I'm a hard-core idler

Drivers tapped to fight ozone

Now I am all for cutting the ozone levels, and I don't mind (too much) paying an extra $.04/gallon for gas. However this struck me as odd:

A statewide anti-idling law for cars, trucks, buses and off-road vehicles. Municipalities in Northeast Ohio should adopt similar bans.

and

Strict enforcement of speed limits.

Ok, the point about trucks idling just to provide air conditioning to the driver sleeping the back, or worse yet just waiting to be loaded at the dock, however how is this going to be enforced? Will our already overworked cops be out with stop watches at the drive-up ATMs instead of out trying to catch speeders? Instead of directing traffic at the accident will they be handing out idling tickets?

And what about the strict enforement of speed limits? Right now most cops will let a lot go because if they did not traffic would come to a stand still. Which of course brings us back to the no idling rule.

Since we are talking some weird laws, why not just ban all gas-powered lawn maintenance equipment? Hell why not just eliminate gas-powered cars completely? Both are about as enforcable as the anti-idling law.

I also like the suggestion to increase the use of public transportation, including free on high ozone days, only works if you have a system that is actually useful in place. As for workplace changes, most employers are not willing to make ANY changes in how they do business.

Nanny sues hidden-camera manufacturer - Yahoo! News

Nanny sues hidden-camera manufacturer - Yahoo! News

Mmmmmm....no. Don't get me wrong, I think the lady has been seriously wronged, but I don't think the manufacturer should be held accountable. If they bill their recording as time-lapsed, I would think at least law enforcement would understand that and NOT arrest her in the first place.

cadavers to the left, explosives to the right

There is some kind of training program for cops, firemen, etc. is going on around work. Therefore there are a bunch of signs up to direct people to the right areas. It is weird to drive down the road and see 'cadavers' with an arrow pointing you, presumably, to where the cadaver are. Explosives, searches, aggression are just a few I remember.

Photo IDs for panhandlers

Strategy targets begging in Akron

This is just a law to allow the cops to arrest people for panhandling. Period. Do people REALLY think that just passing a law requiring a special photo ID and saying you cannot panhandle in these locations will magically make people stop doing it? I realize politicians are not necessarily the sharpest crayons in the box, but come on people.

I am not arguing that there is an issue with panhandling in Akron. I know there is. It does not keep me from going downtown. What keeps me from going downtown is a lack of things that I am interested in. Let me say that again - What keeps me from going downtown is a lack of things that I am interested in.

I have rarely felt unsafe in Akron. I have been told though my perception maybe skewed given I am a 6 foot tall male.

Are blogs the new borg?

Today's User Friendly was cool.

Virginity pledgers often dishonest about past - Yahoo! News

Virginity pledgers often dishonest about past - Yahoo! News

Wow, what a shock. Teenagers lie about having sex. Surveys that show abstinence-only sex education programs work maybe unreliable because teens lie. Oh my am I shocked.

As long as there have been humans, they have been lying about having sex. As soon as you make something "bad", teens are going to try it. Maybe people need to live in the real world and realize teens will have sex. They will lie about having sex. We should equip these teens to be able to at least protect themselves from unwanted pregnancy.

We will not even bring up the whole sexually transmitted disease thing.

'Cause this is my town

but love or hate it -- it don't matter
'cause this is my town

Michael Stanley Band's My Town

When Michael Stanley wrote that song, he of course was referring to Cleveland. Rumor has it that they recorded 200 or so different versions of the song, yelling various city names in place of the original Cleveland, including a version with Akron.

Today we went and put flowers on my grandfathers' graves, plus our mother and a couple of other non-veteran family members as is our tradition over the Memorial Day weekend. Maybe I was feeling a little nostalgic, maybe I just did not want to be around people (I had an invite to a neighbor's barbeque), but I spent a couple of hours driving around Akron today. This is not something I have done in many years, and boy have I missed a lot. I had heard about many of the projects around town - the new library (actually been in it), the new art museum (still in progress), and some other changes at the University of Akron, but to see some of the changes up close was something entirely different.

I drove by the big 4 rubber companies old plant ones: General (now an empty lot where they do cement recycling), Goodrich (Gojo and various other businesses), Firestone (no idea what they use it for now) and Goodyear (now their World Headquarters). So much has changed since the days when you got a good whiff of sulpher and knew another tire rolled off the lines.

