Mental Pretzel

New Report Finds Nearly 75 Percent of Lawyers Increased Their Fees During the Downturn

2010-09-07T10:48:00.000-07:00

/PRNewswire/ -- Corporate Executive Board (CEB) (NYSE:EXBD) , a leading research and advisory services company, today announced the release of the Real Rate Report(TM), an analysis of over $4.1 billion in legal billing fees. The report is produced jointly by CEB's Legal and Compliance Practice and CT TyMetrix and helps general counsel make better-informed business decisions by providing an objective look at invoice data to understand and quantify what is driving the billable hour.

"The Real Rate Report(TM) responds to companies' need for actual legal cost information to assist in planning, budgeting, and negotiating with their outside law firms," said Steven Williams, managing director, Corporate Executive Board. "The report is a great addition to the broader set of services we provide to CEB's more than 1,000 member legal departments to help them reduce legal costs and drive corporate performance."

Key findings of the Real Rate Report(TM) include:

The five most important factors driving law firm rates
-- Lawyer location, law firm size, experience level, partner status, and
key practice area are the top factors impacting hourly rates today.
-- Hourly rates are influenced significantly more by a lawyer's
geographic locale and law firm size than by that lawyer's experience
or practice area.

Geographic rate disparities
-- Large, tier one markets have seen smaller percentage rate increases
than some other markets--specifically in Southern cities.
-- Smaller metropolitan areas, such as Denver, St. Louis, and Raleigh,
remain relatively inexpensive compared to large markets such as like
New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago.

Partner vs. associate rate increases
-- Between 2007 and 2009, associates had the largest percentage increase
in hourly rates - 16.6 percent -- compared to 8.6 percent by partners.
-- Associates with fewer than three years of experience had the highest
percentage increase -- 17.9 percent.

"The Real Rate Report(TM) is a ground-breaking resource for all law firms and corporate law departments looking for pricing data to build aligned, mutually beneficial partnering models," said John Weber, general manager, CT TyMetrix. "We are proud of this report, as well as the other CT TyMetrix's innovations that enable law firms and law departments to optimize their legal operations."

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Libertarians call federal worker pay gap 'appalling'

2010-08-12T11:07:00.000-07:00

Recent data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis show that federal government workers get compensation, on average, more than twice as high as private-sector workers. That gap has expanded dramatically over the last decade. Libertarian Party Chair Mark Hinkle released the following statement today:

"The numbers are appalling. In 2009, the average private-sector worker received $61,051 in total compensation, but the average federal government worker received $123,049. There is no excuse for this enormous, and growing, compensation gap.

"I guess you just can't beat a federal job. Very high pay, unbelievable benefits, extremely generous retirement plans, and near-perfect job security.

"And those retirement plans are often unfunded pensions, which will have to be paid by taxing our children and grandchildren, who never had the opportunity to vote when they were created.

"Apparently wishing to add insult to injury, government employee union reps have claimed that federal workers are entitled to their sky-high compensation because they are more educated and skilled than the rest of us. I have had many personal experiences with federal employees that indicate the exact opposite.

"The problem is that federal worker compensation is not set by the free market -- it's set by government fiat, which causes it to be artificially generous. Another factor is the monopoly government employee unions, which are able to extort that compensation up to even higher levels.

"One sure sign that federal employees are overpaid is that they never quit. Tad DeHaven of the Cato Institute has noted, '...in 2009, private sector employees quit at a rate that was more than eight times higher than federal employees.... This indicates that federal employees recognize that the generous combination of wages, benefits, and job security is hard to match in the private sector, so they stay put.'

"Libertarians support minimum government and maximum freedom. Unfortunately, federal employees have incentives to make government bigger, which makes us less free. With government employment paying more than the private sector, the rational self-interest of many workers will drive them to seek employment with the federal government.

"That's a formula for disaster.

"Libertarians want productive people working in the private sector to build our economy, not working for the government and hurting our economy.

