March 4th, 2010
The LEGO series of video games by game developer Travellers’ Tales have been some of the most engaging and fun family games to hit platform/PC gaming in quite a while. Based on very popular movie franchises, the LEGO games provide hours of puzzle and action entertainment peppered with subtle humor and the classic LEGO feel.
With the LEGO: Harry Potter release looming in May and the announcement that Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will be hitting in October, I thought it high time that we look to the future of the LEGO series and think about what other fantastic movie or television franchises would make great LEGO games. While doing that, I also thought it justified to list an equal amount of franchises that show potential and could probably be made into LEGO games but ultimately shouldn’t be. Though at this point they could make a LEGO: Love Boat and it would be fun to play. The games are that good. I gave my reasoning for each, and you are welcome to leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments.
Also, when listing these out I stayed away from more purely adult franchises such as Aliens or Die Hard as they wouldn’t be very marketable to children. Though I would think as an adult, I’d really enjoy a Die Hard one.
LEGO Games That Should be Made
Lord of the Rings Trilogy – I think we can all agree that this would probably be pretty damn awesome. Playing as any one of the fellowship as you go on a puzzle filled quest to dispose of the “one ring” sounds like a blast, even playing as Gollum. The Trilogy presents plenty of situations for puzzles, from getting through the Mines of Moria to sneaking into Mordor.
The Superman Movies – If a LEGO game was to be made for the Superman franchise it would have to be the classic movies. That is, Superman I-III because Superman IV doesn’t count and shouldn’t ever count. The interesting thing here would be the flying mechanism in the game and creating puzzles that utilize it.
The Matrix Trilogy – Similar to the flying mechanism suggested above, the Matrix movies would introduce a new element to the games – the super slow-mo-bullet-avoiding-reading-code element. Certain levels could have puzzles that you have to solve through the code and you could construct the Mechs to defeat the Sentinels. LEGO Neo just sounds like a good idea. Even if it is Keanu Reeves.
Terminator Series – The main reason I think the Terminator franchise would work well here is because it would be a good opportunity to introduce the Techic line into the games. Clearly, the movies don’t offer quite enough to make a puzzle game out of, so some artistic liberties will have to be taken. Playing as LEGO T-800 sounds nice, but playing as a LEGO T-1000 sounds even better.
Star Trek – To be specific, just the original series, the films I-III and then Next Generation. I only suggest the movies because I wouldn’t think a LEGO Star Trek experience would be complete without playing as both Kirk and Khan. The Next Generation game could be split into it’s own game with a crossover episode in that other Universe with evil Kirk. Phasers, tons of interesting planets to fight through and green women only add to the appear of a LEGO Star Trek.
Honorable mentions: Toy Story Trilogy, Futurama
LEGO Games That Shouldn’t be Made
Power Rangers – I was never a Power Ranger fan. I found the show cheesy, staged and about as interesting as packing Styrofoam. While a very popular franchise, I can’t seem to think of any complex enough puzzles to put into the game. Perhaps there could be a puzzle to figure out why they were always fighting enemies in a well groomed park or on a nice beach.
Spider-Man Movies – If I had to guess which movie franchise would be made into a LEGO game next I’d have to think it would be Spider-Man. There is a clear difference between the world of Spider-Man and the world of Batman, the current LEGO franchise game. The Spider-Man movie world was just as much about the love triangle between Peter, Mary Jane and Harry. That doesn’t translate too well into a puzzle / action game. Though I suppose Peter could build excuses as to why he took so long to see Mary Jane’s play.
Pokemon – I’m not sure where I read it, and a Google search yielded no results, but somewhere there is a rumor a LEGO Pokemon game in the works. Perhaps just by saying that I’m starting the rumor. While the kids enjoy catching them all, and the Pokemon franchise has made for some very successful games it just seems like something a bit too obnoxious for the LEGO treatment.
Star Trek – Now for the other Star Trek franchises. I especially hope to never see a LEGO: Star Trek IV. Saving the whales and lame jokes about 1980’s style and San Francisco. No, that doesn’t seem like a very appealing game. There could probably be some puzzles derived from DS9 and the Jem’Hadar would be some mean looking LEGO mini figs, but hopefully they skip that one along with Voyager and Enterprise.
Bill Teds Excellent Adventure/Journey – Traveling through time in a phone booth, encountering historical figures and recruiting princesses sounds cool right? Sadly, that’s the only part of this awesome duo of movies that would make any sense in a LEGO game. Neither Bill or Ted are action heroes or have super-powers. They had to recruit Station to build something to fight for them. Plus, only one game starring Keanu is feasible without tearing a hole in the space time continuum. Not to mention, if LEGO was to make a game featuring a time traveling phone booth, I’d rather it be Dr. Who.
Which ones would you look forward to the most? Any other suggestions?
Follow us on Twitter @cebsilver and @wiredgeekdad
It is really quite simple. SA Rugby’s 14 unions each have 2 votes and the individual with a majority of 15 out of 28 votes wins.
It is without doubt one of the most important watershed moments in the annals of South African rugby, as the new leadership comprising the President, Deputy President and Vice President, will assume office for a term of four years through till 2014.
These three individuals will comprise the SA Rugby leadership triumvirate, which will take SA Rugby into the future, with either some limp-wristed chatter of promises, or a powerful credible team that will make bold progressive changes to enhance SA Rugby.
Candidates who have made themselves available for election so far, are Oregan Hoskins, who has been SA Rugby President for four years (two terms of two years each); Mark Alexander, a serial administrator in other sports who has been Deputy President for two years; and Rautie Rautenbach, who has been a figurehead for two years as Vice President, the most notable contribution is attending a Confederation of African Rugby, as the SA Rugby representative in Dakar, Senegal, last year.
Again each of these three have, over the past two weeks, let it be known, that they will also stand for any other presidential position, as it is just way too intoxicating a feeling to not consider being in the mix.
Hoskins, from the Sharks, is a nice guy, however he was first elected to stand opposite Brian van Rooyen in February 2006, specifically because he was coloured, as the SA Rugby constitution at the time required that the three SA Rugby Presidential candidates comprise of a white, coloured and black, in no particular order.
This was to particularly bring into effect, his mandate from his nominees and backers of the big five, which at the time was clear, prevent the Southern Spears from entering Super 14.
This in effect started the clandestine collusion of the big five franchises, three of whom faced the very real prospect of relegation for two of the five years, out of the Super 14 from 2006 to 2010. A case of, All for one and one for All against the Eastern Cape.
The only reason this impasse and threat to all six Super rugby franchises came about which has been festering for four years, at a staggering cost of some R400-million to SA Rugby, is that no one has quite simply bothered to sit down and figure out how to embrace the six South African Super rugby franchises, to all play in international tournaments, and be of benefit to all of South African rugby.
Instead SA, Rugby has lost close to a R500-million to exclude three of their own unions from Super rugby, instead of embracing them and yet still, to this very day, one reads the most appalling drivel and lame excuses about including the Eastern Cape as the sixth South African Super rugby franchise, in any exhibition game, except that of the Super 14 or Super 15.
Exactly one month after Hoskins was elected President in February 2006, he arrived in Port Elizabeth, on March 29 2006, to allegedly champion the way forward for the Eastern Cape’s Super Rugby ambitions and instead, excused himself early from the meeting, to take a helicopter ride to Alicedale to view the site of the new R30-million proposed SA Rugby Academy.
Neither of these material and significant developments have taken place, and SA Rugby has neither arranged an annual scheduled tournament for the sixth South African franchise, nor the R30-million intended for the Rugby Academy, which was used to buttress the SA Rugby balance sheet in 2008 to avoid declaring any losses.
To evaluate the merits of the three incumbents, who have put themselves up for election, again, it is probably best to look at a score sheet for Hoskins term of office over four years and Mark Alexander and Rautie Rautenbach over their term of office over two years, to evaluate what they have done or not done as administrators and then to look at the only alternative to salvage SA Rugby for the future.
Oregan Hoskins — President of SA Rugby, 2006-2010
1. Eastern Cape franchise — Southern Spears — Loss of multiple High Court actions declaring the Southern Spears Super Rugby agreement legal and binding on SA Rugby — Cost to SA Rugby: R400-million
2. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions
3. SA Rugby Academy — R30-million — scuppered
4. Cost of Pumas tour to South Africa — Loan from the International Rugby Board
5. Cost of the abandoned Ireland SA Test in Dubai — R9-million
6. A record Triple unreserved apology to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee of Sport for misrepresenting facts at a briefing.
7. Loss of R150-million revenues from SANZAR over five years to the NZ and Australia rugby unions by agreeing to give up 5% of broadcast revenues
8. Rugby World Cup Bid 2015 — Failed
9. Rugby World Cup Bid 2019 — Failed
10. Super 15 Rugby Franchise — Failed
Mark Alexander — Deputy President of SA Rugby, 2008-2010
1. Chairman of EP Rugby charged with ensuring the province gets a Super Rugby franchise — Failed
2. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions
3. Rugby World Cup Bid 2015 — Failed
4. Rugby World Cup Bid 2019 — Failed
5. No Southern Kings Franchise shareholders agreement
6. No Southern Kings President’s Council Resolution
7. Super 15 Rugby Franchise — Failed
Rautie Rautenbach – Vice President of SA Rugby, 2008-2010
1. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions.
So who then are the best Presidential candidates to lead SA Rugby out of this darkness?
Of all the 14 Provincial Rugby Union Presidents, plus the three Presidential incumbents (who are not allowed to vote), there is but one individual, who stands head shoulders above all 17 rugby Presidents, as the true bona fide rugby man and the only authentic and pedigreed Springbok amongst them and that man is—Kevin de Klerk—President of the Lions.
What better than a pedigreed rugby man to lead our rugby?
Combine Kevin de Klerk’s stature and leadership, with the continuity of knowledge and years of experience of SA Rugby’s administration, which Mike Stofile has, and you have the perfect 1-2 combination to turn SA Rugby around in months, and to deliver healthy annual revenue streams to each of the 14 Unions.
Mike Stofile is a straight shooter and tells it like it is and has attended all the Presidential Council meetings at which key Resolutions and binding agreements have taken place and can offer an antidote to the continuous conflict the sixth Eastern Cape Super rugby presents to SA Rugby.
Kevin de Klerk and Mike Stofile would be the powerful SA Rugby leadership combo, to lead SA Rugby out of this turmoil, with their strong and effective leadership, focusing on deliverables and fulfilment for the benefit of all SA Rugby.
Gone would be the flippant rhetoric and patronizing chit chat press releases, which are trotted out by SA Rugby’s media department at the behest of the incumbents.
The 14 SA Rugby unions who have two votes each, represent their clubs, who voted to put them there for the benefit of all SA Rugby, would be wise to heed the siren call of a Kevin de Klerk and Mike Stofile 1-2 combo for SA Rugby.
