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George Lee › Comments
For TechCrunch, Twitter = Traffic (A Statistical Breakdown) - http://www.techcrunch.com/2009...
Twitter is becoming the mainstream consumable format of RSS. Techcrunch is definitely going to be skewed positive in the sense that they have deeply embraced twitter and the overlap of techcrunch readers and twitterers is huge, but the investment of time is paying off. The question is...can twitter monetize this in some way?
- George Lee
Official Gmail Blog: Say hello to Gmail voice and video chat - http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2008...
alamoon20, Anne Bouey, Noah F and 46 other people liked this
I've started having a lot of quick 30 second - 2 minute video conversations b/c of this feature. Saves so much typing and waiting. It's actually changed the way I work. Nice job, Sweden & Seattle.
- Keith Coleman
from Bookmarklet
"And in the spirit of open communications, we designed this feature using Internet standards such as XMPP, RTP, and H.264, which means that third-party applications and networks can choose to interoperate with Gmail voice and video chat." Come on libpurple!
- EricaJoy
Awesome! Where was this last week when I wanted to video-conference in to all the election night festivities from China? :)
- Ana
I wish it didn't require installing a plugin though. I'm sure there's a good reason for it but without it working out of the box I doubt I'll ever be able to use it to chat with certain people (my Grandparents use Gmail but I don't think they'd know how to install this).
- Benjamin Golub
@Ben Send them to http://mail.google.com/videoch... and tell them to press the big button?
- EricaJoy
1/2 Skype + 1/2 Tokbox + Google = death to Skype and Tokbox?
- George Lee
from twhirl
Benjamin, you're right. And if you have to install something, why not just make it a standalone program? Like an update to the Google Talk client? My mum and sister both use Google Talk but they've never used the web interface of Gmail because they know how to use Outlook Express already.
- Tony Ruscoe
no linux support yet =(
- Evan Parker
Side-note: When you have Google Update installed as Firefox plugin, then clicking Google's installation button won't trigger a security dialog, but just start the installation.
- Philipp Lenssen
@Evan If libpurple can get this implemented, you could just use Pidgin.
- EricaJoy
A plugin? Reminds me of the original Google video. Why don't you use flash Keith?
- Paul Buchheit
Tony: Updating Google Talk leaves all the Mac users out. Now if I could just get a free VNC client or something that punched through firewalls well on Macs I could install this for my parents now instead of next time I see them.
- Brett Cannon
Brett: If you use the listening VNC viewer, you can have your parents make their VNC server connect to you.
- Gabe
I'm a bit late noticing that you were on friendfeed, but I wanted to say thanks for this feature. My girlfriend and I are on different continents and have been struggling to see each other on skype since she left town. We're now able to talk reliably and see each other, which is pretty awesome! Thanks!
- Andrew
Tragic: Obama's grandmother dies... http://www.mahalo.com/Madelyn...
Sergey Petrenko liked this
:(
- Costa Walcott
Very sad timing. 48 more hours and she might have witnessed the man she raised becoming the next president.
- Lon Harris
from twhirl
maybe she sensed the future...and just *knew* what was going to happen...
- George Lee
from twhirl
Portland Marathon 2008 – Finisher! - http://www.davehodson.com/garage...
congrats Dave!
- George Lee
from twhirl
Wow. Apparently a majority of Americans think Sarah Palin is qualified to serve as VP: http://www.pbs.org/now...
49% yes, 49% no at the time I voted just now.
- Alan
check again.
- Uncle CW™
A majority? Wow. I was tempted to snark "and the other half thinks Obama's qualified to serve as president" but I'd missed the "majority" at first read. Nothing like presidential elections to keep life interesting. That, and a financial crisis.
- Brent Logan
Just voted yes. Why the angst against Palin? She's not going to be the President! As John Adams said, it's the most insignificant office ever imagined. Biden doesn't even know the constitution to know what the Vice President does!
- Graham Bates
from twhirl
@ Graham Bates - She's not going to be President? Are you sure about that? The VP fills in if the President we're to die in office. McCain is a 4x 72 year old cancer survivor. Look at how young Bush was when he took office and look at him now. McCain is not going to survive the stress.
- Beebo Wallace
Been like that for at least a week. I visited it twice - both times at 49%. so something's off.
- Ro (Lilyhill)
Whereas I am appalled, I'm not surprised...that said, I worry WAY more about McCain's health and the possibility of her being the Presidient...which she is WAY unqualified for...
- George Lee
from twhirl
Crazy!
- Michael Fidler
from twhirl
unbelievable
- Bob Perry
All depends on what folks deem as "qualified". Honestly, no one is probably ever fully "ready" to be president. Got to be the toughest job on the planet. My prayer is that whoever gets the job surrounds themselves with loads of qualified people - that's the most important thing, and one that most of us forget to consider.
- Dan Nimtz
from twhirl
Of Alaska...Maybe
- David Z
All depends on what you mean by "is"...
- Richie de Almeida
Its always at 49% to 49%
- ThePicMan
yeah... been that way for a while. let's keep voting to see if we can move it.
- WiseYoda (aka Patrick)
People telling me to not discuss my fears of the economy have got me fired up! Jeremy told me that saying that the economy is in a death spiral is irresponsible. My brother told me the same thing the other night. But, the truth is the truth and I'm going to report it. Asian markets down 10%: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap...
Dimitar Vesselinov, Frank S., Susan Beebe and 19 other people liked this
So, argue with me. Why are we NOT in a downward spiral that there is no end in sight to?
- Robert Scoble
“Guess the way to think about it is we took everything we saved the last few years and instead of putting it into things that grow and make other things (like technology, better food, etc), we put it into something we didn’t need more of: a bunch of tract homes in Antioch. And those don’t give anything back. It was all well intended and set up for about 10 years — lets give...
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- Mona Nomura
via my 'smartest' friend (Stanford econ grad with an MBA from Wharton) He lives in Manhattan and is employed by one of the biggest investment and securities firms. He's also appeared a few times on MSNBC.
- Mona Nomura
What about Cramer telling folks to get the hell out of the market? Coming from a man who pumped up the market for the past few years.
- Aviv
Robert I am more with Jeremy. Down 10%. Not good to be sure. BUt a good data persons says: 10%. Ok that is steep but it is NOT 50% - the energy of the conversation, the panic stuff, that would equate to 50% from a data point of view.
- Roxanne Darling
from twhirl
Robert, I think the issue is that people are already afraid, you throw out more reasons for them to be fearful, and they are afraid of that. Honestly, I'm worried about what's going on but, I try to provide solidarity to the people around me. As such a big pillar of the blogging community, I think that maybe they just want you to try and be solid. I respect you for your unflinching honesty.
- Jimminy Fuller
from twhirl
Robert: I agree. The truth is the truth. We often don't understand the "principle of bread dough" when it comes to our own country's actions financially or otherwise. (Anyone who bakes, knows what this metaphor means) Or put another way, its like disturbing the water table: you can't dig in one area and not think someplace off site will not be affected. Re: home ownership. Everyone needs a home. The problem lies in elevating the cost of the high end so that the low end becomes increasingly....
- Melanie Reed
Crammer didn't tell people to get out of the market. He said you should have a cash reserve for 5 years to plan for the worst. He said definitaly not to pull out your 401k if you are more than 5 years from retirerment
- Robert Hafer
Aviv: Cramer was right, based on this week's performance in the markets so far.
- Robert Scoble
talking about fear - yours, others is not the same thing as saying we're in a death spiral. being positive about the future does not preclude talking about your fears. i see it like this. things are bad. they're gonna be bad for a while. not a lot of this is within our control, but some is. i am focused on identifying that which i can control and dealing with it. i am also working to keep from allowing my fear to gain too much control over my actions.
- MikeAmundsen
Robert: of course he was, but calling doomsday when it's, well, actually doomsday, is not really all that difficult. Some smart folks have been predicting this for many months (even years) now, but as you can imagine they weren't the most popular ones at dinner parties. People were too afraid to think about what's going to happen.
- Aviv
Mike: so far my only actions has been to put off some major home repairs that aren't totally necessary in order to have more cash on hand. Problem is, one little action like that repeated by everyone causes plumbers to get laid off. And the cycle continues. Roxanne: the stocks I track have lost about 30% of their value so far, or more. Nvidia, for instance, used to be at 40. Now it's about 8. That's not just "10%" and I don't see any resistance to it going down more.
- Robert Scoble
Robert: Do people not realize that with outstanding debt, what we robbed from Social Security & Medicare, the US is in the tank for $53Trillion? This will be a wake up for many...
- MVB (Grinch of FF)
unattainable for larger and larger groups of people who miss even that entry. The more luxuries we demand in our society the more we take our eyes off what we really need. Why should we begrudge making it possible for everyone to afford a home if it means we do without some things that frankly we don't really need?
- Melanie Reed
Robert: i hear ya. right now some of your actions might cause some pain for others. that sucks. i'm sure you only do this cuz you need to. not everyone will be in the same spot. some will be able to do things that help others in important ways - even it that it not monetary. and i think that's important ot keep in mind. the 'solution' is not tied only to money. i found some changes i can make to improve our family's lifestyle even while we adjust where/how we spend.i see others doing similar things, too.
- MikeAmundsen
I think it's more of a call for you to report on how people are trying to correct the economy instead of just saying that it's going under. Shed a little hope and optimism on the situation instead of more fear.
- xero
xero: the problem is that most everyone I talk to is still in the middle of fear. It's not known how deep or destructive this crisis will be. It's clear it's one hell of a storm coming though. I said it's like having a Cat 5 hurricane coming directly toward you and the best you can do is hope it doesn't swamp the levies near your house.
- Robert Scoble
My portfolio is down avg 37% and one of my stocks down 82% ... I sold some of my tech stocks two weeks ago; glad I did. Looking at BIDU and GOOG now, might get some tomorrow. They will go up again. Companies need the leads they get from search engines.
- Julio F ~ @SocialJulio
To add, have you evaluated your investment strategies? (long term, short term, etc.) And are you sure the recent events will impact you in the long term? Bigger picture, you guys. Look at the bigger picture...
- Mona Nomura
@Mona: +1
- MikeAmundsen
Julio: I would dollar cost average back into the market. I'm still seeing a LOT of downward pressure on stocks. We haven't yet faced the true bottoms of our fears. Plus, if financial results come in at the end of the quarter and they are bad, GOOG could go down even more.
- Robert Scoble
Mona: the market probably won't come back up a lot for at least two quarters. First we need to really get to the bottom of the market (we ain't there yet). Then we need two quarters of better than expected results to really see a good move upward. Maybe even one, if we push this sucker down enough. But I'm hearing of lots of layoffs coming through. Those will be tougher for people to recover from.
