Latest blog entries from www.ablenet.org http://www.ablenet.org/blogs
"I DEVOTED six years to carbon accounting, building models for the Australian Greenhouse Office. I am the rocket scientist who wrote the carbon accounting model (FullCAM) that measures Australia's compliance with the Kyoto Protocol, in the land use change and forestry sector. FullCAM models carbon flows in plants, mulch, debris, soils and agricultural products, using inputs such as climate data, plant physiology and satellite data. I've been following the ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/167/no_smoking_hot_spot_dr_david_evans_in_the_australian http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/167/no_smoking_hot_spot_dr_david_evans_in_the_australian
"Considerable presence" of skeptics The American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists, has reversed its stance on climate change and is now proclaiming that many of its members disbelieve in human-induced global warming. The APS is also sponsoring public debate on the validity of global warming science. The leadership of the society had previously called the evidence for global warming "incontrovertible." In a posting to the APS ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/166/myth_of_consensus_explodes_aps_opens_global_warming_debate http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/166/myth_of_consensus_explodes_aps_opens_global_warming_debate
Why we should ALL vote Republican this November! br> {GOOGLE} ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/165/im_voting_republican http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/165/im_voting_republican
"Secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering into the public square. Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, William Jennings Bryan, Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King – indeed, the majority of great reformers in American history – were not only motivated by faith but repeatedly used religious language to argue for their cause. To say that men and women should not inject their ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/164/2006_sojournerscall_to_renewal_conference_excerpt http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/164/2006_sojournerscall_to_renewal_conference_excerpt
So it begins. We'll see how long this blog keeps up. Not because it would be deleted or anything, or because I am busy and have a life outside of the internet (hint: I don't), just because I forget to maintain things. Which would probably be why there is a goldfish floating at the top of a bowl next to me right now. Know what needs to come back? ]]> http://Feenix.blogs.ablenet.org/163/flight_of_the_feenix http://Feenix.blogs.ablenet.org/163/flight_of_the_feenix
As some of you know, Prince did a cover of Creep by Radiohead at Coachella and subsequently forced Google/YouTube to pull the video down for copyright infringement (of a song he doesn't own). Well some video sites still have balls, so here it is on Dailymotion: ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/161/ok_so_prince_jacked_his_version_of_creep_off_youtube_you_can_still_see_him_sing_it_elsewhere http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/161/ok_so_prince_jacked_his_version_of_creep_off_youtube_you_can_still_see_him_sing_it_elsewhere
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull introduces Shia LaBeouf to the Indiana Jones world and is completely predictable. This installment goes the Area 51 route and ties it to South American alien conspiracies. While not ground breaking (if you expected that) or even as good as the first three, it is entertaining and is does a good job of wrapping up the Indy Franchise, while giving ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/160/indiana_jones_and_the_kingdom_of_the_crystal_skull_in_a_minute_or_less http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/160/indiana_jones_and_the_kingdom_of_the_crystal_skull_in_a_minute_or_less
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, the long awaited sequel to The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe does not disappoint; however, it fails to satisfy as well. Not wasting time to develop the story, with the assumption that the viewers are familiar with the first film, the plot line sets up relatively quickly. Prince Caspian, heir to the throne, is chased out of the ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/159/the_chronicles_of_narnia_prince_caspian_in_a_minute_or_less http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/159/the_chronicles_of_narnia_prince_caspian_in_a_minute_or_less
Speed Racer is another Wachowski movie this time starring Emile Hirsch and Christina Ricci. This movie is not good. That being said, it isn't exactly bad either. It remains mostly true to the original with a few specific nods to the cartoon we all grew up loving. It did not suck nearly as much as I thought it would. I had actually gone to see it merely to see ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/158/speed_racer_in_a_minute_or_less http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/158/speed_racer_in_a_minute_or_less
Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. is, as of the moment, the movie of the summer by far. Downey Jr. is a perfect casting of Tony Stark, millionaire playboy without the darkness, agony or scruples of Bruce Wayne, merely a man who profitted on war and sees the error of his ways while coming to terms with his own ego and sense of mortality. Every role was played perfectly, ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/157/iron_man_in_a_minute_or_less http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/157/iron_man_in_a_minute_or_less