"I would like to see an across-the-board pay cut for all federal workers. That would reduce federal spending, reduce the deficit, and reduce the insult to American private-sector workers. It also just might encourage some federal government employees to quit their jobs and seek more productive work in the private sector."

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Polar Ice Cap Is Gone, Kids Can’t Go Outside, Nebraska is a Desert? Poll Finds That Still Wouldn’t Convince Many Americans of Global Warming

2010-08-06T05:33:00.000-07:00

(BUSINESS WIRE)--A new national poll of green consumers found that belief in global warming is declining, and even the worst nightmare scenarios would not change people’s minds or behaviors.

“That means over half of those who are unconvinced about global warming are either unlikely to change their mind or unlikely to change their ways, no matter what happens”

The poll, one of four annual surveys conducted by Shelton Group, surveyed 1,098 Americans who at least occasionally buy green products and found only about half believe climate change is occurring and caused by human beings.

Asked whether they agreed with the statement, “Global warming or climate change is occurring and it is primarily caused by human activity,” 52% of green consumers agreed, compared to 49% of U.S. consumers overall. That’s down significantly from a year ago when 58% of all U.S. consumers agreed.

Respondents who disagreed, or were undecided, were then asked, "Which of the following scenarios would convince you that climate change is a real and immediate threat and cause you to make dramatic changes in your lifestyle? You wake up one morning and find out that…" followed by a list of nightmare scenarios. These included: The polar ice cap has completely melted, kids can no longer play outside in the summer and Nebraska is turning into a desert.

The top two responses were: "None of these would convince me" at 27%; and "One or more of these would convince me but I would be unlikely to make changes" at 24%.

“That means over half of those who are unconvinced about global warming are either unlikely to change their mind or unlikely to change their ways, no matter what happens,” said Suzanne Shelton, CEO of Shelton Group.

A small number of current doubters would respond if:

* The polar ice cap had completely melted - 15%
* Kids should no longer go outside to play during the spring and summer due to consistently dangerous ozone/pollution levels - 15%
* Shifting weather patterns/lack of rain was turning Nebraska into a desert -- 3%
* There were only 20 polar bears estimated to be left living in the wild -- 2%
* Residents of American Samoa were having to be relocated due to rising tides -- 0.6%

“The good news is, Americans are still going green, whether they believe in global warming or not,” Shelton said.

Last year, the annual survey found 77% of respondents were seeking green products and participating in at least some environmentally sustainable activities. This year, the survey found 84% of Americans are doing so.

“For consumers, green isn’t about climate change – that’s too esoteric and impersonal – it’s about matters closer to home,” Shelton said. “Many Americans aren’t trying to save the Earth when they buy a green cleaning product, they’re trying to save their children from dangerous chemicals.”

Among the survey’s other findings:

* When asked if the recent West Virginia coal mine explosion and the Deep Water Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico have made them think more about the human and environmental costs of their energy consumption, 55% of green consumers agreed.
* Yet despite the disasters, interest in owning or renting green or energy efficient homes has dampened. Last year, almost three-quarters of green consumers (72%) were interested in owning/renting an energy-efficient home. That number is down to 64%.
* Interest in green homes also declined. Only 43% of green consumers said they were interested in owning/renting a green home, compared to 47% last year.
* Asked what is the hardest thing to do to help save the environment, "Drive less" was chosen most often (16.1%), followed by "grow your own food" (15.5%) and “use public transportation if available in your area” (10.3%).

Judicial Watch Statement on Federal Court Decision to Dismiss Civil Rights Lawsuit Filed by 'Joe the Plumber'

2010-08-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

/PRNewswire/ -- Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton issued the following statement today regarding a decision by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio to dismiss Judicial Watch's civil rights lawsuit filed on behalf of Joe Wurzelbacher, who is otherwise known as "Joe the Plumber:"

The implications of this court decision are frightening. Essentially the court has said that government officials can feel free to rifle through the private files of citizens without fear of being held accountable in court. How can the American people feel comfortable exercising their First Amendment rights when they may be subject to secret searches by politicized bureaucrats in return? It is unconscionable that high-ranking state officials pried into confidential government files to punish Joe Wurzelbacher for asking a simple question. Justice was not served with this decision. Judicial Watch will most certainly file an appeal on behalf of Mr. Wurzelbacher.

