Why can't the Russians figure out that NO ONE is ever going to let them be in charge of anything? It's one thing to predict the downfall of the United States, a point that may be somewhat credible but far less likely than he proposes, but to predict that Russia and China will share the spoils of that downfall. I'm guessing there are quite a few Europeans, Japanese, Indians and Koreans that don't happen to agree. I know the Russians think that since crackpots like Hugo Chavez are courting them again this has somehow re-elevated them back to the "Superpower" realm...whatever.
Let's look at Russia's future, I think there are two scenarios they will pursue to reassert themselves.
Buy up all the oil and gas, hold Western Europe hostage.
Bully every former Soviet satellite state until they submit to the intimidation and crawl pack into some neo-Warsaw Pact.
They'll try one of those or a combination of the two. Either way the way to assure that we stay above the fray is to eliminate our reliance on foreign oil.
What is the most watched television show in the entire world? Most Americans have this narrow vision of TV shows and think that only the shows we have from our "major" networks are really that popular. In truth maybe 100 million people watch the Super Bowl every year and that is about the most popular American broadcast which pales in comparison to the estimated 500 million to 1 billion people that tune in to watch EVERY single episode of Top Gear. The show is marketed in 117 countries around the world and there is no reliable way to know just how many people are watching but it is easily 500 million.
Here's a great interview with the stars of Top Gear about why the show is so popular.
I still can't watch the infamous "Alabama" episode...its just to painful to think about the fact that half a billion people saw that show has an example of what America is really like, it's shameful. Of course it's not as painful as the train wreck that is Top Gear Australia which recently finished it's first season. Man...they've got a lot of work to do on that one.
The Porsche Panamera has officially been announced so now we can see it in all of it's glory. The styling of the Cayenne SUV was controversial, many called it ugly but it made up for the bad looks by being a fantastic drive. The Panamera looks okay from the front, a little worse from the back but from the side....holy shit is it ugly. This thing better be positively orgasmic to drive....
The EU has created an enormous online library of books, maps, photos and pretty much everything else for the member states. Of course they spent all that money scanning stuff but appear to have short changed on the infrastructure because the site has be overwhelmed on its debut day. Hope they get it fixed cause it sounds pretty cool.
Pushing Daisies was one of the most intelligently written, quirky and funny television shows ever produced. Notice the use of past tense there? Thanks for watching.
Okay, Sarah Palin and her crack team of handlers are officially the most ignorant group of people on this planet. She just participated in a disasterous Presidential campaign that would have ruined the careers of far more qualified candidates than herself and she made herself look like a complete loon on several occasions in nationaly televised interviews. After all of that she still has the complete lack of foresight to realise what an UNBELIEVABLY BAD FUCKING IDEA it was to be interviewed on television while someone is slaughtering turkeys in the background......NO SHIT!! This really happened.
Here's is the video, which I warn you is pretty graphic. The last 30 seconds is just crazy, try to listen to watch she's saying while the turkey goes through it's death throes. The "hatchet" man has this look on his face like....are they really taping this? Don't they know that I'm cutting the head off of a fucking turkey over here?
I love turkey, they taste delicious and seeing a video of one being slaughtered is not going to prevent me from feasting on its tender flesh. But that video makes me sick...the last thing that poor turkey heard was Sarah Palin talking about how much fun she was having.
UPDATE:
Here's a longer version with her reading the full pardon to a turkey prior to the slaughtering part....what a fucking moron.
Check out the awesome new "Quick Kill" active protection system from the home boys at Raytheon. Just what you need for rolling in your favorite Baghdad hood.
This MIT professor has discovered a new catalyst that will allow the cheap cracking of water into Hydrogen and Oxygen. Combine that with solar power and you have the makings of a very cheap and plentiful source of electricity.
So Detroit is going into the shitter and the management of those companies seem to be living on another planet. But is the GLOBAL auto industry on the verge of collapse? How many weeks or months can these companies endure with slow sales...or no sales? When the Grim Reaper comes knocking for Toyota or Nissan will the Japanese Government step in?
We only have ourselves to blame for this. The UAW has brow beat the American automakers for the last two decades, they didn't care if they pushed until the situation was untenable. The management of those companies must also share the blame, they gave the UAW enough rope to hang everyone.
The unions decided long ago that all that mattered was the short term and in the process they've bankrupted their own future.
Problem is that the effects of even one of the Detroit Three failing are nearly incalculable. Most estimates are that GM's failure could result in at least 2.5 million lost jobs but it could be double or triple that number when the parts distributors start failing. All the other car makers rely on those parts... so what then? You can't sell a car that's one part short....all told it could mean another 5-8 million unemployed workers.
