Hell, the touted "limits on executive compensation" don't actually strip away golden parachutes or institute a salary cap on executives. They're a sham, a facade of meaningful legislation. Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

There is nothing good about this legislation. It is all costs and no benefits, and it is likely going to pass.

[HT: EDSBS]

i have disappointed myself, my mother and my teachers. i know they are expecting more from me, and i always fail to produce. for instance, take the recent chinese O level paper. i put in all my effort into pulling up my socks for chinese, even bothering to pay attention in class and reading chinese materials. and what did i get? an effing B4, when people who are usually poorer then me in class getting higher than that, some even managing to get an A1. what is this? maybe i should just give up and not waste anyone else's time. even mdm tan was shocked that i only scored a B4. like, who wouldnt. mummy is expecting alot from me for this prelims and i have a very strong feeling that i am gonna fail here again. why cant i ever make anyone happy. just for once? why am i such a failure? why? as i've said before in the previous post, I'M AN EPIC FAILURE. and i wont hesitate to say it again.

and just to prove my point, i was channel surfing just now when i stumbled upon a channel showing the on-going paralympics games, i saw how disabled people push themselves to their greatest limits just to win a medal for their own individual country. they may be doing it to prove themselves, or they may be doing it out of passion. i dunno which is true, but one thing for sure is that these people do not posses the power to do things that normal, able-bodied people are capable of achieving. but they do not focus on what is missing but rather, they focus and use what they have. and that is definitely one thing i have to applaud them for. i am a able bodied person who can i think definitely achieve more then them. but what am i doing now? failing every single thing that i attempt to do. this is why, i said I'm an epic failure and i have proven my point. >:(

I'M A FREAKING EPIC FAILURE.

I'm getting back english, emath and chem on monday.. yaye me. i'm gonna fail all again. whoohoo.

I did learn some things though, and the biggest thing I learned is to never assume that a label that says a water heater holds 45 gallons means that it actually does. Mine holds 24. Baffling, for sure, but more than that, frustrating. long story short, I ended up with methoxide and oil all over the place. Luckily, no one was hurt and I managed to get it all cleaned up. But I'm not happy.

So, for everyone out there, here's a lesson I've learned that hopefully you won't have to. Always verify volume. This goes along with some of the other lessons I've learned like, never put biodiesel in a non-biodiesel proof plastic container, or it may dissolve and make a mess; never stick your hand in a bucket of liquid of unknown PH, because that can hurt; never ever touch open electrical contacts on your processor while it's plugged in, because that hurts too.There's probably a lot more things I'm not thinking of, but these are the big ones.

Learn from my mistakes. Seriously.

Cheers,

-Nathan

“The citizens of San Antonio produce about 140,000 tons of biosolids each year,” said SAWS Chief Operating Officer Steve Clouse. “Treating these biosolids generates an average of 1.5 million cubic feet of gas a day – that’s enough gas to fill seven commercial blimps or 1,250 tanker trucks each day.”

That's right. The San Antonio Water Service has signed a contract with a company in Massachusetts giving the company 20 years of access to the sewer treatment facility, and more importantly to a certain raw material there. The company gets to install processing equipment on-site to collect the methane, and the water service gets a 12% cut of the methane sales.

They're collecting and selling natural gas that's been refined from human excrement! Take that, biodiesel! In your face, cellulosic ethanol! Your appointment's been scheduled with Dr. Kevorkian, corn-based ethanol!* This is awesome!

Seriously. Sewage is about to be, at least in one city in Texas, nigh unto 100% recycled. How cool is that? Very cool, that's how cool. They're turning shit into something useful!