Judicial Watch's lawsuit alleges that officials of the State of Ohio violated Mr. Wurzelbacher's constitutional rights by illegally accessing confidential information from its official databases. The defendants are Helen Jones-Kelley, Fred Williams and Doug Thompson, the three highest ranking employees of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services at the time of the alleged transgression. (The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, in conjunction with Ohio attorney David R. Langdon.)

On Sunday, October 12, 2008, Mr. Wurzelbacher was throwing a football with his son in the front yard of his home when then-presidential candidate Barack Obama and his campaign entourage appeared on his street. Mr. Wurzelbacher, an employee of a small plumbing business, subsequently had the opportunity to ask Obama about the impact of his tax proposals on small businesses. Obama responded by saying, "It's not that I want to punish your success; I just want to make sure that everybody who is behind you that they've got a chance at success, too. I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody." The exchange between Obama and Mr. Wurzelbacher resulted in widespread media attention and references to "Joe the Plumber" in the third presidential debate held on October 15, 2008.

According to a subsequent investigation by the Ohio Inspector General, on October 16, 2008, just four days after Mr. Wurzelbacher questioned Obama, Jones-Kelley, Williams and Thompson held a meeting and specifically discussed "Joe the Plumber." Following the meeting the defendants authorized and instructed agency personnel to search confidential office databases to retrieve information about Mr. Wurzelbacher. All three defendants are believed to have been supporters of Obama's presidential campaign.

The Inspector General found "no legitimate agency function or purpose for checking on [Mr. Wurzelbacher's] name through the [confidential databases] or for authorizing these searches," which he labeled a "wrongful act." The Inspector General also determined that one of the defendants, Helen Jones-Kelley, misused state resources to conduct political activities on behalf of Obama.

40 billionaires pledge to give away half of wealth

2010-08-04T08:26:00.000-07:00

Gates, Buffett lead campaign to persuade America's wealthiest to donate their fortunes

More than three dozen of America's wealthiest individuals and families have joined Bill Gates and Warren Buffett in agreeing to give away at least half their fortunes to charity.

The announcement was made Wednesday by The Giving Pledge, an effort officially launched by Gates and Buffett earlier this year to persuade the richest people in America to commit to giving the majority of their wealth to the philanthropic causes and charitable organizations of their choice, either during their lifetime or after their death.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38556042/ns/us_news-giving/

Well, it sounds nice, but wouldn't it be better to give people jobs so they didn't need charity? Just a thought... these guys could start up businesses, industries that would help people to be independent, earn a living, maybe even compete with Buffet, Turner, Pickens, Lucas, and the others at some point.

I'm a big believer in charity, I give, I volunteer and truly believe in helping those who can't help themselves. But if you took half the fortunes of the folks who've committed to giving away half their wealth and channeled it properly what a change this world would see!

Oh well, it is a good gesture and I commend them for wanting to help others. I just hope it ultimately results in more people being able to take care of themselves without depending on hand-outs.

Blago says a sentence without cursing...

2010-07-29T04:57:00.000-07:00

"Patti and I have great confidence and faith in their judgment common sense and decency. And ultimately in the final analysis Patti and I always have a deep and abiding faith in God... and ultimately it's in God's hands." - Blagojevich regarding the jurors deliberating his fate at the corruption trial, quoted by NBC Chicago

Guess it's not a bad thing to remember God and your faith when in trouble, but listening to some of the tapes its hard to see where this display of trust and faith is coming from anywhere but current desperation. But hey, who am I to judge, that's not in my job description.

Then again, if he's found guilty, the sentences Blago uttered still apply.

Rasmussen: Republicans Still Trusted More on Most Key Issues

2010-02-06T09:05:00.000-08:00

Republicans Still Trusted More on Most Key Issues
Voters now trust Republicans more than Democrats on nine out of 10 key issues regularly tracked by Rasmussen Reports. But the latest national survey finds that the two major political parties are much closer this month on the top issue of the economy. Forty-six percent (46%) of voters trust the GOP more on economic issues, while 42% trust Democrats more. Another 12% are undecided.