- Robert Scoble
Aaron: good advice, but that requires a bit of self delusion. I'm not quite there yet. :-)
- Robert Scoble
I went 100% into cash Apr 2007 because I didn't want the risk of being in the market given an unpredictable housing bubble (Also left the market in Feb 2000 except for $20,000 which did terribly). Many friends in the Bay Area sold their houses 2-3 yrs ago & started renting. I've been watching the market to see if I want to cost-average in... S&P is down 36% (996, high 1556 in July 2007).
- Mitchell Tsai
Robert: And that's only four quarters. Are you planning to retire any time soon? I sure as hell hope not. And as a leader in the tech industry, people are looking at you to tell them: "Look, everything is crap right now, I'm not sugar coating anything. Things ARE going to get tough. But this what you can do and how you can do it. There *is* hope." You have such a large voice and a huge presence. Don't use it to instill fear, but use it to tell people be realistic but optimistic, and we will pull through.
- Mona Nomura
...unless you truly think we're not.
- Mona Nomura
Aaron: leaving Microsoft was the best thing I could have done for me and my family. Since then I've gotten to meet Queens and Presidential Candidates, not to mention the world's smartest geeks. All stuff I would never have gotten to do if I had stayed at Microsoft. And, if I get laid off, I can always go back!
- Robert Scoble
Yeah, I figured. But it deserved a straight answer. :-)
- Robert Scoble
International markets are simply responding to what happens on Wall St. Forget the Nikkei, it's an outlier, the other markets reflect more like 5%, in line with the results from the US overnight (here). Right now, the US moves global markets, not the other way around.
- Warren
i wonder if someone will give me a loan so i can invest in the market right now...
- George Lee
from twhirl
Robert, I'm not going to argue with you on the facts. Right now, it's an emotional issue with you and everyone else. My one observation is that you seem much more pessimistic than most of the people I work with, and I work for Yahoo!
- Mistletoe Glen
I promised myself I would stay out of this but I have to at least say this: Robert - who is to say the "truth" you are "reporting" is the right "truth"? Surely you don't see yourself as a economy expert able to say what is and what isn't the "truth". Honestly I wish you'd stop talking about the economy and fear and get back to talking about those "world's smartest geeks" and companies...
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- Brandon LeBlanc
from twhirl
Brandon: that's an interesting point. But if my truth is not the right truth, put out an alternate view of what you view as truth. Don't tell me to shut up. And I refuse to be typecast into a little box of only doing PR for startups. If that's what you think I'm all about you are definitely wrong. By the way, if you want some good news you should read this: http://www.avc.com/a_vc... from Fred Wilson, VC.
- Robert Scoble
There is more to the economy than people's stock portfolio. Mine is down on average 18%. I don't like it but really, the hyberbole here is not in synchrony with the math. The markets are more driven by psychology than math. We can manage our psychology, if we want.
- Roxanne Darling
from twhirl
Better yet - http://www.rgemonitor.com/
- Aviv
I love how we can have "conversations" thanks to FriedFeed. If this was a topic on a blog, I would read it, but not participate... not sure why...
- Julio F ~ @SocialJulio
it is scary down in So Cal too, but somewhat depends where you are and who's talking
- MedicalQuack
from twhirl
Robert, with your awesome contacts and press pass, I would like to see you post some stuff as to what we as common tech folk should do, and when. Something helpful with much information that the geek factor can use to in protecting ourselves. What to plan for? What companies are doing in tech? Does Cisco see a down turn, if not now when? What should we look for in the companies we work for as signs of coming cuts or something. Just keep a close eye on things for us.
- Uncle CW™
As I understand it, Robert is saying (and please correct me if I'm wrong) that we are possibly in deeper trouble than we realize. Now I agree with everyone that we should have hope and look forward to a recovery but I believe Robert is kinda calling for a deep and frank examination of the fundamental issues underlining this in an attempt to ensure this doesn't happen again. Glazing over the eyeballs and only looking forward won't expose the weakness in the system, a system we all have responsibility for.
- Johnny Worthington
John: I certainly am looking for more pushback than I'm getting. That lack of serious pushback (and pushback does NOT mean telling me to "shut up", but providing evidence that I'm wrong) is really freaking me out even more. The fact that I have to go and find my own "anti" evidence is telling me that we aren't really having a good conversation yet about what's going on. That too tells me that there's more downside because if FF'ers aren't able to articulate where the economy is going I have little hope.
- Robert Scoble
Robert, my point wasn't you to go off an do PR for startups. My point was you have the power to influence folks here in such a way it can help ease fears. I don't think you're all about PR for startups. Why I like reading your stuff is because you point out really neat stuff YOU think is cool. You thought some of what Seagate is doing with storage was cool and you talked about that. BTW...
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- Brandon LeBlanc
from twhirl
I think it's worse than most people can even understand. I thought the downside exposure was the housing bubble burst, until I learned about the credit default swap (CDS) market. It is a huge, never regulated ponzi scheme built on top of the mortgage market that dwarfs the mortgage problem by 10x. The CDS market has collapsed and frozen the commercial credit market. This American Life has an incredible podcast about this. Links and a summary - The Crash of 2008 Explained http://ta.gg/1h8
- Alex Nesbitt
Aaron: I don't think we're at bottom. I think it might solidify at 9,000 for a little while, until financial results start coming in. Then I wouldn't be shocked to find us at 8,000 or below. Once we hit that bottom then I think we can start talking about rebuilding the economy. But that's just my opinion and, you know what they say about opinions! :-)
- Robert Scoble
Robert: if you're looking for folks to tell you it's not gonna get any worse i suspect you're out of luck. if you're looking for some predictions about wher the bottom is, i don't think it's pretty early for that. i, personally, think we'll see resistance@ 9000. i can't get my head around the int'l economies, tho. Pakistan and Iceland are teetering this morning and Europe is just starting to deal.
- MikeAmundsen
Robert, you have a great deal of influence - why spread fear when you can help ease people's fears instead?
- Brandon LeBlanc
from twhirl
Well, here's something to think about Robert: of all the banking crises around the world from 1970 through to today, the average amount injected by governments to bail out their banks has been something like 6% of GDP. Your bailout is, (perhaps not) coincidentally, 6% of your GDP. So either you've got it really bad, and 6% isn't enough, or the bailout will work once its effects flow through.
- Warren
it is scary down in So Cal too, but somewhat depends where you are and who's talking
- MedicalQuack
from twhirl
Brandon: simple: I'm not a propogandist. The day I become one is the day that I lose all that influence you ascribe to me. And, finally, we all have equal voices here on FriendFeed. If you see that I'm wrong, put out an alternate theory!
- Robert Scoble
Sorry about the duplicate post,
- MedicalQuack
from twhirl
You don't have to be at rock-bottom to cost-average in...just as you don't have to sell at the tops. Or mimic some institutions and slide in-out positions partially (e.g. 25-50-75% at a time). You don't make the maximum gains, but you can be happy about "hey. I pulled 25% out, and bought back in x% cheaper in one month". Gives some happy news in a down market. I started investing just after the 1987 crash (86 college grad), so I grew up on down-markets. They're opportunities!
- Mitchell Tsai
Scoobie, you were moaning that McCain was going to win 2 weeks ago - and you knew more about that than you do about the economy. Just do your job we subscribed to you for and shut up about all your amateur feelings.
- Morgan Warstler
Waht blows me away is all the money going towards R and D, millions, but someone has to be able to afford the end result product or service somewhere down the line
- MedicalQuack
from twhirl
We're not in an endless downward spiral because eventually it'll get to zero and stop. Okay, seriously, there are still real assets out there. What's happening is the leverage applied to those assets is going away. We should not get too far below 1:1 or else... I'll buy it up.
- Morton Fox
Aaron. Stop-losses are a classic exit technique. You can also use multiple stop-losses (e.g. 1/3 sell at -15%, -25%, and -35%). That set doesn't help you now that the market is down 36%, but consider a new set of stop losses at -36%, -40%, and -45%. If the market tanks & goes down 60%, you'll be patting yourself on the back. If the market goes up tomorrow after selling 1/3 at 36%, you can be sad about taking a little loss, and happy that the other 2/3 has recovered. Find happiness either way.
- Mitchell Tsai
If you are down 36%, you need a 56% gain to recover. But if you are down 50%, you need a 100% gain to recover. That 14% difference is crucial. Difficult lesson of stocks - "Sell your losers, Hold your winners". I didn't think the potential gain in 2007 (given China's boom and the sky-high stocks) was worth the possible losses from a crazy housing bubble. Yeah, I've only made a lousy 4% in 2007 and 2008. I think in 1991 I made -1%, and was happy I beat the -4% S&P.
- Mitchell Tsai
I actually have to agree with you Robert.
- Mathew™ one of a kind
.. and the tsunami has not hit europe. yet. i'm simply tryin' to take cover, and abandon all investments. then, we'll see.
- Marco Scano
I think fear is good, because we've been on such a high for the last few years. "Irrational exuberance" in the housing market is as much of a problem as it was in the tech stock. Getting back to the fundamental with a balance of fear and greed is not neccessary a bad thing.
- Eric Lau
My thoughts here: http://www.jeremytoeman.com/why-im-...
- Jeremy Toeman
They have a point because fear feeds on itself. We are seeing politicians play on our fears right now, trying to use fear to their advantage. But fear mostly comes from the unknown. We should discuss our fears. Understand them and then realize that the worst case scenarios aren't that bad.
- ChiliMac
FriendFeed should add a time stamp at the end of each message ... Robert, I did not buy GOOG ... saved a few dollars; Thanks!
- Julio F ~ @SocialJulio
Economist.com - "Economists are overwhelmingly pro-Obama" - http://patricklogan.blogspot.com/2008...
Nicholas James, Jen (SquirrelGirl), Steven Perez and 10 other people liked this
Economists are overwhelmingly socialist also.
- eggsy
Dutch newssite says: 'The World votes for Obama': http://www.nu.nl/news... . Especially the Dutch themselves: More than 90 % of the Dutch would vote Obama if they could. Not that we know much about economics, but it's something extra to keep in mind. ;-)
- Ton Zijp
I don't know why. Obama is part of the problem.
- Spencer
@Spencer: LOL!
- MikeAmundsen
@Spencer But it won't be a Dutch problem.
- Morton Fox
@eggsy Yah the Economist editors, such crusty leftists. (Your knee must hit your head at least a dozen times a day.)
- Rick Powell
@Peter: +1
- MikeAmundsen
Yes, but what does Obama think of the Dutch?
- Mistletoe Glen
I think the house is not doing a very good job educating constituents about the rationale & logistics behind this new plan
Roney Smith, Molly, "sorry", Eric Ortega and 24 other people liked this
I think they're doing a great job. A lot of so called smart people made stupid bets and now I'm supposed to make my grandkids pay for it. I think NOT! Suffering now will teach us to make wiser choices.
- Eric Lewis
I doubt every Congress man and woman has read the 100+ pages document. Many of them probably voted the same way as the people who sit next to them. It will be a miracle if we can get the bailout plan to pass.
- Harry Chen
Agree! Understand that they are pressed, but the comms around the dealings have left a lot to be desired.