This combination alone would unlock the value and funding for ALL 14 Unions from corporates around South Africa and rid South African rugby from this perpetual conflict and hemorrhaging of cash.
Anything less, and SA Rugby and its supporters will be faced with four more years of misery and a skint treasury.
The LEGO series of video games by game developer Travellers’ Tales have been some of the most engaging and fun family games to hit platform/PC gaming in quite a while. Based on very popular movie franchises, the LEGO games provide hours of puzzle and action entertainment peppered with subtle humor and the classic LEGO feel.
With the LEGO: Harry Potter release looming in May and the announcement that Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will be hitting in October, I thought it high time that we look to the future of the LEGO series and think about what other fantastic movie or television franchises would make great LEGO games. While doing that, I also thought it justified to list an equal amount of franchises that show potential and could probably be made into LEGO games but ultimately shouldn’t be. Though at this point they could make a LEGO: Love Boat and it would be fun to play. The games are that good. I gave my reasoning for each, and you are welcome to leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments.
Also, when listing these out I stayed away from more purely adult franchises such as Aliens or Die Hard as they wouldn’t be very marketable to children. Though I would think as an adult, I’d really enjoy a Die Hard one.
LEGO Games That Should be Made
Lord of the Rings Trilogy – I think we can all agree that this would probably be pretty damn awesome. Playing as any one of the fellowship as you go on a puzzle filled quest to dispose of the “one ring” sounds like a blast, even playing as Gollum. The Trilogy presents plenty of situations for puzzles, from getting through the Mines of Moria to sneaking into Mordor.
The Superman Movies – If a LEGO game was to be made for the Superman franchise it would have to be the classic movies. That is, Superman I-III because Superman IV doesn’t count and shouldn’t ever count. The interesting thing here would be the flying mechanism in the game and creating puzzles that utilize it.
The Matrix Trilogy – Similar to the flying mechanism suggested above, the Matrix movies would introduce a new element to the games – the super slow-mo-bullet-avoiding-reading-code element. Certain levels could have puzzles that you have to solve through the code and you could construct the Mechs to defeat the Sentinels. LEGO Neo just sounds like a good idea. Even if it is Keanu Reeves.
Terminator Series – The main reason I think the Terminator franchise would work well here is because it would be a good opportunity to introduce the Techic line into the games. Clearly, the movies don’t offer quite enough to make a puzzle game out of, so some artistic liberties will have to be taken. Playing as LEGO T-800 sounds nice, but playing as a LEGO T-1000 sounds even better.
Star Trek – To be specific, just the original series, the films I-III and then Next Generation. I only suggest the movies because I wouldn’t think a LEGO Star Trek experience would be complete without playing as both Kirk and Khan. The Next Generation game could be split into it’s own game with a crossover episode in that other Universe with evil Kirk. Phasers, tons of interesting planets to fight through and green women only add to the appear of a LEGO Star Trek.
Honorable mentions: Toy Story Trilogy, Futurama
LEGO Games That Shouldn’t be Made
Power Rangers – I was never a Power Ranger fan. I found the show cheesy, staged and about as interesting as packing Styrofoam. While a very popular franchise, I can’t seem to think of any complex enough puzzles to put into the game. Perhaps there could be a puzzle to figure out why they were always fighting enemies in a well groomed park or on a nice beach.
Spider-Man Movies – If I had to guess which movie franchise would be made into a LEGO game next I’d have to think it would be Spider-Man. There is a clear difference between the world of Spider-Man and the world of Batman, the current LEGO franchise game. The Spider-Man movie world was just as much about the love triangle between Peter, Mary Jane and Harry. That doesn’t translate too well into a puzzle / action game. Though I suppose Peter could build excuses as to why he took so long to see Mary Jane’s play.
Pokemon – I’m not sure where I read it, and a Google search yielded no results, but somewhere there is a rumor a LEGO Pokemon game in the works. Perhaps just by saying that I’m starting the rumor. While the kids enjoy catching them all, and the Pokemon franchise has made for some very successful games it just seems like something a bit too obnoxious for the LEGO treatment.
Star Trek – Now for the other Star Trek franchises. I especially hope to never see a LEGO: Star Trek IV. Saving the whales and lame jokes about 1980’s style and San Francisco. No, that doesn’t seem like a very appealing game. There could probably be some puzzles derived from DS9 and the Jem’Hadar would be some mean looking LEGO mini figs, but hopefully they skip that one along with Voyager and Enterprise.
Bill Teds Excellent Adventure/Journey – Traveling through time in a phone booth, encountering historical figures and recruiting princesses sounds cool right? Sadly, that’s the only part of this awesome duo of movies that would make any sense in a LEGO game. Neither Bill or Ted are action heroes or have super-powers. They had to recruit Station to build something to fight for them. Plus, only one game starring Keanu is feasible without tearing a hole in the space time continuum. Not to mention, if LEGO was to make a game featuring a time traveling phone booth, I’d rather it be Dr. Who.
Which ones would you look forward to the most? Any other suggestions?
Follow us on Twitter @cebsilver and @wiredgeekdad
It is really quite simple. SA Rugby’s 14 unions each have 2 votes and the individual with a majority of 15 out of 28 votes wins.
It is without doubt one of the most important watershed moments in the annals of South African rugby, as the new leadership comprising the President, Deputy President and Vice President, will assume office for a term of four years through till 2014.
These three individuals will comprise the SA Rugby leadership triumvirate, which will take SA Rugby into the future, with either some limp-wristed chatter of promises, or a powerful credible team that will make bold progressive changes to enhance SA Rugby.
Candidates who have made themselves available for election so far, are Oregan Hoskins, who has been SA Rugby President for four years (two terms of two years each); Mark Alexander, a serial administrator in other sports who has been Deputy President for two years; and Rautie Rautenbach, who has been a figurehead for two years as Vice President, the most notable contribution is attending a Confederation of African Rugby, as the SA Rugby representative in Dakar, Senegal, last year.
Again each of these three have, over the past two weeks, let it be known, that they will also stand for any other presidential position, as it is just way too intoxicating a feeling to not consider being in the mix.
Hoskins, from the Sharks, is a nice guy, however he was first elected to stand opposite Brian van Rooyen in February 2006, specifically because he was coloured, as the SA Rugby constitution at the time required that the three SA Rugby Presidential candidates comprise of a white, coloured and black, in no particular order.
This was to particularly bring into effect, his mandate from his nominees and backers of the big five, which at the time was clear, prevent the Southern Spears from entering Super 14.
This in effect started the clandestine collusion of the big five franchises, three of whom faced the very real prospect of relegation for two of the five years, out of the Super 14 from 2006 to 2010. A case of, All for one and one for All against the Eastern Cape.
The only reason this impasse and threat to all six Super rugby franchises came about which has been festering for four years, at a staggering cost of some R400-million to SA Rugby, is that no one has quite simply bothered to sit down and figure out how to embrace the six South African Super rugby franchises, to all play in international tournaments, and be of benefit to all of South African rugby.
Instead SA, Rugby has lost close to a R500-million to exclude three of their own unions from Super rugby, instead of embracing them and yet still, to this very day, one reads the most appalling drivel and lame excuses about including the Eastern Cape as the sixth South African Super rugby franchise, in any exhibition game, except that of the Super 14 or Super 15.
Exactly one month after Hoskins was elected President in February 2006, he arrived in Port Elizabeth, on March 29 2006, to allegedly champion the way forward for the Eastern Cape’s Super Rugby ambitions and instead, excused himself early from the meeting, to take a helicopter ride to Alicedale to view the site of the new R30-million proposed SA Rugby Academy.
Neither of these material and significant developments have taken place, and SA Rugby has neither arranged an annual scheduled tournament for the sixth South African franchise, nor the R30-million intended for the Rugby Academy, which was used to buttress the SA Rugby balance sheet in 2008 to avoid declaring any losses.
To evaluate the merits of the three incumbents, who have put themselves up for election, again, it is probably best to look at a score sheet for Hoskins term of office over four years and Mark Alexander and Rautie Rautenbach over their term of office over two years, to evaluate what they have done or not done as administrators and then to look at the only alternative to salvage SA Rugby for the future.
Oregan Hoskins — President of SA Rugby, 2006-2010
1. Eastern Cape franchise — Southern Spears — Loss of multiple High Court actions declaring the Southern Spears Super Rugby agreement legal and binding on SA Rugby — Cost to SA Rugby: R400-million
2. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions
3. SA Rugby Academy — R30-million — scuppered
4. Cost of Pumas tour to South Africa — Loan from the International Rugby Board
5. Cost of the abandoned Ireland SA Test in Dubai — R9-million
6. A record Triple unreserved apology to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee of Sport for misrepresenting facts at a briefing.
7. Loss of R150-million revenues from SANZAR over five years to the NZ and Australia rugby unions by agreeing to give up 5% of broadcast revenues
8. Rugby World Cup Bid 2015 — Failed
9. Rugby World Cup Bid 2019 — Failed
10. Super 15 Rugby Franchise — Failed
Mark Alexander — Deputy President of SA Rugby, 2008-2010
1. Chairman of EP Rugby charged with ensuring the province gets a Super Rugby franchise — Failed
2. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions
3. Rugby World Cup Bid 2015 — Failed
4. Rugby World Cup Bid 2019 — Failed
5. No Southern Kings Franchise shareholders agreement
6. No Southern Kings President’s Council Resolution
7. Super 15 Rugby Franchise — Failed
Rautie Rautenbach – Vice President of SA Rugby, 2008-2010
1. Serial violations of breaching the SA Rugby constitution with regards to binding agreements and President Council Resolutions.
So who then are the best Presidential candidates to lead SA Rugby out of this darkness?
Of all the 14 Provincial Rugby Union Presidents, plus the three Presidential incumbents (who are not allowed to vote), there is but one individual, who stands head shoulders above all 17 rugby Presidents, as the true bona fide rugby man and the only authentic and pedigreed Springbok amongst them and that man is—Kevin de Klerk—President of the Lions.
What better than a pedigreed rugby man to lead our rugby?
Combine Kevin de Klerk’s stature and leadership, with the continuity of knowledge and years of experience of SA Rugby’s administration, which Mike Stofile has, and you have the perfect 1-2 combination to turn SA Rugby around in months, and to deliver healthy annual revenue streams to each of the 14 Unions.
Mike Stofile is a straight shooter and tells it like it is and has attended all the Presidential Council meetings at which key Resolutions and binding agreements have taken place and can offer an antidote to the continuous conflict the sixth Eastern Cape Super rugby presents to SA Rugby.
Kevin de Klerk and Mike Stofile would be the powerful SA Rugby leadership combo, to lead SA Rugby out of this turmoil, with their strong and effective leadership, focusing on deliverables and fulfilment for the benefit of all SA Rugby.
Gone would be the flippant rhetoric and patronizing chit chat press releases, which are trotted out by SA Rugby’s media department at the behest of the incumbents.
