colin Powell endorsement...

2008-10-22T07:50:00.000-07:00

It's official! Al-Qaida wants John McCain for President. Read about it here.

And it looks like the Obama camp has a sense of humor:

With the election less than two weeks away, I pledge you this, dear reader- no more political posting after November 5th! Yes, I'll either be gushing with joy or drinking my pain away on the 5th, and it will be the last political post I will make for a looong time. Pinky swear.

November 4th

2008-10-20T20:44:00.000-07:00

Ever feel like you've overstayed your welcome?

2008-10-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

50,000 Iraqi protesters took to the street today chanting slogans like "Get Out Occupier!" Geez, you're welcome for all of the democracy we gave you. What? You don't want it? You want a return to the rule of Shari'ah, the sacred Muslim law? Come on, don't you know democracy's are all happily Christian. What? Well, yeah, European democracies are almost unilaterally secular. What's that? Oh, sure, bring up India. Yeah, they are the biggest democracy in the world and yeah, they are mostly a bunch of peace loving Hindus, but come on. They are polytheists. How totally Iron Age!

Okay, Iraq. Fine. Have it your way. You just better hope that goddamn peacenik Obama gets elected or else we might have to "surge" our way into your hearts and minds!

McCain, these are your people

2008-10-16T13:38:00.001-07:00

Daddy of the Year nominee?

2008-10-15T18:37:00.000-07:00

If you wanted to give your daughter a good patriotic name, what comes to mind? Martha? Dolly? Susan? Nah, those are boring and stupid. How about something more topical? Sexy, perhaps? How about Sarah Palin McCain? Too bad, it's already taken. Follow the link to read all about the man who thought this was a wise decision. Read how it did it behind his wife's back. She wanted to call the baby Ava Grace.

Cleese (John) on Palin (Sarah)

2008-10-14T12:43:00.000-07:00

This is a good use of the next minute and half of your life.

And now for something completely similar:

Jesus H. Christ

2008-10-13T13:12:00.001-07:00

Tax Breaks for Bike Commuters?!!?!

2008-10-10T12:44:00.000-07:00

Follow the link. It looks like its not just AIG executives who are benefiting from the $700 billion dollar bail-out after all. I mean, $20 a month is still $20 a month, right? I'm going to end this post before I start to lose my positive outlook...

Oy vey!

2008-10-08T05:58:00.000-07:00

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

Beware of the Dark Side

2008-10-07T06:53:00.000-07:00

I believe the children are our future...

2008-10-04T07:09:00.001-07:00

Lil' O'Reilly

2008-10-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Dilbert on corporate bailouts

2008-09-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

R.I.P. Paul Newman

2008-09-29T07:43:00.001-07:00

Politics and Death (Magnetic)

2008-09-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

It has been a good couple of weeks. Politically, we are seeing the McCain camp back where they were before the introduction of the Freakshow (aka Sarah Palin). McCain once again is looking like a sagging old man desperate to win the Presidency at any cost. While Wall Street bleeds (admittedly not a good thing, but also not without a sense of justice to it) and McCain's history with the duplicitous bankers who have brought our economy to the verge of collapse becoming clearer and more despicable, the undecided fence sitters of American democracy are once again gravitating towards Obama. All I can say is that my fingers our crossed and I hope that this trend continues until we see Obama win in November. Than I wish Barack the best of luck trying to undo all of the damage of the past 8 years. I have the feeling we will see it visibly age him before he's up for reelection.

Politics aside, let's turn to one of the most anticipated albums of '08, Metallica's Death Magnetic. Like many my age, I discovered Metallica when they were still a mostly underground phenomena. I remember listening to ...And Justice For All and it being a sort of religious experience for me. The album had been out for about a year and the video for One was starting to pick up a lot of airplay on MTV. Metallica was the band that all other bands were measured against in my world, and I couldn't imagine them ever doing any wrong.

When the "Black" album came out, I was initially all for the new musical explorations they embarked upon. I felt somewhat vindicated that Metallica was getting mainstream exposure. It gave me a sense of being ahead of the curve somewhat. And then their was a point when I started to really get sick of the incessant videos on MTV, the jocks who were now all about Metallica, and the uncomfortable feeling that this wasn't exactly the band I once raved about.

Then Load happened. Metallica cut their hair. They started making pretentious psuedo-art videos which had them wearing make-up. Fucking make-up! That was part of the reason why I liked Metallica, they were the antithesis of all these fey hair metal bands that seemed to have nothing important to offer besides disposable songs and horrible fashion sense. They stopped sounding the least bit thrash, a style they pioneered, and started to sound like a trite, formulaic top 40 rock band. I remember I had a poster from a guitar magazine that had Kirk and James on it, with their new hair dos and shiny boutique outfits. I promptly hung on the inside of the lid to my toilet. I put word balloons next to their heads. Kirk asks "Hey James, what's that smell?" James answers "Nevermind, man, its making us MILLIONS."

