Sprauge, if you don't find something mildly amusing about that photo...well, I guess those cultural differences are bigger than I thought :-) - Duncan Riley
"Passenger laptop computers are now being investigated as a possible cause of the Qantas mid-air emergency off Western Australia on Tuesday.
The Airbus A330-300, with 303 passengers and a crew of 10, experienced what the airline described as a "sudden change in altitude" north of its destination on Tuesday.
The mid-air incident resulted in injuries to 74 people, with 51 of them treated by three hospitals in Perth for fractures, lacerations and suspected spinal injuries when the flight bound from Singapore to Perth had a dramatic drop in altitude that hurled passengers around the cabin.
In July, a passenger clicking on a wireless mouse mid-flight was blamed for causing a Qantas jet to be thrown off course, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau's monthly report." - Cee Bee
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Should we all stop having fun coz billions are lost in a crisis over which we have no control? Since when is fun != not working? - Shivanand Velmurugan
okay let me take this back please. It is the timing. Nothing wrong with people having fun. - Loic Le Meur
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like not partying will help matters now - we should party now more than ever - Kate
Shivanand, no. But when you're likely about to start putting off people all over the place, and take a serious hit, partying like nothing is wrong is the WRONG message to be sending to your employees and supporters - Duncan Riley
“Do you think that McCain's back peddling on Obama, by saying he is a decent man will further back fire on him? Will some people see his statement as Obama being a Decent man that you don't have to fear as President of the United States will change their mind as to who to vote for?”
I think it's way too late for McCain to undo the damage done. He helped the hate-mongering along by being, at best, indifferent to the subtext, but this build-up has been growing for a long time. At least since '92, in my estimation. While some may view this as a backstep towards decency, this type of campaigning should have been repudiated months ago. - Steven Perez
Should other parties run in there and start campaigning to those people? - Christopher Welle
I agree with Michael, there's a mix message problem now. Obviously they woke up to the fact that the hate stuff was hurting their polling, but switching now may upset the base as well, who as we've even seen in rallies was never that warm to McCain in the first place (people walking out after seeing Palin for example). It's a hole they can't get out of - Duncan Riley
this is not the first time McCain has changed tack in the middle of executing a campaign strategy. while i applaud his attempt, like Steven, i think this comes too late. his campaign decided weeks ago to play this fear card. it may work in a few red states that are teetering toward Obama. but it has created an emotional scar that will not easily heal after the election. - MikeAmundsen
What Faux News, Hannity, Limbaugh, and the GOP hath brought forth! The cows are already out the barn, gonna be mighty difficult gettin' em back in John - Vox
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i saw this earlier today on chris matthews and felt like slapping my tv. such damn over the top ignorance. it's abominable. mccain tried to come with that "he's an honest, good man" talk after disparaging him for the last week and fanning the flames, which has caused this kind of ignorance to spread throughout "the base" - Cee Bee
this is the kind of stuff they wanted and now they want to distance themselves from it? it doesn't work that way. can't have it both ways: http://friendfeed.com/e/531550... - Cee Bee
the muted response from the crowd was telling. - Duncan Riley
“Do you believe that one of our candidates for president is a terrorist? Is in any way affiliated with or funded directly by terrorists? Do you believe this type of campaigning, trying to strip him of his status as an American, is "fair game"?”
No, of either candidate. A foul accusation, used simply because it's so vivid in the American psyche and is therefore a highly powerful way of defaming someone. It's use shows a cruel and desperate mind. The British used to use it against Indian nationals that were fighting for independence. It's a classic ploy. - Mo Kargas
I honestly am not trying to headhunt or anything like that, I'm just curious as to who would seriously believe this type of stuff and why. Are people in America that scared? I also added the "fair game" part because, even if you don't believe it, how can you vote for an organization that would do this? - Rahsheen™
Your questions indicate your own bias, so they're obviously not worth answering. - You Betcha Glen Campbell
First off I want you to define terrorist... Second if association with someone effectively puts you in the same pail as them, then McCain has a lot to answer too. I truly thought we were done with McCarthyism. - Christopher Welle
Where I live there are definitely people who question Obama's pedigree, for lack of a better term. For many of them it's the name, plain and simple. For someone of average intelligence who's seen 6-7 years of 'Arabs' attacking the US and bombing us abroad, the name + the insinuations are all it takes. - Stupid Emoo (aka Tina)
Not sure where my bias is 1) All that obvious or 2) pertinent to this conversation. If you weren't going to bother with a useful comment, I don't understand why you bothered at all. - Rahsheen™
