Proposition 8.5
by redshift
Good work on Prop 8, California. I’m going to propose Proposition 8.5 to prevent mustachioed people from being legally married. I hope you’ll support it as well as you did Prop 8 yesterday!
Halffull.org
Category: Politics
Aside | May 7, 2007
Cost of the War
by redshift
According to the Boston Globe, the current total cost of the war in Iraq could be used to end all hunger and education problems on the planet for five and a half years. But then we wouldn’t have such great airport security!
Mar 8, 2007
Sarbanes-Oxley Considered Dangerous
by redshift
Michael Oxley is now saying that the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation was a mistake, and that Paul Sarbanes agrees. I could have told you this years ago. Oh wait, I did tell you this years ago.
The basic idea of the story is that Sarbanes-Oxley legislation imposes a crushing financial burden on all publicly-owned companies. Which is true. I was one of the thousands of people employed to deal with it. (Not that I’m complaining.)
SOX legislation, specifically section 404, says that corporate reporting needs to be validated by internal and external auditors. This is good in many ways, and I’ve personally seen a lot of good practices instituted, but you have to remember something. Auditing is just another business. The auditors are there to make money. They’re going to turn your company upside-down to find tiny problems that aren’t really against the spirit of honest capitalism. That’s why it’s a crushing financial burden.
I said it then, and I’ll say it again now – there’s no need to overhaul corporations on account of a few bad eggs. It’s really about common sense. You don’t make up financial numbers, and you don’t lie to the public. Is that really so hard?
Aside | Nov 20, 2006
Al Gore
by blue midget
It’s Hulk’s dream come true! National Geographic talks to Al Gore, encourages readers to submit their questions pertaining to ManBearPig and his movie, “An Inconvenient Truth”: Send your questions for an interview with Al Gore tied to the DVD release of “An Inconvenient Truth.” Check National Geographic News early next week to read the transcript and see if your question was selected. Email: nginterview@nationalgeographic.com
Aside | Aug 23, 2006
Israeli Airport Security
by redshift
Here’s an amazing new article on airport security in America versus Israel. We could learn a lot.
Nov 17, 2005
News Sources: Cut the Chatter, Be More Like Bloggers
by blue midget
Blogging is on the rise and with big names the likes of Google and Yahoo supporting the growth, a backlash has begun. Professional news sources and politicians alike have been arguing that any individual who reports a news blog should follow the same laws and regulations that a âreputableâ and âresponsibleâ news source would. The question then becomes: What is âreportingâ and what is ârehashingâ? Most bloggers out in the intangible area that has been retardedly named the âblogsphereâ arenât really reporting any new news at all. Instead, they compile reports that they see from known, professional news sources and reinvent it on their own sites â pretty much like what we do here at Halffull. The argument against regulating this kind of news blog is that it is opinion and commentary based on other news sources, and not reporting. Regulating this kind of blog would then become a violation of first amendment rights.
Nov 3, 2005
Sony Confirmed Pure Evil
by redshift
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=27426
That deserved a line of its own. Go read about how Sony hates you. Admittedly the story is a bit biased, but it has a right to be. Shame on you, Sony.
Oct 27, 2005
Harriet Miers: Strange Things are Afoot in the U.S. of A.
by blue midget
It was a disaster from the beginning. When President Bush nominated Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, a loud outcry went up from conservatives everywhere. The nomination came as a huge shock to, well, just about everyone. If you normally read this site, youâre probably fairly up to date on the situation. If not, then try this and that.
When we last left off, the Senate Judiciary Committee threw a big hissy fit at the questionnaire Miers returned, and asked for more information. The revised questionnaire was due yesterday. In the meantime, Miers was continuing to meet with various Senators, and the media was reporting on Senators who had begun to change their minds in support of the Presidentâs candidate, as well as those who were still clearly unconvinced. Commercials were appearing from conservatives who support Bush but feel the nomination was a mistake, asking for conservatives who feel likewise to sign an online petition against Miers. And the Senate waited for the revised questionnaire. And waited some more. Speculation was pouring in that the President could not rescind the nomination himself, because it would make him look even worse in this scenario.