To say that I felt betrayed by Metallica was accurate. I really tried to like Load at first. I remember having a cousin of mine tape it off a radio show that played the whole album before it was released (ah, the days before P2P and Torrents!). I was incredibly disappointed- one of the main reasons why I started playing guitar and actively pursuing music had changed in a big way.

Worse yet, Load made them bigger than ever.

In the years leading up to the much hated St Anger (an album that deserves way more respect than it gets, but that is another subject altogether) I bought one Metallica album. That album was Garage Inc., which was half the epic and no longer in print (not to mention a high priced collectible) Garage Days Rerevisited, which I had a crummy dubbed cassette tape of. It also had the coolest new recording I had heard from them in almost a decade, which was their cover of Thin Lizzy's "Whisky in the Jar."

But as far as their other albums, I would have sooner bought a Brittany Spears CD at the time. I mean Reload? WTF!?! And that S and M album? Talk about self-aggrandizing rockstar bullshit. "Hey, let's play some of our hit songs in front of a full symphony orchestra, because it's a lot easier to do that than to record a new album." I guess songs like "Call of Ktulu" and "Master of Puppets" are elaborate enough to perhaps excuse adding another 70 fucking instruments to "flesh out" the arrangements, but songs like "Fuel" and "Until It Sleeps?" Are you kidding?!? Even Beethoven couldn't polish those turds- he'd be thanking his lucky tuetonic stars that he was deaf.

Point: Metallica has consistently disappointed me for over a decade, prior to their realization that they had become a terrible band (circa 2001).

Then the agreed to have documentary film makers follow them around to undoubtedly film a far more absurdly melodramatic point in Metallica's career than any party involved could have possibly imagined. Once again, like St Anger, this is another dorky subject unto itself.

God, this blog post has turned into a college Freshman composition essay.

To simply summarize, the new album is actually really good. There are plenty of naysayers out there, and I respect their complaints. Metallica has been trying to sell them Shit Sandwiches for a long time now, and at this point hating the new Metallica album is a Pavlovian reflex. But it is a thrash album. It isn't exactly where they left off with ...And Justice For All, but it would be extremely contrived at this point if it were. And "The unforgiven III," while not nearly as awful as "The Unforgiven II," still doesn't belong on the album (my friend Sam, after we had drunk copious amounts of bourbon, memorably tried to will it off the album one night).

So there you have it. Oh, and if you haven't seen Get Thrashed, a great documentary about thrash metal, go out and rent it. It'll make you want to listen to Exodus and dig your bullet belt out of the attic.

Elitism recap

2008-09-22T09:07:00.000-07:00

Ooooooooo... Barracuda!

2008-09-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I'm all oughta bubblegum.

2008-09-10T08:16:00.001-07:00

Spontaneous Minutemen Appreciation Post

2008-09-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

D. Boon, Mike Watt and George Hurley were The Minutemen (a wonderful play on words- it meant "minute" as in little, a sort of ironic statement on American patriotism). One of the most difficult to categorize punk bands of the 80's West Coast scene, the band ended abruptly with the tragic death of D. Boon. For those of you in the know, such a historical overview is unnecessary. But to the all-too-many who don't know them, check them out. These are politically charged times, and they were a band that fostered intense creativity with a desire to tackle Big Issues while never leaving behind their working-class roots. They were more punk than punk that way.

Check out the video they did for "King of the Hill" in all of its DIY, dated 80's glory.

Geezer Butler pwns Sarah Palin

2008-09-05T12:28:00.000-07:00

I am at a loss for words about how cool this is.

Taken from blabbermouth.net:

BLACK SABBATH's GEEZER BUTLER Slams 'Hypocrite' SARAH PALIN - Sep. 5, 2008
Legendary heavy metal bassist Geezer Butler (BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN AND HELL) has issued the following update:

"Thank you all who came to see the Metal Masters tour. It was a pleasure touring with such great bands and friends — JUDAS PRIEST, MOTÖRHEAD and TESTAMENT, and their respective crews. It was great meeting everyone who came to the meet and greets after the shows.

"Now back to reality. As you may know from my web site and lyrics, I am pro all life, not just unborn fetuses. I don't understand people who say they are pro-life, but then support unnecessary wars and the disgusting slaughter of animals for sport. I respect people's freedom of religion, but I absolutely abhor hypocrites. Which brings me to this horrific video [see below] of cowardly bastards in airplanes, shooting wolves for so-called 'sport,' and the hypocritical politician [referring to Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin] [she's supposed to be pro-life, remember], who allows this cowardly act to take place in her state.

