jra's thoughts

Category: Deep Thoughts

  • Compare the Candidates

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    jra
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    Compare The Candidates is a nifty web app that I found when looking into AppSpot, a Google cloud computing thingie. It shows a new style of design that rose in the last few years. I really admire it, and I love interacting with sites like this. It’s a little scary though, it feels like a…

  • Another theory of climate change

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    I have from time to time astonished, annoyed, or otherwise aggrieved my friends by denying that greenhouse gases cause climate change. This is like standing up in an atheist convention and yelling, “Long Live the Pope!” Everyone knows that all civilized people believe in Global Warming, and the Grand Conspiracy to Prop Up Big Oil…

  • I love the IRS

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    I like the IRS. I’ve never really minded paying taxes, and though I have some complaints with the complexity of our tax code, I know that’s not the IRS’s fault. They do the best they can with the mess given to them each year by congress. I think the way the IRS does e-filing is…

  • Fahrenheit 9/11

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    Karl and I went to see Fahrenheit 9/11 tonight. There are fewer classic Moore scenes in it than his other movies, which is a huge improvement. His message is way too important to be lost in the noise of his wacky hijinks. In some ways, I think the criticism of his previous movies have taught…

  • The Founders Letter in Google’s S1

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    This is well worth reading. Something special is happing at Google, and with luck they will chart a new course that other companies can follow as they go public. Perhaps my employer, Tellme, will choose to follow such a course, though it seems unlikely. Our core values are probably as strong as Google’s, but are…

  • Island of Dr. Moreau

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    Karl and I watched The Island of Dr. Moreau tonight. Luckily we were, uh, enhanced, by several beers, a white Russian, a screwdriver, and a glass of Kamikazes. The move sucked. But at least Karl uttered these memorable lines: “He’s getting the hang of the boom stick.” “Quonset hut madness!!!” “Cat versus Dog!” “He’s not…

  • Peak Oil

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    Psst… want to be terrified? Take a look at this. It’s this guy exploring the worst case scenario of what happens when we run out of oil. It goes as far as cannibalism! Real end-of-the-world stuff. At some point, it’s not terrifying anymore, because clearly the guy’s just off his rocker, right? OK, now go…

  • Great band names

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    Sometimes I come across a saying and I think, “that would make a good band name”. Tonight, which watching Insomniac, there was a steel mill on. In the furnace control room, there was a dial labeled megawatts. Megawatts! I immediately realized I just HAD to have one for a coworker. So I searched on ebay,…

  • Smart people doing important things

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    I get this certain feeling when I read some things on the net. It’s this “click” in my brain that says, “This is a smart person, making good progress on an important problem.” I get it almost every time I read philg. Today’s dose of that feeling came from this article about what’s happening at…

  • Friendster Critical Mass

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    Friendster has critical mass. I just recently met two new groups of people, and both are hooked into Friendster. I knew about it a while ago, but I prefer to be a follower, instead of a leader in these “invite your friends” things. Looks like it is time for me to follow along and invite…