*Corn-based ethanol (more specifically, mandates and subsidies for its production and distribution) really does need to be taken out back and shot. The only way I can think of for one policy to do a more thoroughly destructive job of simultaneously harming the environment, the economy, and the U.S. and world fuel, water, and food supplies would be to pump petroleum directly onto cropland and light it up. Subsidizing corn to the detriment of other foods' production and pricing is harmful enough, but subsidizing corn that - after it's grown through the extensive use of land, water, and fertilizer - is going to get refined - at high energy cost - into a fuel that burns less energetically than gasoline, so you can use it to cut gasoline... can you even do a cost-benefit analysis for something that has no benefits? It's bad energy policy, bad environmental policy, bad economic policy, and bad food policy.

1. What, specifically, do you want me to support?
2. How, exactly, do you want me to support it?
3. And this deserves supporting why?

Just recently was I led to the website of these people. Now, I've clicked every link on their website, and read everything there, but I couldn't find answers to something it seems fairly obvious to ask about: what is their proposed text for this "National Service Act of 2009" they intend to see passed, as stated in their "Strategy" and "Timeline" tabs? It seems odd that they ask for support and don't specify this. It seems extremely peculiar that they don't provide their proposed legislation's text especially since they have that big notice on their front page about how they don't support mandatory programs. After all, the text of the "Universal National Service Act of 2007" that Representative Rangel proposed very clearly was setting up a mandatory program, and you'd think they'd want to make the distinction between that proposal and their own as clear as possible - which would entail spelling out the differences. A lot harder to not distinguish things properly when their differences aren't detailed. Not to mention, a lot harder to succeed in deliberately misrepresenting someone's ideas when they've clearly stated those ideas in explicit detail.

Furthermore, you'd think they'd want to do as much as possible to clarify how their affiliation to these folks doesn't include agreement with whichever one's responsible for including vested enfranchisement in their "Lexicon of Service" glossary and "Choose Your Own National Service Act" poll. I mean, "do this if you want to be allowed to vote" doesn't meet any definition of "voluntary" that I've ever heard of. For that matter, "You've been drafted into the military, like it or not, but if you don't like it, we'll make you do civilian work instead" also doesn't leave that civilian labor meeting any definition worthy of the word "voluntary".

Also, opprobrium unto to who wrote the poll on the second site, as it's heavily laden with leading questions. The first site just has an abysmally short "poll".

Oh, another thing: Rangel's bill there? Way too much delegation of decision-making to the executive branch. The executive is there to do just that: execute. As in, "implement policies determined by others, carry out instructions given by others, and implement the will of others." Not form policies with legal force or promulgate regulations for the citizenry-at-large. President of the U.S. shouldn't be a policy-making office, it should just be the world's most glorified Assistant Manager job. To allude to sci-fi I don't like, you know how on Star Trek Patrick Stewart always said "Make it so" to people? Yeah, the President isn't Patrick Stewart. The President's the guy Patrick Stewart's telling to make it so.

A hellish week for the patriots and optimists.  The decline of our nation continues, helped eagerly along by the fools and thieves and petty tyrants we've chosen to rule us.

The FISA bill passed.  Easily.  Obama voted for it.  The raving, outraged few shrieked themselves hoarse, teary-eyed and desperate.  Their anguished premonitions of America's future went unheeded.  The masses went about their days, eating and scratching and farting along their ignorant and merry way.

Perhaps there was a brief, twenty second spot on the six o'clock news about the bill's success.  An obligatory mention, without feeling or comprehension or depth.  A footnote, or an obituary.  And then the issue was put to bed in time for sports highlights, and the weather.

Like many such sickening, foul days in our history, Wednesday went by largely unnoticed.

The goblins and bottom-feeders of the United States Senate pounded another bent, rusty nail in to our collective coffin.

Their hammers fell, over and over, driving the iron deeper, deeper into the virgin wood. Clang, clang, clang.

I heard it, in the distance.

Did you?

---------

I've been asked by some why I make such a big deal out of this FISA business.  It's such a boring, intangible thing to care about.  Surely I must know greater evils exist.  What about all the off-shore drilling plans?  The reintroduction of Intelligent Design into Louisiana schools? What about The War?  Illegal domestic spying is small potatoes compared to some of the other atrocities and depravities America's involved in.