- Josh Dilworth
FWIW, there is only one bill in which you can basically prove Congressman have read--the Intelligence funding bill. The reason? It's classified and Members have to sign in to read it. How many do? About 14 or so (believe it or not). I worked for Congress a few years back and always found that depressing.
- Andrew Leyden
What's the incentive to educate anyone when they KNOW the sheep will continue to vote them in and always vote Dem or Rep?
- Live4Emma (L4S)
Eric: the problem is your grandkids will pay for this anyway. What happens if you lose your job? Or your kids lose their jobs?
- Robert Scoble
@Robert: that's why we should stop having kids. :-)
- Harry Chen
@Robert: I don't have a "job". If I lose my source of income I adapt. Nobody bailed me out when I lost my house. Sure my grandchildren already own a piece of the national debt. But I will not vote $1 more on them.
- Eric Lewis
@Tadeu: I'm all for you avoiding pain, but don't pain my grandkids to do it. I agree with you on wars, but personal pain has taught me many lessons.
- Eric Lewis
Eric: but when everyone else is out of a job they get unemployment insurance. So, you just voted your kids more debt there too (and far more than $700 billion, especially if this goes on a long time).
- Robert Scoble
Robert: So I should steal from my grandkids to avoid others stealing more? You're making my head spin. I can only control me. I won't steal.
- Eric Lewis
Eric: here's the problem. Our entire economic system is based on credit now. You do realize that, right? How did I buy my car? Credit. How did the businesses I have worked for get money to hire people, buy realestate, etc, Credit. How did I get my house? Credit. So, if the credit system goes into meltdown (it's very close) then they stop loaning money to EVERYONE, not just "flakes." So, who built the Saturn car I bought on Credit? What happens to their jobs if we can't buy more cars?
- Robert Scoble
Eric: If the plan is put together wisely and executed well, taxpayers may actually earn money on this deal. No one is talking about giving away $700B. This is a loan. Worst case scenario is probably that we lose half of that. Most realistic scenario? We probably lose $100-200B.
- J. McConnell
If the economy melts down, then tons of people, even those who had good credit, get hurt. What happens then? We all go on unemployment. Your grandkids are going to pay a LOT MORE than $700 billion if that happens because when the economy melts down the jobless will be a lot longer and deeper. You have a chance to head that off now, but you are deciding to watch the entire economy burn, baby, burn. That is NOT prudent.
- Robert Scoble
@Robert: I don't understand paying off/guaranteeing the bad debts of bankers as being MY problem. I made some bad financial choices in my day and no one bailed me out. You take your chances, you pay the piper.
- Eric Lewis
Eric: you don't fund other people and other parts of the economy. These banks do. That's the error in your thinking.
- Robert Scoble
Robert: You're right, I don't. But they lost $1 Trillion. Who made the larger mistake in thinking? If I have a vote, I'm not rewarding that.
- Eric Lewis
Eric: the thing is, that's not what you're deciding now. Now you are deciding whether the entire economy burns because you want to punish those responsible. There are other people involved here. Get off of the punishment, it won't help you protect your grandchildren.
- Robert Scoble
Robert: I'm for punishment?! I'm sorry, from where I sit, loaning money to a losing gambler, because his kids might starve, is not protection I can believe in. I need a better explanation than that.
- Eric Lewis
Eric: you are thinking wrong. This isn't a person. It's a series of institutions that loan money to normal people like you and me. If they stop loaning money, WE HURT and the PEOPLE WHO BUILD STUFF FOR US HURT not them. You need to think about the whole economy, not just the jerks who got us here. The one who lit the fire isn't the one who is going to get burned. Put out the fire. Argue about punishment later.
- Robert Scoble
FYI, both D's and R's who voted No are from districts that are "in play." When they had to make a tough call that might hurt politically, they chose the safest path for reelection, not for the country.
- Andrew Feinberg
@Eric Lewis: Here is a great explanation of why this bill was important and was more than just bailing out a bunch of greedy bankers who made poor decisions: http://www.frontlinethoughts.com/article...
- J. McConnell
Curtis: we don't know if it'll work. It's like putting water on a fire. You know it will help and you continue putting water onto the fire until it's out. Andrew: exactly. They are willing to burn down the country so they can get reelected.
- Robert Scoble
Andrew: do you have a map that shows that? I want to put that on the top of my blog.
- Robert Scoble
Robert: You sure sound panicked. I am not. There will always be people with money who want to make more, by loaning to those with sure plans. I will not throw good money after bad.
- Eric Lewis
@Robert: I understand you believe credit will stop, but that's an opinion, not a fact. I'm hearing otherwise. Tightening yes, stoppage no. There are many who believe our grandkids will be *better* off if we ensure proper and last resort bailout is enacted. That both corporations and individuals should be held responsible. In many ways, America as a whole is responsible for not being more vigilant. I'm not the enemy, we simply have differing views on what is best and even brainy economists differ.
- AJ Kohn
I've posted that link to my feed so we can discuss it, if anyone's interested. http://friendfeed.com/e...
- J. McConnell
Suspending MTM accounting = instant fail. Why would they undermine the entire program by sewing seeds of doubt?? Anyone who is *pro-transparency* should be pretty stoked right now.
- Will DeLuca
AJ: well, nothing ever "stops" totally. True. I should use "major slowdown." But, either way, you are deciding to make the slowdown deeper and longer by not putting water on the fire. That's fine, but I wish we would put water on the fire instead of saying "burn baby, burn."
- Robert Scoble
Robert: There are also those who think the market will self-correct. Yes, it will be painful, but it will correct. I'm not sure about that, but like you, I don't know all the facts.
- Jim McCusker
Heck Pelosi couldn't even explain it to her own party members Nick 40% of the Dems didn't vote in favor of it. If she had done a proper Whip check in advance of the bill coming to the floor she would have known that and dealt with it.
- Thomas Vincent
Mark: my minor is in economics and I went to the World Economic Forum this year. Hey, if Palin is qualified to be President because she "lives close to Russia" then I'm qualified to be FriendFeed's economist! :-)
- Robert Scoble
'new plan' ... nothing about that reaching the UK news
- PaulJohnson
Great NYT article: An interesting historical perspective about the disaster that has befallen Wall Street. http://tinyurl.com/3vzxc9. Sheds some informed light on how we got here. (By noted biographer Ron Chernow).
- JP Adams
The government just screwed the country. A lot of people are going to lose their well earned money because they (the government) can't help out. I'll have to say bye bye to the money I invested, which is what I basically life off of, since I can't find a job at the moment. Thanks so much.
- Molly, "sorry"
@Robert: I like that terminology far better because I think it's more realistic and doesn't feed into reptilian panic button response that actually helps create runs. I'm interested though, it will certainly make the slowdown deeper - that's pretty clear IMO - but I actually believe that means it will be shorter, not longer. [cont]
- AJ Kohn
[cont] A slower correction is like having spyware on your computer. It just gets slower and slower and people give up on the computer in frustration. A short deep correction is like a reboot, you start over but still have faith in the computer.
- AJ Kohn
politicians are only being as transparent as is necessary to ensure your vote in a month...there is too much at stake right now for any real bipartisanship to really happen
- George Lee
from twhirl
I'm embarrassed to be have been oblivious to this entire conversation
- Nick O'Neill
McCain seems sleepy, Obama sharp... so far moderator sucks. Format is not working well. Thoughts?
imabonehead, Steven Perez, Alex Scoble and 2 other people liked this
disagree - mccain seems more passionate, especially when it comes to spending
- Ron Emrick
McCain seems more passionate where Obama just seems stubborn. I do agree that the moderator sucks though. I could do better
- pcnerd37
McCain seems cheerful and knowledgeable, Obama seems angry and out of his depth.
- Rob Sterling
Obama seems more to the point, McCain seems more focused on giving feel good examples from his life.
- Angel Smith
um, moderator is Jim Lehrer. Not sure if you ppl have seen him ( or a debate, for that matter) before
- Juan Aguilar
from twhirl
I like the time left to the candidates to delve deeper into issues. Regardless of your political persuasion, giving more time to the candidates to debate gives the audience a better chance to determine their knowledge and how they apply that knowledge. How would Bush have done in debates vs. Gore if long, detailed responses had been required to counter his opponent...?
- Team Frosick
So...who benefits more if you think the debate was a tie?
- George Lee
from twhirl
@George Lee: Certainly Obama. The election is his to lose and all indications are that Biden will do better than Palin in their debate (unless he pulls one of his famous "plant foot deeply in mouth" moments).
- Team Frosick
@Rob Sterling: I thought just the opposite. McCain seemed out of his depth when tying smaller issues into the larger whole. Obama stayed focused on the larger issues. It's the same issue that weakened Hillary. She spent too much time being a wonk. Presidents have to know how to fit the pieces together.
- Team Frosick
McCain seems competent but tired and static.
- Chrimmus Tad
McCain seemed cheerful and knowledgeable? Man, I think we were watching two different debates...He couldn't even get it right that Kennedy was at home. McCain was agitated, he was angry. Obama was calm, cool and collected. Obama looked much more presidential and seemed to be much more on top of the subjects at hand.
- Alex Scoble
I'm still waiting for the official word on that whole Kissinger thing.
- Brooks Bishop
It's already been broughten...Kissinger said that we should be talking with Iran on their nuclear program.
- Alex Scoble
Brooks, check here http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-ch...
- FFing Enigma (aka Tina)
@Brooks yeah, waiting for that too... "WASHINGTON, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger says the United States should begin direct negotiations with Iran over its nuclear enrichment program. Kissinger, speaking Monday at George Washington University along with four other former U.S. State Department secretaries, said the next president should initiate high-level discussions with Iran "without conditions," ABC News reported."
- ※Fu※
Gracias.
- Brooks Bishop
The Best Worst Science Fiction Movies Of All Time [Best Worst Scifi Movies] - http://io9.com/5052003...
AJ Kohn, RAPatton, FFing Enigma (aka Tina) and 2 other people liked this
wow.. I've seen alot of these movies and have to agree.
- Stefan Hayden
Umm...what about Krull???!?!?!?1 :)
- George Lee
from twhirl
Most of these are *very* bad. For me, Time Cop is a guilty pleasure and Enemy Mine simply doesn't belong on this list. I dig that flick.
- AJ Kohn
What Was Your First CD? - http://geeks.pirillo.com/xn...
Glenn Batuyong, J. Abdul-Qahhar, Alex Scoble and Kol Tregaskes liked this
I think it was a Sade album... probably in 88 or 89
- Chrimmus Tad
Ugh, Aerosmith's "Get a Grip" which was given to me. Next I think was Counting Crows "August and Everything After"
- Haggis (Sean Loyless)
Genesis Invisible Touch
- George Lee
from twhirl
first cd single: bush - swallowed, first cd album: songs in the key of X, first cassette: simpons sing the blues, first (and only) vinyl: los lobos - la bamba... *shakes head*
- alphaxion
uh.. I think maybe it was music from Miami Vice.
