Much Ado About A-Roid

So Alex Rodriguez took steroids.  I'd like to know what the big deal is.  I know that baseball's statistics are somehow considered more hallowed than any other sport, but cheaters have always existed in baseball.  Sure, they didn't inject TGH or HGH, but there are more ways than that to find your way to a higher batting average or more home runs than just chemicals.  There's pine tar, corking your bat, sanding the ball, and so on down the list.  They may not be as effective, but they were certainly designed to do one thing and one thing only: get better.  Just because the cheaters in the hall of fame (and you know there were many) weren't caught and/or weren't as technologically sophisticated doesn't mean that we should punish the cheaters of this day and age.
At the end of the day with Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and the 103 other positive tests, they shouldn't be punished for their perifidy with regard to the test.  The bottom line is that steroids were not banned in baseball when they took them.  That means that what they did, as stupid and life threatening as it was, doesn't matter.  Now they are, so it's a different story.  Anybody caught now should face the punishments baseball has meted out.
On the other hand, anyone who has lied under oath (i.e. Barry Bonds) should face the appropriate punishments in a court of law and the court of public opinion.  It shouldn't change their legacy, just how things end up with them. 

Watch for Spastics

Here's a sign I saw in Palmyra, NY yesterday.  Apparently we all need to know that these children are not just any youth, but slow youth.  We also need to know exactly where they congregate, for one reason or another.

Illegals Must Be On The Rise

...or maybe Nancy Pelosi is counting everybody in North America, because otherwise this number doesn't make any sense at all. Of course, 200 million illegals would mean that for every 3 US citizens we have 2 illegals, but I'm trying to get the math here. That aside, isn't it just blatant fear-mongering to assume that if we don't pass the stimulus, every man, woman, and child in the country will be out of a job? I know that things aren't great, but they're not that bad.

Take Your Eco-Concerns Up A Notch

The Stupidity of Compensation Caps

The Wall Street Journal has done a great job covering the ongoing evolution of TARP, from its genesis at the collapse of Lehman Brothers up to and including today.  What I find amazing is how the government decided that it is now in their best interest and within their power to put in place whatever caps they deem fit for companies.  There is the much publicized $500,000 salary cap for executive pay for companies who take any additional TARP funds, but there are also revelations like the Treasury doing everything they could to force Bank of America to take on Merrill Lynch, regardless of Merrill's financial health. 
Then there's also the hand wringing about Citigroup's jet, BofA's fleet, Citi Field, apartments, junkets for high performers, and so on.  While I agree that some of these things are superfluous, some are necessary for their business.  Take AIG, the (now) government owned insurance and lending giant.  We hear about junket this and business trip that, and how can they afford to do that, they've lost billions.  Yes, they have lost a lot.  At the same time, the units that had these lavish parties - American General insurance, ILFC (a major aircraft lessor) - are units that are very profitable.  If that's the case, is the cost of these junkets really that big of a deal?  If the executives of these units feel that there is a good return on investment as a result of this (and knowing a thing or two about ILFC's chief Steven Udvar-Hazy, there is), shouldn't the government do what any good shareholder would do - shut up and let the managers manage? 
Ultimately, the way these bailout stakes are structured is as investments - ownership of large blocks of stock.  The #1 rule of stock ownership is to not write a letter to the CEO of the company you own every time something happens.  If you don't like the job that the CEO is doing, you get enough votes together to have enough board sway to replace the CEO.  That won't happen under the current structure in part because from the sound of things, nobody wants to have the government up in their business.  These leaders would be happier without the TARP money and are trying to get it paid back as soon as possible so they can take off the handcuffs and get back to doing business the way it should be done, rather than as a bloated, incompetent bureaucracy says it should.
Let's put this another way: who should we trust, people who year after year are trained to maximize profits and thus shareholder return in order to increase their company's share price, market cap, and market share...or people who continue to put money into a half a million dollar outhouse in Pennsylvania or the $650 toilet seat?

Denny's Hits a Grand Slam

I'm sure that everyone heard about Denny's free grand slam breakfast and some probably went out and got it.  The Wall Street Journal today had an interesting nugget about it when the CEO of Denny's said that they actually still broke even on the day because, in large part, of their margins on drinks.  That's a shocking piece of information.  The margins on drinks are really that high? 
The second piece of information, this one doesn't shock me, is that over 2 million people lined up for that free breakfast, some waiting an hour or more to get it.  While I love free stuff, I also try to be rational about it.  When Ben & Jerry's has their free scoop day, I avoid it.  When 7-Eleven does their free sample Slurpees, I avoid it.  The cost of either of those products is in the $1-2 range, and I'll wait in line 20 minutes to get one.  Meanwhile, I value my time at $35/hour, so it's costing me over $10 to get that "free" product.  It's the same thing with the grand slam.  I could wait in line for an hour, costing me $35, or I could just go get the thing another day and pay $6.  That's an easy call.  Even if the $6 was too much for me, I could halve that cost and do it myself.  It's not like they've got some sort of secret proprietary recipe for sausage and eggs and pancakes.  You could do the same thing yourself with Bisquik, eggs, and Jimmy Dean.