It's true.  Telecom Immunity is far from the vilest thing that happened to us lately.  It's hard to get up in arms about privacy rights and defense of the Constitution while rivers of blood flow through the deserts of Iraq, and GWB makes lighthearted jokes about us being the world's worst polluter.  And yet the passing of the FISA bill, and Obama's support of it, may prove to be one of the most pivotal political moments in the last twenty years.

Set aside what you think of him as a man or a politician, and try instead to consider what Obama represents to the average young American.  To them, he's hope.  He's a possibility, a promise of a brighter future.  He's the first candidate in many of their lifetimes who is not merely the lesser of several evils, but someone moral and driven and audacious enough to truly Make a Difference.  Not just some talking head they can tolerate, someone they genuinely respect as a leader.

That's unheard of.  The power that this image gives him, the potential to wield a generation's excitement and energy, is something no candidate since JFK has been blessed with.  A boon beyond compare.

When you have that kind of whole-hearted support from the young, educated, and wealthy, you can do what no other candidate dares to do: the Right Thing.

And the FISA bill is the simplest of litmus tests for Obama and his new-found strength.  The most cut-and-dry issue seen on the Senate floor in a decade.

The War, the Environment, the Economy, these are topics so chaotic and muddled and dangerous that even a man with Obama's level of popularity has to handle them with kit gloves.  Whatever you do about the War, people on both sides will hate you.  There is no action that will not cost you at least some Conservative or Liberal votes.

But the FISA bill... it's almost like something out of a movie.  Good versus Evil.  Right versus Wrong.  It's an entire moral and political ideology distilled and rarefied down into one, simple choice.  Without room for interpretation, or perspective, or distortion.

For Obama and the rest of the Senate, the opportunity to act and to vote righteously is not all that rare.  Idealistic bills, after all, are not completely unknown in the legislature.  But to be able to cast a vote in defense of the right and not risk a single supporter's vote is unheard of.

On Wednesday, there were two types of Americans when it came to the issue of Telecom Immunity:  Those who were vehemently opposed to it, and those who didn't understand it.

This was no hotbed of controversy.  Informed citizens, conservative and liberal alike, despised the entire idea.  Multi-national corporations getting away with spying illegally on innocent Americans is totally reprehensible, regardless of party affiliation.

I mean honestly, who doesn't hate the fucking phone company?

Thus did Wednesday offer a rare, almost unprecedented, moment of truth, for Obama and for Congress as a whole.

A vote against was a condemnation of the Administration's years of deceit and corruption.  A vote against said that our leaders and their minions should be held accountable when they violate our laws.  A vote against said that our rights can not and should not be violated on a whim by corporate monopolies and demagogues.

A vote for it was surrender, and betrayal of our nation's core ideals.

A vote for it was an admission of complete fucking moral bankruptcy.

And so Wednesday rolled around, quietly, and America was suddenly afforded the opportunity to see which side of the line our leaders and our Presidential Hopeful stood on.

Those of us who bothered to look saw the results clearly, and despaired.

--------

Why did he do it?

I can't say.  Not for votes, certainly.  He's cost himself thousands by proving he's just as spineless and power-hungry as McCain, and gained none.

My guess is money, but I have no real idea.  As far removed as I am from the foul, shit-spattered warrens and back alleys of our nation's capital, it's impossible to guess what prize the fiends offered Obama in exchange for his betrayal.  To get this bill to pass, who knows what dark deeds and unspeakable perversions were perpetrated by the packs of lobbyists and good old boys that run rampant through the Washington nights. I hope whatever the Administration and the corporate elite tempted or blackmailed Obama with, it was something significant.

I'd hate to think he sold us out for some free air time on ClearChannel radio, or a paltry campaign contribution.

Hell, even Hillary had the integrity to vote against FISA.  You've got to be deep in some shit when Hillary "The Hosebeast" Clinton can furrow her brow and look down her crooked witch nose at you for selling out your constituency.

