Unsought Input

ZOMG!!!11!!

There is a lot of talk lately in this election about Barack Obama having “socialist views” and being “a socialist.” For some – especially those who grew up during the Cold War – this evokes an image of radical Socialism as practiced in Soviet Russia and Mao’s China. Or is that Communism? What is the difference anyway?

The idea of Socialism has been around for a long time – longer than German philosopher Karl Marx (who wrote The Communist Manifesto). Socialism is a set of ideals and not a type of government. Examples of types of government are Representative Democracy & Constitutional Republic (United States), Parliamentary Democracy & Constitutional Monarchy (United Kingdom, Canada), Direct Democracy & Parliamentary Republic (Switzerland) and Socialist Republic (Cuba) … among many others.

Having “socialism” written down as a set of ideals came out of Europe where people had been struggling with class for centuries. Industrial revolutions made the worker more valuable but also the CEOs of the time much richer. Common people wanted to be recognized as a more important part of society and given more rights and better compensation for their work.

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I’m pretty sure there was a duh kind of moment when the good people over at newsnet5.com wrote this article: Racial Views Steer Some White Dems From Obama. I have to say I’m pretty sad about it and I know a lot of people like to think that we aren’t some backwards country where people are still racist.  Wait a minute. I don’t know if a lot of people think that way but I know I do.  I know it’s just wishful thinking on my part but honestly, people are really going to vote for McCain not because they they believe in his point of view or like his attitude or think he’s cooler than Barack.  No, they will vote for him because he isn’t black.

How sad is that?  In an age where we like to think of Americans as progressive thinkers who have learned a hard lesson after four additionally painful years (at least most Americans according to the latest poll I heard which put Bush at a 29% approval rating) people are making a very very very important decision based on the fact that McCain would be better because he is white and old.  Or maybe it’s just because he’s white. (more…)

I found an interesting article today that says the acutal inventor of the iPod is not Apple but some furniture salesman named Kane Kramer from the UK.  Apparently his invention was patented in 1979 (I believe he calls himself a revolutionary) but since he couldn’t afford to pay the costs to keep the patent, it fell to public domain where Apple more than likely found it and gobbled it up .  I do admit, it’s a great design and years ahead of it’s time.

I am borrowing this picture from his site that shows his early patent drawings.

What I also find interesting is that no mention of this guy would have ever come up if Burst Patents hadn’t tried to cash in on Apple’s sucess by trying to claim the iPod violated it’s own patents.  In Apple’s defence they said, wait, no, you don’t have the patent, we stole it (legally) from this British Bloke over here.  Oh, and thanks for the good idea, buddy, here’s a free iPod for your trouble!

Too bad his iPod broke after less than a year.  I feel kinda bad for this guy, I mean, if he had been able to hold onto his patent would we all be listening to music on our Kane Digital Audio Player?  Or would Apple have found another public domain patent to copy? It’s always interesting to me how these things turn out.  Any comments?

Apparently here in Ohio prostitutes come cheap. Apparently about the cost of one Donato’s Pizza. The full story, which is brief in case you were worried, is basically a judge asked a “prostitute” (I put it in quotations because she is only an suspected prosty) to name her pimp. The prostitute denied the request, as you would assume. Then the judge had the little light bulb appear above her head and offered the young supposed sex worker a pizza in exchange for the offer.

I can only imagine that the conversation went like this:

Judge:  So, please name your pimp for the court.

Sex Worker:  Um…..I don’t have one?  Or I mean…Um?

Judge:  If you name your pimp the court will go easier on your sentence, I assure you.  You will be      protected against an repercussions that might occur.

Sex Worker: I’d rather not, thank you.  I just don’t think it’s right.

Judge: So, nothing will make you talk?  Even if it means reducing your own punishment?

Sex Worker: No, I don’t think so.

Judge: Hmmm………………… What about a free pizza?

Sex Worker: A free pizza?   Well…..That might work.  I do like pizza.

Judge: I know, who doesn’t like pizza.  So what do you think?  I’m thinking Pizza Hut?

Sex Worker: No, I don’t like their sauce.  What’s close to here?

Court Officer: I think there is a Donato’s close by.

Sex Worker: I love Donatos!  Extra pepperoni and mushrooms please and you have a deal!

Or something like that.

The judge bought the pizza and the sex worker ate it in the courthouse then sang like a canary. Just goes to show it doesn’t always have to be hard to get information out of suspects or witnesses. It just takes a free pizza.