Ken Block made his money has co-founder of DC Shoes but has been known more for his daredevil side in recent years. Most of the time these rich adrenaline junkies get on my nerves but unlike a lot of the other douchebags out there...Ken Block as some serious skills. Check this shit out.
A lot of people have been comparing Brack Obama to Jesus...carrying the weight of everyone's hopes and dreams. Personally, I think he's more like King Midas...everything he touches turns to gold.
The second trailer for the new Star Trek prequel/reboot has dropped....it looks amazing. Funny to think that Star Trek could be an action movie when the cast isn't AARP members.
If you've never played with Google's suite of FREE applications then you don't know what you're missing. Between Google and OpenOffice I can actually say that there is NO reason for the average home user to waste their money on Microsoft Office. You're paying a fortune for features that you will never use.
Google's latest updated application is the simply amazing SketchUp. You can build crazy 3D models that would have required thousands of dollars of CAD/CAM software just a few years ago....it's sweet.
I think it is seriously wrong that the Mormon Church can use the power of it's organization to collect money to fund a POLITICAL campaign. They can also use the power of their organization to canvas an entire state yet somehow maintain their tax-exempt status as a Church. They wisely skirted the rule of the law but entirely violated the spirit of that law.
They deserve the bad press they are getting now, I hope every Mor(m)on that gave money to this cause gets colon cancer.
You expect everyone to protect your right to practice your goofy ass religion with it's big hats and incense yet you want to DENY others their rights? When the Catholic Church has saved all the desperate living, walking, talking children of this planet THEN they can preach to me about their beliefs regarding conception. Until then they may want to consider not demonizing their own flock and eroding their already shaky credibility.
I rate my days by the quality of craziness/creepiness I find on the Internet...today is a good day. The best thing about the Internet is the sheer volume of morons out there and their varying levels of taste, or lack there of.
Take this forum post for instance by a guy that thought having his "hot" girlfriend pose with the car he's trying to sell would sweeten the deal. She looks like someone starved her for a month and then hit her in the face with a shovel.
Stop telling the horribly ugly that they are in any way attractive, it just leads to them being made fun of.
According to this CNNMoney.com article the Volt is too important to GM to be cancelled. I guess that engine plant is just going spring forth from the ground overnight then? That engine is also scheduled to be used in the Cruze (much needed replacement for the Cobalt)...so WTF? Where are those engines going to come from?
How many people really think that throwing more than a trillion dollars into the banking industry was a better idea than spending a measly $30 million to bail out GM? Why should GM be saved? Read this.
That article is interesting for several reasons. First it states that GM has suspended all R&D spending, this all but confirms that the Volt has been mothballed if not canceled outright. Second, it would result in the direct displacement of 1,000,000 employees and countless other jobs that exist because of those jobs. That ripple would touch every corner of our entire economy.
Also, I read something scary the other day about what bankruptcy would mean for GM. General Motors has a very poor credit rating right now and a rather large amount of outstanding debt. This means that GM would not be able to declare the friendly version of bankruptcy...chapter 11 because no bank would be willing to loan the company the cash it needs to re-organize. No, GM would have to go to the dreaded chapter 7 bankruptcy which would force the company to liquidate assets in order to pay off creditors. This would basically destroy GM and would benefit NO ONE except some foreign auto makers that may be able to snap up GM assets at bargain basement prices.
Maybe it's my agnostic cynicism talking but I love photo-shopped Jesus pictures. Here's Holy Taco's list with several awesome examples....here's a taste:
AIG has thrown themselves another ridiculously expensive junket on the the taxpayers dime. At least they were smart enough to TRY and hide it this time.
I'm surprised it took this long. The only thing the average American likes better than cheap gas is a good deal on a new car. Some dealers are offering HUGE discounts on big SUVs so its no surprise that with gas under $2/gallon people are jumping on those good deals. And...the only people that can qualify for the loans right now are people with good credit so what the hell do they care about gas prices anyway.
The most hated President since Nixon and the most hyped President since Kennedy. Bush's approval rating is so bad that he's had to bring Obama to the White House three months early to try and give the impression that something good is going on.
Circuit City declares Chapter 11. I cannot believe that HP extended Circuit City $119 Million in credit, talk about desperate to get your product onto shelves.
China tries to portray itself as a modern superpower both culturally and economically. They went to incredible lengths during this year's Olympics to keep all their dirty laundry hidden from the world view. For the most part the International press bought the act and bent to the Chinese will so that they could cover the The games rather than be thrown out of the country.
If you are not smart enough to handle the simple concept of pushing pedals and turning a big circle to indicate direction then I fear for your ability to breathe autonomously.
Dude...you get the Russian bride but leave her Mother in Russia!