"I know lots of people who hunt, and I enjoy shooting at my local gun range, but I don't know, nor would I want to know, anyone who gets pleasure from this disgraceful behaviour. God/nature has created a beautiful earth, and populated it with beautiful creatures, and I believe that all life is miraculous. Why do politicians [royals included] enjoy killing so much, and treating those miracles with such contempt?"

RIP Ian Hibell

2008-09-04T14:03:00.000-07:00

It's been a week of bummer news. The latest is that Ian Hibell, cyclist extraordinaire, was killed in a hit-and-run.

Read more about Mr. Hibell's amazing life here.

A look at Sarah Palin from Wasilla, Alaska

2008-09-04T11:09:00.000-07:00

A note to all by Anne Kilkenny

Dear friends,

So many people have asked me about what I know about Sarah Palin in the
last 2 days that I decided to write something up . . .

Basically, Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton have only 2 things in
common: their gender and their good looks. :)

You have my permission to forward this to your friends/email contacts
with my name and email address attached, but please do not post it on
any websites, as there are too many kooks out there . . .

[This was already posted on Washington Independent comments area, with a controllable hotmail account, and was obviously meant by the author to be read. ]

Thanks,
Anne

ABOUT SARAH PALIN

I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992.
Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a
first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her
father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a
first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more
City Council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the
residents of the city.

She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular
girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and
won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because
she is a "babe".

It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She
kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents
for seven months.

She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome
baby.
There is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby.

She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.

She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out
there" and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a
champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly
sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his
work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or
so in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their
major source of income. Nor has her life-style ever been anything
like that of native Alaskans.

Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.

She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000
(at the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about
670,000 residents.

During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running
this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been
pushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had
gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had
given rise to a recall campaign.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative". During her 6
years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over
33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the
City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation
(1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a
regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she
promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they
benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration
weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed
money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it
with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage
the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said
she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a
new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a
multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece
of property that the City didn't even have clear title to, that was
still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the delight of the lawyers
involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the
community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it
would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects that
could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.

While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated more than once.

These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus
in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will
make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she
proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she
recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while
she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's
surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas
or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by
her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the
basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected
City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from
the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents
rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's
attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew
her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the
Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran
for Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys".
Palin fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as
Governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people,
creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally
grateful and fiercely loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power
to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the
case of pressuring the State's top cop (see below).

As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated" her, she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure
and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that
an important factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't
fire her sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation
for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen
contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she
later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to
replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded
for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew
her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in
help. The City Council person who personally escorted her around town
introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council
became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She
abruptly fired her loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't
like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness.

Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything
publicly about her.

When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got
the best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one
of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no
background in oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great
job which paid $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the
high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the
structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this
Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party)
engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move which some
undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all
her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and
garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a
gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit,
exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from
Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel
politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge
to nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to.

As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget
guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing
projects, calling them pork. Public outcry and further legislative
action restored most of these projects--which had been vetoed simply
because she was not aware of their importance--but with the unobservant
she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork".

She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party
leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated
them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a
fiscal conservative.

Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah.
They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and
predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly
stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made
point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's
mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and
experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her.

As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package
of legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to
march to the beat of her drum.

Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to
global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a
state initiaitive that would have either a) protected salmon streams from
pollution from mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the
state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the State's
lawsuit against the Dept. of the Interior's decision to list polar
bears as threatened species.

McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a
heartbeat away from being President.

There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more
knowledgeable and experienced than she.

However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are
regretting it.

CLAIM VS FACT
•"Hockey mom": true for a few years
•"PTA mom": true years ago when her first-born was in elementary school, not since
•"NRA supporter": absolutely true
•social conservative: mixed. Opposes gay marriage, BUT vetoed a bill
that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex relationships
(said she did this because it was unconsitutional).
•pro-creationism: mixed. Supports it, BUT did nothing as Governor to promote it.
•"Pro-life": mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby BUT declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-life legislation
•"Experienced": Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has
residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska.
No legislative experience other than City Council. Little hands-on
supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city
administrator to run town of about 5,000.
•political maverick: not at all
•gutsy: absolutely!
•open & transparent: ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at explaining actions.
•has a developed philosophy of public policy: no
•"a Greenie": no. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box stores and disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.
•fiscal conservative: not by my definition!
•pro-infrastructure: No. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city
without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built streets to early 20th century standards.
•pro-tax relief: Lowered taxes for businesses, increased tax burden on residents
•pro-small government: No. Oversaw greatest expansion of city government in Wasilla's history.
•pro-labor/pro-union. No. Just because her husband works union doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim that she is pro-labor/pro-union.

