Category: Do the Right Thing

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Not Exactly Reindeer Games…

Warming up just a tad, but in the low 80s (as in 81 degrees fahrenheit in my no A/C, just windows open office) for the latter part of June? Not too shabby. Heck, the humidity is even in the low 1,000s% range *heh* (Yeh, it is humid enough to drown fish.)

Anywho, after much debate with the voices in my head, I ended up not building a new box from separate components. What I did instead was buy a “debranded” media center comp that I could seriously upgrade. Now, that does mean it came w/o the media center OS it was originally built for, and specific drivers for some of the components are “fun” to track down (drivers for the IR reciever and remote will likely be the most fun to hunt down). It also means I need to buy some more cable to build a new run to the computer (and not incidentally, another–better–splitter; split once into two, then again; one straight to cable “modem” and three runs to other places, for now).

Just more techie fun.

Still, for dirt cheap, an AMD 64X2 5600+ base system with a gig of memory (which I’m going to hand off to someone else–already selected, so don’t put in any requests :-)–and replace with 4GB), a competent sound/vid setup… which I will upgrade, and lotsa nice lil goodies including a nice TV Tuner card, bunches of media connections front and back and enough open PCI slots (one PCIex-1 is taken up already and the PCIex-16 is just waiting on a new vidcard). Oh, the 300W power supply is also scheduled for replacement. I have a nice 450W ps I can use in it until I get the PC Power and Cooling “Rolls Royce” ps I have my eye on, so I’m not screaming bloddy murder about a wimpy ps in my box.

Of course, no OS, media center, all that jazz, means it’s currently running Ubuntu 8.04 with MythTV, but as soon as I plop VirtualBox on, I’ll also install WinXP Pro-64 and hunt around for the usual stuff to use with it. Then, drag out some old software and install Win98 in another VirtualBox, so I can use Encore with it (cos it still doesn’t run under WINE).

UPDATE: *grrr* 64-bit CPU. 64-bit OS. 64-bit version of Virtualbox. Attempt to install 64-bit WinXPP, error: “Attempting to load an x64 operating system, however this CPU is not compatible with x64 mode. Please install a 32-bit X86 operating system.” The only XPP I have available that’s not been installed elsewhere is a 64-bit version. Looks like I’ll have to uninstall VirtualBox and go with VMware, instead. Sad, cos I really like the way VirtualBox sets things up. Oh. Well.

Other fun?my Wonder Woman’s Toshiba is at the “repair depot” for an LCD issue, so… have a desktop compy set up in the living room for her use. Kinda clunky solution, but at least she can chjeck her email and watch Stargate SG-1 reruns simultaneously. *heh*

Still getting above 40mpg in my lil 11-year-old Saturn. Even with “idjits” driving in front of me on two-lane roads that’re largely solid Ozarkian no passing zones.

Example: heading outa town (to another Third World County town about 10 miles away). Traffic stacked up for nearly a mile at nearly 30mph in the 55mph zone. Yep. Some 300 pound idjit on a motor scooter that he could probably push faster than it can carry him.

Now, at 30mph on a level road, I have to keep the lil car in 4th gear. That translates to about 1,500rpm. 45mph, I can use 5th gear… also 1,500rpm. 55mph is not quite 1,800rpm on the same level roadway.

But there I am lugging along at under 30mph, almost 1,500 rpm behind some idjit, wasting fuel.

Oh. Well. Lotsa those folks “driving” around, and I still got 42mpg on my last fill up (about 1mpg more than my porevious fill up–it’ll balance out, perhaps).

Imagine what kind of fuel economy I’d get if even a few of the idjits were to park their cars and attempt to master the intellectual challenge of putting one foot in front of the other…

😉

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Issues and Answers 2.01

Energy policy. No matter how much we work to reform tax policy to get the “feddle gummint” out of savings/investment policy and level the international trade playing field a bit, with the energy lashup that passes for “feddle gummint” policy we now have in place, our economy is hamstrung, our billions are being sent OUT of this country, largely to third world thugs, and we face a future of spiraling inflation.

The answer is complex but can start with one simple thing: learn some commonsense steps we can take NOW… and take them.

See American Solutions for more.

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Issues and Answers 1.02

Yesterday, I posted a video intro to The FairTax as an intro to the idea that real tax reform can have the single greatest ameliorative effect on our economic woes by introducing The FairTax. Today, part two:

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Issues and Answers 1.01

Of the many issues facing citizens nowadays, it’s easy to say that the answer to “What’s toward the top of your current concerns?” would be “It’s the economy, stupid.”