You Can Help Free Our Energy Today

2009-09-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

From Heritage Foundation's Morning Bell:

With the nation’s unemployment rate creeping ever closer to 10%, it is not surprising that Americans continue to rank the economy as the most important issue facing the country right now. Recognizing the link between a troubled economy and energy prices, last year 1.4 million Americans signed the “Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay Less” petition demanding that the federal government enact policies that will lower our nation’s energy costs. And Congress responded by ending our nation’s quarter-century ban on oil and natural gas drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

But this was just the first step Americans needed to take to free our energy from the myriad of bureaucratic restriction the enviro-left has placed between consumers and cheap energy. Before the development of our natural resources can begin, the Department of Interior must approve a five-year leasing plan detailing how federal sale of oil and gas leases in the offshore waters will take place. The case for developing our own natural resources is strong. An estimated 19 billion barrels of oil–nearly 30 years of current imports from Saudi Arabia–as well as substantial natural gas reserves are estimated to lie beneath these restricted areas. According to a 2008 Center for Data Analysis study, increasing domestic oil production by 1 million barrels per day would generate 128,000 jobs. At 2 million barrels per day, that figures jump to 270,000.

Unfortunately the Obama administration is allowing their “Green Job” fantasies to get in the way of cold hard facts and real American jobs. At an Interior Department field hearing this April in Atlantic City, Secretary Ken Salazar claimed ocean winds along the East Coast can generate 1 million megawatts of power, roughly the equivalent of 3,000 medium-sized coal-fired power plants, or nearly five times the number of coal plants now in the United States, according to the Energy Department. This is pure fiction. In 2007 the United States produced 23.48 quadrillion Btus of power from coal. Wind produced .319 quadrillion Btus. Salazar wants the American people to believe we can increase our wind power production by 7,300%. That is unrealistic.

Despite all the rhetoric you hear about the rest of the world abandoning fossil fuels to avoid global warming, their actions show where their real priorities are. Brazil, whose beautiful beaches rival or even surpass anything in California or Florida, recently discovered a huge underwater oil field and it is moving quickly to begin drilling. In Asia, China and Japan were able to put aside centuries of mistrust to come to an agreement on how to drill and share oil in waters in between their countries. Germany plans to build 27 coal-fired plants by 2020. Italy plans to increase its reliance on coal from 14% today to 33% in just five years. In all of Europe, 40 new major coal power plants are set to be built in the next five years. In 2006 alone, China completed enough coal power plants to match all of Britain’s capacity. India plans to boost coal production by 50% by 2012 and quadruple it by 2030.

The rest of the world gets it: in order to compete in today’s global economy countries must maximize the energy potential of all their natural resources. The Obama administration would be forcing American businesses to compete with one hand tied behind our back if they favor costly, inefficient, and unproven renewable energy to the exclusion of all other U.S. resources.

But there is something you can do about it. Any regulatory framework created by the Obama Interior Department can be fought in court. And Federal law requires the Obama Administration to solicit comments from the American people and substantively respond to them before any regulation can attain the force of law. One factor that courts must consider when a regulation is challenged is how the government addressed citizen comments on the proposed regulation.

Last year, 30,000 of you submitted a comment through StopEPA.com to the Environmental Protection Agency asking it to not move forward with carbon dioxide regulations. This year, people are voicing their support for offshore drilling by going to FreeOurEnergy.com and submitting a comment. You can too. Now is not the time to turn back.

Let the Obama Administration know that you support domestic oil exploration. Then forward today’s Morning Bell to five of your friends. Visit FreeOurEnergy.com to make your voices heard. The deadline is Monday, September 21st at midnight. So hurry!