As I drove around remembering the closed store that used to be a Lawsons, the chinese restaurant that used to be a Red Barn (where you could get burgers OR fried chicken) or the intersection that used to have 4 gas stations (now has 1, 2 empty lots and a car dealership) I got to wondering if I was not one of the people holding Akron back. Do I cling to tightly to the glory days? Maybe, like the phoenix of myth, we need to plow it all under to get something new to rise from the ashes, so to speak.

As much as I love Akron, it is never going to be a cool city. Sure, you might be able to pull the black-rimmed glasses off and dress her up in "cool" clothes, but at her core Akron is still in the AV club. If you get to know her, ignore the pocket protector and black socks, you find out she is a pretty interesting city. Maybe even cool it her own way. The rush to make Akron attractive to outsiders, I hope we do not loose what makes Akron, well, Akron.

There is one last bit that Michael Stanley left us with, which is a great reminder to all of us:

This town taught me...its never to late.

Hayden Insists NSA Surveillance Is Legal - Yahoo! News

Hayden Insists NSA Surveillance Is Legal - Yahoo! News

One thing I seem to recall from 9/11 is that the President and various other people wanted to get the various alphabet agencies to work closer together. Share the info. So NSA may say "we are only looking for terrorists" however the FBI or DEA may have access to the same data and use it for their own data mining efforts.

On Watching Perfection

I was running a bit behind in my newspaper reading, but I came across an article in Monday's paper that brought back some wonderful memories.

On May 15, 1981 Len Barker pitched a perfect game. For those who do not follow baseball, that means Len Barker faced the minimum number of batters a pitcher can face in 9 innings - 27. 27 up, 27 down. No walks, no hits, no runs, no errors. No one reached base at all. This has only been done 15 times in the big leagues.

Slightly less thatn 7300 people were in the old Municipal Stadium (that held about 60,000 people for baseball) that night, however the game was on TV.

It was a Friday night. I remember because I used to wash dishes at a Friday night fish fry. As was usual, we would pop out from the kitchen to catch the score on the TV at the bar whenever we got a chance. About the fifth inning someone popped into the kitchen to let us know Lenny had a no-hitter going. We then popped out more frequently to see what was going on. We could pretty much see the TV from the door to the kitchen, so it was not hard. A couple of innings later someone popped in to let us know that Lenny had the perfect game going. All pretenses of work went out the door then as we stood around the bar, with just about everyone else, watching. Fingers crossed. Cheering each out. Completely freaking out when, as I recall, Rick Manning (now an annoucer for the Tribe on cable) caught the last fly out to center field.

For us Indian fans it was a touch with greatness. It had been 13 years since a perfect game had been done (1968 by Catfish Hunter), and the Indians were in, as one of the players put it, perpetual rebuild mode. For those who have seen the movie Major League, that is not too far off what those days were like. To see someone at the top of his game (it only took 104 pitches) was great. We never held much hope of a post-season - the American League East was the toughest division in those days. Many season the Indians' record would have kept them at least in the hunt for some post-season action, but the AL East they ended up in 5th or 6th.

Gasoline Prices on Yahoo! News Photos

Gasoline Prices on Yahoo! News Photos

Gas - $3.91/gallon. For the cheap stuff. Maybe the high end, but still it will probably be there for all of us later this year. What will it actually take for the government to start an initiative like the Moon landing to get us off of oil?

Why are Brits healthier? - Yahoo! News

Why are Brits healthier? - Yahoo! News:

An interesting study. No good, easy answers (and I would not expect any), but I thought this is probably the biggest answer (emphasis mine):

Is it health care? This is a popular theory because all British citizens have access to a government-run health care system that encourages preventive care. Despite that striking difference, however, researchers hesitate to cite it as the explanation. After all, Americans spend nearly twice as much as the British do on health care, and many of the wealthiest Americans in the study, who presumably have insurance, are sicker than are the poorest Brits.

One thing about the American health care system (and I use the term system lightly here) there is not a lot of emphasis on preventative care. Few, if any, insurance companies work out deals for discounted gym memberships, weight loss programs, stop smoking programs, etc. I think insurance companies are starting to wake up to it, but we still have a LONG way to go. I am not even asking for the insurance company to make the programs available for free, just work out some kind of discount.

The stress pointed to in the article is very real. Brits I believe get 3, maybe 4, weeks of government mandated vacation a year. In the USA we get 0, although most companies give 2 weeks after 1 or 2 years of service. Even then most people are encouraged (and in some cases ordered) to not take their allotted vacation time. Even for those who do take their vacation, the vacation is as stressful as their job. A different kind of stress is still stress.

As I understand vacation in Europe, people will just take a week (or more) and get a house in the country and just kind of do nothing. No forced marches through Disney World, no "are we there yet" road trips. Just some time to relax and unplug from the world.