I think its a (not so) thinly veiled attempt to play on peoples fear and bigotry. If they thought it would win the election they would call him a [the N-Word] - J. Abdul-Qahhar
John McCain spelled backwards is BIN LADIN! - Outsanity
how are these questions biased in any way? just answer the questions man. - Cee Bee
Palin's connections are a factor of 100x more scary than Obama's. Why she's not being crucified for being a secessionist is beyond me - Duncan Riley
I don't, at all. I would really like to see all of the candidates answer that question, directly. Not with a nod, wink, or "... well, you know, he/she was seen with so and so..." Campaigns have always traded in innuendo, but this has been whipped up to such a frenzied level that it makes a mockery of the whole process. (something I would have thought was hard to do, up until this point) - Jennifer Dittrich
Maybe McCain will revert to the more honest, non-asshole McCain who ran for pres. in 2000 - if that guy's still inside somewhere. - Sean O'Brien, also
blue moon in the States today, or was it a qualitative analysis of polling numbers? :-) - Duncan Riley
I wouldn't call it decency or sanity. Those would be acceptable definitions if he cut it in the bud as soon as it happened. His campaign approved of it with both McCain and Palin continuing the discussion and not addressing the audiences comments. This is back peddling. Its a retraction on his campaigns part. - Christopher Welle
Well, the polling numbers today show the negativity wasn't working and his own campaign was divided on the strategy. I'm glad McCain isn't continuing this, but ... he shouldn't get points for doing this. It gets him back to even. - AJ Kohn
it was done because it became so obvious that even the MSM started reporting it. Kudos to the Washington Post for starting the reality check on the dangerous path it was taking. - Gary Leatherman
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Yeah, I don't get that chart. Why is Twitter's growth so high vs friendfeed? - "Awesomesauce!" Scoble
Twitter's had some mainstream mentions lately so a lot of early majority folks are jumping on ... engagement is really what we should be looking at for FF. - AJ Kohn
because my friend have describe this place as they only talk about robert scoble and" i didn't get any comment on my things!". blah blah. ....sorry you weren't that interesting ...plus...you don't have to be smart to be on twitter, some people have called FF a nerd house as well. just saying - Caroline
Maybe it's reflective of where on the geek bell curve each niche lies. I like both,perceive FFers to be a little more technosavvy/early adopterish in nature. - Heather
Twitter has been mentioned in a variety of news stories that aren't contained within the tech/social media news silo. There's also the integration of Twitter into Rick Sanchez's CNN show and several politicians using Twitter. On top of that, I've noticed more than a few websites that track Tweets directly related to a certain issue, such as http://www.perspctv.com/. Friendfeed has none of that exposure that I'm aware of. - Sean O'Brien, also
Caroline, FF is so much about the people you follow and RScoble is one of the initial suggested follows that people very likely get a skewed perception when they first sign up. Plus, from first hand experience: you don't get comments on your things until you interact with other people on their items. - Stupid Emoo (aka Tina)
i still don't understand why people put one vs the other. they serve different purposes and function very differently from one another. twitter has gained popularity due to a lot of press it's received. i haven't seen mention of friendfeed anywhere else besides the more hardcore tech blogs - Cee Bee
According to this, FF traffic seems to be almost same as twitter.com was exactly a year ago. Would be interesting to see how this looks a year from now. - Atul Arora
It looks like Friendfeed had almost no users when this started. And Twitter had .5 Mil. Now Friendfeed is at .5Mil and Twitter is at 3.5 Mil. Which means that Friendfeed has increased in users 5 times over the past year while Twitter has increased 7 times. This isn't exactly a tragedy. I would take 500% growth any day. - Andrew Burd
Google Trends on "friendfeed" (http://www.google.com/trends?q...). I don't know why Web 2.0 companies avoid advertising. You can only get so far w/WordOfMouth. - Sprague D
Andrew, zero to 500k is not 500%, it's infinity% :) - Paul Buchheit
Paul, you're right on the math! Anyway, any insights? I know none of these tracking services are totally accurate. Are you seeing that flattening, too? Any theories? - John McCrea
I'm going to hang out with Loic right now for an hour or two. This is just the first shock in San Francisco. Many more to come. - Robert Scoble
Robert: The lay-offs were coming long before the crash... Even *I* know this and I'm not a Social Media expert. :\ - Mona N.
Proactive layoffs. I know it makes business sense but to me it still seems harsh. - Phil Glockner
Phil, it does make sense. Running a business like this isn't a charity, and likewise, there's nothing harder in the world than laying off people, so it's not something Loic would have even remotely enjoyed - Duncan Riley
I am sure that Seesmic leadership made cost cuts in every possible way before making this decision. - Robert Linthicum
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THERE have been financial crises before, and in our lifetimes. This one swamps all of those.
It can only be compared with 1929, because the level of irresponsible lending that drove the now-bursting bubble has no parallel in history.