The 14 SA Rugby unions who have two votes each, represent their clubs, who voted to put them there for the benefit of all SA Rugby, would be wise to heed the siren call of a Kevin de Klerk and Mike Stofile 1-2 combo for SA Rugby.
This combination alone would unlock the value and funding for ALL 14 Unions from corporates around South Africa and rid South African rugby from this perpetual conflict and hemorrhaging of cash.
Anything less, and SA Rugby and its supporters will be faced with four more years of misery and a skint treasury.
existing franchises for sale , franchises for sale
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An extensive review of court documents and media reports by Fox <b>News</b> suggests many of the seven lawyers in question played only minor or short-lived roles in advocating for detainees. However, it's unclear what roles, if any, …
3, 2010 – 4:45 PM EST. And this is <b>news</b>? Republicans have been lying to the public in order to use fear to manipulate americans for decades. And the sad fact is is that it works. Reply; Quote; Report Abuse. default avatar for user o08 …
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March 1st, 2010
Whole Foods Markets (WFMI) CEO John Mackey (pictured), unsurprisingly, is passionate about health. Leading the country's largest and most respected chain of natural groceries, he's often credited with bringing natural-foods stores to the mainstream. On a personal note, he has been a vegan for many years and has adopted a diet free of vegetable oils, sugars and almost any processed food. So when he launched a plan to give his employees discounts on health insurance if they maintained lower readings for blood pressure, cholesterol and body mass index, it should have barely made a blip in the annals of corporate wellness.
But Mackey's plan is drawing fire, in part because his wellness program, some charge, comes off as heavy-handed and focuses too much on what have been called “arbitrary” measures such as body mass index (BMI) — or essentially how fat we are. Others say the plan is taking criticism simply because of Mackey's outspokenness on health.
Most famously, he wrote an op-ed blasting the U.S. health care reform effort in The Wall Street Journal in August, 2009. In the piece, he called the reform bill “Obamacare” and “a massive new health care entitlement.” He suggested the government instead adopt a series of reforms designed to encourage companies to provide health care for their employees. Among them, he suggested tax-free status for all health care premiums, fewer coverage mandates and other changes.
Finally, he said government should make it easy for taxpayers to give money to charities to cover the uninsured. In conclusion, he wrote, “We are all responsible for our own lives and our own health. We should … use our freedom to make wise lifestyle choices that will protect our health.”
Employee Biometric Screenings
Mackey's new health insurance discounts — in his words “empowering and fun for employees who enjoy a challenge” — fit right in with his corporation-knows-best attitude. Those who want to take part can undergo biometric screening, which will determine what discount level they'll receive: Bronze, silver, gold or platinum. The maximum discount is 30%, and to qualify, employees must have a BMI of less than 24, cholesterol levels below 150 mg/dL and blood pressure of 110/70.
Those with a BMI over 30 would not qualify for the program at all. They would, of course, still be eligible for health insurance — just without an extra discount. The bronze level provides a 22% discount.
For any other CEO, these initiatives might have passed with little notice. Corporate wellness programs have become a given, with discounts on gym memberships and cheery marketing for healthy options in corporate cafeterias. Many company executives have made news with far more shocking employee health tactics, including weight-loss contests and quit-smoking support groups. A few have even refused employment to smokers and told existing employees to quit, or lose a job.
The Peacock CEO
By comparison, Mackey's moves hardly seem controversial. But this is Mackey, the rare peacock of a CEO. His outsize personality, so politically at odds with the majority of his customer base, doesn't just invite, but begs, response from liberal media outlets. So they seize on the news, spinning it into the controversy they expect from a man like Mackey. The Village Voice headline proclaims, “Whole Foods' John Mackey Finds a New Way to Antagonize Customers,” pointing out, “the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance is not amused.”
At The Big Money, Dan Mitchell doesn't like the plan, calling the choice of BMI, blood pressure and cholesterol “arbitrary,” a bad way to measure overall health. He worries that “the inevitable conclusion from this: Whole Foods theoretically would give discounts to near-death anorexics, who would be judged 'healthier' than their larger counterparts.” He suggests Whole Foods provide a discount for healthy grocery items for all employees.
Judging from the details of the Whole Foods wellness program, Mackey, it seems, knows best which lifestyle choices are good for health. What he doesn't know so well, is how to communicate his wisdom to the sort of person who's likely to work for, or shop at, Whole Foods. He once famously criticized his own company's stores for selling “junk food,” for instance, getting a lot of flak from his stakeholders.
Boycotts and “Buycotts”
Mackey was also surprised by the firestorm kicked up by his op-ed criticizing the reform effort in the Journal. In reaction, groups of liberal and conservative Whole Foods shoppers staged simultaneous boycotts and “buycotts,” which had no discernible effect on Whole Foods sales, but had a quite far-reaching effect on the talking points of conservative pundits in the first few weeks of September 2009.
Michelle Malkin, for instance, encouraged her readers to “buy a few Whole Foods items” in order to stand up for Mackey's opposition for health care, “I think it's worth it.” Malkin isn't, however, the prototypical Whole Foods shopper, nor, for that matter, the prototypical employee.
This is a company that encourages the sort of autonomous, bottom-up store organization that would seem more at home in the Socialist Party than the Republican Party. Lower-level employees help select and evaluate their bosses, even having a say on the store's product mix. Mackey pays himself a dollar a year. No executive makes more than 19 times the average employee's wage of $16.50 an hour.
“Right-Wing Hippie”
On the other hand? Mackey is as far from the left as you can get. He believes that corporations — and not governments or nonprofits — are the best way to provide for the well-being of the people. Companies should make enormous profits to put them to use for the betterment of humanity, he believes.
Says Nick Paumgarten in this New Yorker profile of Mackey: “The right-wing hippie is a rare bird.” And this right-wing hippie is simply roosting in his favorite nest with his latest plan. It's not even the first time he's offered inducements for his employees to be more healthy. His company conducts a three-month-long contest each year with prizes for the team whose members exercise and use mass transit the most.
Paumgarten concludes: “It sometimes sounds as if he believed that, if every company had him at the helm, there would be no need for unions or health care reform, and that therefore every company should have someone like him, and that therefore there should be no unions or health care reform.”
Saving Employees From Themselves?
That, in essence, seems to be the inspiration behind the latest Whole Foods wellness plan. It's myopic, paternalistic and with a generosity of intention that belies its know-it-all spirit.
Mackey thinks he's saving his employees from themselves. In reality, he's just giving a little bonus to those who are already most like himself — making employees in his own image a little tiny bit richer. It's not quite a God complex. But it's a nice, slim, start.
More than 40% of Egyptians live on $2 a day or less and barely keep pace with inflation figures as unemployment figures in the country loom around 9%. The unofficial figure is much higher. However, along with the financial deficiencies, Ghali has irritated Egyptians on a number of other matters in recent months.
In December 2009, Ghali made headlines after cursing during a parliamentary session when he was asked about the government's decision to evict residents and tear down dozens of buildings in the Cairo area of Ezbet el Haggana for safety and code violations. The 57-year-old has also been the subject of a newspaper campaign accusing him of using taxpayer's money for his personal medical treatment in the U.S.
On Thursday, Al Destour opposition daily published photocopies purportedly of original documents showing that Ghali visited the United States three times for treatment in 2009 and that all three journeys (costing a sum of $70,000) were fully sponsored by the government, even though all ministers are already covered by other medical insurance programs.
Ghali, who is fluent in five languages and has a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is also the nephew of Boutros Boutros Ghali, who served as the United Nations' secretary general between 1992 and 1997.
– Amro Hassan
Photo: Egyptian Finance Minister Youssef Boutros Ghali. Credit: Reuters
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February 26th, 2010
The LEGO series of video games by game developer Travellers’ Tales have been some of the most engaging and fun family games to hit platform/PC gaming in quite a while. Based on very popular movie franchises, the LEGO games provide hours of puzzle and action entertainment peppered with subtle humor and the classic LEGO feel.
With the LEGO: Harry Potter release looming in May and the announcement that Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will be hitting in October, I thought it high time that we look to the future of the LEGO series and think about what other fantastic movie or television franchises would make great LEGO games. While doing that, I also thought it justified to list an equal amount of franchises that show potential and could probably be made into LEGO games but ultimately shouldn’t be. Though at this point they could make a LEGO: Love Boat and it would be fun to play. The games are that good. I gave my reasoning for each, and you are welcome to leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments.
Also, when listing these out I stayed away from more purely adult franchises such as Aliens or Die Hard as they wouldn’t be very marketable to children. Though I would think as an adult, I’d really enjoy a Die Hard one.
LEGO Games That Should be Made
Lord of the Rings Trilogy – I think we can all agree that this would probably be pretty damn awesome. Playing as any one of the fellowship as you go on a puzzle filled quest to dispose of the “one ring” sounds like a blast, even playing as Gollum. The Trilogy presents plenty of situations for puzzles, from getting through the Mines of Moria to sneaking into Mordor.
The Superman Movies – If a LEGO game was to be made for the Superman franchise it would have to be the classic movies. That is, Superman I-III because Superman IV doesn’t count and shouldn’t ever count. The interesting thing here would be the flying mechanism in the game and creating puzzles that utilize it.
The Matrix Trilogy – Similar to the flying mechanism suggested above, the Matrix movies would introduce a new element to the games – the super slow-mo-bullet-avoiding-reading-code element. Certain levels could have puzzles that you have to solve through the code and you could construct the Mechs to defeat the Sentinels. LEGO Neo just sounds like a good idea. Even if it is Keanu Reeves.
Terminator Series – The main reason I think the Terminator franchise would work well here is because it would be a good opportunity to introduce the Techic line into the games. Clearly, the movies don’t offer quite enough to make a puzzle game out of, so some artistic liberties will have to be taken. Playing as LEGO T-800 sounds nice, but playing as a LEGO T-1000 sounds even better.
Star Trek – To be specific, just the original series, the films I-III and then Next Generation. I only suggest the movies because I wouldn’t think a LEGO Star Trek experience would be complete without playing as both Kirk and Khan. The Next Generation game could be split into it’s own game with a crossover episode in that other Universe with evil Kirk. Phasers, tons of interesting planets to fight through and green women only add to the appear of a LEGO Star Trek.
Honorable mentions: Toy Story Trilogy, Futurama
LEGO Games That Shouldn’t be Made
Power Rangers – I was never a Power Ranger fan. I found the show cheesy, staged and about as interesting as packing Styrofoam. While a very popular franchise, I can’t seem to think of any complex enough puzzles to put into the game. Perhaps there could be a puzzle to figure out why they were always fighting enemies in a well groomed park or on a nice beach.