N.Y. Lawmaker Sues Google Over Child Porn - Yahoo! News

N.Y. Lawmaker Sues Google Over Child Porn - Yahoo! News:

"The lawsuit does not seek specific monetary damages, but wants Google to prohibit 'advertising relating to Web sites that display, market or otherwise provide illegal access to pornography.'"

Hmmm... no mention of CHILD pornography in that. That statement reeks of election year grandstanding.

As mentioned anywhere that does have child (or I can imagine a few other categories) porn they do not allow advertising, block it from the search engine, and notify the authorities.

If you were really worried about child porn you would also go after Microsoft (MSN search) and Yahoo. Both have ads in their search engine, or are adding them soon. Besides there a tons of sites & even books on how to boost your search ranking that bypass all advertising.

As an aside, I do not recall seeing any porn ads in my search results from Google. Adsense is pretty good at matching advertisors to your search terms.

If someone really wants to stop the spread of porn, maybe you should go after the spammers who send me a ton of 'naked h0rny t33n' emails. Who needs to search when it comes to my inbox daily?

iTunes Songs to Stay 99 Cents Per Download - Yahoo! News

iTunes Songs to Stay 99 Cents Per Download - Yahoo! News:

"Apple's dominance of the download market means the Cupertino-based company does have the upper hand for now, but analysts predict its market share will pare down as rival services, including online music subscription services, gain traction."

That is an interesting statement. Music subscriptions are EXACTLY what the music industry wants - essentially always paying for the music. I do think they are wrong about Apple's dominance though. Even with cheap music subscriptions (as low as $60/year) people are still going to want to buy and own some music. Unless someone can come up with something cheaper (unlikely) or at a similar price but without the iTunes DRM it will remain the place to go for legal music purchases.

Sci Fi feels Pulse of broadband - Yahoo! News

Sci Fi feels Pulse of broadband - Yahoo! News

It will be interesting to see what the use on PUlse for "recycled original series". I would love to see "Tremors, The Series" rear its Graboid head again, even just in reruns.

Beacon Journal | 04/27/2006 | Our blimp deserves spot on car plates

Beacon Journal | 04/27/2006 | Our blimp deserves spot on car plates

For many years I had the Scenic Rivers plates, although the plates for my new car are standard issue Ohio plates. I would seriously consider a blimp plate. Unique and the money goes to the local Red Cross.

Working from home & telemarketers

I am working from home today to get some uninterrupted thinking time. As always it has paid off.

I got a call today that I let my answering machine (yes, I'm a bit old school) get. This is not unusual - because of telemarketers I never answer my home phone until I hear who it is. I am too cheap frugal to get caller ID. Anyone who knows me knows I do not answer my phone until after the answering machine picks up.

This was from John Morgan, to have Mr. or Mrs. Hill return his call at a toll-free number about my mortgage. Well John, if for some reason you read this - I am not returning your call you stinking telemarketer.

How do I know? A few things:

1) I am not married. Never have been. Therefore there is no Mrs. Hill on any mortgage papers.
2) I have no mortgage on my current house.
3) The mortgage I do have on my other house has never called me in almost 7 years. Ever. Not even while I was getting the mortgage. They like to work through mail.
4) Any communication I have had on the phone with the bank that is loosely affiliated to the mortgage company as always clearly identified the company they are with. I know that sounds weird, but the mortgage company & bank are separate entities but are owned by the same parent. They actually share the same building locally.
5) The mortgage that my mom had, on both houses, were in her name. She never remarried and had been divorced for 20+ years before she died. Therefore Mr. Hill on her mortgages.

AFI Top 100 Movies of All Time

AFI's Top 100 American Movies of All Time, or at least through 1998. Since one of my 101 things to do in 1001 days is to get through this list, I thought I would post where I stand on this right now. Some of these I may have seen given the weird tastes my mom had in movies, but I don't recall them.