WHY AM I WRITING THIS?

First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed
voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting
programs in the schools. If you google my name (Anne Kilkenny +
Alaska), you will find references to my participation in local
government, education, and PTA/parent organizations.

Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen
when good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do
because few have gone to as many City Council meetings.

Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out
of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no
fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will
cost me somehow in the future: that's life.

Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100
or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's
attempt at censorship.

Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to
say anything because they were somehow vulnerable.

CAVEATS
I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in
spending & taxation 2 years ago (when Palin was running for
Governor) from information supplied to me by the Finance Director of the City of Wasilla, and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust for inflation? for population increases? Right now, it is impossible
for a private person to get any info out of City Hall--they are swamped. So I can't verify my numbers.

You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the
population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000", up to
9,000. The day Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that the
current population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was
5,460. I have used about 5,000 because Palin was Mayor from 1996 to
2002, and the city was growing rapidly in the mid-90's.

Anne Kilkenny
annekilkenny@hotmail.com
August 31, 2008

If you made it this far, you deserve this:

A little levity

2008-09-03T15:56:00.000-07:00

With all of the political bru ha ha recently, with St Paul looking more like a police state from Eastern Europe than a quaint Midwestern city, I figure we all may need a little break. Enjoy.

"I don't want kids"

2008-09-02T11:14:00.000-07:00

Ah, this is a political season unlike any other in recent memory. I remember the first Presidential Election that I paid detailed attention to. It was 1988 and the field was open for both sides of the aisle, just like today. I even wrote a Saturday Night Live inspired one-act play called "The Great Debate of '88" for my 6th grade class about it. The plot involved a highly improbable scenario in which all the then remaining candidates get booked into the same hotel room. I don't remember much of the dialogue, except for the fact that I had George H.W. Bush say "fiddlesticks" a lot. And that I included a controversial scene in which Gary Hart shows up to the room with some kind of loose woman.

But '88 has got nothing on '08. It has been so surreal one has to wonder if Al Queda managed to sneak enough LSD into municipal water supplies to induce mass hallucinations nation-wide. And the addition of Gov. Sarah Palin (whom I lovingly refer to as "Freakshow") as McCain's running mate has just about made me certain that we are all living in a Matrix-style world in which our robot overlords have gotten bored and are deliberately fucking with us. I mean, wow! Seriously, WTF! With less foreign policy experience than a high school student in Model UN, she is one helluva curve ball for McCain to throw at the American public. It's almost as if he's saying "Hey ladies, look, another chick to vote for! And guys, she's hot! Like, way hotter than Clinton!"

She's like the Anti-Hillary. Any Clinton supporter that votes for McCain based off of his choice of veep has a warped idealism and no idea what a Pyrrhic victory is. The most Hillary and Sarah have in common is that they both are female politicians. Other than that, Sarah Palin is a Creationism-loving, Abortion-hating ex-beauty queen with a bevy of children and a lack of political experience that makes one wonder, once again, WTF???

I love how James "The Ragin' Cajun" Carville eviscerates Minnesota State Rep. Bachmann about how indefensible it is to say that Palin was the best choice for the Republican VP:

And then there was Bristol. 5 months pregnant, 17 years old, and unmarried. I hope that when Howard Dean read about this he gave another triumphant "AHHHHHHHH!" like he was back at the '04 Iowa Caucus. The Freakshow Palin camp just become even more Springer-esque. Here is a hilarious Photoshopped tribute to Bristol:

But lo! There is more! Young Bristol's baby's daddy has been revealed! If you pictured him as a meatheaded jock, a recent Huffington Post article seems to indicate that you are correct! Levi Johnston, Bristol's fiance (remember, no single mom's allowed in the GOP!), is a normal enough 18 year old male in that he has a MySpace page. He is a self-described "fucking redneck" and "Ya fuck with me I'll kick [your] ass." And according to his MySpace page, in that wonderful bio section MySpace offers, Levi has himself listed as "I don't want kids."

Now bear in mind I still don't consider McCain done for. You can't count your chickens before they're hatched. If 2004 taught us anything, its that the American public is capable of terrible decision making. And if 2000 taught us anything, it is that the popular vote doesn't really count for shit now anyway, if Diebold, the Electoral College and the Supreme Court have anything to say about it.

That being said, November can't come fast enough...

McCain is a terrible roommate

2008-08-28T17:32:00.000-07:00

You think John McCain would make a bad president? Well, you don't know the half of it.