Spider-Man Movies – If I had to guess which movie franchise would be made into a LEGO game next I’d have to think it would be Spider-Man. There is a clear difference between the world of Spider-Man and the world of Batman, the current LEGO franchise game. The Spider-Man movie world was just as much about the love triangle between Peter, Mary Jane and Harry. That doesn’t translate too well into a puzzle / action game. Though I suppose Peter could build excuses as to why he took so long to see Mary Jane’s play.
Pokemon – I’m not sure where I read it, and a Google search yielded no results, but somewhere there is a rumor a LEGO Pokemon game in the works. Perhaps just by saying that I’m starting the rumor. While the kids enjoy catching them all, and the Pokemon franchise has made for some very successful games it just seems like something a bit too obnoxious for the LEGO treatment.
Star Trek – Now for the other Star Trek franchises. I especially hope to never see a LEGO: Star Trek IV. Saving the whales and lame jokes about 1980’s style and San Francisco. No, that doesn’t seem like a very appealing game. There could probably be some puzzles derived from DS9 and the Jem’Hadar would be some mean looking LEGO mini figs, but hopefully they skip that one along with Voyager and Enterprise.
Bill Teds Excellent Adventure/Journey – Traveling through time in a phone booth, encountering historical figures and recruiting princesses sounds cool right? Sadly, that’s the only part of this awesome duo of movies that would make any sense in a LEGO game. Neither Bill or Ted are action heroes or have super-powers. They had to recruit Station to build something to fight for them. Plus, only one game starring Keanu is feasible without tearing a hole in the space time continuum. Not to mention, if LEGO was to make a game featuring a time traveling phone booth, I’d rather it be Dr. Who.
Which ones would you look forward to the most? Any other suggestions?
Follow us on Twitter @cebsilver and @wiredgeekdad
A logical fallacy that a lot of sports fans make is that sports is finite. Sports in general are similar to life. But in a much more contained sense and obviously there are many differences.
I'm not really big into writing existentialist ideas regarding sports especially when I am not even sure what I am saying is correct, but it just seemed like a good time to write this.
People assume that because things happened a certain way before that they will happen again. But it's hardly the case. Events in sports are shaped by a series of opportunities, and there are times when those opportunities are seized, and many other times when they are not.
In the case of the Sacramento Kings in the early 2000's, they were many opportunities seized. And with most opportunities, there is almost always a sort of risk.
The Kings traded the cornerstone of their franchise, Mitch Richmond, for a troubled player in Chris Webber that many assumed had never met his potential and was an underachiever. Webber nearly retired after he had been traded to Sacramento. But he didn't.
Sacramento signed a rundown old post player in Vlade Divac who many thought his best years were well behind him. Vlade was a two-time All-Star with the Kings, and revitalized his career.
Doug Christie was thought to be the odd-man-out in Toronto and was dealt for Corliss Williamson as a way to appease the disgruntled Christie. He was a fan favorite and the perfect backcourt companion to Mike Bibby.
Bibby was also a question mark, as the Kings traded their loved but plagued playmaker Jason Williams for him. J-Will was one of the catalysts who breathed life into a team thought to be perennial losers just before the turn of the decade.
Geoff Petrie signed relatively unknown players in Scot Pollard, Bobby Jackson, and Maurice Evans. And drafted an unknown player in Hidayet Turkoglu. Petrie also acquired players that many thought were fading into obscurity like Jon Barry, Jim Jackson, and Damon Jones.
The point of all of this is through a series of well timed and executed acquisitions the Kings built a contender that even at its prime could not top the juggernaut know as the Lakers.
The Kings had one true opportunity to prove how good they really were. But they failed. They could not get over the hump. It was an opportunity lost.
An opportunity that perhaps the Sacramento will never have again.
What opportunity the Kings do have is a chance to build a good team around one of the best young players in the league in Tyreke Evans. Along with some other solid role players in Omri Casspi, Beno Udrih, and Jon Brockman.
There are some big question marks as well like Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes, Donte Greene, and Kevin Martin. We all know about how good Martin is and what he is capable of but the question remains as to if he really fits with this team and where it's going.
Hawes and Thompson are just struggling to find some consistency of any kind and Greene is an intriguing case. He has all the intangibles to be a really great player, its just a matter of how or if he can pull them all together.
To make a very long educated guess short, the Kings have some nice pieces to build around, it's just a matter of what opportunities are created and if they are able to seize them. There is nothing certain about the Kings future. And it doesn't help that they are located in one of the least desirable cities in the league.
There is always the chance that things will fall into place like they did in the past decade. But it is not something to dwell on or even consider realistically happening. The only thing we as fans can do is wait and hope. Whatever happens will happen.
Many franchise opportunities exist that look great on the surface, but what works for one person may very well not work for another. However, a number of good franchise opportunities are available, and certain companies are not solely in existence to advance their own profit motives; they are also looking to teach future franchise owners the basics about operating their own businesses. One of the many fine franchises that is being made an example of here is Subway. There are many advantages to owning a Subway franchise, and here are some items to consider if you have pondered over whether or not to own a Subway franchise in the past:
Healthy Food for Health Conscious Individuals
An advantage to operating a Subway franchise is that it has a unique food selection. Their sub sandwiches have less fat and calories than what is typically the case in like chains around the world. One aspect that many Subway franchise owners like about operating their own Subway stores is the ability it gives them to serve healthy food to the people in their communities. While Subway upped the fat and calories with the personal pizzas they started to serve, the number of healthy choices far outnumber the unhealthy ones at the popular chain.
Number of Subway Franchises
The number of Subway franchises around the world today exceeds 25, 000. While this may be indicative of the great food they offer, it may be due to something that supercedes this element alone. As opposed to McDonald's, which has 11, 000 franchises in the United States, Subway boasts 21, 000. There is a reason to explain the phenomenal growth in Subway franchise opportunities.
A Perfect Solution
Subway offers the perfect solution to people in addition to serving delicious food. This means that on top of offering many healthy food choices, the corporation's headquarters' execs genuinely care about their Subway franchise owners. The Subway corporation's executives or another Subway franchise in the same vicinity offer new Subway franchise owners ongoing support; they remember what it was like when they first started their own businesses.
All in all, owning a Subway franchise is a great opportunity for many people. All of the benefits to be gained from operating a Subway franchise should entice anyone to open one up.
Sources:
http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/index.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subway_(restaurant)
The LEGO series of video games by game developer Travellers’ Tales have been some of the most engaging and fun family games to hit platform/PC gaming in quite a while. Based on very popular movie franchises, the LEGO games provide hours of puzzle and action entertainment peppered with subtle humor and the classic LEGO feel.
With the LEGO: Harry Potter release looming in May and the announcement that Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will be hitting in October, I thought it high time that we look to the future of the LEGO series and think about what other fantastic movie or television franchises would make great LEGO games. While doing that, I also thought it justified to list an equal amount of franchises that show potential and could probably be made into LEGO games but ultimately shouldn’t be. Though at this point they could make a LEGO: Love Boat and it would be fun to play. The games are that good. I gave my reasoning for each, and you are welcome to leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments.
Also, when listing these out I stayed away from more purely adult franchises such as Aliens or Die Hard as they wouldn’t be very marketable to children. Though I would think as an adult, I’d really enjoy a Die Hard one.
LEGO Games That Should be Made
Lord of the Rings Trilogy – I think we can all agree that this would probably be pretty damn awesome. Playing as any one of the fellowship as you go on a puzzle filled quest to dispose of the “one ring” sounds like a blast, even playing as Gollum. The Trilogy presents plenty of situations for puzzles, from getting through the Mines of Moria to sneaking into Mordor.
The Superman Movies – If a LEGO game was to be made for the Superman franchise it would have to be the classic movies. That is, Superman I-III because Superman IV doesn’t count and shouldn’t ever count. The interesting thing here would be the flying mechanism in the game and creating puzzles that utilize it.
The Matrix Trilogy – Similar to the flying mechanism suggested above, the Matrix movies would introduce a new element to the games – the super slow-mo-bullet-avoiding-reading-code element. Certain levels could have puzzles that you have to solve through the code and you could construct the Mechs to defeat the Sentinels. LEGO Neo just sounds like a good idea. Even if it is Keanu Reeves.
Terminator Series – The main reason I think the Terminator franchise would work well here is because it would be a good opportunity to introduce the Techic line into the games. Clearly, the movies don’t offer quite enough to make a puzzle game out of, so some artistic liberties will have to be taken. Playing as LEGO T-800 sounds nice, but playing as a LEGO T-1000 sounds even better.
Star Trek – To be specific, just the original series, the films I-III and then Next Generation. I only suggest the movies because I wouldn’t think a LEGO Star Trek experience would be complete without playing as both Kirk and Khan. The Next Generation game could be split into it’s own game with a crossover episode in that other Universe with evil Kirk. Phasers, tons of interesting planets to fight through and green women only add to the appear of a LEGO Star Trek.
Honorable mentions: Toy Story Trilogy, Futurama
LEGO Games That Shouldn’t be Made
Power Rangers – I was never a Power Ranger fan. I found the show cheesy, staged and about as interesting as packing Styrofoam. While a very popular franchise, I can’t seem to think of any complex enough puzzles to put into the game. Perhaps there could be a puzzle to figure out why they were always fighting enemies in a well groomed park or on a nice beach.
Spider-Man Movies – If I had to guess which movie franchise would be made into a LEGO game next I’d have to think it would be Spider-Man. There is a clear difference between the world of Spider-Man and the world of Batman, the current LEGO franchise game. The Spider-Man movie world was just as much about the love triangle between Peter, Mary Jane and Harry. That doesn’t translate too well into a puzzle / action game. Though I suppose Peter could build excuses as to why he took so long to see Mary Jane’s play.
Pokemon – I’m not sure where I read it, and a Google search yielded no results, but somewhere there is a rumor a LEGO Pokemon game in the works. Perhaps just by saying that I’m starting the rumor. While the kids enjoy catching them all, and the Pokemon franchise has made for some very successful games it just seems like something a bit too obnoxious for the LEGO treatment.
Star Trek – Now for the other Star Trek franchises. I especially hope to never see a LEGO: Star Trek IV. Saving the whales and lame jokes about 1980’s style and San Francisco. No, that doesn’t seem like a very appealing game. There could probably be some puzzles derived from DS9 and the Jem’Hadar would be some mean looking LEGO mini figs, but hopefully they skip that one along with Voyager and Enterprise.
Bill Teds Excellent Adventure/Journey – Traveling through time in a phone booth, encountering historical figures and recruiting princesses sounds cool right? Sadly, that’s the only part of this awesome duo of movies that would make any sense in a LEGO game. Neither Bill or Ted are action heroes or have super-powers. They had to recruit Station to build something to fight for them. Plus, only one game starring Keanu is feasible without tearing a hole in the space time continuum. Not to mention, if LEGO was to make a game featuring a time traveling phone booth, I’d rather it be Dr. Who.
Which ones would you look forward to the most? Any other suggestions?