The Forbidden Kingdom stars Jet Li and Jackie Chan in a martial arts junkie's dream matchup. The dream ends there. If you're looking for a hardcore Martial Arts flick - or even a Jackie Chan buddy film - this is not it. This is a family oriented martial arts film with a premise that is not unique nor is it entirely unfamiliar. What results is an enjoyable, family oriented, ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/156/the_forbidden_kingdom_with_jackie_chan_and_jet_li_all_you_want_to_know_in_a_minute_or_less http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/156/the_forbidden_kingdom_with_jackie_chan_and_jet_li_all_you_want_to_know_in_a_minute_or_less
This is one strange debate the candidates are having on energy policy. With gas prices close to $4 a gallon, Hillary Clinton and John McCain say they'll bring relief with a moratorium on the 18.4-cent federal gas tax. Barack Obama opposes that but prefers a 1970s-style windfall profits tax (as does Mrs. Clinton). Mr. Obama is right to oppose the gas-tax gimmick, but his idea is even worse. Neither ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/155/windfall_profits_for_dummies http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/155/windfall_profits_for_dummies
"The U.S. Treasury recently reported that the federal deficit will hit a record high of $311 billion for the first half of the fiscal year, thanks in part to plunging corporate profits and revenues. The report was greeted with stifled yawns by official Washington. Similar indifference greeted the Social Security and Medicare trustees when they issued their annual spring warning about an even bigger fiscal time bomb: exploding entitlement ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/154/lets_pop_the_deficit_bubble http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/154/lets_pop_the_deficit_bubble
That's right! Now go flip someone off Here are the codes for hidden icons: (finger) (mooning) (drunk) (smoking) (fubar) (swear) And also not so naughty: (bandit) (toivo) (rock) (headbang) (bug) (poolparty) (tmi) (heidy) (myspace) ]]> http://stfu.blogs.ablenet.org/153/there_are_naughty_hidden_smileys_on_skype http://stfu.blogs.ablenet.org/153/there_are_naughty_hidden_smileys_on_skype
THE US war in Iraq has strengthened its strategic position, especially in terms of key alliances, and the only way this could be reversed would be if it lost the will to continue the struggle and abandoned Iraq in defeat and disarray. Surely the author of this sentence is on the ganja, you might say. Something a little weird in the coffee? It goes against every aspect of conventional ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/152/esteem_for_us_rises_in_asia_thanks_to_iraq_war http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/152/esteem_for_us_rises_in_asia_thanks_to_iraq_war
CHARLES GIBSON: You have however said you would favor an increase in the capital gains tax. As a matter of fact, you said on CNBC, and I quote, "I certainly would not go above what existed under Bill Clinton, which was 28%." It's now 15%. That's almost a doubling if you went to 28%. But actually Bill Clinton in 1997 signed legislation that dropped the capital gains tax to ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/151/notable_and_quotable_from_the_latest_debate_among_democrats http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/151/notable_and_quotable_from_the_latest_debate_among_democrats
By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) - Older Americans have more money and are expected to live far longer than prior generations, U.S. government researchers said on Thursday. They said the average net worth of older Americans -- those 65 or older -- has increased almost 80 percent over the past 20 years. And those who reach the age of 65 are now expected to live an average of 19 ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/150/older_americans_wealthier_living_longer http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/150/older_americans_wealthier_living_longer
Hardly a day goes by during this housing crisis that the media does not report on families in foreclosure proceedings, or in arrears in repayment on mortgages that had close to zero down payment requirements and low “teaser “ interest rates. The many excuses offered by some home owners for their plight, and also eagerly by the authors of these human interest stories, is that the borrowers did not ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/149/the_erosion_of_individual_responsibility http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/149/the_erosion_of_individual_responsibility
The subprime mortgage collapse is another tale of unintended consequences. The crisis has its roots in the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, a Carter-era law that purported to prevent “redlining� - denying mortgages to black borrowers - by pressuring banks to make home loans in “low- and moderate-income neighborhoods." Under the act, banks were to be graded on their attentiveness to the “credit needs� of “predominantly minority neighborhoods." The ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/148/how_government_makes_things_worse_jeff_jacoby http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/148/how_government_makes_things_worse_jeff_jacoby