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

My So-Called Bummer Life

2008-08-26T08:24:00.000-07:00

There is no number quite like "666." When I was a wee boy in the 80's that number was especially significant. Metal was at the height of its popularity and its usage of satanic imagery. Iron Maiden perhaps wrote the greatest song about "666" ever, "The Number of the Beast." It scared the crap out of people, too. Politicians and religious leaders went on the warpath and the media ran with tales of teenage victims of this tide of evil music. Judas Priest was accused (and eventually exonerated) of sneaking satanic backwards messages into their music. And then there was little ol' me, a good catholic boy with a full-blown fear of hell. Things changed when I received a copy of Metallica's ...And Justice For All, not that it was a particularly satanic album or anything, it was just awesome. Then after that it was a steady diet of speed metal without any fear that the devil was somehow winning my soul.

So the number "666" means a lot to me. It reminds me of my Catholic, god-fearing upbringing. It reminds me of those glorious days in the late 80's when metal ruled and I was on the brink of becoming a teenager. It also makes me laugh. Because it is a number that will pop up anywhere, on your odometer, on your license plate, or:

On your cheese.

On the price of coffee and a snack:

The magic combo for the $6.66 amount at CRC is a chocolate chip cookie, Caffrey's pasta salad and an iced coffee. Sounds like a truly damning late afternoon nosh indeed.

Or the price of maybe your next bike?

The Surly Steamroller had a MSRP of $666.00. If you google "Surly Steamroller," you'll see most places have it listed at S665.99. Do they fear for their immortal souls? You decide. (Also, it looks like Surly has recently raised the MSRP to $720.00, which is still a pretty rad price for a rad bike, although definitely less funny. Damn inflation.)

Also, let us not forget the first Apple computer:

Priced at $666.66, you had to put it together yourself and build the case. Careful where you rest your hand, you may get a splinter. An evil splinter...

If you are a fan of Satan and His Infernal Number 666, you must go to How to Avoid the Bummer Life. But you probably already knew about Steve Smith and his baaad assssss blog. You don't have to be a satan worshiper or a bike nut to enjoy his blog, but it doesn't hurt. Plus, if you have any cool "666" sightings caught on film, send it his way. I have and the Bummer Life bump was good for my blog's traffic. Not to mention it was nice to contribute to a blog that is almost guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

Welcome rich white oligarchs!

2008-08-25T08:44:00.001-07:00

The Daily Show- helping America laugh on its one-way course into the gaping maw of Hell. Thanks for making this irrational den of fear and paranoia we call home a little less scary, Jon!

Quit yer belly achin'!

2008-08-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

Looks like young Issy is thinking "is this guy making fun of me or what?"

xkcd on Diebold

2008-08-15T05:09:00.000-07:00

Small talk with web developer

2008-08-14T13:37:00.000-07:00

McCain <3 W.

2008-08-14T09:11:00.000-07:00

Lazy Tuesday

2008-08-12T10:09:00.000-07:00

Cheap YouTube post, coming from one of my favorite blogs, failblog.org. It reminds us that in the age of cheap video, no failed daredevilry will go uncatalogued.

Also, in metal news, Metallica played to a quadrillion people at Ozzfest in Texas last week and brought the one and only King Diamond on stage during their encore. Below is the 10 minute medley of Merciful Fate songs they did with the Danish king of metal.

Kudos to Metallica for not forgetting their roots. Bigger kudos to them if Death Magnetic (their next album with über producer Rick Rubin, due out next month) doesn't suck.

Hacking a subway system

2008-08-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

Check this out:

http://www-tech.mit.edu/V128/N30/subway/Defcon_Presentation.pdf

Yeah, it's an eighty-seven page instructional manual on how to exploit just about every electrical system related to the Boston subway. 3 undergrads from MIT put it together. The city of Boston wasn't amused.

I think it's awesome.

Morgan Freeman aka Easy Reader

2008-08-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

Morgan Freeman made news this week by getting hospitalized due to a bad car crash. Morgan Freeman has been in a lot of great movies, and I hope he makes a full recovery. Known for his intensity on screen, as well as a stare that is so heavy and badass that if he and Samuel L. Jackson had a stare down, mere mortals would not be able to witness the event. It would be so goddamn bonecrushingly intense it would cause madness and seizures. And I don't know who would win. All I know is one of them would be more powerful than ever when it was done.

I saw the video below on another web-site (Neatorama) which gets its content from other web-sites (like Youtube, who gets their content from EVERYWHERE). Those internets work hard so you don't have to. Enjoy Mr. Freeman when he was just a light-hearted, African-American stereotype for PBS.