Follow us on Twitter @cebsilver and @wiredgeekdad
A logical fallacy that a lot of sports fans make is that sports is finite. Sports in general are similar to life. But in a much more contained sense and obviously there are many differences.
I'm not really big into writing existentialist ideas regarding sports especially when I am not even sure what I am saying is correct, but it just seemed like a good time to write this.
People assume that because things happened a certain way before that they will happen again. But it's hardly the case. Events in sports are shaped by a series of opportunities, and there are times when those opportunities are seized, and many other times when they are not.
In the case of the Sacramento Kings in the early 2000's, they were many opportunities seized. And with most opportunities, there is almost always a sort of risk.
The Kings traded the cornerstone of their franchise, Mitch Richmond, for a troubled player in Chris Webber that many assumed had never met his potential and was an underachiever. Webber nearly retired after he had been traded to Sacramento. But he didn't.
Sacramento signed a rundown old post player in Vlade Divac who many thought his best years were well behind him. Vlade was a two-time All-Star with the Kings, and revitalized his career.
Doug Christie was thought to be the odd-man-out in Toronto and was dealt for Corliss Williamson as a way to appease the disgruntled Christie. He was a fan favorite and the perfect backcourt companion to Mike Bibby.
Bibby was also a question mark, as the Kings traded their loved but plagued playmaker Jason Williams for him. J-Will was one of the catalysts who breathed life into a team thought to be perennial losers just before the turn of the decade.
Geoff Petrie signed relatively unknown players in Scot Pollard, Bobby Jackson, and Maurice Evans. And drafted an unknown player in Hidayet Turkoglu. Petrie also acquired players that many thought were fading into obscurity like Jon Barry, Jim Jackson, and Damon Jones.
The point of all of this is through a series of well timed and executed acquisitions the Kings built a contender that even at its prime could not top the juggernaut know as the Lakers.
The Kings had one true opportunity to prove how good they really were. But they failed. They could not get over the hump. It was an opportunity lost.
An opportunity that perhaps the Sacramento will never have again.
What opportunity the Kings do have is a chance to build a good team around one of the best young players in the league in Tyreke Evans. Along with some other solid role players in Omri Casspi, Beno Udrih, and Jon Brockman.
There are some big question marks as well like Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes, Donte Greene, and Kevin Martin. We all know about how good Martin is and what he is capable of but the question remains as to if he really fits with this team and where it's going.
Hawes and Thompson are just struggling to find some consistency of any kind and Greene is an intriguing case. He has all the intangibles to be a really great player, its just a matter of how or if he can pull them all together.
To make a very long educated guess short, the Kings have some nice pieces to build around, it's just a matter of what opportunities are created and if they are able to seize them. There is nothing certain about the Kings future. And it doesn't help that they are located in one of the least desirable cities in the league.
There is always the chance that things will fall into place like they did in the past decade. But it is not something to dwell on or even consider realistically happening. The only thing we as fans can do is wait and hope. Whatever happens will happen.
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Tags: franchise
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February 15th, 2010
The news that The New York Times will start charging for access to its website broke over the weekend, but now it’s officially confirmed. As anticipated, one of the world’s most recognizable newspapers will be introducing a metered model, meaning they will “offer users free access to a set number of articles per month and then charge users once they exceed that number.”
The idea is to balance between free and paid, between being open and closed, and earn revenue from both advertising and charging for content. Chairman of The New York Times Company, Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., said: “Our new business model is designed to provide additional support for The New York Times’ extraordinary, professional journalism. Our audiences are very loyal and we believe that our readers will pay for our award-winning digital content and services.”
The company says that more details about the metered model will be revealed over the next few months. But let’s quickly look at what it almost certainly won’t do: attract links. Anyone who links to a New York Times article will get complaints by many readers that the link doesn’t work. It’ll be much easier and future-proof to find another source and link to them.
It’s also very doubtful that it will attract new readers: Yes, some people will subscribe. But most people will simply click on NYTimes stories while they’re free, and stop clicking when they hit a paywall. The metered model (from what we know now) is not a horrible solution, but it’s not a revolutionary one, either. It’s just enough to keep NYTimes afloat.
Luckily for The New York Times, an important piece of the puzzle for the “salvation” of the newspaper industry doesn’t lie with them, but with Apple’s soon to be announced tablet. Apple figured out how to change the notion that everything on the Internet is free: Pick a piece of the online market, like music or mobile apps, create a device that makes the digital content associated with it very easy to purchase and consume, and then sell the content.
The actual price of the content is just one piece of the equation; availability is equally as important. Ask yourself two questions: Will you purchase a subscription to The New York Times on the Internet? Will you purchase a subscription to The New York Times on a tablet-device that makes subscribing a one-click affair?
That’s why for now, NYTimes’ announcement of the metered model, which should go live in 2011, doesn’t really mean much. A lot will happen between now and then, and this compromise solution sounds like it’s primarily meant to placate everyone instead of actually making money.
The Obama Administration’s proposed 2011 budget has hit the streets on the heels of the big high-speed rail spending plan and it’s making lots of transit people very happy.
The bottom line is the federal Department of Transportation gets $79 billion, a $2 billion increase over last year. While most of it — just over $42 billion, is designated for roads and highways — a lot of money is being put to a lot of good projects: $10.8 billion for mass transit, $1 billion for high-speed rail, etc. You can read about the projects in great detail at the DoT’s budget website.
The budget proposal is just that — a proposal. It’s still got to go through Congress and then to the president. Even then, specific projects laid out in the spending plan are simply budget justifications. It’s essentially the various federal agencies saying, “If you give us this money, here’s how we’ll probably spend it.” Binding line item projects come in major appropriations bills like the one proposed by Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minnesota). Though Oberstar’s legislation contains some general congruencies with the DoT budget — an infrastructure bank, for one — neither bill definitively assigns money to specific projects, and the fact both spending plans are subject to change makes comparing them difficult.
“How it will affect [the Oberstar bill's] authorization right now is unknown, as far as DoT funding,” Jim Brerard of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Tuesday. “The budget does not appear to have anything shocking.”
Neither does it represent a paradign shift toward mass transit. But it is a notable step in the right direction. Here are some of the most noteworthy allocations in the DoT budget request.
First and foremost, this is the first budget request since the DoT announced in January a major change in how mass transit projects are considered for funding. Considerations of a project’s cost-effectiveness — defined by how much time riders might save — have been downsized in favor of neighborhood economic development and “livability.” The formula has been altered to allow stronger consideration for a project’s potential to improve neighborhood dynamics and quality of life for residents. What does this mean in practical terms? Instead of rewarding sprawl by giving higher priority to those with longer commutes, the new standards will funnel more money toward making transit easier within cities and encouraging more densely populated mixed-use neighborhoods.
Second, the budget sets aside $4 billion to begin the National Infrastructure Innovation and Finance Fund, the so-called infrastructure bank. Frankly, our eyes glaze over at the mention of federal financing mechanisms, so correct us if we’re wrong, but the bank will make direct loans to transit authorities and guarantee payment of bonds issued to finance construction or maintenance of transit projects. The bank will provide a dedicated, dependable source of funding for infrastructure projects that traditionally have relied upon government grants that are easy to withdraw. Although the name of the program makes it clear it is dedicated to all infrastructure, the fact it falls under the DoT budget request suggests transportation will be a major focus. A summary of the bank starts about halfway down this Economic Policy Institute paper (.pdf), but what we’d like to see is The Idiot’s Guide to The Infrastructure Bank.
Third, the Obama Administration also has set aside just over $1 billion for the NextGen Air Traffic Control system, which will — eventually — replace a system built upon World War II-era technology. That amount is an increase of roughly 30 percent over last year’s budget. It would be difficult to overstate the need for this upgrade; the system we’re using now is the airborne equivalent of building new roads to meet the needs of horse-drawn buggies. You can blame this antiquated system for much of the inefficiency in air traffic, and if it isn’t fixed, the Federal Aviation Administration warns we’ll be gridlocked by 2015. NextGen is an ongoing attempt to revolutionize, and hopefully introduce some sensibility to, the air traffic control system. It has a long way to go before it becomes the new standard, but hopefully this infusion of funds will speed things up some.
Fourth, $1 billion to high-speed rail under the Federal Railroad Administration and another $1.6 billion to Amtrak.
Finally, the budget provides capital infusions from the Federal Transit Administration to extend or build new mass transit in cities across the country. Granted, $1.8 billion isn’t a whole lot when you’re talking about infrastructure (Honolulu’s light rail project alone will cost over $5 billion), but the funding awards are calculated to make the biggest impact when and where it’s most needed — light rail in Charlotte, a streetcar in Tuscon, a Metro extension in Washington, DC and other projects that lacked crucial funding. The budget request includes money for everything from light rail to subways to bus rapid transit. Both StreetsblogDC and The Transport Politic go into this in a lot more detail.
Although Washington remains buried in snow, Congress will any day now pass the $154 billion Jobs for Main Street Act of 2010 (.pdf), which includes $27.1 billion for highways and other surface transportation and $8.4 billion for public transportation.. And later this month the DoT will announce who’s getting of TIGER grants out of the federal stimulus bill, which are expected to stress multimodal transportation links.
This month promises to be exciting indeed for transit advocates.
Photo: Associated Press. Jerry Castillo of Norman, Oklahoma, right, a concrete pump truck operator for Manhattan Road and Bridge Company, controls the flow of concrete as Marcus Lopez, left, works on the new I-40 Crosstown Bridge over Agnew Street in Oklahoma City.
See Also:
- Washington Fiddles as Infrastructure Crumbles
- Infrastructure Politics Veering Right
- Big Bucks and Big Ideas for Big Transportation Bill
- As Congress Stalls, Air Traffic Creeps Toward Gridlock
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Tags: making money
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February 10th, 2010
Trouble with your monthly budget? Need to visualize your financial investments? Described by Wikipedia as a “free web-based personal financial management service,” Mint.com is a tool to keep track of your money and cash flow. The website was named one of the 50 best of 2008 by Time magazine. Here's how to make the most of the free service.
1. Sign up for a free account at Mint.com. To navigate there, visit this link: Mint.com
2. Enter your bank information so Mint.com can access your financial accounts through a secure connection. Enter as many financial accounts as you have so that Mint.com can aggregate the data into a single overview of your financial situation to help you manage finances easier.
3. You can also add information about your savings accounts, credit cards, investment accounts, loans, real estate, vehicles and credit score.
4. Once your personal finance accounts have been authenticated, your transactions and balance information will be updated nightly.
5. Use the data Mint.com compiles for you any way you choose. You may notice a horrifying spending habit or trend (like dining out too much) after examining one of Mint.com's helpful pie charts and graphs. Use the Mint.com budgeting tool to assure that you never again have to scrap together dollars at the end of the month to make your payments. Managing personal finances has never been more fun.
6. Mint.com uses your transaction activity to recommend credit cards, saving accounts and checking accounts that could help you save money.