Obama Speech: Carefully Crafted Same Old Same Old

2009-09-09T06:52:00.000-07:00

Based on what I'm reading about tonight's speech it sounds like more of the same. If you read the Wall Street article below carefully, basically it says Obama wants the public option, but he's OK if they have something else in there... I would guess that this speech tonight is going to command one of his biggest audiences ever. He started out being pretty good at walking down the middle, trying to placate both sides of issues. Now people know that's what he does so they parse his words more critically. He isn't going to be able to get away with skating that curvy path any longer.

Obama to Endorse Public Plan in Speech

President Barack Obama, in a high-stakes speech Wednesday to Congress and the nation, will press for a government-run insurance option in a proposed overhaul of the U.S. health-care system that has divided lawmakers and voters for months.

White House officials say the president will detail what he wants in the health-care overhaul, as well as say he is open to better ideas on a government plan if lawmakers have them.

Democratic plans call for requiring most Americans to carry health insurance. Failure to comply could cost families as much as $3,800 a year, according to a new Senate proposal.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125240777810092069.html#mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories

-ab

Remember the Raise the Feds Gave in April?

2009-05-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

You remember the hype. Obama gives every worker in America a tax cut which will give individuals up to $400 and married couples up to $800 to spend now.

Well, guess they forgot to mention it came with strings. If you're a student, or a two income family or even a retired senior with a job, get ready. You'll be given the opportunity to give most, if not all, of it back next April!

That's right. Oh, and they don't call it a tax hike on every worker in America. Instead, they call it a smaller refund for next year.

Yep, that's going to really help.

Want to know about outrage?

2009-04-28T03:38:00.000-07:00

The following article is making the rounds via email. I started to pop over to Snopes to verify this one. [Even though Snopes isn't to be trusted itself these days from what I've read... but it's the only site I know of that supposedly researches things.] However, whether it appeared in the Wall Street Journal as a letter, whether the author is correct, doesn't matter. The sentiments in it are so 'right on' that I could have written it (albeit not quite so well maybe).

I think she's wrong in one aspect. At the end she says she's in the minority and is outnumbered. I don't know when this was written, but I gather it's from some time last year. I think the author may have a lot more company now.

Hooray for the Tea Parties. At least we had and have a way to get together and voice our outrage peacefully. I hope the July 4th tea parties are BIGGER. If the media is going to lie about the tea parties, then we'll just have to bypass them. I was at one and the media under-reported grossly the numbers. They're scared of us folks. We need to keep it up and get louder. We need to keep it peaceful, keep well within the law, give them NO reason to be able to point their nasty fingers... but we need to keep on keeping on!

This was in my in-box this morning. Perfectly put, wish I'd written it!

Wall Street Journal article titled "Where's The Outrage?" that appeared July 31,2008.
Really. I can tell you where the outrage is. The outrage is here, in this middle-aged, well-educated, upper-middle class woman. The outrage is here, but I have no representation, no voice. The outrage is here, but no one is listening for who am I?

I am not a billionaire like George Soros that can fund an entire political movement. I am not a celebrity like Barbra Streisand that can garner the attention of the press to promote political candidates. I am not a film maker like Michael Moore or Al Gore that can deliver misleading movies to the public.

The outrage is here, but unlike those with money or power, I don't know how to reach those who feel similarly in order to effect change. Why am I outraged? I am outraged that my country, the United States of America , is in a state of moral and ethical decline. There is no right or wrong anymore, just what's fair. Is it fair that millions of Americans who overreached and borrowed more than they could afford are now being bailed out by the government and lending institutions to stave off foreclosure? Why shouldn't these people be made to pay the consequences for their poor judgment?

When my husband and I purchased our home, we were careful to purchase only what we could afford. Believe me, there are much larger, much nicer homes that I would have loved to have purchased. But, taking responsibility for my behavior and my life, I went with the house that we could afford, not the house that we could not afford. The notion of personal responsibility has all but died in our country.

I am outraged, that the country that welcomed my mother as an immigrant from Hitler's Nazi Germany and required that she and her family learn English now allows itself to be overrun with illegal immigrants and worse, caters to those illegal immigrants.

