Misty, water-colored memories...

Found this in the archives over at Wired :

Date: Wed 12/20/2000 2:22 PM
From: Jonathan Harber (jharber@fundsxpress.com)
To: newsfeedback@wired.com
Subject: Happy Holidays ... You're Fired

Regarding the subject story, I find it hard to believe anyone is surprised. ("Happy Holidays ... You're Fired," Dec. 18, 2000) Through 1998 and 1999, many 20-somethings with little experience, basic skills and self-important attitudes demanded super-inflated salaries (not to mention sports cars and other stuff) relative to their skills and experience.

Many dot-coms with no real business plans hired these often spoiled brats when they had lots of money and catered to their every whim thinking the money would last forever and it didn't. Now these youngsters will have to start low and work their way up just like everyone else. This is a direct result of wishing for castles in the air.

Successful businesses have followed plans that slowly and prudently build revenue streams for 200 years and will continue to do so by rewarding quality products and solid business plans rather than catering to a culture that supports the opposite. The dot-coms that have dried up have done so because they had weak plans, offices that were too fancy, perks that were too expensive, and compensation packages that were too greedy. This result was inevitable.

Ahhh...the memories.

Note to the unwashed masses: Fundsxpress is a company I used to work for (along with some other folks), back in my heady, code-slinging days of yore. Still, having been one of the ones with the inflated salaries (I declined on the sports car...I'm not greedy, dammit!), I really did like the irony of the above post considering that FX back in the heyday was neither slowly, nor prudently building revenue streams.

Goes, back to that old gamblers maxim, "If you've been at the table for twenty minutes and can't figure out who the patsy is, get out. You're the patsy."

Oslo Gay Animal Show...it's SUPER, thanks for ASKING!

You know, I find it REALLY funny (but not surprising) that there has been opposition to the Oslo Gay Animal Exhibit.  I mean, it sure does hurt the fundamentalist argument that homosexuality is a choice, not a genetic trait, when:

homosexuality has been observed among 1,500 species, and that in 500 of those it is well documented.

Still, you've got to give those true believers credit, to tenaciously cling to their views in the face of mounting evidence (pun intended...BA DUM BUM!) requires some strong faith...or rampant stupidity...or both.

Maybe they can just crawl under their bed with the flashlight, bedecked in their Armor of God PJs (thanks Matt!) and pray for the Rapture to come.

Carmen Electra and the Law of Attraction

I was in CVS today buying some playing cards when I spied the latest copy of Us Weekly and started flipping thru it. This magazine is like a Hollywood train wreck in print form. After reading about the horrors of Tara Reid's botched plastic surgeries and the life lessons she learned, I spied this awesome quote from Carmen Electra, erstwhile "Strip Aerobics" instructor and physics hobbyist:

I'm really into quantum physics. Some of my friends are into it, some of them aren't, so I'm trying to get them excited about discovering all these interesting things about thoughts and the power of thoughts.

It gives me chills thinking about it. It's fun.

It's about time celebrities started endorsing active participation in science and encouraging the younger generation to get interested in learning. And while I imagine that Richard Feynman would've been a big fan of Carmen's ability to tone her body thru the high impact art of striptease, he might take exception to her implicit definition of quantum physics in the above quote.

Quantum physics is a seriously complex topic, one that I admittedly have a very weak grasp on.  However, I'm pretty sure it has nothing to do with the "power of thoughts."  I would suggest Ms. Electra consider taking some courses at the local university to brush up on her understanding of physics.  While I'm sure she will be bored by the rudimentary Newtonian physics models she will be forced to study in the beginning of her educational journey, she will get to study quantum models soon enough.  And when she does advance to that point, she will have learned enough to realize just how stupid the above quote was.

Tags: carmen+electra quantum+physics skeptic woo+woo

The Following is NOT a Drill...

After making a public promise to post more I find myself falling down on the job.  The last post was made over a month ago.  Sheesh!  A lot of stuff has been going on here, work has been very busy, and I've had several guests in from out of town over the last few weeks that have kept me away from my little corner of the web.

This week my son and wife are out of town, leaving me to wonder how I stood the quiet of my apartment back in the days when I was single.  Though the quiet was a little disconcerting at first, I have to admit there was a certain thrill I felt when I sat down and read for two hours straight on Monday with no interruptions or pressing matters.

I've decided that quiet time is definitely something that needs to be put into the schedule every once in awhile.

Logical Fallacies Explained

I haven't found a better explanation of common logical fallacies than this one, therefore, this link is the best explanation EVAH! (Argument from Ignorance) (found via reddit)

Steve's collecting more attention

Apparently, another person has started wondering about Steve Pavlina's grasp on reality. It'll be interesting to see where the "Is Steve Delusional?" blog goes as it develops.

As I've said before, the burden of proof is on the claimant, and so far all I've heard in response to my request for proof is the sound of crickets chirping in the distance.

American Education is Alive and Well!

Me:  "I'd like a gallon and a half of paint please."
Guy at the Register (GATR): "We don't sell half gallons; we only have gallon and quart cans of paint."
Me:  "Okay give me a gallon and two quarts of paint."

Methinks someone should have paid a bit more attention to rudimentary fractions in math class as a child.

Tags: math humor consumerism

Subjective Universe

Well, I got sick of the general lack of results that my silly objectivist worldview was getting me, so I took Steve's suggestion and started adopting a subjectivist mentality! The results have been outstanding! For instance, I saw this video on psipog.net and got all inspired to practice my psychic skills. I tried and tried and tried and nothing happened. Then I tried one last time and was able to produce this video:

Actually, that's not exactly how it happened. First, I saw the video and thought, "Gee, that looks an awful lot like a magic trick I learned in high school." Then I set up said magic trick and filmed it. And unlike the sample video I do it with the top of the glass in full view. Of course, psipog, the investigatory powerhouse that it is, states on the media page:

Everyone knows that videos and pictures can be faked - please do not go around saying how you think something was faked, there are literally hundreds of ways to fake the files below. With that said; they aren't fake. But draw your own conclusions.

Okay, so my conclusion? They're fakes. By the way, the music in the video is relevant to this post. First person to name the song in the comments section wins my love and respect. Matt's probably most likely to get it.

Tags: skeptic psychic+powers psipog bullshit