- Nine
This is too hard for my old zombie brain
- Michael W. May
+1 MWM... I have no idea!
- Cheryl Jones
Mine: The Traveling Willburys. :)
- l0ckergn0me
The Cure - Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me in '87, I think.
- Akiva Moskovitz
Massive Attack - Blue Lines
- Chris Nixon
Tangerine Dream, Optical Race
- Steve Lowe
(My first 8-track, btw, was George Carlin, Class Clown)
- Steve Lowe
umm, when I was four or five, we got the new Meet the Beatles on vinyl.
- Laura Norvig
Anita Baker, "Giving You The Best That I Got", 1987
- Steven Perez
Might have been Speak and Spell by Depeche Mode...Can't remember exactly. That was 20 years ago.
- Alex Scoble
Ina Kamoze - Here comes the hotstepper
- Mark
Ride the Lightning - Metallica (because I couldn't afford anything over $10 and it was $10 used)
- Justin Korn
U2 - The Unforgettable Fire. Really poor audio quality. The first track had so much hissing noise I wondered what was so good about CD's.
- Mark Krynsky
License to ILL
- Ryan
Wow, I can't believe I still remember this... I bought the "Day By Day" jazz album by Najee in 1989... I was still in high school...
- Glenn Batuyong
from twhirl
P.O.D. - Satellite? I know, I know. You don't have to tell me. :)
- Reuben Thum
from twhirl
Journey's Greatest Hits
- Blake N. Cooper
Slayer - Seasons In The Abyss :)
- Jérôme
bruce springsteen - born to run
- mike fabio
from twhirl
Hmm, I'm wondering how many brain cells back that was! I believe it may have been Talking Heads. +1 for The Cure Akiva!
- jcunwired
my brother gave me my first portable CD player - along with it he gave me Estefan's Into the Light and Willson Phillips CD which I can now not recall the name. I was always surprised he picked so well (for my tastes at the time) and that he wasn't embarrassed to be seen buying them.
- ♥patricia♥
Remember, most Americans believe in God. Most Americans have kids in sports programs. Most Americans don't have a Passport. Palin wins.
Duncan Riley, Evan Brown, Parth Awasthi and 17 other people liked this
Robert, no offense, but you're really souring my stomach. Why not leverage your position and sphere of influence to fight for what you believe in. Or are you one of those creationist types too? Do you really think its game over with this election? Do I need to go find a place overseas and become an expat?
- Brian Daniel Eisenberg
Ahhhhh... that's why you think McCain will win. I think 8 years, war & recession may sway the masses.
- anna sauce
Brian, lol. I have lived overseas for 4 years. Most Americans don't know how good they've got it.
- Justin Long
mores the pity
- ben rogers
from twhirl
If you think that the majority of the populace will vote for the candidate who most approximates them, demographically, then Obama has no chance at all. But we know this is not the case. Furthermore, Barack Obama believes in God (not just "god") and I presume his daughters play organized sports. Finally: most Americans believe that the Iraq War was a mistake and *not* part of God's master plan. You might want to factor those facts into your predictive formula.
- Chester
I love the idea that it isn't because people might actually agree with McCain on the issue - it must be because they are dumb fools who will vote for the folks with the hockey players. Let's ignore that this isn't how things have gone historically. At what point will folks on the left decide that just maybe folks who don't agree with them are well meaning humans with a different POV and not ignorant sheep?
- Soulhuntre
@BDE if you do, let me know. I've heard living the digital nomad life in South America is the perfect expat way to go.
- Jason Shultz
from twhirl
Most American women are not former beauty queens...Most families do not have 5 children...And most Americans do not have such a fundamental view of Christianity
- Alex Scoble
Actually Soulhuntre it is how things have historically worked...Take JFK vs Nixon for instance...there were a lot of people who voted for JFK just because he was more charismatic...it has been so ever since
- Alex Scoble
Palin wins if Democrats are stupid enough to make her the main topic of the election.
- Chris Baskind
@Alex: Most people like prom and beauty queens. Most people have kids, it really doesn't matter the number. Most people are Christians and don't draw the distinctions between fundamentalist and non-fundamentalist because they don't need to. Also, I see no problem with having kids in sports programs...?
- Ben Parr
Alex - Good point. Gore and Kerry had zero charisma.
- Russellreno
I'm just pointing out how she is NOT like the average American.
- Alex Scoble
@Chris Well then they lost, because it seems Dems are incapable of focusing on anything else except Palin, which is Ironic considering attacks against Hillary was the harshest form of sexism ever.
- Jason Shultz
from twhirl
@Alex - charisma I will agree with. Charisma is a synthesis of a number of human judgments that tend to convey trust, leadership, dominance and so on. But charisma is NOT "the same as me". Heck, Obama is easily the most charismatic guy in this field, despite is sameness handicap as Robert sees it.
- Soulhuntre
Soulhuntre, since the Republican strategy for this election is to treat you like ignorant sheep, how do you expect us well meaning humans to believe any differently? Just sayin'
- jcunwired
Did Soulhuntre just agree with me? I think he did. Cool. *this is a 100% snark free comment...seriously*
- Alex Scoble
I think most "most"s are mostly made up.
- Craig Eddy
Two out of three here, but I'm still voting for Obama. Also, Chris Baskind is right: don't focus on Palin. Latest Obama ad indicates that focus is shifting back to McCain.
- Steve Lowe
I wonder why Obama's focus is on Palin/McCain instead of on Obama?
- Mistletoe Glen
I agree with Glen. Let's not be distracted by the red herring Palin. Let's focus on Obama, and where is Biden? It's time he spoke up, like he does at other times.
- Cathryn Hrudicka
Per your own words, most people have as much experience and relativity as Palin. This is why they won't vote for her:) W00t!
- Roney Smith
That's an excellent point Glen.
- Keith Shepard
from twhirl
Robert, it really saddens me to hear you so pessimistic, but since the Palin pick embodies nothing so much as cynicism (as Frum says: It's a denial that information matters. http://tinyurl.com/4fsjxv ) yours is at least an honest, if hopefully transient response. I hope you feel better tomorrow.
- Rick Powell
@Alex - I've agreed with you before on stuff I think. And I think the reading upside down thing rocks :)
- Soulhuntre
@Jody C - obviously we have differing opinions on that :) Keep thinking we are idiots if you like - it is the core conceit that keeps democrats from making any headway. The core conceit that more often than not loses elections.
- Soulhuntre
Scoble is coming off as pompous with that tweet.
- David Risley
Soulhuntre, you misunderstand. I am not calling you idiots, merely pointing out that the misleading, untruthful ads put out by the McCain campaign lead me to think that Republicans think we are all idiots. Lets face it, they've treated us all that way since Bush's first campaign in 2000 (and subsequent promises broken), stepped it up on Sept. 11 leading up to Iraq war, and perfected it during the 2004 elections.
- jcunwired
I personally believe that in a few weeks this whole Palin crap will wear off/she'll really screw up. Obama is going to be our next President and that is great!
- Mathew™ one of a kind
No wonder you are losing followers. Sorry you really have wrong perception of democrats. Not everyone is a republican snob like yourself. A social media snob if i may add. Bye.
- orionstarr
Robert: Thanks for keeping it real -- you are only stating the obvious and sometimes people just won't accept it. Sadly, Progressive and tolerant are two different things, I guess.
- Oldengrey (Jay)
re: passports specifically...it is also the reason why most americans shouldn't be Vice President
- George Lee
from twhirl
Robert is dead center. The side with the best propaganda and images win. Palin is walking, breathing propaganda and the democratic leaders are not good propagandists. Republicans win. If you want Obama to win, you have to hope for better propaganda that resonates with Mr. & Mrs. Middle.
- Dean Terry
@Dean Terry So your saying most of the middle relates to white trash?
- orionstarr
Orion: Good retort!
- Oldengrey (Jay)
I think it's sad to read someone not getting elected would be "soul crushing." Yes, elections are important, but they should not determine your happiness or lack of happiness. I was not happy to see Bill Clinton elected either time, but I never lost any sleep, never got depressed, never moved to Canada. I understand the desire to see Obama as today's John, Robert, and Martin, but he's none of the above.
- ComicList
Cathryn, the less Biden says, the better off Obama is. Biden has a record of racist and sexist comments, and Obama doesn't need to waste time apologizing for his VP. He needs to spend time explaining why he should be President instead of McCain.
- ComicList
One of the reasons I left the Democratic party was the constant harping on how it was so wrong that they would lose, and that the Republicans must have either pulled some dirty trick or fooled the voters into voting for them. No, it's actually possible a Democratic candidate, even Obama, can be rejected by voters because they believe the other candidate is a better choice.
- ComicList
[Gallup]: Gallup Daily: Obama's Lead Now at 4 Points - http://x.techwheat.com/232
AJ Kohn, Chris Rivait, Chris Baskind and Dave Winer liked this
"Gallup Poll Daily tracking from Tuesday through Thursday finds Barack Obama with a four-percentage-point lead over John McCain in the presidential preferences of registered voters, 48% to 44%."
- newsjunk.com
so the net is +3 for O/B and -1 for M/P. According to gallup they were tied @ 45on Aug 24. Weird to think it small percentage points given all that has happened in the last couple weeks...
- George Lee
from twhirl
Obama is such a superstar brand and it's only 4 points??
- Yung-Hui Lim
Obama had an 8 point lead earlier this week. I find it shocking how wildly the percentage points can swing day-to-day. It's scary, really, how fickle people appear to be in the daily polls, regardless of the last several years of history. In the end, daily headlines can be influential enough to swing the whole thing the week before the election. And, I am sure some people are banking on this incredible phenomenon, especially since so much of the news these days is simply repeating others, not reporting.
- Eric Hill
This country is very polarized Yung-Hui, so it's no surprise that his lead isn't that large. And those numbers don't tell much of the story anyhow since our voting system using the electoral college to actually determine the results. See here for a much better picture of what's going on http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/
- Alex Scoble
Thanks, Alex for enlightening me. As an outside observer to the American politics, it seems there's a tectonic shift towards the Dem in this election. Despite his superstar profile, stuttering economy, Iraq, un-catchable Osama and unpopular Bush-Cheney, I'm surprised Barack is not leading by bigger margin, with 2 months to go.. also, especially after his impressive showing at the DNC.
- Yung-Hui Lim
Obama actually has a comfortable lead. http://www.electoral-vote.com/ Need to explain electoral vote system.
- Indio Apache
from twhirl
I think the Republicans just gained 10 points in the polls.
Ontario Emperor, wyclif, Michael McGimpsey and 7 other people liked this
Maybe you and I subscribe to different people, but I think you're the only person saying that right now.
- Matt Hilton
Leo is being conservative.
- peterbokunet
She's made some points I agree with, but overall, she doesn't seem very inspiring
- Ian May
I don't see it. They seem uninspired compared to other times. The rhetoric is more bland.