I am outraged that my hard-earned taxes help support those here illegally. That the Los Angeles Public School District is in such disarray that I felt it incumbent to send my child to private school, that every time I go to the ATM, I see "do you want to continue in English or Spanish?", that every time I call the bank, the phone company , or similar business, I hear "press 1 for English or press 2 for Spanish". WHY? This is America , our common language is English and attempts to promote a bi- or multi-lingual society are sure to fail and to marginalize those who cannot communicate in English.

I am outraged at our country's weakness in the face of new threats on American traditions from Muslims. Just this week, Tyson's Food negotiated with its union to permit Muslims to have Eid-al-Fitr as a holiday instead of Labor Day. What am I missing? Yes, there is a large Somali Muslim population working at the Tyson's plant in Tennessee. Tennessee , last I checked, is still part of the United States . If Muslims want to live and work here they should be required to live and work by our American Laws and not impose their will on our long history.

In the same week, Random House announced that they had indefinitely delayed the publication of The Jewel of Medina, by Sherry Jones, a book about the life of Mohammed's wife, Aisha due to fear of retribution and violence by Muslims. When did we become a nation ruled by fear of what other immigrant groups want? It makes me so sad to see large corporations cave rather than stand proudly on the principles that built this country.

I am outraged because appeasement has never worked as a political policy, yet appeasing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is exactly what we are trying to do. An excellent article, also published recently in the Wall Street Journal, went through over 20 years of history and why talking with Iran has been and will continue to be ineffective. Yet talk, with a madman no less, we continue to do. Have we so lost our moral compass and its ability to detect evil that we will not go in and destroy Iran's nuclear program? Would we rather wait for another Holocaust for the Jews - one which they would be unlikely to survive? When does it end?

As if the battle for good and evil isn't enough, now come the Environmentalists who are so afraid of global warming that they want to put a Bag tax on grocery bags in California; to eliminate Mylar balloons; to establish something as insidious as the recycle police in San Francisco. I do my share for the environment: I recycle, I use water wisely, I installed an energy efficient air conditioning unit. But when and where does the lunacy stop?Ahmadinejad wants to wipe Israel off the map, the California economy is being overrun by illegal immigrants, and the United States of America no longer knows right from wrong, good from evil.. So what does California do? Tax grocery bags.

So, America , although I can tell you where the outrage is, this one middle-aged, well-educated, upper middle class woman is powerless to do anything about it. I don't even feel like my vote counts because I am so outnumbered by those who disagree with me.

Alisa Wilson,
Ph.D. Beverly Hills ,
California

Where do those cell phone bills go?

2009-03-17T04:08:00.000-07:00

There's a recent story out where Michelle took time to do her volunteer work in DC. She showed up "unexpectedly" at a homeless shelter with food donated by the White House staff. The photo with the picture of her serving food also shows the food recipient taking a photo of Michelle with a cell phone.

Doesn't this make you scratch your head? First, why does the White House staff donate the only food mentioned in the story? Doesn't Michelle and her hubby make enough money to donate as well? Second, where does the cell phone bill get delivered to the homeless person in DC?

Vicious Cycle- Bailout Money Found in Overseas Loans

2009-03-12T07:51:00.000-07:00

Unbelievable. Our taxpayer bailout money is being shipped out of the country by-- yep, the banks who said they needed it. Go figure.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1121758201235

HT to ericjodom

Air Fare Tacky Tack Ons

2009-03-10T06:13:00.000-07:00

Have you been noticing all the alleged great one way sales for the airlines? You can just about fly across the entire great land of America for under $100 and you can get to Florida for around $40. That is, until you sign on the dotted line.

This air fare is supposed to be such a great price. Well, what about all the tacky add ons? First, each bag checked will cost between $15-25 each. There's another charge if you call them on the telephone to ask for help. That little add on runs about $15 per person.

And then, of course, "fares shown do not include Airport Passenger Facility Charges of up to $18. The September 11th security fee of up to $10 is not included. Fares do not include segment taxes of $3.60 per segment."