Aug 29, 2005
This Week in the News: No One Gives a Crap
by blue midget
There has been a longtime trend in the U.S. of younger Americans not taking an interest in following the general news. My hunch is that this is most likely what keeps so many from voting at election time. According to the U.S. Census, in the 2004 elections, only 51.5% of U.S. residents between 18 â 24 years registered to vote, and of those, only 41.9% actually voted. Of course, during every election year, a hundred celebrities will stand up on MTV and work themselves into a media frenzy in order to promote themselves â I mean, trying to get young people to vote. Election after election, theyâre out there trying to ârock the voteâ and nothing is being rocked except for their wallets. The problem is the obvious: MTV isnât out there educating anyone on what the issues are. Instead, everyone is out there for the publicity and to make a buck, and it is showing in the polls. My wish is that someone would get out there and arm the general public for the elections, so when the time comes and the onslaught of media erupts, people would be armed and ready.
Well, someone other than Jon Stewart. In the âWho Can Make More Fun of George Bushâ contest, he definitely wins first prize. There isnât anything wrong with this if youâre a huge liberal and you hate Republicans. But if youâre a conservative like me, the Republican jokes get a little old. According to a statistic I heard during the last election, a large percentage of the 18 â 24 voting demographic gets most of their newsworthy information from satirical sources, the largest one being Jon Stewart. This frightens me, as he generally adds his liberal slant on all things. But Iâve got to hand it to him, heâs giving our young people something that they want to watch â heâs keeping them up on the news (sort of), and heâs giving them a good time while watching. When I was in that demographic, I didn’t pay attention to what was happening, and I found the news rather dull, boring, and extremely repetitive. Actually I still do, but it’s important to me that I know generally what is happening in the world. I hate to say it, but Jon Stewart is sort of on the right track – we need people informing the general public in an entertaining way.
There is a general feeling of apathy that also irritates me. In the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy, people have said to me, âI really donât care about the 9/11 thing. I mean, it doesnât affect me. I live on the other side of the country so why should I care?â This may sound pretty extreme, but this is a general feeling held by a lot of people that when things do not directly affect them, they donât care. And I donât mind saying that if youâre one of these people, youâre an ignorant, selfish ass. Sorry. Wake up and take a little more notice of whatâs happening in your world, even if it just means going to Google News and scanning down the headlines â that can tell you more than an entire day of watching CNN or Fox News.
It is my expectation that all Halffull readers vote at least in the Presidential Elections and have a general idea about whatâs happening on planet Earth. If you donât, I will help you. Here is the recap of whatâs currently going on:
The MTV Video Awards was held last night in Miami, Florida. Once again, everyone who sucks won. Prior to the event, as the celebrities walked the red carpet, I happened to be flipping channels when they interviewed Jessica Alba briefly. The interviewer said, âWe really lucked out with the weather here in Miami,â to which Jessica Alba replied, âYeah, no rain. It allows us to wear less than normal clothing.â The interviewer blinked and said, âUh, yeahâŚâ Obviously no one clued Jessica in to the fact that a HUGE FOOKING HURRICANE is bearing down on the area. Hurricane Katrina has weakened to a category 3 (125-mph winds), but itâs still very dangerous and is moving inland. All of New Orleans has been evacuated at this point so Trent Reznor may show up on your doorstep with a satchel tied to a stick, looking for a place to stay. Anyway, Iâm guessing Jessica Albaâs publicist decided not to inform her about the hurricane because she might have worn something a little more appropriate for the weather, such as a life preserver or perhaps even the state of Nebraska, as it is nowhere near the hurricane. CNN and Fox News feel that there is nothing else newsworthy happening, as they reported on this all day yesterday, non-stop. In other news, hundreds of reporters die in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina.