-------

Where do we go from here? Who knows.  The honeymoon is certainly over, at least for the small percentage of us who bother to read the news.  If there's any justice in the world, Obama will lose the election.  But if your only option for justice is four years of warmongering and earthraping under Zombie in Chief John McCain, perhaps it's not worth it.

I can't say I was entirely taken by surprise.  Friends of mine, loyal Obama supporters, called me Wednesday shrieking and outraged.  Jaded, black-hearted pessimist that I am, I told them I had suspected his true nature all along.  I knew he'd sell us out, I told them.  He can't have gotten so far in politics so quickly without being thoroughly evil.

They took comfort in my knowing cynicism.  I let them curse and lament, and I made agreeing noises at the appropriate times.  Yes, I'd say.  He's certainly revealed himself to be as despicable as the rest.

But when the phone stopped ringing around two AM, I was surprised to find how angry I really was.  Furious.  Enraged.  How the fuck could he do this to us?  How could he pick this bill to support, a choice which made his betrayal so brazen and complete?

I lay awake till dawn, too full of venom and angst to sleep.  I don't know why.  I must have been more optimistic about Our Man than I realized, or was willing to admit.

Why does our current completely fucked up political system ignite such a white-hot fury in me...

I don't want to know.  Someday I will learn to embrace the apathy my generation is so famous for, and the hate and rage I feel so strongly may cool.  Someday I'll resign myself to our collective horrible fate.

I hope.

Maybe I'll learn to fiddle, so I'll have something to do while Rome burns.

-------

I have a recurring nightmare, as of late.

I stand at the base of some gigantic edifice, or monument.  It's black and terrible, and so large I can only see a small part of it at a time no matter how I crane my neck.  It's covered with cryptic symbols and hieroglyphics, and if I study a particular, narrow section for a time, I can begin to understand it, to comprehend it.

I know if I could study the thing thoroughly, if I could define it and at least comprehend its dimensions, I could do something about it.  I could set right its many evils.  But the thing is so huge, no matter where I stand I can't get a proper perspective.  It stretches away in all directions without end.

I run along the base for hours and still can find no edge.  I run away from it and look back over my shoulder, and still I can't see the top.  And so the monstrosity may as well go on forever, so I slump against its base, tracing its symbols with my hands, and am defeated.

-T.

UHUAHUA!

FAIL. JUST FAIL.

JEEBUS!

"The lamp's glow was very weak compared to the blue glow emancipating from the basement."

HAHAHAHA!!!

While there are a few sources of this information: Rope of Silicon, and Imdb, I can't help to think if this is real or not. Paul Greengrass (which is supposedly already attached to direct) is obviously a great director - and, beside the involvement of Matt Damon and Robert Ludlum, will probably be the origin of life for this film. He knows how to tell a great story - I just cannot see him being involved with a poorly written script. But then again... Humans are known for making big mistakes. Either way, beside the "trilogy factor", he did a great job with the last two films in the Bourne series, I see no reason why this film shouldn't be great. However... You never know. Look at The Matrix... and then its sequels... I do reference to that quite a lot, don't I? Epic failure needs epic amounts of mentioning! Anyway, keep on your toes about this.

Quando o assunto é guerra, os americanos adoram dar uma de fodões. Minha resposta ao MASSIVE AMOUNT OF FAIL neste tópico, por enquanto, só recebeu -3 diggs... talvez porque a maioria não teve chance de ler meu comentário.

I know I'll probably just get dugg down for writing this, but...

NO.

First of all, anyone who has studied a little of geopolitics knows that the japanese weren't a real threat, and basically (among other factors) that the US just dropped the bombs to warn the USSR -- kinda like a demonstration of power so they wouldn't get too comfortable (they reached Berlin before the americans, yada yada). Also, you guys really think that they would have the strength to invade the US and cause massive destruction and millions of other deaths? Please.