Even 1929 doesn't rate by comparison. - Duncan Riley
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At least we have a definite date now. So we can start doing stuff, like power of attorney, wills, etc. And he'll retire when he gets back. Fingers crossed really hard now for the IL job. I'm pretty independent in general, but it would be great to be closer to our families. My in-laws in particular are great and they'd be a fantastic support to me while he's away. - JMakesAwesomeSauce
hey Jill, sending much appreciation and honor your way - Godspeed - Bill Sanders
This is the second person today I have heard about getting orders to Afghanistan. Sounds like they are gearing up already. God speed your husband and all our military. - Josh Haley
All the best to you and your husband. Many safe wishes to you both. - Alix Whitmire
...as one who's brother has been to Iraq four times and Afghanistan twice, I know what you are feeling. Much strength, love and faith to you and your family. Know that we appreciate the efforts of your husband and the strength that you have to support and care for your family while he is deployed. - JA Castillo
best wishes and thank him for me, for serving... (USN, 1995-1999) also, plenty of time to knit some regulation beanies and all-weather wool socks if that's your thing - Christina Pikas
OMG! You all are so great! I'll pass the thanks along to him. And he's definitely going for 12 mos Mike. They are replacing another band. Also, a huge thanks to those of you who have also served! (I'm all teary now.) - JMakesAwesomeSauce
OK, the first person that says Bud Lite, gets a swift kick in the butt!! - Jeff P. Henderson
Well, if I am forced to decide which beer was coming close to be the best one I ever experienced, I guess I have to choose for Närke Stormaktens Porter. It was extremely expensive, those 20cl, but it was worth every drop. - Ton Zijp
I love Belgian beers, Leffe, Grimnbergen. I also like local beers that you can't get in Boston. Keith's from Nova Scotia, also Yuengling and Fat Tire. - Steve Garfield
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Sierra Nevada Pale Ale FTW! woo hooo! (BTW, there is a huge "Beers of the World" store in Rochester, NY - another reason I love living here!) - Susan Beebe
Happy Birthday Libra's. Yesterday, my daughter's and best friend, from jr high. Today, my step-father's. Tomorrow, my aunt's. :) - Heidi Jeffers Thibodeau
I felt the same the other day so went through and added a couple of interesting people from Robert Scobles list. May go back through and add everyone! - Joe Dawson
Sorry to disappoint, but I couldn't keep up 2000 likes and 600 comments a week forever. My name's not Mona. - "Awesomesauce!" Scoble
It seems to have picked up lately... I felt similarly last week though for sure. - Tad - the Fresh Maker
I think some of it is the emphasis lately on rooms: lots of people are now sharing content in specific rooms rather than on their home feed which makes things slower for all of us 'on the outside' =( - Stupid Emoo (aka Tina)
holidays. it's the holiest day of the year today for some no? - Patricia
Well, as everybody knows that I'm *the* center of FriendFeed (:D), everybody also knows that I've stopped liking things during the past month. Sorry for slowing it down. :) - possible248
Everyone is staring at their computer watching the dow drop. - Jason Shultz
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I haven't been on in like two weeks!! Way too busy with work and kids right now. But I actually had some free time, so I figured I'd try to catch up - Sheryl
maybe everybody moved to strands. - funkyboy
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Hunkering down a bit more here - haven't blogged the last few days either. For reference, Duncan Riley noticed something similar: http://friendfeed.com/e/f70c55... I'm going to say it's the natural cycle of any site. It'll come back up again soon. Happens to all the sites. - Hutch Carpenter
It's also yom kippur. I imagine there are lots of folks staying away from their 'puters until sundown. - Jason Toney
Hutch has the link to my previous observation. There's definitely less activity. It is probably a cycle. Every site has to come off a peak at some stage. I'm sure though that it will pick up again. - Duncan Riley
Jason, that's an excellent point. I think it's more than just that though. Probably a cycle, like you all said. - Jesse Stay
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I think now more than ever people are refocusing on getting work done with all this mess that's going on - that at the least goes for me... FF can really suck the productivity right out of you. - Scott Lockhart
Sorry. This is all my fault. I was in all-day meetings yesterday and today, and I can't do everything for you guys. Sheesh. - Louis Gray
Fire up the meme generator *evil cackle* :) - Mo Kargas
I've noticed there have been fewer comments on some of my posts, but I tried not to take it personally.;-) I thought maybe the FF redesign might have been a factor and people may not be seeing as many of each other's posts. Since I've grouped my friends in categories (easier with redesign), my FF streams are different. - Cathryn Hrudicka
"grouped my friends in categories" Good for organization, bad for friend feeding. Many friends are now starving :-) - todd
