Displaying 301 To 330 Of 1,384 Comments Chern – I just consider myself well-seasoned… » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:55 pm Truth – when you convert the image from TIFF (large physical size, mondo data) to JPEG (compressed image information, no metadata) the physical size remains the same as before. You need to resize it to something reasonable before saving. TIFF files are used by commercial printers and others to print posters and signs, usually. JPEGs, of course, are used for everything from printing an 8×10 photo on down to tiny stuff like for here. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:46 pm Chern – a touch of rosemary works real well with that! » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:42 pm Truth – Snooki & Sarah Palin? Isn’t that redundant? » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:40 pm Cher & Truth – TIFF files are typically graphics files used by graphic artists and contain HUGE amounts of data and metadata. They are usually uncondensed, unlike JPEGs, which is why it kept coming out so large. Just an FYI… (I’m a photo geek… I have much wisdom…) » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:33 pm Truth – convert that tiff file to a jpeg and repost.. just open it and do a Save As. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:06 pm Cher – a “tiff” is a type of picture file, like a jpeg. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:05 pm ADONAI – THIS is why I call myself a Socialist! I’m not really, but I say it to make the point that responsible government must take charge of certain areas of society. It cannot be left to for-profit entities » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 2:01 pm AADONAI – the privatization thing drives me up the wall. I ask that question all the time, and NO ONE can tell me one thing that has ever cost less. Not one. Ever. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 1:36 pm A previous rant from a previous place, partly addressing privatization: There are 3 pillars of conservatism these days, and only 3. They are: 1. Tax cuts help ‘the economy.’ 2. Deregulation helps ‘the economy.’ 3. Privatization is cheaper and more efficient, therefore it helps ‘the economy.’ Let’s debunk each in turn. 1. There is absolutely NO historical evidence that tax cuts grow the economy. CBO reports going back 50 years show that as soon as the Reagan tax cuts became effective, the GDP flatlined around 2.5% and hasn’t changed much since. Alan Greenspan has admitted in sworn testimony to Congressional committees that tax cuts for the rich return a -20% to the economy. (20 cents on every dollar of tax cuts literally disappear and they don’t know what happened to them) 2. Savings & Loans in the 90’s and now banks and insurance companies …. need I say more? 3. I challenge ANYONE to name any effort, program, or initiative of local, state, or federal government that was privatized that became cheaper or more efficient or both. I’ve asked that question for 20 years and have only ever been given one or two examples. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 1:17 pm Doing Business – The Right Way (Part 9) LG – me too! Should be fun! Stump the smartass! Yeah! » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 9:27 am Abby – similar thinking to “deficits don’t matter.” It’s all about principles and stances and emotion with these guys, not about facts and figures. They despise “bean counters.” I once witnessed a 3-hour screaming match between a company VP and a department manager. The manager had increased sales by 300% over the previous year, and costs had only gone up 200%. Pretty damned good, right? The VP was furious! Why? Because the annual budget had only so many dollars in it for expenses for that department, and he had gone beyond that number by 100%… that was all she was focused on, because she was terrified about having to explain this unbudgeted increase in her expenses to the Board, and didn’t have a clue how to rationalize it. It was one of my OMG! moments when I realized just how abysmally stupid most so-called business people are, even in a billion dollar multi-national. And this woman was on the Finance Committee! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 9:20 am Thanks, Abby. I just hope people are following along. Not many comments, so I don’t know if I lost everyone with all the math, but, as you can see, it all comes back together. There is a real purpose and reason why you have to go through that maze, because you get to here… planning and pricing based on fact, not fancy. Or, as I call it, fact-based business versus faith-based business. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 22, 2011 @ 9:04 am cyrano – And that’s the problem. We can sell people ShamWow’s for $10 that cost 25cents to make, but we can’t sell people on the need for reasonable taxation for services? I don’t believe it. Politicians are just too chicken to try. When was the last time you have heard the words “tax increase” cross any politician’s lips in the last 25 years, other than in a negative way? We all know how hard it is to maintain a standard of living with a limited income. Why are government services exempt from the same phenomenon in people’s minds? Because everyone is afraid to make the case properly. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 2:01 pm http://www.perrspectives.com/blog/archives/000486.htm “On issue after issue, voters across the United States support Democratic positions. And in generic Congressional polls, a majority of Americans consistently prefer Democrats over Republicans. Almost none of which matters for the Republican braintrust. For the GOP, 2008 wasn’t a popularity contest. The Republican strategy for victory hinges on turning out their base while ensuring potential Democratic voters stay home.” “The Republican 25% Strategy of divide, suppress and conquer is simple. First, fire up the base with red meat issues, while using the proven conservative “distribution” channel of churches and single issue advocacy groups to get them to the polls. Second, drive down the participation of potential Democratic and independent voters through curbs on registration, onerous new ID requirements, and polling place eligibility challenges.” » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 10:37 am Abby to the rescue! I am always willing to retract something I can’t verify. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 7:43 am Abby & Caru… I just spent 45 minutes on Google trying to find any support for my contention and could find none. The vast amount of information on the other side of the coin is surprising. I don’t know if there is just so much out there that rah rah’s for the idea that most people in the Colonies were for revolution that it overwhelms the contention, or that the contention is false in some way. Like Abby, though, I DO remember reading that. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 7:31 am I believe the reference I was citing said that this was during the Revolutionary War itself. Some people were rabid Tories, and some were rabid revolutionaries. The rest just wanted to be left alone and hoped that whatever the hell was going on ended as soon as possible so they could get back to their lives. I may be totally wrong, but that’s what I remember. I don’t think that people change all that much century to century. They weren’t any better or worse than we are right now. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 6:38 am I read somewhere, a long time ago, that maybe 10% of everyone living in the British Colonies in North America during the latter part of the 18th Century cared one way or another about revolution, colonial rule, separatism, independence, or any of that. They just wanted to live their daily lives and continue to do what they did every day. I don’t think much has changed. The number of people by percentage of the total population that care vehemently one way or another on any issue of the day is not likely to ever reach into the double digits. I can’t prove that, but all one has to do is to see reports about how many people can even point to the US on a globe or know who the Vice President is, or even name the Speaker of the House, let alone speak or write coherently about any current issue to get the point. Whether the Left, the Right, or the mythical Center cares about any issue is hardly the point. Very few others are barely aware of issues, let alone care about them. It has been my lifelong experience that politics in this country is a spectator sport, with very few understanding the rules, the players, or the game itself. Every year, biannually, or quadannually we have about 2 weeks’ worth of attention to politics and issues and players by the public in general. Again, I remember professional politicos claiming that is about all the time they really have to capture the general populace’s attention. The rest of the time, it is mere Kabuki theater for the 10% that pay attention. Jockying for position before the puck drops… the scrum in rugby… the huddle before the play in football… the occasional music before the play begins… It takes extraordinary events or catastrophic upheavals – engineered or otherwise – to move the general populace to pay attention. And that is what we are currently seeing. Each “side” is invested in making one event or issue catastrophic in the population’s eyes to grab their attention. Everything is disaster. Every day. What happens when you are told you face disaster every day and then look up and nothing much changes in your daily life? That disconnect between what you are told and what you see tends to numb the brain and empathy for anything. The conclusion most ordinary citizens makes is that it IS all just Kabuki entertainment, cheers for the side they like, pay no attention to the details or the real issues, and screams for the other sides’ heads. And then they go fishing. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 23, 2011 @ 4:12 am PocketWatch ➡ Roadkill on Love Highway, just north of mile marker 5. Wave as you go by… » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 9:43 pm My older brother used to say the difference between lust and love was $1,000… spend more than that, and it had BETTER be love! bad joke, I know.. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 8:50 pm Khirad, Since I don’t know enough to really have a certain (as in factually based) opinion, and know nothing of the players, I bow to someone that has more expertise. On the face of it, this guy makes a compelling argument. When faced with an article like this, it is nearly impossible to track down quotes, references, and the like. It would take days, and who’s to know if THOSE are valid or the complete set of facts? Which brings up another point… I contend that the US (or any governemt, for that matter) government’s foreign policies are generally driven by State Dept. Bureauocracy, not the politicos that come and go, including the President. Experts with experience. Or so it seems… am I miguided in thinking that? » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 5:02 pm StJ – I’m thinkin’ …. um…. yeah! » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 3:14 pm I just flash-read the whole paper concerning the Iranian election. Whew! I smell a rat, and not necessarily on the side of the winner. Why has the loser insisted that a do-over take place while ALSO insisting that no serious fact-finding, or even cursory looks take place? Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m no fan of the current Iranian regime, but it appears that 62% of its people are. That’s what – it seems to me – the US and others are concerned about in Egypt and elsewhere these days. Just because WE don’t like a country’s regime and politics, doesn’t mean THEY shouldn’t like it. The only criticism I can find in the whole piece is that it doesn’t seem to address the possibility of coersion BEFORE the election (vote for X, or you’ll have serious issues!). If what the article says is true, or even somewhat true, the vote was correct. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 2:53 pm LG – I WAS going to ask “How can you tell WHAT she stands for?” then I read the post, and you’re right. That is the only thing that I can discern that is consistant as well. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 6:32 am The Daily Planet, Vol.1 Sunday Edition Cher – the Left (whatever THAT is… I find the entire spectrum of progressive thinking to be fairly diverse, to say the least, sort of like a salad without a theme) will be at a disadvantage as long as the “names” of the left don’t listen to Lakoff or his like. As soon as they do, I sincerely believe that we can start to change things for the better. My uncle was the captain of an aircraft carrier during the VN conflict. He once told me it takes 5 miles to make a 180 degree turn. We need to move the ship, and it will take gargantuan effort and focus. Can we focus that much and for as long as it takes? » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 10:41 am Cher – my head refuses to be shrunk. Big as all get-out! 😈 » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 10:37 am And let’s not mention the fact that Joe is a member of a very powerful union himself… » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 10:36 am Cher – They have THAT part down real well! LOL » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 10:30 am Cher – Interesting! I always viewed corporal punishment by parents as a replacement for the far worse things that COULD have happened if the behavior in question wasn’t stopped. Getting hit by a car while running in the street is FAR worse than a spanking or a bap in the head by a concerned parent. Never looked at it deeper than that. » Posted By PocketWatch On February 21, 2011 @ 10:27 amComments Posted By PocketWatch
that are essentially never held accountable by all of us.
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