Second, you can't really generalize the population of a country for their government. I mean, you guys don't like the rest of the world thinking you are retarded because of Bush and when we criticize you for that you think it's not fair. The same thing, really.

Americans needed a good reason to enter the war, and the Pearl Harbor incident was 'perfect'. Don't get me wrong, of course it was bad and killed many people, but sooner or later, the US were going to enter the war, so...

Yes, the japanese were horrible with the Chinese, Koreans, etc., but if you guys have that simplistic view that 'they deserved it', then just imagine what Europe should have got for slavery and even the US for the latest amount of fail with Iraq and now possibly with Iran.

I don't really have anything against the US, but this kinda of arrogant posture just irritates me, and a lot of other people.

History is written by the winners.

Hell Yeah!

Thank you for signing a new contract, that one that lasts until 2017? Sorry to hear you opted out of it and are leaving for some University in Indiana (Oh, Indiana University?).

Wait what? . . .

Rev. Robert A. Wild, Marquette president, said he possessed everything the university was looking for, including "great recruiting ability, knowledge of the Midwest, successful coaching experience, a tremendous work ethic." No players decided to transfer as a result of the coaching change. According to the world's best coach, "Once Marquette became available, that's where my sights were. I had unbelievable respect for the tradition and the name. When I thought of Marquette, I thought of a true basketball school and to me that had a lot to do with it. "

That's directly from Wikipedia's description of this guy too. I guess that is one way to show excellent ethics and a respect for the school paying for your heliport. The only way this situation could be made better is if he was asked back to Marquette, to teach True Ethics.

Anyway, I've got to get going - I'm going to go 'Crean' - it up. By that I mean, although I live in Milwaukee, I'm going to a bar to order a refreshing Bud Light over a Miller Lite, a Quiche over a Brat, then I'll wipe my mouth with the American Flag.

Mas isso não é desculpa. Olha só pra Panini: tava indo bem, todo mundo pagava pau pra ela e deu no que deu; decidiu reviver Peach Girl em mais uma estratégia de agradar os fãs mas por causa das baixas vendas foi cancelado novamente, junto com Éden. Mas se o título havia sido originalmente cancelado por esse mesmo motivo, porque eles tentaram trazer o mangá de volta a vida?
Nessa onda de tentar agradar e se tornar a editora queridinha de todo mundo, a Panini errou feio. E agora as pessoas estão começando a amá-la um pouco menos. Heh.

A situação da Conrad tá crítica e ninguém mede as palavras na hora de xingá-la pelo atraso de One Piece ou pelo cancelamento de outros mangás.
Eu até tenho um pouco de pena dessa editora. Ela era amada por todo mundo e seus fãs xiitas a defendiam cegamente em tudo. Agora, o passatempo preferido de todos é falar mal das atitudes da Conrad.
Muitas mancadas rolaram, mas pessoas rogando pragas e falência?!! Isso já me soa meio extremo demais. (bom, tá certo que nenhum dos mangás que eu comprava da Conrad foi cancelado... por enquanto)

A JBC se mantém em chão neutro. Ainda há quem afirme que ela é uma merda em tudo o que faz e tenta passar longe de todos os seus títulos. Acredite ou não, existem pessoas que inclusive afirmam que é melhor ver um mangá incompleto de boa qualidade que Tsubasa como ele é, completo.

Hein?!

Fora o preço, que é abusivo demais, não sei o porquê de tanta chiação das pessoas quanto à qualidade dos mangás da JBC. Ela melhorou muito de uns tempos pra cá e ainda existem pessoas que insistem nos tais quadrados brancos. Não os vejo mais. Aliás, quadrado branco só vejo em Paradise Kiss, que é da Conrad (aparentemente, eles precisam assistir um pouquinho dos vídeos do Donnie, em You Suck at Photoshop).
Eu jamais preferiria que alguma coisa ficasse incompleta por melhor que sua qualidade seja. Afinal, por maiores que fossem os investimentos em tal mangá, ele continuaria... incompleto!! Se for assim, do que adianta colecionar o mangá?!! Baixe os scans de uma vez ou compre a versão japonesa!
Mas eu admito uma coisa: após toda essa confusão de cancelamentos, a JBC ganhou mais um pouco de respeito meu.