Been away for 3 weeks, but when the Confessions room started it seems as though the main feeds slowed down. - Mitchell Tsai
I slowed down my posting on FriendFeed. Feels like the honeymoon phase is coming to a close. Many of my posts are going to rooms rather to the home/main feed. There's also the financial crisis and elections coming up that factor for me to post less. - imabonehead
been too busy...FF really is a productivity killer (ouch!). - Susan Beebe
It's a connection that still concerns me and hasn't been addressed adequately by Obama's campaign. It doesn't seem to be two people who are just acquaintances. And much can be said about a person's character when you look at who he associates with. You can't get away from that. Ayers would do the same thing today and has said as much. - JMakesAwesomeSauce
JMS, and on that basis Palin is a secessionist and a terrorist herself. Give me a break. This video shows how desperate the McCain camp has become. - Duncan Riley
I agree with Duncan. McCain has run the worst GOP campaign since Dole. Is this all the drunken sailor has? - Chris Baskind
guilt by association -- seems McCain hangs out with a terrorist, too, but his terrorist friend is president of the USA - William Harryman
Not to mention McCain's ties with the S&L crisis which is far more relevant to today's pressing issues. In the end, America loses when we play guilt-by-association games. - AJ Kohn
McCains Council for World Freedom/Iran-Contra links have yet to be brought to the MSM. Palin's association w/ Joe Volger & Alaska Independence Party are just now getting some reports. McCain's father-in-law was convicted felon w/ mob ties - that's not been dragged out yet. it's all so tawdry and cheap. - MikeAmundsen
[Ayers] has been a highly visible, public figure in Chicago for at least 20 years. His record as an educator and upstanding civic personality is well known. - jeneane 'This One' sessum
I don't consider Obama a criminal or terrorist just because he happened to know someone who once belonged to a '60s radical organization. When you serve on a Board with people, you don't even necessarily have a lot of contact with them, and it was that organization that decided to ask both of them to serve on their Board. No one should be judged by that kind of business acquaintance. Many of us would have the same situation. I'm really disgusted by how low the McCain campaign and Palin have stooped on this. - Cathryn Hrudicka
If Ayers is such a deadly person, then why hasn't George "Gitmo" Bush stuck his ass in a secret CIA prison yet? What kind of "terrorist" ends up as a professor in Chicago after all his bad deeds? - Steven Perez
McCain is surrendering any apparent dignity he may have had with this filthy campaign of lies and character assassination. Even more disgusting is that his polling numbers are trending upward. People respond to fear. Hopefully what we already know about McCain will scare them more. - Sean O'Brien, also
inside-the-beltway folks know that Obama and Ayers served on the board of Chicago Annenberg Challenge. the same Annenberg's that support McCain. does that mean McCain is getting support from those who support America-haters<g>? puh-leeze stop. - MikeAmundsen
Disclosure, I'm a conservative. So... This is a non starter. It's dumb when Obama tries to dig up 30 year old controversies on McCain, and it's dumb when you try the same on Obama. Obama didn't know Ayers when he was a so called terrorist. Maybe Ayers is still the same, but I'm pretty sure he hasn't bombed or planned a bombing of the Pentagon since Obama has known him. Stop it. - Brian Norwood
I think if you believe Obama wants to President for the sole purpose of sinking the ship, you just might be certifiably insane. And I wouldn't buy an apple from the guy, and I'm saying this. I think his "vision" is misguided, but I'm pretty sure he really does want to help the country, not bomb it. - Brian Norwood
Boycotting all McCain/Palin ads on TV or online. Their desperate deceptions about Ayers and Obama do not deserve my attention. Disgusting. If I had any respect at all for McCain before, it's gone now. It's unfortunate anyone is buying the BS. This is not an example of election best practices. - Cathryn Hrudicka
@Brian: +1. America deserves a debate on real issues, while we disagree on who's vision is misguided, it's the discussion about those visions, about those issues which is important. - AJ Kohn
the way market economics are supposed to work is Darwinian. There's just been too many species popping up lately, and now we get a little ice age to wipe out the ones that can't survive. - Pete Delucchi
In a lot of ways, 1999 allowed for sites like eBay, Amazon and their ilk to come out above the piles of dead and dying. This correction might see the wheat of the social web rise from the, you know, crap. - Steve Spalding
This will definitely happen. But since every company thinks they'll be that stronger company, the culling must begin, like an episode of survivor... - Jason Kaneshiro
@Jason again I'm not sure that's a bad thing. - Steve Spalding
Long term this is a very good thing. Separates the chaff from the wheat. - Mark VandenBerg
Yup, just like the last downturn. Although if businesses were starting to get fatter again so soon after the dotcom bust, then shame on them. - "Awesomesauce!"