So, the printed sale price for ticket I was looking at is not $39 one way. It could run as much as $126 one way.

Those tacky add ons make the sale not so good after all.

Krauthammer: Obama's 'Big Bang' Agenda

2009-03-06T08:59:00.000-08:00

Forget the pork. Forget the waste. Forget the 8,570 earmarks in a bill supported by a president who poses as the scourge of earmarks. Forget the "$2 trillion dollars in savings" that "we have already identified," $1.6 trillion of which President Obama's budget director later admits is the "savings" of not continuing the surge in Iraq until 2019 -- 11 years after George Bush ended it, and eight years after even Bush would have had us out of Iraq completely.
http://townhall.com/columnists/CharlesKrauthammer/2009/03/06/obamas_big_bang_agenda

Charles Krauthammer is brilliant and always cuts right through the BS to the meat, the core of issues.

Transparency? Obama's Blocking Robots Text File

2009-02-21T14:48:00.000-08:00

Transparency? Obama's Blocking Robots Text File
Obama reportedly took pride in the White House website's robots.txt file which was simplified greatly to allow search engines to find it. His Recovery.gov site, however, had a robots.txt file that blocked some search engines including Google! This is another example from among many that seem to bear out a total lack of commitment to fulfill a great many of his campaign promises. (Incidentally, I think he's already broken more than he's kept since taking office.)

http://genuinegopmom.blogspot.com/2009/02/transparency-obamas-blocking-robots.html

From Why Mommy is a Republican (great blog, highly recommend an add to your rss)

Hotmail "security"

2009-02-16T13:21:00.000-08:00

I sign into my account first thing in the morning and leave it on all day. Periodically it signs me out, for security reasons. A yellow band pops up across the top of the page saying my account has been idle for a period of time, they've signed me out to protect me. At the end of the sentence it asks if I want to sign back in. I click, a new window opens up (blank webpage) with a box that asks me if I want to close the window. I click yes. I'm signed back in.

I don't have to put in a password. I don't have to do anything other than click a couple of times.

Anyone who walked into my office could do the same thing.

So tell me, how's that protecting me?

Comedians in a twist...

2009-01-06T09:21:00.000-08:00

Have you noticed the lack of jokes about our soon-to-be new President, Barack Obama? I've been watching and my little ears perk up every time I hear Obama mentioned in a joke. Inevitably, the joke isn't about Obama, they're just using him in the joke to contrast the boob they're tackling.

What's going to happen over the next four years? What are our late-night talk show hosts going to joke about in the Obama administration?

Democrats are pretty much off-limits unless they've been dumped in the dirt-bag trashcan by their fellow Dems.

With Barack being worshipped by so many it's virtually impossible for him to be treated fairly by the humor circuit. Toss in the race issue and you have a hurdle virtually impossible for comedians to conquer.

I wonder what the next four years will bring... George Bush will be gone. Ditto Dick Cheney. The Democrats will be in control. Sarah Palin is still fair game it seems, even though she's not in the national limelight. It's going to be interesting to see if the "Fairness Doctrine" will apply in late-night comedy! Will they crack jokes about Obama? Will David Letterman do the Presidential bits with Obama instead of Bush?

My guess is they'll shy away from Obama jokes. The outcry from the left will have them off the air if they're not careful with their comedy.

Is it me?

2009-01-04T10:30:00.000-08:00

Is it me, or is there a not-so-subtle bias in this story (filed under keywords Democrats, Barack Obama, humor on AOL)

Pepsi Catches Obama's Heat
By Tommy ChristopherJan 1st 2009 9:56AM
I am an avid drinker of Pepsi One, the most delicious diet beverage available on planet Earth. A cold Pepsi One is as good as, if not better than, a "normal" Pepsi. It has 1 calorie, which must be where they put the delicious.
http://news.aol.com/political-machine/2009/01/01/pepsi-catches-obamas-heat/

Tell me if the survey doesn't twist something in your gut if you consider yourself a conservative or Republican? Note the "vanilla" lib questions, the snarky Republican question and the strange Independent question.