- Dean Terry
There's nothing compelling coming out of Palin.. if anything all I'm hearing is baseless shallow attacks and cliches.
- Victor Trac
You must be joking.
- Jeff Jones
There will be a "bounce" but the battle has just begun...
- Live4Emma (L4S)
She's playing to her base, that's all.
- Tony Hung
They lost my vote tonight. Only heard attacks for 2 days and no plans.
- LPH™ and his dog P™
i think you are in the minority on that conclusion
- Shannon Carver
from Alert Thingy
I like their plan for the economy better than Obama's promise to help me buy a new car.
- ComicList
I guess everyone missed the DNC speeches...
- Brian Newman
I'm sorry, I think Leo is right. Those speeches weren't aimed at us... The majority of FF I assume is left leaning and this type of event would not resonate with us. But to the middle and right, if it doesn't acquire new support, it would have certainly solidified and reassured some doubters in the RNC
- Johnny Worthington
She did a great job tonight. I still won't vote for McCain, but I agreed with some things she said.
- Molly, "sorry"
And let's not forget, Obama spent 1/3 to 1/2 of his speech attacking McCain and Bush. Obama wants to practice the old politics and the new politics, however one defines them, at the same time. I'm eager to see if McCain can present himself as authentically as Palin did tonight.
- ComicList
Palin sounded like she was running for small town Mayor not VP tonight. Nothing of substance, nothing of interest and certainly nothing new.
- Jeff Jones
I haven't seen the speech. That said, I find everyone's surprise that she gave a good one pretty surprising. This is a presidential election - they have speech writers you know!
- mattpovey
Palin seemed a bit out of her depth, that was the impression that came across to me
- Ian May
I find 'war hero, war hero, war hero' far from inspiring...but i guess some do...
- Sidney
That a boy Leo - you're finally recognizing the Truth...
- Neil Bakker
After tonight the Obama tact of "more of Bush" is going to look even more foolish. But it seem that running against Bush has been the whole of the DNC plan for the last 8 years
- Robert Hafer
are you kidding me Leo? Petty attacks, red meat for the base. Without independants they loose and tonight was all about the base
- David Jacobs
from twhirl
Rod.. yes, but Bush won 2 terms. What I think Leo is trying to say is this is no longer just a slam dunk for Obama... some work still needs to be done
- Johnny Worthington
the hilarious thing is how we all sway with the latest information...looking back at old feeds and tweets from after Obama's speech you'd think the Republicans should just throw in the towel. My personal opinion is that the Republicans were down 8pts and Palin *had* to make her two free throws. If she missed, it would be game over now...she made em, so now we keep playing...
- George Lee
from twhirl
They've gained more like 10 points in their own mirror Leo!
- Roney Smith
@georgelee That's a smart way to look at this. There's a lot of time left before November, and more battles to be fought.
- Todd Mundt
As someone who loved Palin's speech, the Republicans gained one point at most. No minds were changed by Palin's speech, so the only movement might have been within the undecided ranks.
- Ontario Emperor
Sleep is for the weak - http://geeks.pirillo.com/xn...
RAPatton and Amber, Random Time Lord liked this
I agree :) Anyone for another cup o' joe?
- Richard Merritt
Yup
- Mo Kargas
zzz...zzz...
- George Lee
from twhirl
You can sleep when you're dead...
- Lisa L. Seifert
you can sleep when your dead and coffee is overrated
- Cecil Sandus
McCain Chooses Palin as Running Mate - NYTimes.com - http://www.nytimes.com/2008...
bangjihyun, Anne Bouey, Sean McBride and 11 other people liked this
"In a surprise move, Senator John McCain chose Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate on Friday, McCain officials confirmed, shaking up the political world at a time when his campaign has been trying to attract women, especially disaffected supporters of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton."
- Bret Taylor
from Bookmarklet
Yeah, all those liberal Clinton supporters just look at gender. "Me vote woman, Woman, WOMAN!"
- AJ Kohn
"Palin describes herself as a "hockey mom" and an occasional commercial fisherwoman."
- Mike
A Republican friend of mine said that McCain probably just sees women as "walking boobs"
- Sean Davis
@Sean: There's such an easy pot-shot to take about McCain's first wife based on that comment.
- AJ Kohn
Republican in Mating 2.0
- A.T.
FWIW her husband apparently works for BP. http://www.ktuu.com/Global... Palin says, "A conflict could be perceived if my spouse's position was in a management position with an oil company. But, because it's a blue-collar, in-the-field type job, working in a facility as a production operator, separating the oil, the gas and water; it's not a management position where...
more...
- Philipp Lenssen
@Philipp well, as long as they don't see a problem it should be ok right? Riiiiiiiiiiiight. Because being the husband of the VP wouldn't do anything for his career with a major oil company at a time when energy and oil legislation is at the top of our nation's to-do list.
- Aaron Krug
No doubt female Hillary Clinton supporters will swarm to a candidate who is militantly anti-choice and who is aligned with the far right on this issue. :) What a miscalculation.
- Sean McBride
I am soooo excited for Biden/Palin debate...that is going to be the summer blockbuster we've all been waiting for...bombs, gunslinging, explosions! Ha!
- George Lee
from twhirl
Pick makes sense on a lot of levels (my preference was for Meg Whittman, for sake of full disclosure). She's an executive - something none of the other candidates / running mates have ever been - who has largely cut her teeth fighting Republican corruption and fiscal irresponsibility. That alone makes her an attractive veep. She's also had an actual job in the private sector, which certainly helps - Obama hasn't, and McCain / Biden have both been in government longer than not.
- Forrest Cox
Meg Whitman, no.
- Greer Trice
She's also extremely well versed in the energy issue, which will be a big one in the election. She's more pro-gay rights than most far-right christian conservatives, but is very pro-life, which will excite the base. She will also, by virtue of who she is (watch an interview and you'll get the picture), be incredibly popular with the base.
- Forrest Cox
She has 5 kids, one of them with Downs Syndrome
- Josh Haley
Creationist... fail.
- Chrimmus Tad
What Tad said.
- cecily
Yeah, I vote with my uterus...truthiness
- Cheryl Allin
Well, I just phoned 3 female HRC supporters and they are all now voting Obama. They resent McCain's obvious tactic that they would just vote for a woman regardless and are all pro-choice. The surprise move may well backfire. "I am NOT voting for Dan Quayle 2" said one.
- Sally Church
She isn't a "working mother" or a "professional woman" - she's a "mama" (yes, it's how she refers to herself). Married / engaged male "red-state" voters now officially have no choice in who to vote for - they WILL vote for McCain-Palin, or they will sleep on the couch for the rest of their wed-lives...
- Forrest Cox
Sally, but were they anti-Obama before the pick is what I'd like to know. Some of them are scaring me.
- Cyndy
@Sean, @Abby, @Sally - I actually think McCain decided to write-off his chances of attracting HRC voters here - Whittman would have been the pick if he were seriously targeting that group. Palin was meant to excite the Conservative base (which she will) - remember, "core" conservatives aren't pleased that they're stuck with John McCain.
- Forrest Cox
@Forrest I don't think he wrote them off at all http://www.hillaryclintonforum.net/discuss...
- David Knight
Forrest -- your analysis makes a good deal of sense. It turns out that Palin is also pro-intelligent design and pro-creationism (and therefore anti-science): http://tinyurl.com/553wfz McCain is offering a bone to the far right, not to Hillary Clinton supporters.
- Sean McBride
Cyndy: One of them was, the other two neutral. Bill C's speech had them wavering and this morning's news had them switching.
- Sally Church
Forrest: ah but this is going to get complicated - my conservative friends are in shock he didn't pick Romney or Ridge so now they are wavering even though they dislike Biden. It's going to be a fascinating election that may go down to the wire again.
- Sally Church
@David - seems to me like a bunch of McCain supporters raiding an HRC message board. I'm not saying that Palin's gender didn't have anything to do with her selection. But her other credentials stand on their own and are probably better suited to current Republican circumstances than any of the other "political" choices save for perhaps Eric Cantor or Bobby Jindal. Again, it's easy to demonize Republicans for a lot of things, but who's being intellectually insulting here?
- Forrest Cox
@Sally - I'd chalk that up to the unfamiliarity factor (provided they really are "conservative"). She's actually more conservative than Romney (by a wide margin), and while she's not as far to the right as is Tom Ridge, I don't believe he was ever seriously considered. His primary credentials are security on nat sec, where McCain doesn't think he needs any help. But you're probably right, it is going to go down to the wire, again.
- Forrest Cox
@Forrest take a look at those post counts that board isn't getting swamped with new users. Palin is a good choice for McCain for a variety of reasons, one of which is attracting disenfranchised Hillary fans
- David Knight
You know, even without the VP pick, I still don't get the McCain allure. He supports continued and/or expanded US involvement in war and his tax plan caters to the rich. How exactly is that something a majority of Americans want? We're a nation drowning in debt with a currency in the tank. Is it just social conservatives hunkering down?
- AJ Kohn
@David - The point remains that her choice is one that was made to shore up the base. How many pro-life, small government, lower taxes, pro-drilling, anti-gay marriage legalization voters cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton for any reason OTHER than the fact that she was a woman? If those are the HRC supporters McCain was targeting, I'd posit that he had every reason to expect their votes in November anyways.
- Forrest Cox
Some of us believe that pulling out of Iraq on a timeline could leave it and the area in worse shape than the mess we've already made. Personally I'd prefer neither candidate push for more tax cuts, the sheer amount of money it's going to take to pay for SS and Medicare/Medicaid is frightening enough w/o creating more debt now. Plus it's hard for me to tell if they believe tax cuts will help or if they are trying to buy votes/donations.
- David Knight
@AJ - Actually he doesn't favor "expansion" of our involvement there - he just wants to win. He also was privy to the deal on a U.S. pullout, and rightly understood that the surge would lead to LESS emphasis on the War in the general election. Your tax analysis seems to ignore the notion that, by and large, MOST Americans want lower taxes: full stop. The class warfare thing plays less well on Main Street than most urban-dwellers would assume...
- Forrest Cox
might I point out that SNL is going to have a field day with this choice, since she looks remarkably like Tina Fey....
- Ronald
@Forrest: So, which candidate is more likely to engage in a war with Iran? Which candidate said we'd be in Iraq for 100 years? You're right, McCain does just want to win, that - to me - is the blind spot. Win at what cost? Both human and dollars. Sorry, the fact that everyone wants lower taxes doesn't not obviate the distribution of tax cuts by McCain. Imagine lower gas prices for those driving cars selling for over $60K. Where about in the heartland are you from?
- AJ Kohn
Forrest - what in the world does "winning" in Iraq mean? The Iraq War is already the biggest foreign policy disaster in American history -- there is no way now to recover the several trillions of dollars that have been committed to producing an outcome that is radically injurious to the American interest. The main beneficiaries of the Iraq War have been Iran, Muslim fundamentalists,...
more...