I've Never Seen This Before

To paraphrase Ray Peterson, "No,I've never seen that.  I've never seen a house with 4 El Caminos in the driveway in varying states of disrepair."  Unfortunately my camera didn't have an ultra-wide angle lens to get the fourth. 

Reason #18,237,943 Why I Love Japan

I was over at Engadget today and they had a video about one of the greatest inventions known to mankind: the Love Trainer.  The only problem with the device is that it makes you look completely ridiculous, ensuring that you won't be using it to improve your lovemaking any time in the near future for one of two reasons: you own it and nobody will be caught dead in the same room as somebody wearing this when things get a little risque or because you won't wear it after buying it (for the reason why, look back at reason 1).

Mmm...Bacon

I was at the New York Times today and came across a story about the Bacon Explosion.  For the unfamiliar, you take a woven layer of bacon, then seasoning, then a layer of sausage, then cooked bacon, then barbeque sauce, and roll it up.  Then you toss it in a smoker for a couple of hours.  When you take it out, you have 5000 calories of flavor that even Homer Simpson couldn't imagine. I want to know when we should have a BBBQ with this bad boy as the centerpiece.

The Proselytizing Trucker

I was driving down the freeway the other day and came across this bumper sticker.  Remember, He's not the man UPSTAIRS, he's JESUS...GOD'S WORD.

Is This an Ad, or an Insult?

This was on my car window the other day:

Stay Classy, Washington DC!

I didn't get an opportunity to see the inauguration of President Barack Obama, but I did hear of the proceedings.  What an amazing crowd - it's like nothing I've ever seen.  To have that many people come out for the swearing in of a new president is truly remarkable and a great thing for democracy.
That being said, I was disgusted by what I heard from The Hill:

The crowd packed on the west side of the Capitol grounds serenaded President Bush in mocking fashion when he took to the inaugural stage alongside Vice President Dick Cheney.
"Nah nah nah nah, hey hey, good-bye," a section of the crowd chanted.
The crowd packed immediately below the podium received Bush in stony silence when he took his seat on the stage surrounding the podium where Barack Obama was scheduled to take the oath office to become the 44th president of the United States.

I can see and am on board with the stony silence part.  I know that the vast majority of Americans have been unhappy with the Bush presidency, and I respect that.  At the same time, can you please keep your mocking glee to yourself?  I have been subjected to classless act after classless act from the winners of the last election for over two months now, from resident MSNBC liberal harpy Rachel Maddow's "Lame Duck Watch" to crowds that can't wait to humiliate George W. Bush wherever he goes.  He's as fortunate that he's leaving as the rest of the country is.  I appreciate his service, even though I don't agree with everything that he's done during his presidency.  The bottom line is that we deserve who we elect, we elected him, and we are as much a problem as he has been.  I really hope that we will treat President Obama differently.  Let's not leave his presidency with the US looking like the proverbial National Mall after his inauguration celebration yesterday.

In Honor of the Inauguration

Barack is very disappointed with me!


I only scored 20 on the Obama Test

I'm already on the bad side of the President.  That may not be so good, with him just getting inagurated.

Gub'mint Knows Best

While I agree it's not the best tactic in the world for naming your kids, using a Nazi Germany theme is no reason for the government to take them away.  Where does it stop?  Any kids named Osama will get rounded up?  Or maybe Tojo or Mussolini?

Anyone up for Jumping off a Cliff?

wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

Point of Information

If you are looking to get in touch with me via email, a few tips:

1. FW does not inspire confidence in whatever follows it because I've got too many blind forwarders in my life.

2. ...please read (or some variation thereof) is even worse.  Please read tells me that your email is of no value whatsoever, that's why you had to beg me to read it.