7. Hook Mint up with your mobile device to get instant notifications about your financial situation.
Nikon releases 24mm f/1.4 G ED fast wideangle lens: Nikon has released the AF-S Nikkor 24mm F/1.4G ED wide aperture prime lens for full-frame DSLRs. It features an anti-reflective Nano Crystal coating and both ED and …
In an oped in USA Today, John Brennan — Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism — responds to critics of the Obama administration's counterterrorism policies by …
Google's “sort of temporary detente” with the Associated Press is progressing: now new AP stories have started showing up on Google (NSDQ: GOOG) <b>News</b>—this one, for example, about AP itself—as first noticed by WSJ. …
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Nikon releases 24mm f/1.4 G ED fast wideangle lens: Nikon has released the AF-S Nikkor 24mm F/1.4G ED wide aperture prime lens for full-frame DSLRs. It features an anti-reflective Nano Crystal coating and both ED and …
In an oped in USA Today, John Brennan — Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism — responds to critics of the Obama administration's counterterrorism policies by …
Google's “sort of temporary detente” with the Associated Press is progressing: now new AP stories have started showing up on Google (NSDQ: GOOG) <b>News</b>—this one, for example, about AP itself—as first noticed by WSJ. …
Nikon releases 24mm f/1.4 G ED fast wideangle lens: Nikon has released the AF-S Nikkor 24mm F/1.4G ED wide aperture prime lens for full-frame DSLRs. It features an anti-reflective Nano Crystal coating and both ED and …
In an oped in USA Today, John Brennan — Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism — responds to critics of the Obama administration's counterterrorism policies by …
Google's “sort of temporary detente” with the Associated Press is progressing: now new AP stories have started showing up on Google (NSDQ: GOOG) <b>News</b>—this one, for example, about AP itself—as first noticed by WSJ. …
Tags: online stock trading and investments
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February 9th, 2010
Google is releasing information about a “highly sophisticated and targeted attack” on their corporate infrastructure that occurred last month. The attack originated in China and resulted in the “theft of intellectual property from Google.” In light of the attack Google is making sweeping changes to its Chinese operations.
Google is releasing some information about these attacks to the public. The company says that a minimal amount of user information was compromised, but has come to the alarming conclusion that the attacks were targeting the information of Chinese human rights activists. Google found that these attacks were not just going after Google’s data, but were also targeting at least twenty other major companies spanning sectors including Internet, finance, chemicals, and more. Google has also discovered that phishing attacks have been used to compromise the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists around the world.
In light of the attacks, and after attempts by the Chinese government to further restrict free speech on the web, Google has decided it will deploy a fully uncensored version of its search engine in China. This is a major change: since January 2006, Google has made concessions to the Chinese government and offered a censored (and highly controversial) version of its search engine at Google.cn. Google isn’t playing that game any longer. Should the Chinese government decide that an uncensored engine is illegal, then Google may cease operations in China entirely. We have included Google’s blog posts about the decision in their entirety below.
Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property from Google. However, it soon became clear that what at first appeared to be solely a security incident–albeit a significant one–was something quite different.
First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we have discovered that at least twenty other large companies from a wide range of businesses–including the Internet, finance, technology, media and chemical sectors–have been similarly targeted. We are currently in the process of notifying those companies, and we are also working with the relevant U.S. authorities.
Second, we have evidence to suggest that a primary goal of the attackers was accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. Based on our investigation to date we believe their attack did not achieve that objective. Only two Gmail accounts appear to have been accessed, and that activity was limited to account information (such as the date the account was created) and subject line, rather than the content of emails themselves.
Third, as part of this investigation but independent of the attack on Google, we have discovered that the accounts of dozens of U.S.-, China- and Europe-based Gmail users who are advocates of human rights in China appear to have been routinely accessed by third parties. These accounts have not been accessed through any security breach at Google, but most likely via phishing scams or malware placed on the users’ computers.
We have already used information gained from this attack to make infrastructure and architectural improvements that enhance security for Google and for our users. In terms of individual users, we would advise people to deploy reputable anti-virus and anti-spyware programs on their computers, to install patches for their operating systems and to update their web browsers. Always be cautious when clicking on links appearing in instant messages and emails, or when asked to share personal information like passwords online. You can read more here about our cyber-security recommendations. People interested wanting to learn more about these kinds of attacks can read this U.S. government report (PDF), Nart Villeneuve’s blog and this presentation on the GhostNet spying incident.
We have taken the unusual step of sharing information about these attacks with a broad audience not just because of the security and human rights implications of what we have unearthed, but also because this information goes to the heart of a much bigger global debate about freedom of speech. In the last two decades, China’s economic reform programs and its citizens’ entrepreneurial flair have lifted hundreds of millions of Chinese people out of poverty. Indeed, this great nation is at the heart of much economic progress and development in the world today.
We launched Google.cn in January 2006 in the belief that the benefits of increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet outweighed our discomfort in agreeing to censor some results. At the time we made clear that “we will carefully monitor conditions in China, including new laws and other restrictions on our services. If we determine that we are unable to achieve the objectives outlined we will not hesitate to reconsider our approach to China.”
These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered–combined with the attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the web–have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China. We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.
The decision to review our business operations in China has been incredibly hard, and we know that it will have potentially far-reaching consequences. We want to make clear that this move was driven by our executives in the United States, without the knowledge or involvement of our employees in China who have worked incredibly hard to make Google.cn the success it is today. We are committed to working responsibly to resolve the very difficult issues raised.
Posted by David Drummond, SVP, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer
Here’s a second post, from the Google Enterprise Blog:
Many corporations and consumers regularly come under cyber attack, and Google is no exception. We recently detected a cyber attack targeting our infrastructure and that of at least 20 other publicly listed companies. This incident was particularly notable for its high degree of sophistication. We believe Google Apps and related customer data were not affected by this incident. Please read more about our public response on the Official Google Blog.
This attack may understandably raise some questions, so we wanted to take this opportunity to share some additional information and assure you that Google is introducing additional security measures to help ensure the safety of your data.
This was not an assault on cloud computing. It was an attack on the technology infrastructure of major corporations in sectors as diverse as finance, technology, media, and chemical. The route the attackers used was malicious software used to infect personal computers. Any computer connected to the Internet can fall victim to such attacks. While some intellectual property on our corporate network was compromised, we believe our customer cloud-based data remains secure.
While any company can be subject to such an attack, those who use our cloud services benefit from our data security capabilities. At Google, we invest massive amounts of time and money in security. Nothing is more important to us. Our response to this attack shows that we are dedicated to protecting the businesses and users who have entrusted us with their sensitive email and document information. We are telling you this because we are committed to transparency, accountability, and maintaining your trust.
Posted by Dave Girouard, President, Google Enterprise
Now Available: Printed Edition of The Real-Time Web Report
At the request of the librarian community and people that just like paper, we have made The Real-Time Web and its Future report available in print.
For those of you that prefer it digitally, you can still download it.
Don't forget about our Community Management Report. It too is coming in print soon, so watch out for it!
Web Trends
How The Web is Transforming Personal Finance
Not too long ago, personal finance tools like Quicken and Microsoft Money used to be bound to the desktop. Today, free online tools like Mint, moneyStrands and Wesabe make it easy to track financial information. So you can now get a better overview of your personal finances than ever before.
Editor's note: This story is part of ReadWriteWeb's Personal Finance series, a weekly, three-month-long look at how the Internet has transformed personal finance. If you are interested in sponsoring this Content Series on Personal Finance, please contact our COO Sean Ammirati.
5 Reasons Why RSS Readers Still Rock
Recently we wrote about the decline of RSS Readers as a way for people to keep up with news. We noted that while many people still use RSS Readers, usage has decreased due to the emergence of real-time and social flows of information via Twitter, Facebook and other such services. The post sparked a fascinating discussion, with over 160 comments. What we learned from that discussion is that while the RSS Reader market is indeed in decline, there are still a number of compelling use cases for RSS Readers.
Welcome to the Age of Robot Reporters
Recently, three emergency vehicles responded to a report of an unconscious person at the world headquarters of Nike Inc. in Portland, Oregon. How did we know? An automated form-pumping robot from startup company Nozzl Media told us. Nozzl Media unveiled this week a demonstration of its first product, a widget intended for newspaper websites seeking to display real-time local information derived from Twitter messages, blog posts and automatically extracted public records.
Web Apps Meet Consumer Electronics at CES
The 2010 edition of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) saw a big trend emerge: web applications being ported to consumer electronics, from the technology inside cars to Web-enabled TVs. Earlier this week we noted that online music service Pandora will be made available in cars, courtesy of a new Pioneer device that will begin selling in March. Other evidence of this trend can be found in Ford's announcement of a new in-car system and Samsung's latest Internet-connected TV.
SEE MORE WEB TRENDS COVERAGE IN OUR TRENDS CATEGORY
ReadWriteEnterprise
Our channel ReadWriteEnterprise, devoted to 'enterprise 2.0' and using social software inside organizations.
The Pros and Cons of the Google Nexus One As An Enterprise Phone
The Nexus One is another smart phone that we will inevitably see inside the walls of the enterprise. Smart phones seem to have a way of being used for all kinds of work activities. So, what are the pros and cons of using the Nexus One in the enterprise?
ReadWriteStart
Our channel ReadWriteStart, sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark, is dedicated to profiling startups and entrepreneurs.
5 Web Apps To Keep Your Startup Organized
In a world where emails, phone calls, texts, and Tweets constantly bombard us, it is getting harder and harder to manage the firehose of data and information being thrust our way. For young companies to succeed this environment, it is imparitive they become organized and efficient lest they fall behind and quickly become overwhelmed.
Never Mind the Valley: Here's Los Angeles
Best known for its movie stars, sun and surf, Los Angeles probably isn't the first place you'd think to breed technology. But when you consider the influence of investors like Jason Calacanis and Mark Suster, in addition to the fact that companies like Demand Media and Docstoc call Southern California home, it's not surprising that the community is emerging as one of the country's hottest startup hubs.
SEE MORE STARTUPS COVERAGE IN OUR READWRITESTART CHANNEL
Web Products
Live Blog: Google's Android Press Gathering
Google held a press event this week to showcase the new Nexus One, which it described as "Where Web Meets Phone.” Google calls this a new category of phones – the “super phones.” The Nexus One apparently “pushes the limits of what is possible on a mobile phone today.” Google will sell the phone in its own web store. Check out our live blog coverage for more details.
Droid's December Boom: Metrics Show Device Use Doubled in One Month
The Android platform has grown exponentially since mid-2009, but December's stats show a particular factor that might help catapult the platform to greater heights of user adoption. In figures just released from mobile advertising company AdMob, the Droid singlehandedly boosted calls to their network by nearly 300 million requests.