E se eu não gosto da editora, devo boicotá-la ou privar-me de expressar minhas opiniões?

I DON'T THINK SO.

Eu não boicotaria um mangá que curto e coleciono só porque não gosto da editora que a publica. E eu, como uma pessoa que reclama demais, acho um absurdo achar que todos deveriam se calar diante do que acontece. Se as pessoas não reclamassem, não saberíamos dos podres das três editoras principais.
Ah, e justamente porque vamos lá todo mês na banca com nosso dinheirinho, temos o direito de reclamar. Nós sustentamos estas editoras, sem a gente elas não são nada! Se não criticarmos vai tudo ficar como está. Elogios e babação de ovo (vide caso Panini) no final não são tão efetivos como boas críticas.

Qual é a moral da história?

As editoras estão atrás de dinheiro. Eu sempre achei isso óbvio, mas algumas pessoas ainda achavam que a Conrad ou a Panini tinham seus leitores no maior dos patamares. Claro que as três editoras dão prioridade ao leitor, em graus diferentes. Essa diferença fica bastante perceptível agora.

Just some food for thought here...

Little quick on the throttle there?

http://www.amazon.com/19-0-Historic-Championship-Englands-Unbeatable/dp/1600781500

Here's another gem:

And:

The end.. indeed.

So when they say that no one remembers second place... well.... not always... Not many teams come into a super bowl nearly 14 point favorites after going 18-0 for the entire season and just lose.

Epic Failure by the Patriots. Good work. Undefeated in the regular season? Wow... who cares now.... the parade's in Manhattan on Tuesday, folks.

E tá rolando uns papos de que BR estaria em renegociação... HEIN? Faltam o quê, só 3 edições?!

EU ME RECUSO A ACREDITAR NESSA BAGAÇA. TEM ALGUM ERRO AÍ, COM CERTEZA.

PORRA!

Well, they did. People have been getting their GH3 bundles tonight and have not been happy. Of course, some (probably the majority) of controllers work fine, but the fact that there's a significant number that seem to be defective is infuriating. With Rock Band coming out in a month, Guitar Hero might be totally fucked. Honestly, I was on the fence about which version of GH3 to get, but Justin convinced me to get the 360 bundle version. I wish I got the PS2 game-only version. I'm going to go to the Best Buy I bought the game from on Monday to see if I can exchange for the PS2 game-only version. If not, I guess I'll just get a new 360 bundle and hope that guitar actually works.

My faux Les Paul guitar activates Star Power whenever it feels like it, usually the second I get it. If it doesn't activate it right off the bat, I can't even activate it myself unless I flail it around like a madman, and even then it usually kicks in a few notes down the road, if at all. And my problem isn't even as bad as some others. Sometimes buttons don't work or other ones are detected as pushed when they really aren't. It all comes down to the detachable neck. So this is all versions, not just the 360. Nice job, Red Octane.

You can see some complaining here in a NeoGAF thread. There's plenty going on at guitarhero.com as well. Here's a gem I particularly enjoyed.

Thread title = Store exchanges/returns

There's going to be a lot of them. I returned my first one within the first hour, because the guitar sucks so much ***. I'm returning this one in the morning. I hope to see Red Octane filing for bankruptcy within the next year. **** those guys.

With Rock Band coming out in a month, poised to dominate Guitar Hero in almost every way (difficulty), he might get his wish.

If you have a PS2 or 360 and guitar(s) already, just stick with them. If not, just wait until Rock Band. Neversoft and Red Octane don't deserve your money for their new two-piece faulty guitars.

Eu tenho algumas notícias para vocês...

 NÃO.

Não acredito, existe esse preconceito com "modinha" AINDA?