And, beyond simple concerns about oil/gasoline proices and the closely related rise in costs of concumer goods, that’s a very good answer. But it’s important that we understand that our economic problems go far beyond percieved consumer pain caused by rising costs and relatively stagnant wages. Think of several even more important, deeply embedded issues:

The primary “weapon” with which the U.S. used to bring down the Soviet Union was to sucker the soviets into attempting to compete with our economy. And still today, our best largely unused weapon against enemies such as Islamic terrorism is our economy. That’s something even a noncom fighting in Afganistan recognizes (a long read, and the economic observations are buried well down, but a read wll worth your time. h.t. Rosenary’s Thoughts).

Suffice it to say, every effort made by our politicians *spit* to weaken our economy both in obvious ways and in obscure, structural ways, is working. The dollar is at its weakest in decades; our trade imbalance is growing; our indebtedness as a nation is worsening. What to do?

Let’s start with some common sense steps. Step number 1 (even more important than Drill Here-Drill Now): Embrace the FairTax.

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The Ten Commandments

Via email:

T H E 1 0 C O M M A N D M E N T S
The real reason that we can’t have the Ten Commandments posted in a courthouse is this:

You cannot post ‘Thou Shalt Not Steal,’ ‘Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery,’ and ‘Thou Shall Not Bear False Witness’ in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians, because it creates a hostile work environment.

Yeh, poor babies. Wouldn’t want lawyers, judges and politicians *spit* to feel assaulted by *shudder* moral standards of behavior.

(With apologies to the few honest, decent lawyers, both judges and the politician who do observe decent moral standards. OK, so I’m assuming there’s a politician somewhere who is still a decent person fifteen minutes after becoming a politician. And, actually, there may be more than that, since there are so damned many of the critters–and no, I am not using profanity when I refer to politicians–as a class–as “damned”. Think about it. )

Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, The Pink Flamingo, Leaning Straight Up, , Adam’s Blog, Conservative Cat, and Right Voices, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

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It’s Not THE Answer…

…but it’s a step in the right direction.

Then, of course, nuclear power (I like PBRs), space-based solar, TDP plants and more–all very nearly “off-the-shelf” technologies–to round out an approach to energy independence from Middle Eastern (and other foreign) thugs (yeh, Saudis, I’m talking mainly about YOU).

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Tell the Saudis to Drink Their Oil

Found via Hotair (via Pursuing Holiness):

Go Here. Now.

While nuclear energy would make a good near-mid term addendum to our energy needs, we have enough oil in our own back yard to be able to stop paying the Saudi (and other Middle Eastern) thugs for our oil. All we lack is congresscritters who aren’t bought and paid for by those whose real desire is to “Sink America First!”

Also via Hotair:

Yep.

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Dirty Tricks

Mickey Kantor: Not Guilty.

That’s the considered opinion of our experts (me, myself and I) here at twc central. The fact that the Clintoonistas are among the most accomplished dirty politicians of all time doesn’t excuse the YouTube fakery that had Mickey Kantor, a Clintoonista operative in 1992, calling Indianans “white n*****s”. twc central finds Mickey Kantor Not Guilty and says “Fie on you, you dirty bugger!” to the creep who faked the video/transcription *heh* (no link provided–you can find the thing on your own if you’re so inclined).

Throw all the Clintoonistas in the fires of the hell of their own making, if you want, but don’t make false accusations against them, because it only lowers those who do to the Clintoonistas’ level.

Trackposted to Pooh Flinging NeoCons, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, Rosemary’s Thoughts, Allie is Wired, Woman Honor Thyself, and The World According to Carl, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

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Make War on “The War on Terror”

Seriously, folks, is there a stupider phrase than “War on Terror”? Think about it. What?!?! We’re making “war” on an emotion? “War on TerrorISM” would be pretty easy to live with, but “War on Terror” is just plain stupid.

Make war on “War on Terror” by refusing to use the idiotic phrase. Poke fun at it and at people who use it unthinkingly. Blow them all a big, fat, juicy raspberry.

Just stop the senseless butchering of the English language.

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Trackposted to Celebrity Smack, The Pink Flamingo, Rosemary’s Thoughts, Adam’s Blog, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.