1. CITIZEN KANE (1941)
2. CASABLANCA (1942)
3. THE GODFATHER (1972)
4. GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)
5. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)
6. THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939)
7. THE GRADUATE (1967)
8. ON THE WATERFRONT (1954)
9. SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993)
10. SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)
11. IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946)
12. SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950)
13. THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (1957)
14. SOME LIKE IT HOT (1959)
15. STAR WARS (1977)
16. ALL ABOUT EVE (1950)
17. THE AFRICAN QUEEN (1951)
18. PSYCHO (1960)
19. CHINATOWN (1974)
20. ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST (1975)
21. THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940)
22. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968)
23. THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)
24. RAGING BULL (1980)
25. E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982)
26. DR. STRANGELOVE (1964)
27. BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967)
28. APOCALYPSE NOW (1979)
29. MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON (1939)
30. THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948)
31. ANNIE HALL (1977)
32. THE GODFATHER PART II (1974)
33. HIGH NOON (1952)
34. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (1962)
35. IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (1934)
36. MIDNIGHT COWBOY (1969)
37. THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946)
38. DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944)
39. DOCTOR ZHIVAGO (1965)
40. NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)
41. WEST SIDE STORY (1961)
42. REAR WINDOW (1954)
43. KING KONG (1933)
44. THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915)
45. A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1951)
46. A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971)
47. TAXI DRIVER (1976)
48. JAWS (1975)
49. SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (1937)
50. BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)
51. THE PHILADELPHIA STORY (1940)
52. FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953)
53. AMADEUS (1984)
54. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (1930)
55. THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965)
56. M*A*S*H (1970)
57. THE THIRD MAN (1949)
58. FANTASIA (1940)
59. REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955)
60. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981)
61. VERTIGO (1958)
62. TOOTSIE (1982)
63. STAGECOACH (1939)
64. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)
65. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)
66. NETWORK (1976)
67. THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (1962)
68. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951)
69. SHANE (1953)
70. THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971)
71. FORREST GUMP (1994)
72. BEN-HUR (1959)
73. WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1939)
74. THE GOLD RUSH (1925)
75. DANCES WITH WOLVES (1990)
76. CITY LIGHTS (1931)
77. AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973)
78. ROCKY (1976)
79. THE DEER HUNTER (1978)
80. THE WILD BUNCH (1969)
81. MODERN TIMES (1936)
82. GIANT (1956)
83. PLATOON (1986)
84. FARGO (1996)
85. DUCK SOUP (1933)
86. MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935)
87. FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
88. EASY RIDER (1969)
89. PATTON (1970)
90. THE JAZZ SINGER (1927)
91. MY FAIR LADY (1964)
92. A PLACE IN THE SUN (1951)
93. THE APARTMENT (1960)
94. GOODFELLAS (1990)
95. PULP FICTION (1994)
96. THE SEARCHERS (1956)
97. BRINGING UP BABY (1938)
98. UNFORGIVEN (1992)
99. GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER (1967)
100. YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (1942)

Beacon Journal | 04/24/2006 | Former local TV star beloved by children

Beacon Journal | 04/24/2006 | Former local TV star beloved by children

What I remember of Barnaby is he was a lot like Mr. Rogers but with fewer props and a much smaller audience, but just as entertaining.

Barnaby was as much a fixture of my youth as Super Host, Big Chuck & Hoolihan (later to become Big Chuck & Little John), Mr. Jingaling and The Ghoul.

Now a days you would not find such shows on TV, which is a shame. These hosts may not be great actors, but they knew there audiences and could tap into local in-jokes in a way that gets lost when people only look at the numbers. I do not think such shows would work well as a podcast either. Copyright issues aside, tapping into local jokes does not play well with an international audence.

TechCrunch » Microsoft Live Drive may launch before GDrive

TechCrunch » Microsoft Live Drive may launch before GDrive:

The idea of on-line storage is nothing new. Four or five years ago there was a service that would sync files to a server between multiple machines. Amazon has had something similar for awhile, although it is a pay service.

One bit I found particularly odd:

"With Live Drive, all your information - movies, music, tax information, a high-definition videoconference you had with your grandmother, whatever - could be accessible from anywhere, on any device." [Emphasis mine]

I found this a bit chilling that anyone would even consider putting their tax info in a place they did not have a lot of control over. Microsoft still has a way to go to earn at least my trust, and frankly I would not even put that kind of info on GDrive. At least if it is on my machine I can disconnect my machine from the internet, or copy the file to a CD, etc. to keep that kind of information as private as possible.

Also, given some recent things from the RIAA or MPAA, what kind of responsibility would you have if someone cracked into your Live Drive and illegally downloaded the music and videos you had there? You legally owned them, however I am sure the alphabet groups could make something of a case that you were distributing them.

Don't get me wrong - it is a good idea. However at least right now internet storage has a ways to go to prove itself.

Beacon Journal | 04/20/2006 | Hikers' participation not at its peak in '05

Beacon Journal | 04/20/2006 | Hikers' participation not at its peak in '05

Although disappointing, it is not surprising given the cost of gas. I only hit the minimum number of trails last year - many of which are sort-of on the way home.