3.  When you combine the two, you are headed into the recycle bin straightway.

The Fightin' Third

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Better Know a District - Utah's 3rd - Jason Chaffetz

Colbert at Christmas
Colbert Christmas DVD

Green Screen
Bill O'Reilly Interview

Sorro's Freebie Fiesta

If there's one thing that people know about me, it's that I love free stuff.  I posted about Ebates a while back and have continued to use them as my main cash back location of choice, but something else to consider is branching out a bit.  The past few months, I've expanded my options based on store availability, percentage of cash back, and other options and I've been handsomely rewarded as a result.  Here's how I would structure my online shopping:
Ebates.  I still consider them the granddaddy of the online kickback revolution, and I still use them the most.  They either deposit money in your PayPal account or send you a check every 3 months.  They seem to have the largest breadth of stores, and they give you that swank signup and referral bonus.  In a year and a half of actively using them, I've gotten $1475.
Fat Wallet.  These guys have a better selection in some areas (notably eBay and hotels), and since I book travel here at my company as one of those vestiges that I hang on to from other positions I held, that's a big deal.  I started with Fat Wallet four months ago and have got $300 in cash back from them during this time.  They send you the money via deposit in your PayPal account 90 days after any given transaction.
Live Cashback.  This is Microsoft's entry, and as such they have deeper pockets than the other two.  Microsoft was running a deal a while back where they'd give you upwards of 30% cash back for eBay purchases, enabling me to get a 60 GB PlayStation 3 for my Blu Ray player of choice for a fraction of the original cost.  They get into some places that the other sites don't, and for the overlaps, they pay a little better.  They also deposit the money in your PayPal account after 90 days, similar to Fat Wallet.  I've gotten $240 in the two months since I started using them.
When you combine these, especially if you happen to purchase things for your company, you can get a pretty sweet little folding money stream coming in. 

My Rock Band Wish List

My wife and I bought Rock Band 2 when it came out back in November and it's immediately become our go-to video game.  Not only does it have a massive variety of songs, but it's involving and allows everybody in the group to embrace their inner rock god.  I was a Guitar Hero fan before this, but I can see why they moved to bands, because it's a lot funner (even if I can't play the drums worth a darn).  At any rate, even with over 500 songs available, I think that there are some glaring omissions that I'd love to see a combination of the actual bands and Harmonix fix.  This really is genius - you spend 150 bucks on the game + peripherals, then you spend a bunch more on music. 
Glaring omission 1: U2.  There isn't another guitarist out there who I'd rather fake play than the Edge.  I think that U2 should get on the Rock Bandwagon, especially with the imminent release of No Line on the Horizion.  They're a band who is constantly on the edge of pop culture, and for them to not be in Rock Band is incredible to me.  I don't know if the hold up is the band or the game, but we need some U2 in there.
Glaring omission 2: Led Zepplin.  Stairway to Heaven would be epic, as would a bunch of other Zep songs, but Page/Plant are notoriously tight with their masters, so I wouldn't expect this anytime soon.
Glaring omission 3: The Rolling Stones.  They have "Gimme Shelter" that you can import from Rock Band, but for one of the greatest rock bands ever, they need more songs.  What about "Paint it Black," "Sympathy for the Devil," and "You Can't Always Get What You Want"?
Glaring omission 4: Def Leppard.  These guys were huge, for good reason.  They were awesome.  I'd love to see some of their hits in Rock Band.  I'd love it even more if you had to drum one armed while playing them.
Glaring omission 5: Bon Jovi.  They have 2 songs (admittedly, 2 of their best) already, but I want to see at least a 6 pack.  That is Rock Band gold.  There isn't a man, woman, or child alive today who doesn't want to play more Bon Jovi songs in Rock Band.
Glaring omission 6: Van Halen.  This is something that I don't see getting rectified, as I've heard that VH has an exclusive deal with Guitar Hero.  Nevertheless, I'd love to see them in here.
Glaring omission 7: The Eagles.  They have the most successful album of all time, and they're not in Rock Band?  For shame.  I'd like to put in my plug for using masters from their Hell Freezes Over album, as that bad boy is amazing.

We're On The Same Wavelength!

The governor of Oregon and I think alike apparently - we both think that the gas tax should be eliminated and a usage fee should apply to miles driven, regardless of gas mileage.  He proposes using GPS to do it, and I think that's not a bad solution.  Ideally, I would not just use a flat amount for the calculation, but rather a combination of rates.  For example, you could charge 2 cents a mile on the freeway or 1 cent for surface roads.  You could also vary it depending on what you wanted to do.  If you wanted to route traffic to main thoroughfares, charge more for back streets.  Reverse it for the opposite effect.  I think the applications are endless and the money could actually be used to pay for fixes on the very streets that cars are using.  Of course, GPS would need to be a bit more accurate - it wouldn't be fun to be driving on a frontage road and expecting to get charged a penny a mile but then get nailed for the 2 cents a mile on the freeway that's 20 feet away.