- Sean McBride
Forrest -- and I just discovered that Sarah Palin, the Republican VP pick, is also clueless about what John McCain means by "winning" in Iraq. The truth is, McCain hasn't the slightest idea of what he is talking about on this all-important issue and neither do any John McCain supporters.
- Sean McBride
Forrest: McCain's empty words about "winning" in Iraq: "U.S. forces will pull out of Iraq because they are seriously overextended, both financially and in manpower. They will also pull out because the rest of the world is starting to realize just how powerless the U.S. has become -- with its army bogged down in Iraq. In any event, it doesn't really matter when or how they pull out. The...
more...
- Sean McBride
Uh Oh... Could This Be True about Palin? http://www.dailykos.com/story...
- bill giltner
@AJ - I'm actually glad you mentioned Iran and the likelihood of conflict. I do believe, after all, it's the candidate of the left that has openly mentioned a desire to preemptively breach Pakistan's territorial integrity to find a man who may or may not be alive. For a number of reasons I'll not go into here, I believe an Obama election increases dramatically the chances we will spend the next 4 years in heightened states of conflict around the globe.
- Forrest Cox
@Sean - word limit notwithstanding, I'll try to be brief. We're drawing down our troops in Iraq. An Islamist government in Iraq is absolutely fine, so long as the populace has had a relatively fair say in granting that government power. The conflict has never been about Islamists per-se - it has been about normalizing asymmetrical threats (fanatical religion in a world of semi-secular states often manifests its discontent in the form of asymmetrical threats).
- Forrest Cox
Dictators too confront democratically elected states with threats that are difficult to deal with. Dictators who collaborate with fanatical actors are all the worse. In that sense, we haven't made the situation worse - we have, in fact, already won. Hence the drawdown. So long as that process is orderly, and thanks to the surge, it now can be, we are fine.
- Forrest Cox
Now for American power - perhaps Georgia has shown that the emperor truly had no clothes. I've written as much elsewhere, but now think that I was less than half-right. With the most powerful military the world has ever seen (both in absolute and in relative strength), a $10+ trillion economy that is still growing at 3% despite a financial catastrophe, and an extraordinarily dynamic population some 300 mm strong - I think it more likely the Emperor has clothes alright. He's just forgotten where they are.
- Forrest Cox
Forrest: you just claimed that we've already won the war in Iraq. Explain, using a rational cost/benefit analysis, how the expediture of several TRILLIONS of dollars to replace the relatively secular Saddam regime in Iraq with an Iranian-controlled regime makes sense. As William Odom, the former head of the NSA, remarked: the Iraq War is the biggest foreign policy disaster in American...
more...
- Sean McBride
Forrest: Why CIA Veterans are Scared of McCain http://tinyurl.com/5av7zn
- Sean McBride
The Iraq War in a nutshell: http://tinyurl.com/6ohj7l "A prominent international observer sent me this note this morning: The Bush administration is not even good at imperialism. Bush sacrifices American money and military lives to prop up a government allied with Iran in the hope of getting a few military bases and some oil contracts for its friends. Meanwhile the Maliki government...
more...
- Sean McBride
What can I make with approximately a million tomatoes from my garden?
Cee Bee and David Ward liked this
Marinara for your brother.
- Bret Taylor
So you coming up here to get it? :) (Edit: I was talking to Bret, not you Andy!)
- Shannon Jiménez
buy lots of bacon and lettuce...you know what to do next!
- George Lee
from twhirl
I am SOOOOOOO jealous! I am having a very bad case of tomato withdrawal since I have zero this year with my yard under construction. I think I will over compensate next year and plant 20 plants...
- Sheila Taylor
Marinara sauce freezes well...
- Sheila Taylor
Homemade tomato paste, roasted tomatoes, salsa
- FFing Enigma (aka Tina)
every august there's an abundance of tomatoes and i absolutely love it. try canning or placing them in jars for sauce. it's real easy to do
- Cee Bee
puree the stuff and freeze it
- Deepak Singh
If you really had that many tomatoes, you can start selling them to overseas. It's a global economy afterall. :)
- imabonehead
Serve caprese salad with every meal. When you finally tire of it, the tomatoes will be gone and it will be winter and you will have many months to wait before you get it again
- Sheila Taylor
chop some, dice some, puree some and then freeze the whole lot - you'll be covered in almost every cooking context
- Charles Hudson
panzanella salad...yum! Marinara sauce as well...yum, yum!!
- Skye Miller
i'm italian we make a lot of things with tomatoes
- Fabrizio
Tonight I ended up making stuffed tomatoes, since one of the varieties I planted this year is called "yellow stuffer" and I had yet to stuff any of them. But I appreciate all suggestions, since there are many more left!
- Shannon Jiménez
Gazpacho!
- Anne Bouey
Your mom grows tomatoes.
- Jim Norris
@ fabrizio...all Italians know what to do with tomatoes!!
- Skye Miller
salsa - see my recent salsa canning article http://fedibblety.com/house...
- Robert Felty
@Robert-- that's a great idea. Think I will try that when I have a new bunch ripe this weekend. Hey Mom, I may be calling for help :)
- Shannon Jiménez
Come on over!!
- Sheila Taylor
WAKE n’ BACON ?!? - http://szymon.tumblr.com/post...
fijidaddy and adolfo foronda liked this
any one who watches the America office would love this thing.
- Stefan Hayden
Somebody at lunch was telling me that bacon is the #1 reason for vegetarians falling off the wagon. Not sure if it's true, but it sounds good to me.
- Jonathon
it is the #1 reason I choose not to go vegetarian... ;-)
- George Lee
from twhirl
Can't argue that it's the #1 reason. Fake bacon not good. I'm vegan.
- Terris Linenbach
OMG I want one!!!!!! :-o I would totally look forward to waking up every morning with one of those!
- Robert DeBord
If going to the US for the first time, which city to start with?
Mark Anderson, Luke Gedeon, Brad Nickel and Mitchell Tsai liked this
Depends if you're a city or nature person : )
- Mona Nomura
Must hit cities? New York. New Orleans. San Francisco. Jackson Hole. Chicago. I haven't been to Miami yet, but I hear that's pretty nice too. New Orleans is still my favorite. I hope it comes back. I probably would start with New York, though. That's probably the best tourist city, with SF a close second. But, what kinds of things do you like? If you like Museums I'd head to Washington DC. If you like wine or being outdoors, San Francisco.
- Robert Scoble
I'm a city person first. I like shopping just like my wife. :-)
- Håkan Dahlström
Uh, hello?! Robert! How about LA?
- Trevor Carpenter
NYC, definitely.
- Mona Nomura
Start in the middle and work your way out. Kansas City, MO is one of the most beautiful cities in the country.
- ɐ ɯıʞ sıɹɥɔ
San Francisco and Boston would be my first two.
- Mark Jaquith
from twhirl
NYC probably, but SF is nice given the proximity of Napa, Monterey, Tahoe, etc...definitely NOT LA
- George Lee
from twhirl
This time of year? San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area.
- tagami
Trevor: personally there are a lot better cities to visit than LA. Sorry. LA is better than Atlanta, though, unless you're a CocaCola fan.
- Robert Scoble
I'd say Boston, New York, San Francisco. I second the "stay away from LA." And I live an hour away from it.
- Mohit
New York. Los Angeles (Santa Monica, OC beaches, Whisky, Roxy, and the Troubadour on the Sunset Strip). San Francisco I cannot recommend, but that's because I've been here too long.
- Jeremy Brooks
@Trevor I thought that was more of a region than a city.
- Sam Pullara
I would start with Rugby, North Dakota. Not too different from Svalöv.
- Rutger Blom
San Francisco
- Phillip Jeffrey
I'll give one more vote for S.F. and the surrounding Bay Area and Boston.
- Jeff P. Henderson
I would start from New York:)
- Nia
A second on New Orleans. And Robert, it's creeping back, especially in the Quarter. But I think many of the changes are permanent.
- Chris Baskind
New York City is #1. But it really depends on the person. Museums (Washington DC) Live music (NYC, Nashville) Beaches & Beach Life (LA - Venice Beach, Manhattan Beach, Malibu) Cafes & Intellectual conversation (Boston) Food (NYC) Night-life (LV) Professional Dance (NYC, SF, LA, Chicago, LV) Musicals (NYC, LV) Friendly people (Texas cities, Seattle) Mountains (Yosemite) Clothes & Style (NYC, LV) Classical Music (NYC) Movies/Graphics (LA) Colleges (Boston) Architecture (SF, NYC, LV, Boston) To-Live (SF)
- Mitchell Tsai
I would start off in Chicago. I love my city of Miami, but there you get a beautiful big city, beautiful food, beautiful music, and the friendliest big city people you will find almost anywhere. It is fantastic. After that you can hit the big cities, but do not fail to hit small towns across America for a real flavor(good and bad) for what the country is like.
- Brad Nickel
If New Orleans isn't possible, try Charleston SC or Savannah GA
- FFing Enigma (aka Tina)
Time of year is an important consideration: Right now start in Boston and drive/amtrak/bus to Washington DC stopping at Westerly RI, New Haven CT, NYC, Philadelphia PA, and Baltimore MD. On the way, you can pick from hundreds of other stops depending on your interests including the best beaches on the east coast. From DC fly to San Francisco or Seattle and drive to the other.
- Luke Gedeon
I have been to NYC twice, still waiting for a chance to see more cities (and that space in between them, what do they call that). I am very afraid The Big Apple is the one that will stay favourite. It felt really European too.
- Ruud van Wijngaarden
The fall or spring would be a better time to catch the southern cites. They are a bit more spread out though, so there is no, start here and drive to.... Plus in the South spots outside the cites tend to be more interesting. But the majors in the south are LA and San Diego (beaches not city), Nashville, San Antonio, New Orleans, (definitely not Atlanta), Tampa FL, Charleston, NC, Virgina Beach, VA.
- Luke Gedeon
To understand America, you must (MUST) hit Las Vegas. There is no city that better encapsulates everything the nation is about. The rest are academic, but I'd encourage you to see Chicago, New York and San Francisco.
- Aidan Biggins
Just noticed your comment about really being interested in the city itself. So I would say Boston and NYC. Together they cover the scope of US cites and they are geographically close which makes things easier. Chicago, Atlanta, LA, Las Vegas and a dozen other big cities are just NYC clones. San Francisco, Seattle, DC, Philadelphia, and others are well represented (and a bit one-upped) by Boston.
- Luke Gedeon
Stay out of a city and visit the heartland. Go to a smaller town and just have a drink in a bar and chat with the locals. If you are coming this Fall, I'd strongly suggest catching a college football game at one of the larger Midwestern or Southern schools. That's an eye-opening experience most visitors never ever see firsthand.
- Andrew Leyden
Well if you are planning a long trip, I'd do Boston to New York to Philly to DC. Great cities and they are so close to each other by train. Then you need to get on a plane to San Francisco, the most beautiful city in America. Down to LA then over to Las Vegas. If you are going to the US for the first time, you are really not going to want to watch a college football game.