Facebook's 1st CTO Launches His Next Company
Adam D'Angelo was a programming genius who knew Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in high school, became the young company's first CTO and has just begun to unveil his new startup company, Quora. Built by D'Angelo and a team of crack young engineers, Quora is a real-time enabled Q&A site. The company calls itself “A continually improving collection of questions and answers.”
Skype: Coming to a Couch Near You
Starting this spring, you won't need to gather the whole family around a 15-inch laptop screen to talk with cousin Joe on the other side of the country. As a matter of fact, you won't even need to get up off the sofa after the evening news, because Skype is coming to the big screen – the big TV screen, that is. Skype announced this week that they have been working with LG and Panasonic to embed Skype in Internet-connected widescreen HDTVs.
SEE MORE WEB PRODUCTS COVERAGE IN OUR PRODUCTS CATEGORY
That's a wrap for another week! Enjoy your weekend everyone.
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<b>News</b>: Mookie and Melvin join Mets. February 8, 2010 at 15:40 pm · 24 comments. by Matthew Cerrone. The Mets have named Mookie Wilson as the team's minor league outfield and base running coordinator. Wilson had been the team's first base …
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Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello has told investors that part of the reason 2009 was a difficult year was because the…
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February 5th, 2010
The comments quickly sparked a flurry of reaction in the Silver State, which supported Obama in the 2008 election. Nevada had an unemployment rate of 13 percent in December.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said during a hastily called news conference that Obama is no friend to Las Vegas and would not be welcomed here if he visits.
“I'll do everything I can to give him the boot,” Goodman said. “This president is a real slow learner.”
Goodman and others are worried that Obama's words will discourage visitors from coming to Las Vegas and depress the industry further.
“Enough is enough!” Democratic Congresswoman Shelley Berkley said in a statement. “President Obama needs to stop picking on Las Vegas and he needs to let Americans decide for themselves how and where to spend their hard-earned vacation dollars.”
Nevada's tourism has been hit hard during the past two years as consumers everywhere tighten leisure spending and companies spend less on meetings and conventions.
Reid, one of Obama's closest allies, issued a statement headlined “Reid to Obama: 'Lay off Las Vegas'” and was unusually blunt in his reaction.
“The President needs to lay off Las Vegas and stop making it the poster child for where people shouldn't be spending their money,” Reid said. “I would much rather tourists and business travelers spend their money in Las Vegas than spend it overseas.”
Sen. John Ensign, a Republican, complained that Obama “failed to grasp the weight that his words carry.”
“Once again he has threatened the struggling economy of Las Vegas,” Ensign said, recalling what he characterized as Obama's “irresponsible” comment in February 2009.
Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons and Rep. Dean Heller, both Republicans, and Democratic Rep. Dina Titus also disparaged the president's remarks, while Republican candidates hoping to unseat Reid this year called for an apology.
One year ago, Obama commented during a town hall meeting in Elkhart, Ind., that corporations shouldn't use federal bailout money for trips to Las Vegas, the Super Bowl or corporate jets. Tourism and casino officials said the comment hurt the city as companies canceled meetings in Las Vegas and rescheduled them elsewhere.
Obama later said during a May 2009 trip to Nellis Air Force Base outside of Las Vegas that it was nice to get out of Washington and “there's nothing like a quick trip to Vegas in the middle of the week.”
Goodman said he thought Obama had a “psychological hang-up” of using Las Vegas as an example of excessive spending, and that this time, an apology wouldn't be enough.
“He has to step up right away and say, you know, he wasn't thinking,” Goodman said. “Sometimes when he's not using his monitors and reading what he says, he doesn't think. And this is one of those times he didn't think, and he should straighten out the record because he's been here, he knows Las Vegas is a great place.”
___
Associated Press writers Kevin Freking in Washington, Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Sandra Chereb in Carson City contributed to this report.
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Rebellious Florida Tea Party Candidate Surges in Polls, Is Against Making Banks Pay Us Our Money Back
Marco Rubio is going the be the Republican candidate for Senate in Florida this year. He is handily beating formerly popular Republican Governor Charlie Crist, because Crist is too moderate and too probably gay. This Rubio guy, though—he is basically the next Scott Brown! Except that once he destroys Crist in the primaries by running way to Charlie's right, it will be a lot harder for him to shift back to Florida's soft, mushy center. Especially when he is already coming out against taxing or regulating banks at all in any fashion. (We are so baffled by these Tea Party people! Aren't they anti-bailout? Anti-bailout and anti-preventing-future-bailouts?) Oh, right: he is beating Crist in the polls. They're both ahead of the Democrat, but the Democrat has not yet begun actually campaigning against this man who loves banks so much he wants to marry them.
Send an email to Alex Pareene, the author of this post, at alexp@gawker.com.
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The comments quickly sparked a flurry of reaction in the Silver State, which supported Obama in the 2008 election. Nevada had an unemployment rate of 13 percent in December.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said during a hastily called news conference that Obama is no friend to Las Vegas and would not be welcomed here if he visits.
“I'll do everything I can to give him the boot,” Goodman said. “This president is a real slow learner.”
Goodman and others are worried that Obama's words will discourage visitors from coming to Las Vegas and depress the industry further.
“Enough is enough!” Democratic Congresswoman Shelley Berkley said in a statement. “President Obama needs to stop picking on Las Vegas and he needs to let Americans decide for themselves how and where to spend their hard-earned vacation dollars.”
Nevada's tourism has been hit hard during the past two years as consumers everywhere tighten leisure spending and companies spend less on meetings and conventions.
Reid, one of Obama's closest allies, issued a statement headlined “Reid to Obama: 'Lay off Las Vegas'” and was unusually blunt in his reaction.
“The President needs to lay off Las Vegas and stop making it the poster child for where people shouldn't be spending their money,” Reid said. “I would much rather tourists and business travelers spend their money in Las Vegas than spend it overseas.”
Sen. John Ensign, a Republican, complained that Obama “failed to grasp the weight that his words carry.”
“Once again he has threatened the struggling economy of Las Vegas,” Ensign said, recalling what he characterized as Obama's “irresponsible” comment in February 2009.
Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons and Rep. Dean Heller, both Republicans, and Democratic Rep. Dina Titus also disparaged the president's remarks, while Republican candidates hoping to unseat Reid this year called for an apology.
One year ago, Obama commented during a town hall meeting in Elkhart, Ind., that corporations shouldn't use federal bailout money for trips to Las Vegas, the Super Bowl or corporate jets. Tourism and casino officials said the comment hurt the city as companies canceled meetings in Las Vegas and rescheduled them elsewhere.
Obama later said during a May 2009 trip to Nellis Air Force Base outside of Las Vegas that it was nice to get out of Washington and “there's nothing like a quick trip to Vegas in the middle of the week.”
Goodman said he thought Obama had a “psychological hang-up” of using Las Vegas as an example of excessive spending, and that this time, an apology wouldn't be enough.
“He has to step up right away and say, you know, he wasn't thinking,” Goodman said. “Sometimes when he's not using his monitors and reading what he says, he doesn't think. And this is one of those times he didn't think, and he should straighten out the record because he's been here, he knows Las Vegas is a great place.”
___
Associated Press writers Kevin Freking in Washington, Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Sandra Chereb in Carson City contributed to this report.
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and
Twitter
Know something we don't? E-mail us at huffpolitics@huffingtonpost.com
Rebellious Florida Tea Party Candidate Surges in Polls, Is Against Making Banks Pay Us Our Money Back
Marco Rubio is going the be the Republican candidate for Senate in Florida this year. He is handily beating formerly popular Republican Governor Charlie Crist, because Crist is too moderate and too probably gay. This Rubio guy, though—he is basically the next Scott Brown! Except that once he destroys Crist in the primaries by running way to Charlie's right, it will be a lot harder for him to shift back to Florida's soft, mushy center. Especially when he is already coming out against taxing or regulating banks at all in any fashion. (We are so baffled by these Tea Party people! Aren't they anti-bailout? Anti-bailout and anti-preventing-future-bailouts?) Oh, right: he is beating Crist in the polls. They're both ahead of the Democrat, but the Democrat has not yet begun actually campaigning against this man who loves banks so much he wants to marry them.
Send an email to Alex Pareene, the author of this post, at alexp@gawker.com.
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February 5th, 2010
Here, for example, was Maddow describing the response in Congress after Obama called for a tax on the "biggest" banks during this year's State of the Union address (first segment in embedded video) –
MADDOW: Here in Washington today the president unveiled his new budget and he name-checked what Democrats are fast realizing could be the funnest thing in it. (cuts to Obama announcement)
OBAMA: There are other steps we're taking to rein in deficits. I've proposed a fee on big banks to pay back taxpayers for the bailout.
MADDOW (pointing finger for emphasis): Making banks pay back the bailout. This is turning out to be the best thing for Democratic politics since Michael Steele. (cuts to Obama's State of the Union speech)
OBAMA: And we've recovered most of the money we spent on the banks. (applause) Most but not all. To recover the rest, I've proposed a fee on the biggest banks. (more applause) Now I know Wall Street isn't keen on this idea. But if these firms can afford to hand out big bonuses again, they can afford a modest fee to pay back the taxpayers who rescued them in their time of need. (wild applause, Democrats waving banners, swinging from chandeliers)
MADDOW: And that's the political moneyshot right there. Should Wall Street pay back taxpayers for the bailout? Democrats applauding, thundering applause, leaping to their feet. Republicans, uh, time to fidget and maybe grumble. Definitely no applause. Republicans siding with Wall Street against paying back the bailout money is pure political gold for Democrats at a time when Democrats really need some of that.
No sooner had Maddow tossed out this demonstrably false claim about Republicans wanting banks to renege on TARP that she came to this curious aspect of the saga –
MADDOW: On the substance, though, there's one fact about the bailouts and the whole idea of paying it back that hasn't really sunk in politically. When it comes to TARP funds, that $700 billion bailout, most of the banks have already paid back their loans.
Yes, and one of the reasons this hasn't "really sunk in politically" is because of propagandists like Maddow parroting the Obamist lie that the rationale for the bank tax is, as Maddow put it, "making banks pay back the bailout." But how can that be when most have already done so?
In the same segment, Maddow reeled off the names of those who've repaid TARP money — JP Morgan, American Express, Capital One, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley.
Then came this revelation from Maddow's guest during the segment, so-called "pay czar" Kenneth Feinberg (second segment of video) —
MADDOW: As I understand it, your job is very narrowly defined by Congress. You are to set executive pay limits at companies that received the most bailout money and only while they still have bailout money outstanding, is that right?
FEINBERG: That's exactly right. That's the way the statute reads. I started with seven companies. Bank of America and Citigroup repaid the taxpayer. That was my primary objective under the law. They're out. In 2010 I'm down to five companies — AIG, GM, GMAC, Chrysler and Chrysler Financial.
Five "companies" — two auto manufacturers, their financing branches, and AIG, an insurance and financial services company. Is it my imagination of does this cast of characters tilt heavily toward Detroit, not Wall Street? Hence the urgent need to seize wealth from our "biggest banks" in the guise of fairness.