As some of you may know, and many of you don't, AbleNET has a couple javachat options. The one I am about to show you can be reached, if you have channels of your own and your IRC account linked to the website, by logging into your account, clicking 'User Center' and then 'My Channels' followed by clicking the 'Java Chat' tab. If you don't have a channel, you ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/147/ablenets_java_chats_1_website_interactive http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/147/ablenets_java_chats_1_website_interactive
“Buckley was a one-man refutation of Hollywood’s idea of a conservative. He was rising in the 1950s and early ‘60s, and Hollywood’s idea of a conservative was still Mr. Potter, the nasty old man of ‘It’s a Wonderful Life,’ who would make a world of grubby Pottersvilles if he could, who cared only about money and the joy of bullying idealists. Bill Buckley’s persona, as the first famous conservative ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/146/on_the_passing_of_william_f_buckley_jr http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/146/on_the_passing_of_william_f_buckley_jr
Barack (The Builder) Obama is an interesting candidate simply because he is so charismatic! He care about the things I care about and he says all the right things! Barack wants to fix America, to heal America.... But I question if good intentions are enough... I REALLY want to like Obama but I have to continuously ask myself, is he a better candidate for the Democratic party than Hillary ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/145/barack_the_builder_can_he_fix_it_ethics_in_the_white_house http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/145/barack_the_builder_can_he_fix_it_ethics_in_the_white_house
As you have read, I had LASIK 3 months ago and I was thrilled with the procedure. Now some time has passed and I've had a chance to ponder and reflect on the the decision and the procedure and so my thoughts are as follows. It is still one of the best things I have ever done. I don't regret it for a moment and I would still recommend ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/144/lasik_update_3_months_later http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/144/lasik_update_3_months_later
**This post contains spoilers** So yesterday, I saw No Country for Old Men (2007) by the Coen Brothers and it opens with a Narrative by Tommy Lee Jones, discussing the times when law men chose not to wear their pistols and how it subtly changed over time into the 70s at which point you're also introduced to the two primary opposing forces in this film. I sat through the ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/143/no_country_for_old_men_huh http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/143/no_country_for_old_men_huh
Ever wonder "What is an MRI is like?" Well you're in luck! I just had an MRI and I am more than willing to share it with you! There are two types of Magnetic resonance imaging machineries that one might come into contact with. One is Open MRI and the other is Tunnel. In Open MRI there is about 5 feet of space around you to avoid claustrophobia, in ]]> http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/142/whats_an_mri_like http://Anthony.blogs.ablenet.org/142/whats_an_mri_like
"When a man hangs up his byline to write for a president, he gets more than a new job. He gets to see how the press and pundit corps look from the other side of the notepad. And over three years in the West Wing, you see a few things. You see who's a straight shooter, and who's full of snark. You see who's smart, and whose outrageous behavior ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/141/press_corps_quagmire http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/141/press_corps_quagmire
"Michelle Obama today said that “for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction.� Really proud of her country for the first time? Michelle Obama is 44 years old. She has been an adult ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/140/she_said_what http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/140/she_said_what
"What in the world are advisers to both Senators Obama and Clinton doing in Syria in the middle of a presidential campaign — and why are the two campaigns so unforthcoming about the details of the visits? The same week that a terrorist mastermind harbored by the Baathist regime in Damascus was assassinated by a car bomb, both one of Mr. Obama's foreign policy counselors, Zbigniew Brzezinski, a long-time ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/139/realism_in_syria http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/139/realism_in_syria
The ink is still moist on Capitol Hill's latest energy bill and, as if on cue, a scientific avalanche is demolishing its assumptions. To wit, trendy climate-change policies like ethanol and other biofuels are actually worse for the environment than fossil fuels. Then again, Washington's energy neuroses are more political than practical, so it's easy for the Solons and greens to ignore what would usually be called evidence. The ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/138/greenhouse_affect http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/138/greenhouse_affect
The pseudonymous Ibn Warraq writing in City Journal: The great ideas of the West -- rationalism, self-criticism, the disinterested search for truth, the separation of church and state, the rule of law and equality under the law, freedom of thought and expression, human rights, and liberal democracy -- are superior to any others devised by humankind. It was the West that took steps to abolish slavery; the calls for ]]> http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/137/notable_and_quotable http://Tinnitus.blogs.ablenet.org/137/notable_and_quotable