- PC Easy
@Andrew Leyden they call it flyover country for a reason ;)
- Sam Levine
To everyone that has suggested the heartland (aka flyover): Yes it is beautiful. It is a great place to live and to visit. And honestly, you have not really seen America until you have seen the small towns, but when giving travel advice you have to take into consideration what your visitor wants to see. There are two very different America's. Not as simple as Rural vs. Urban, but that is kinda the idea. Dahlstrom specifically said he is interested in cites. We can save the heartland for others.
- Luke Gedeon
If you want to understand the US better, you need to hit some of the coastal cities mentioned above, and also the heartland as Robert mentions. Then you'll better understand the diversity that makes this country great. By the way, no one mentioned Seattle or Portland, If you're doing the corners, the Northwest is unique as well.
- John Ahrens
Actually the real answer should start with a question--which ocean are you crossing on your way here?
- Andrew Leyden
If you like donuts, green spaces/natural beauty and microbrews, Portland is a great place to visit.
- Alex Scoble
Check out our site: smallwander.com
- Smallwander
I hated Hellboy II: The Golden Army - http://www.blippr.com/movies...
walked out. couldn't handle the predictable plot / cliches
- Andy Sternberg
i thought it was appropriately predictable...my expectations were low :)
- George Lee
from twhirl
people hating on my cat shirt today, I like it... thoughts? http://twitpic.com/660p (purchased on haight st. SF)
 |
Robert Hafer, Shawna Bergen, Benedikt Koehler and 2 other people liked this
Twitpic seems to be having some indigestion. Ahh - it's back and ... yikes. Cat version of Cerberus. Count me in the hating department. Try a 'hang in there baby' iron on instead.
- AJ Kohn
creepy and weird...i like it.
- Corie
I wouldn't have bought it. Looks like something I wore in the 70s as a kid.
- Steve Gillette
from twhirl
Reminds me of Mew's cover: http://tinyurl.com/666o5b
- medic
cat hell? yikes.
- Ňicķ
Yes, I'm 'haighting' that cat shirt. Couldn't help but go for the play on words.
- AJ Kohn
"tell your girlfriend to stop buying you shirts." LOL @ comments
- Louie
Kevin, did you buy this because you shaved your head? :)
- Daynah
if you dont have anything nice to say...you know the rest..I choose not to comment.
- Percival
hate
- Baard @ Pixum
This shirt scares me. So have go with hate.
- Shawn aka ringking
Whoa! A hydra with fur. Kind of extreme, don'tcha think?
- Cindy Bartorillo
I think the shirt looks awesome! Demonic cats ftw!!! :p
- Shawna Bergen
a bit too much cat for my taste
- George Lee
from twhirl
Reminds me of Altered Beast on Genesis ( http://www.youtube.com/watch... )
- Ian White
no like cat shirt :(-
- Peter Dawson
Altered Beast...LOL! Totally.
- Ryan
Don't like it, sorry.
- Oli Kenobi
I'm sure I'm in the minority here, but I hate direct messages, on Twitter & other services, if you want to contact me, email is always best
Niall Connellan, Andy Glover, Dwight Silverman and 37 other people liked this
I totally agree.
- Robert Scoble
I'm tired of email. Work inbox always full, "me too" responses that I don't need to see, etc.
- MiniMage TKDteacher of FF
Such is the mantra of the internet popular folks. Us normal peons tend to manage our 10-20 direct messages a day fairly well
- Bwana ☠
@Robert - that is quite the switch for you isn't it :)
- Steven Hodson
I think what really gets my goat is the email notification of a direct message that I then have to log into a website to respond to. Why can't I just see and reply to the direct message via email?
- Mark Trapp
Email is so 2nd millennium. Now, when my friend wants me, I have her clap twice.
- david beckwith
I totally agree. I want to decide when to reply to a request. IMs make me look rude when not answered instantly.
- Dan van Moll
Bwana, this has nothing to do with popularity, it has to do with efficiently of communication. Also your 10-20 DM's per day are way more than I ever receive (thankfully), so I think you have the popularity thing reversed.
- Scott Beale
facebook still holds a use to those that don't have a twitter account. I like the mail interface there best
- Noah David Simon
one or two is fine, but I dont even have my phone on all the time..
- Danny Bo'itanni
Here, here. I've had "please don't facebook-message me" on my facebook profile since i created it...
- Sean Savage
Sean, good luck getting people to follow that. I've had the "no message" thing on my Facebook profile from the beginning, but most people just ignore it.
- Scott Beale
Twitter DM goes to my email and I can hit back via Twitterberry. Facebook far more intrusive and disruptive.
- Andrew Feinberg
Danny exactly, I get most of my DM's when I'm at my computer, so the mobile argument does not work. It's just one more system that I have to log into to reply, but worse, with Twitter my reply has to be 140 characters. 140 characters totally makes sense when posting to Twitter, but not for direct communication.
- Scott Beale
I have Twitter DMs directed to my mobile - and don't get email notification - and generally respond with email me at ... too bad there isn't an autoresponder on twitter. @sean does that work?
- Beth Kanter
My main problem is that Twitter DMs don't alert you in the UI. You just have to randomly notice the number go up on the right side. (I don't use SMS or email for them)
- Jordan Hofker
I'm not worried either way
- Kol Tregaskes
some of my email accounts are over twenty years old. I have to know you are sending it to see it. facebook helps me filter people who communicate. It would be nice to see someone make a friendfeed direct message system that worked like facebook's advanced threaded email. I don't like facebook any more then anyone else... but it has a purpose.
- Noah David Simon
Agree!
- Mitchell Tsai
Email is dead. Or dying, wasted in the gutter of history wallowing in it's own excrement, waiting to be put out of its misery
- Russell Beattie
Niether is dead. Until teleportation is reality, snail mail cannot be. Dead is dead. For the love of tech, the telegraph JUST died this year.
- Michael W. May
from twhirl
Email is still too useful to die. Mail2ff, posting to services like RTM and Ping.fm. It's still the glue that holds a lot of stuff together and allows us to remotely access some of the most popular Web 2.0 software. I also don't see the point of DM's within a specific service. If I haven't given you my IM or Email info...I probably didn't want to speak to you directly and in private :)
- Rahsheen ™, Coach Rah
Either way is fine by me. They all come directly to my phone.
- Clint Ecker
the reply thing is actually turning out to be very annoying in Twhirl, simply because I can suppress them... so I see them each time I load the app. Ugh...
- Ken Stewart | ChangeForge
Email is good, but if some sends me a DM on Twitter, it comes to my mobile directly. So, if you need a quick reply, it's better to DM me, but if you want a detailed or proper reply, email wins. I guess each has its own situational benefits.
- Rajinder Singh
is it because direct message don't show up in your email?
- George Lee
Thanks to Jason C., email is on the rise again. All the tech bloggers are moving backwards.
- Bob Blunk
Can we Seesmic you?
- Igor The Troll יִצְחָק
When Twitter IM worked (remember way back then?), I started to love DMs in lieu of emails. Now? I loathe them.
- Chris Brogan
Not so, I love direct messages on twitter. I never read them. LOL J/king. I always read them. You should see my contact list!! :P
- Paul
Scott, your comment about 140 character limits on DMs not being enough is one of the main problems. I mean, what's the point? If someone has a personal message, email is the best...Twitter is not the only stop on the internet.
- Zach Underwood
Russell I'm still not buying the whole "email is dead" thing, especially when the communication is not time sensitive. So what alternative means of contact are you giving to people that you don't know (ie. on your website, etc.)? IM, SMS, phone number? No thanks, I'll stick with email.
- Scott Beale
I prefer email. Comes straight to my phone and easy to reply. DMs are hard to reply to when I am mobile.
- Jeremy Franklin
Jeremy, exactly, with my iPhone it's very easy to reply to someone via email.
- Scott Beale
Like Rajinder, I think Twitter DM's are a great way to send a quick message or heads up. Similar to getting an SMS basically. But for serious communication or questions, email is the definite winner. You can be much more detailed and convey more (usually) important info that way.
- Dave Schumaker
I just want to be contacted. DM, email, Facebook, a hug...whatever :)
- Blake N. Cooper
I rely more on email than any social site to communicate, but that's me. Email is good for things that can wait a bit, DMs/IMs/SMS messages are good for immediate communication IF it is REALLY that important and in emergencies, I'd rather get a phone call. That's just me
- Andy Glover
My personal preference is the singing telegram, but few people care enough to really take the time these days.
- Mistletoe Glen
I"m the opposite. If you DM on twitter during the day, I'll know about it almost immediately as I use SMS. If you email me, I'll usually get it relatively quickly, as I check my email every hour or so during the working day, and a few times outside of the working day too. It's the phone I dislike
- Ian May
Regarding Facebook, I don't go into it for a few days at times. I treat it as a play time activity, and not for work use.
- Ian May
I don't understand putting yourself out there on a public framework, and not expecting people to contract you via that public mechanism. Twitter and those types of services are not a one way street. I can tell the world something, but don't bother me with your thoughts about it, unless you use the pre-approved comment system. Also, please don't pester me with your DMs, but make sure you subscribe to me on Identi.ca! Yeah, that sounds really fair to me. *sarcasm*
- Darrell Bell
Different tools for different needs: IM for instant message... "I'm in a mtg, can't get your call...is it important?". E-mail for more complete communication. Phone can be pretty useless, what with phone tag and voicemail tag.
- Mahboud Zabetian
However, what I dislike about Twitter & DM is that it kills my enjoyment/use of Twitter. I want to know what people are up to, what they are thinking, what they want others to know about. What is not enjoyable/useful is seeing half of a semi-private conversation. Like msg today: "@so_and_so didn't know! is he okay?!" Huh? Who? What? Should I ask? Wazzup? I think DMs should be DMS and not half-duplex shouts into the ether...
- Mahboud Zabetian
I use Twitter almost exclusively through email, via direct notifications and the daily FriendFeed summary email. My sister uses Twitter direct, and I am frustrated that I use email to reply. I check my girlfriend's twitter on the website sometimes when I'm curious :)
- Richard Soderberg
I dont think you are the minority here. Emails for direct messages are the best
- Rajat Tibrewal
from twhirl
same here. completely agree
- john conroy
for people who are inundated with email, it does cut through the clutter. it's a filter.
- Adam
Scrabulous is such a clear infringement on Scrabble; no idea how they thought they'd get away with that http://is.gd/13k3
Johan, BeeLing, Wayne and 2 other people liked this
yes, it is infringement, but the right strategic move would have been a buyout.
- Justin Whitaker
of two minds...clearly an infringement, but love the initiative by the scrabulous team. let's face it...no Scrabble on facebook if scrabulous hadn't pushed the envelope there.
- George Lee
from twhirl
After reading several early interviews with the two young creators of this, I don't think they were trying to 'get away' with anything. They where Scrabble lovers, and with the LACk of an offical online scrabble version, decided to write their own. I think the makers of Scrabble have missed an oppertunity here... not only to gain a dedicaed user base but show good will and corporate decency.