In a moment of rare candor, Maddow let slip the actual reason for whacking the banks — it is "pure political gold" at a time when Democrats "really need some of that." Yes indeed — and all crimes, rhetorical, legislative or otherwise, are justified when one is saving the world.
Needless to say, Maddow did not ask Feinberg why Obama isn't seeking a tax on Detroit automakers for their puzzling failure to repay TARP money.
Next example, as shown in third segment of video — Maddow's commentary on Justice Samuel Alito's response to Obama's State of the Union criticicism of the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v FEC –
MADDOW: This year both the speech made some news and the theater around the speech made a tiny little bit of news. One moment of pure political theater tonight was a quasi-reprise of Congressman Joe Wilson's 'you lie!' moment from last year's speech on health reform. As President Obama was describing last week's Supreme Court ruling allowing corporations the world over to spend without limit on American politicians and political campaigns, incredibly, a justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Samuel Alito, shook his head and said 'not true' or possibly 'simply not true'. A Supreme Court spokeswoman told NBC's Pete Williams tonight just moments ago that Justice Samuel Alito, who was himself unavailable for comment on the heckling …
Got that? Whatever it was Alito muttered or mouthed constituted "heckling" of the president. And didya happen to notice what a truly racist heckle it was?
Back on Jan. 25 while commenting on Obama's proposed partial spending freeze, Maddow pointed out that McCain suggested much the same in the 2008 campaign (fourth video segment) –
MADDOW: You might recall that Republican senator John McCain ran for and lost the presidency on the idea of answering economic calamity with a spending freeze, since that's the kind of strategy that Herbert Hoover used in the '30s to make the Depression great.
What a contrast with what Maddow said about Hoover in December 2008 — when she claimed that "Hoover cut spending." I wrote about it at the time in a NewsBusters post linked here; go to 1:01 into its embedded video for the following quote —
MADDOW: The country needed massive federal spending to stimulate demand and keep people working. Hoover cut spending. The government had an economic responsibility to borrow some money and get credit moving. Hoover picked that awesome time to balance the budget.
In fact, Hoover neither cut federal spending nor froze it — the budget increased nearly 60 percent between 1929 and 1932 during his single term. Hoover was considered so profligate that Ur-Democrat Franklin Roosevelt ran against Hoover in 1932 on a platform of balancing the budget.
In fairness to Maddow, at least she's heading in the right direction. Given her pace of revisionism, she'll get it right sometime in early 2011.
Last example, from Maddow's show last night, in a segment on possible repeal of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy toward gays, Maddow said this about Colin Powell (last segment on video) –
MADDOW: General Colin Powell is the sort of American public figure who offers a lot of politicians a lot of political cover. There's not a lot of risk, especially if you're a Republican, to saying, I'm with General Powell on this or that subject.
Such as agreeing with Powell when he endorsed Obama over McCain. No more risk for Republicans there than in hiring David Gergen to run your campaign.
Catherine Zeta-Jones' plastic surgery bills don't pay themselves, so Michael Douglas had to get back out there and make some damn money. That's the only reason I can come up with as to why there is a sequel to Wall Street. But anyways, here is the trailer.
The title of this shit lies. They are making it sound like money has insomnia. I know for a fact that money is not wide awake at night watching HSN and downing warm milk laced with crushed Simply Sleep pills in order to finally get some Zzzzzs.
Money was definitely fast asleep the other night when I went to the ATM to pay it a visit and got an “insufficient funds” notice instead. Lazy ass money couldn't come to the damn door because it was alseep! Or maybe nobody was home. No, money was definitely hugging a body pillow in bed.
And what is it with Shia starring in unnecessary sequels with old dudes we may or may not still fap to. First it was Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones, and now it's Michael Douglas in this mess. What's next? Shia and Sean Connery in the sequel to First Knight called Second Knight?
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Here, for example, was Maddow describing the response in Congress after Obama called for a tax on the "biggest" banks during this year's State of the Union address (first segment in embedded video) –
MADDOW: Here in Washington today the president unveiled his new budget and he name-checked what Democrats are fast realizing could be the funnest thing in it. (cuts to Obama announcement)
OBAMA: There are other steps we're taking to rein in deficits. I've proposed a fee on big banks to pay back taxpayers for the bailout.
MADDOW (pointing finger for emphasis): Making banks pay back the bailout. This is turning out to be the best thing for Democratic politics since Michael Steele. (cuts to Obama's State of the Union speech)
OBAMA: And we've recovered most of the money we spent on the banks. (applause) Most but not all. To recover the rest, I've proposed a fee on the biggest banks. (more applause) Now I know Wall Street isn't keen on this idea. But if these firms can afford to hand out big bonuses again, they can afford a modest fee to pay back the taxpayers who rescued them in their time of need. (wild applause, Democrats waving banners, swinging from chandeliers)
MADDOW: And that's the political moneyshot right there. Should Wall Street pay back taxpayers for the bailout? Democrats applauding, thundering applause, leaping to their feet. Republicans, uh, time to fidget and maybe grumble. Definitely no applause. Republicans siding with Wall Street against paying back the bailout money is pure political gold for Democrats at a time when Democrats really need some of that.
No sooner had Maddow tossed out this demonstrably false claim about Republicans wanting banks to renege on TARP that she came to this curious aspect of the saga –
MADDOW: On the substance, though, there's one fact about the bailouts and the whole idea of paying it back that hasn't really sunk in politically. When it comes to TARP funds, that $700 billion bailout, most of the banks have already paid back their loans.
Yes, and one of the reasons this hasn't "really sunk in politically" is because of propagandists like Maddow parroting the Obamist lie that the rationale for the bank tax is, as Maddow put it, "making banks pay back the bailout." But how can that be when most have already done so?
In the same segment, Maddow reeled off the names of those who've repaid TARP money — JP Morgan, American Express, Capital One, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley.
Then came this revelation from Maddow's guest during the segment, so-called "pay czar" Kenneth Feinberg (second segment of video) —
MADDOW: As I understand it, your job is very narrowly defined by Congress. You are to set executive pay limits at companies that received the most bailout money and only while they still have bailout money outstanding, is that right?
FEINBERG: That's exactly right. That's the way the statute reads. I started with seven companies. Bank of America and Citigroup repaid the taxpayer. That was my primary objective under the law. They're out. In 2010 I'm down to five companies — AIG, GM, GMAC, Chrysler and Chrysler Financial.
Five "companies" — two auto manufacturers, their financing branches, and AIG, an insurance and financial services company. Is it my imagination of does this cast of characters tilt heavily toward Detroit, not Wall Street? Hence the urgent need to seize wealth from our "biggest banks" in the guise of fairness.
In a moment of rare candor, Maddow let slip the actual reason for whacking the banks — it is "pure political gold" at a time when Democrats "really need some of that." Yes indeed — and all crimes, rhetorical, legislative or otherwise, are justified when one is saving the world.
Needless to say, Maddow did not ask Feinberg why Obama isn't seeking a tax on Detroit automakers for their puzzling failure to repay TARP money.
Next example, as shown in third segment of video — Maddow's commentary on Justice Samuel Alito's response to Obama's State of the Union criticicism of the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v FEC –
MADDOW: This year both the speech made some news and the theater around the speech made a tiny little bit of news. One moment of pure political theater tonight was a quasi-reprise of Congressman Joe Wilson's 'you lie!' moment from last year's speech on health reform. As President Obama was describing last week's Supreme Court ruling allowing corporations the world over to spend without limit on American politicians and political campaigns, incredibly, a justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Samuel Alito, shook his head and said 'not true' or possibly 'simply not true'. A Supreme Court spokeswoman told NBC's Pete Williams tonight just moments ago that Justice Samuel Alito, who was himself unavailable for comment on the heckling …
Got that? Whatever it was Alito muttered or mouthed constituted "heckling" of the president. And didya happen to notice what a truly racist heckle it was?
Back on Jan. 25 while commenting on Obama's proposed partial spending freeze, Maddow pointed out that McCain suggested much the same in the 2008 campaign (fourth video segment) –
MADDOW: You might recall that Republican senator John McCain ran for and lost the presidency on the idea of answering economic calamity with a spending freeze, since that's the kind of strategy that Herbert Hoover used in the '30s to make the Depression great.
What a contrast with what Maddow said about Hoover in December 2008 — when she claimed that "Hoover cut spending." I wrote about it at the time in a NewsBusters post linked here; go to 1:01 into its embedded video for the following quote —
MADDOW: The country needed massive federal spending to stimulate demand and keep people working. Hoover cut spending. The government had an economic responsibility to borrow some money and get credit moving. Hoover picked that awesome time to balance the budget.
In fact, Hoover neither cut federal spending nor froze it — the budget increased nearly 60 percent between 1929 and 1932 during his single term. Hoover was considered so profligate that Ur-Democrat Franklin Roosevelt ran against Hoover in 1932 on a platform of balancing the budget.
In fairness to Maddow, at least she's heading in the right direction. Given her pace of revisionism, she'll get it right sometime in early 2011.
Last example, from Maddow's show last night, in a segment on possible repeal of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy toward gays, Maddow said this about Colin Powell (last segment on video) –
MADDOW: General Colin Powell is the sort of American public figure who offers a lot of politicians a lot of political cover. There's not a lot of risk, especially if you're a Republican, to saying, I'm with General Powell on this or that subject.
Such as agreeing with Powell when he endorsed Obama over McCain. No more risk for Republicans there than in hiring David Gergen to run your campaign.
Catherine Zeta-Jones' plastic surgery bills don't pay themselves, so Michael Douglas had to get back out there and make some damn money. That's the only reason I can come up with as to why there is a sequel to Wall Street. But anyways, here is the trailer.
The title of this shit lies. They are making it sound like money has insomnia. I know for a fact that money is not wide awake at night watching HSN and downing warm milk laced with crushed Simply Sleep pills in order to finally get some Zzzzzs.
Money was definitely fast asleep the other night when I went to the ATM to pay it a visit and got an “insufficient funds” notice instead. Lazy ass money couldn't come to the damn door because it was alseep! Or maybe nobody was home. No, money was definitely hugging a body pillow in bed.
And what is it with Shia starring in unnecessary sequels with old dudes we may or may not still fap to. First it was Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones, and now it's Michael Douglas in this mess. What's next? Shia and Sean Connery in the sequel to First Knight called Second Knight?
The following is a round-up of <b>news</b> likely to affect stock prices today: Aetna (AET) said Friday its fourth-quarter profit fell 15% to $165.9 million, or 38 cents per share, as it continued to struggle with pricing problems and rising …
British Columbia's games industry is set to benefit from a new tax credit program proposed this month in response to a dr…
Read our Rebellion apologises for AVP demo issues <b>News</b> for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.
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Tags: making money
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February 5th, 2010
Tags: making money
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