The next time some Neo-Con idiot starts spouting off about how horrible Obama is tell them to shut up and send them this story. Basically, eight years of warmongering and jesus fearing have left us lagging behind in most areas of Science and Technology. Since the GOP decided that they all had to be fundamentalist christians they can't fund science that would just continue to tug at the veil of religious dogma. How can you fund the research of billion year old geologic features on a planet your religion claims is only 6000 years old.....
Until the GOP realises that the seperation of Church and State is FUNDAMENTAL they should never be allowed back into the drivers seat. You can practice your faith all you want just stop trying to force your backward agenda on the rest of us.
Sarah Palin's legion of cronies have gone into super overtime damage control. They are trying to save any semblance of public credibility that their media darling has left. I believe part of what they are shoveling, she can't seriously not know that Africa is a continent, but I also think she deserves to be shit on.
I think its hilarious that McCain's people are dropping a nice Hot Carl on Palin.
Today is not a good day to be associated with General Motors in any way. There was a lot of buildup rumors to their catastrophically bad Q3 announcement, ranging from them having to declare bankruptcy to the cancellation of the Volt project. So here's the question...who does the government save?
GM insists that they won't make it another quarter at this rate without seeking bankruptcy. Ford can probably last two or three quarters without help. Chrysler has plenty of cash so they MAY survive for quite a while in some form but their sales have taken an even bigger hit than the other two. I don't see the government helping Chrysler...AGAIN....but they may have to prop up the other two or face another 500,000 in unemployed workers.
Is the Volt going to be canceled? Maybe. GM hasn't even broke ground on the $370 million plant to build the engines yet. Unless the government kicks in the $25 billion that GM wants then the Volt will never happen....certainly not by its supposed launch date of Q3 2010.
I spend far too much time on the Internet but in my digital travels I've noticed that religion is widely made fun of or looked down on by the general population of Internet users. Here's an article about Digg.com and it's "anti-religion" crowd. That article claims that 60% of Americans attend Church...does that seem high to you? That would effectively mean that 6 out of every 10 people that I know attend some kind of Church....seriously? I'm sorry but that's either no where near accurate or I just hang out with a particularly godless crowd.
The problem is that when asked (polled) most people lie about going to Church because they feel guilty that they don't actually go. Then there are the "fair weather" worshippers that only go for Easter or Christmas....who are you fooling?
It appears that another biological organism as been discovered to have the amazing ability to produce diesel fuel from plain old cellulose. Commercialize this shit fast as you can.
Now here's a really good summation of Sarah Palin's attitude towards other people's money from Newsweek. Apparently, Palin was not authorized to spend tens of thousands of dollars on clothing. According to one aide:
An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast," and said the truth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits its books.
Wonder if Sarah knew from the beginning that there was no way they could win and she just decided to milk it for all it was worth. Of course that is probably giving her undeserved credit considering she didn't know that Africa is a continent.
This one is for Mark. His dream was to have a pet Lynx, even if it required wearing special protective gear around your own home. By the looks of this video it is a stellar idea.
...hit you on the ass on the way out. So long Sarah Palin, back to the frigid North with your nutty ass.
Did you see her on stage with McCain last night during his concession speech? She walked past the lectern with this look of longing, she just wanted to saunter up to that microphone and shit all over John McCain's final moment.
I'm sure she's going to go through some serious "God Complex" withdraw without those throngs of adulating morons appearing every where she goes. Maybe they'll show up at her favorite consignment shop in Anchorage.....lol.
I've been almost too busy this morning to really think about the implications of this election. The fact that my state, Indiana, which as been a red state since before my birth has helped to elect a Democratic President....that's just amazing.
Voting for Obama in this election has been different than any other voting experience that I've ever had. It feels more like being part of a movement and not just participating in a process of government.
Tolerance? Forgiveness? A Christian knows not these things. Just because you can read the bible doesn't mean you're smart enough to understand the message.
Of course Atheists are the problem....no one has ever been murdered or subjugated in the name of religion.
Time to choose you undecided morons out there. Which is it going to be? All the free drugs, sex and surrender you can handle or eight more years of flag-waving and bible-beating?
In the midst of this election insanity a tiny piece of happiness as dropped into the world. Top Gear is back for it's 12th season! Not the lame Aussie Top Gear or the even lamer American Top Gear...no the ORIGINAL is back. Download it, watch it....love it.
Oh BTW, this apparently happened in the town that I was born and raised in. I'm just overflowing with pride and the longing to return to the place of my birth. /end sarcasm
I'm willing to bet that every Halloween for the next 20 years you won't be able to buy an egg or a roll of toilet paper in this town...
That crazy bitch actually has the candy stapled to McCain campaign literature....what's the voting age again? I'll bet she's one of those people that thinks celebrating Halloween is worshiping the devil.