- Johnny Worthington
Pogo just got the Scrabble contract at the same time as the FaceBook release. They are also doing an official Monopoly.
- Adrienne Van Houten
Definitely an infringement, but Hasbro would be better served to slap them on the wrist and cut a deal, because they have everything to gain and nothing to lose. The popularity of scrabulous will most certainly bring a significant boost to Scrabble game sales, many to new demographics that would otherwise never consider it. Silly.
- jcunwired
(while I agree that Hasbro should have done light wrist slappping :) ) on the other hand, if Hasbro were'nt as strict about it, wouldn't it send the signal : " hey, infringe us!! we'll reward you later"
- moogs
You're correct ramil. Hasbro only really had 2 options here: buy out, or sue. If you don't actively protect your trademarks or copyrights (aka sue), you could potentially lose them.
- Johan
Mad Men has my favorite TV intro, possibly ever!
Mike Doeff, Michael Markman, Kurt Schmidt and 9 other people liked this
A+++++++++++++++++
- George Lee
from twhirl
Is this show worth persevering with? I've watch the first 3 episodes and I'm not loving it.
- Barak B
I think so, Barak. I had the same difficulty getting into it, but it ended up becoming one of my favorite shows.
- Kevin Hessel
Thanks David and Kevin. I think given all the critical acclaim it has been getting i'll give it another couple of episodes. It does have some charm just hasn't pulled me in yet.
- Barak B
David T Cole - can't tell from your comments whether you actually like it.
- Barak B
There is room for Mad Men on FF. Feel free to join and spread the word.
- Paul Denlinger
I think it's a little like Desperate Housewives for smart media people who are good at marketing themselves in the 60s.
- Paul Denlinger
halfway through season 1, great show.
- MG Siegler
Saw the first two episodes of Season 1 last night and I gotta say, Mad Men is an elegant show
- Jorge Escobar
I'm really looking forward to Season 2. One of the best shows on TV.
- David Weiner
Intro-great; Show-amazing. The level of detail they bring to the show is outstanding.
- Ryan Cates
can't wait for the new season of Mad Men this Sunday. Only wish Time Warner had AMC in HD where I live.
- Alan Wages
The best intro EVER for me is Six Feet Under -- but I agree, Mad Men has a great intro (and it's a great show)
- Jorge Escobar
Haunting, simple, stark, unsettling. It's one of the few openings I never FF through. It captures the dark sense of dread that underlies the show. Brilliant touch that the agency is pimping Nixon. (FF = fast forward, not friendfeed)
- Michael Markman
Yeah, I thought it had the best pilot for a TV show I've seen in years. Been hooked since (thank goodness for downloadable TV). And I still think Carnivale had the best intro ever.
- Noah Mittman
Ryan, if you're really looking for best intro ever, I'll say it's a tie between Get Smart and Lavern and Shirley.
- Michael Markman
If Google Buys Digg, What Happens Next? ( http://mashable.com/2008... )
David Young, Luca Filigheddu, Andrew Terry and Vincent X liked this
why buy digg when they are already testing/implementing voting and comments on their search results already (or at least reported by TechCrunch)?
- George Lee
from twhirl
I don't think that Digg's voting system is something Google needs. Perhaps Google doesn't need anything from Digg, maybe they just want to own it - which is completely unlike Google. We'll see. I don't think Digg is too smart a buy for Google, and maybe it's not a smart buy for anyone. But, Google can afford it, and I don't think it can hurt.
- Stan Schroeder
Weblogging will begin to fade as a way to differentiate yourself --- the next era of personal promotion is going to be through video blogging.
Franklin Naval, Nick, Håkan Dahlström and 8 other people liked this
Yeap! Come to Seesmic http://www.seesmic.com/igorthe...
- Igor The Troll יִצְחָק
No, I can read faster than listening to someone rattle on about nothing, while trying to be cute.
- LPH™ and his dog P™
I disagree too. The next era of personal promotion is going to be through FriendFeeding, which includes both video and text blogs.
- Robert Scoble
Robert: +1 to you and adding a voice blogging "speech2text" system. (that works properly)
- Erhan Erdogan
Nope. I prefer to read, and I prefer to write. A LOT of people are exhibitionists enough to write publicly, but NOT exhibitionists enough to talk on voice, not to mention to go video. Another thing you have to consider is that while writing has not got an accent, talk has. (Funny fact: majority of the world is not a native English speaker) And while a lot of people want to talk to a big audience, and that means English, over voice it is way more difficult than through writing
- Roland Hesz
is your presumption that people blog for self promotion?
- Christian Anderson
Christian: well, there is a certain amount of self promotion that's necessary for a blog. Otherwise, why not just email your thoughts to yourself, or have a private blog? At some level people who write for public consumption are hoping to be read, if not just by Google's spiders. To me that's defacto self promotion.
- Robert Scoble
differentiate yourself?...maybe, but i don't think it takes over blogging. Sound/listening is more cumbersome than just reading. Maybe a differentiator is being a GOOD writer/blogger? ;-)
- George Lee
from twhirl
I hope that the next thing doesn't become about personal promotion. That's what's turning everyone off from blogs. It should be about ideas, like everyone here keeps saying.
- Eric Florenzano
Only for the beautiful people. The anonymous text based medium of the internet net has allowed a nation of wallflowers and introverts to blossom. Video blogging will be little more than a fashion show. It's best use on the internet will be for technology demonstration.
- Adam Turetzky
will we see a Milli Vanilli or Cyrano de Bergerac of videoblogging?
- George Lee
from twhirl
Robert: agree there is a certain amount of self-promotion that goes hand in hand with blogging, but my sense is the vast majority of bloggers out there are blogging to share thoughts with friends or as a way to differentiate themselves as thoughtful/knowledgeable in their industry almost as an add-on to a resume or creative outlet -- not as a medium for self promotion for self promotion's sake.
- Christian Anderson
Still prefer writing to video, but video it has its place. I'm getting better at it.
- Andrew Feinberg
while I believe that video is the next big thing in the personal blogging space, blogging won't die: text is still the easiest way to consume content
- Duncan Riley
i am loving videblogging. It has already helped iterasi win a start up contest that resulted in two free tickets and exhibit space at Supernova.
- Alex Williams
Nah its not for me, never click the play button. I have too much living still to do.
- Mel Buckpitt
@Robert I know bloggers who write to be heard, but would NEVER put their voice and face behind their blogs as it is too personal and painful. They just need a place to tell the world and got some nice support.
- Roland Hesz
Duncan: I agree, but there's nothing like getting an iPhone app demo on video.
- Robert Scoble
true Robert.
- Duncan Riley
video becomes easier, so everyone can do it. The same reason blogging took off, because it was easy to publish your thoughts online. So video, will be the next big addition to self promotion. Video is taking off, does this mean podcasting is not going to make it?
- Erno Hannink
Videoblogging http://seesmic.com/v...
- Igor The Troll יִצְחָק
Blogging will be dominated by multimedia not only video
- Igor Poltavskiy
If you're blogging with the intent to be differentiated, you're probably doing it for the wrong reason.
- Louis Gray
I am blogging because it is fun! Whatever comes besides that I consider it plus alpha, money wise and anything else wise!
- Igor The Troll יִצְחָק
I think I was wrong after reading this conversation (wow, it exploded!) - I think the future is a mix. Blogs that allow for MULTIPLE streams of taking in information - the ones who seamlessly integrate, video, audio, text, and yes, Friendfeed will rise above.
- Ben Parr
+ 1 Ben's post above
- Susan Beebe
Louis: interesting. What are the right reasons to blog?
- Christian Anderson
from fftogo
Anything that requires me to be in front of a camera at any point is made of Epic Fail and Lose. I'm bad enough behind a mic. With visual torments for my audience? Not even I'm that cruel.
- Alexander Williams
from NoiseRiver
Wow, clearly this was posted to start a conversation. Great bait. Absolute insanity though, podcasting or videoblogging was never intended to replace anything. Nor will it.
- drew olanoff
You Need More Cowbell on Your iPhone (FREE) - http://homepage.mac.com/mavsftw...
Michael Gaines, Larry, Steve Lynch and 31 other people liked this
...this just might push me over the edge to get the iphone!
- George Lee
from twhirl
I CAN HAZ COWBELL?
- Chris Baskind
Tonight's FF = GIZMODO
- Mona Nomura
This phone needs more cowbell.
- Candace
Totally, Mona... you're a one-woman Gizmodo.
- l0ckergn0me
OMFG I <3 YOU CHRIS!
- drew olanoff
That's better Gizmodo > digg
- Mona Nomura
this might be the best app evar!
- Morgan
lulz. MORE COWBELL!!!
- Gary Bacon II
haha what the hell
- Tom Warren
Is compatible with http://tinysong.com/GuM
- l0ckergn0me
i thought it would play the sound if i shake the iPhone (the cowbell) but i have to tap on it - what a pity! :-|
- 210cm
now that is sweet
- (jeff)isageek
cowbells? We don't need no stinkin' cowbells.
- Don Martelli
from twhirl
OMG, I may have to buy an iPhone just for this! Does it have Christopher Walken cheering you on? I've got a FEVA and the only perscription is more iPhone.
- Christian Anderson
dope - via StumbleRead
- Adam Loving
Downloaded it 10 seconds after seeing this on FF
- Jim Goldstein
Too bad it doesn't make use of the accelerameter
- Jim Goldstein
not using the accelerometer = FAIL
- jon madison
from twhirl
oh wait, you *hit* a cowbell anyway :)
- jon madison
from twhirl
I doesn't use the Acelerometer? That would be boring...
- Oliver
Would you Buy a USB Microscope? - http://chris.pirillo.com/2008...
RAPatton, Lisha Sterling, Mitchell Tsai and 6 other people liked this
Yes I would
- Mo Kargas
that is so great! love the cam, now how can i work this into a film?!
- michael sean wright
hmmm...not sure...maybe usb TELEscope...
- George Lee
from twhirl
yes, yes I would. (says the homeschooling mom in the corner)
- Lisha Sterling
Yes! The second question is Buy or build? Buy or build?
- ha3rvey (Ho)^3
Yes!
- Jake (aka Jawee)
from twhirl
attending "How to Kill Google" session @ Foo with @DannySullivan @StephanSpencer @JessicaFox #foo #foocamp
opportunity for "How to Kill Google for Dummies"?
- George Lee
from twhirl
Dave McClure - http://www.flickr.com/photos...
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Elliott Ng liked this
Favoriting your own picture Dave? Thought I'd "like" this so you're not hangin' out there yourself bro'.
- Elliott Ng
I favorite the favorites
- Marc Canter
I don't feel totally comfortable (hearting) your picture...instead I'll just suggest that I like this picture better than the tough guy mug you have for your profile pic ;-)
- George Lee
from twhirl
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