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Technorati Tags: Chuck Norris, Pwnage, YouTube, Video
Chuck Norris pwns all. Again
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Category Archives: Random Ramblings
The top 5 cheapest – but unhealthy – fast food choices
The Top Five Cheapest–But Least Healthy–Fast Food Choices [Food]
This is one that highlights one of my weaknesses – unhealthy, not so tasty, but still “wants na0!” food. The fatty content of some of these makes them satisfying despite not being so good. I am talking, of course, of the 5 cheapest but least healthy fast food choices (via LifeHacker).
Dollar “value meals†at fast food restaurants may not be such a bargain when you look at the potential health costs.
Many of these low-cost menu items are packed with fat, salt, cholesterol and processed meat, notes The Cancer Project, a nonprofit cancer prevention organization. The group has produced a list of what it says are the five unhealthiest items sold at the nation’s largest fast food chains.
In particular, note that 2nd worst place winner comes from my diet-killing guilty pleasure palace Taco Bell.
In second-worst place, the 89-cent Taco Bell cheesy double beef burrito, with 460 calories , 20 grams of fat and a whopping 1,620 milligrams of sodium.
As this New York Times article points out, this bad eating can cause real health issues (no surprise there, though, right?). Health issues such as diabetes and heart disease are the walk-away loss from eating this way. I know I, for one, am trying very hard to get my eating under control and get rid of the 40 extra pounds I’ve had for a few years. But it’s hard, especially if you are a stress-eater like I am – I get stressed, I eat. But check out the full (short) list and see how much you are hurting yourself.
Technorati Tags: NY Times, LifeHacker, Fast Food, Unhealthy, Cheap, Health issues
Chicago returns to its political roots
Hell yes! This, dear reader, is how a political corruption scandal should break. None of this suspicion of vote fraud, no question of people kept away from the booth, no question of “Well maybe he didn’t really do that.”
On December 9, federal agents arrested Democratic Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich on charges that he had put president-elect Barack Obama’s senate seat up for sale–though not on eBay, which probably would have made things a lot easier. The Blagojevich portrayed in the 76-page criminal complaint is, according to the New York Times, a “[d]elusional, narcissistic, vengeful, and profane” man who has been under investigation for years. They’re not kidding.
You want corruption? They did it old-school in Chicago. “Here’s a powerful position. How much you pay me to get it?” Plain. Simple. Direct. Like was done in Capone’s time.
The really touching thing about this scandal is we also get to find out what kind of family the Blagojevichs have.
111 a. On or about November 27, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH, his wife and daughters, and BLAGOJEVICH’s chief of staff JOHN HARRIS ate Thanksgiving dinner together. BLAGOJEVICH’s wife asked BLAGOJEVICH to “please pass the potatoes.” BLAGOJEVICH asked what his wife was willing to give him for “the f—ing potatoes” because “these f—ing things aren’t f—ing cheap.” HARRIS said that BLAGOJEVICH’s wife might donate $250,000 to Friends of Blagojevich in exchange for the potatoes. BLAGOJEVICH’s wife said she thought that was a high price for a spoonful of mashed potatoes and asked BLAGOJEVICH to carve the turkey instead. BLAGOJEVICH said “What am I, your f—ing butler?” and reminded her that “I don’t f—ing work for free.” HARRIS asked BLAGOJEVICH to consider carving the turkey in exchange for a helping of BLAGOJEVICH’s wife’s cranberry sauce. BLAGOJEVICH said he “hated f—ing cranberry sauce, you stupid f–k,” and reminded his wife that the “only reason we have this f—ing turkey in the first place” was because Senate Candidate 5 had personally delivered it to the BLAGOJEVICH residence that morning. BLAGOJEVICH’s wife said BLAGOJEVICH could take Senate Candidate 5′s turkey and “shove it up your a–.” BLAGOJEVICH said she could have the turkey “but if you feel like you can do this and not f—ing give me anything, then I’ll f—ing go.” HARRIS volunteered to carve the turkey if BLAGOJEVICH did not want to and the group returned to eating in silence.
Not only is he an inspiring, honest, upright public servant, he also is a loving, caring, good-natured provider for his family. Most areas of the country have tiny little bribery or abuse of power corruptions going on. In Chicago, they show the rest of the country what a government employee should do to abuse power and stamp out democracy.
Technorati Tags: Blagojevich, Old school corruption, Chicago, Capone’s way, Family man
Coolest table ever?
This image from a Flickr user is labeled Coolest Table Ever. I don’t know if it’s the coolest, but it certainly is very cool and worth sharing.
I’d buy it, given the chance. I’m in to the eclectic.
Technorati Tags: Flickr, Coolest table ever, Furniture, Cool
Would you take a job where you were paid *NOT* to work?
Would you take a job where you were paid *NOT* to work?
In recent discussions on the future viability of US auto manufacturers, one of the topics to come up was the UAW job bank program.
According to that document, the basic guarantee from the 1987 agreement is that no eligible employee will be laid off over the term of the agreement, except under the following specific circumstances. 1)Reduced customer demand, a maximum of 42 weeks over the life of the agreement (commonly known as loss of marketshare); 2)Acts of God or other conditions beyond the control of management; 3)Conclusion of an assignment known in advance to be temporary; and 4) Plant rearrangement or model changeover.
Eligible employees can not be laid off because of new technology (robots), sourcing decisions, or company-implimented efficiency actions. There are generally three states of layoff: temporary layoffs where workers know their return date, indefinite layoffs where workers get 48 weeks of unemployment benefits and a supplemental from their employer equal to 100 percent of your salary. After 48 weeks workers are reemployed by the Job Bank, at which time they receive 95 percent of their salary.
Now if you are like me, you’ve never heard of this program before very recently. Ultimately, what the program is used for is to keep paying some number of UAW union members a worker’s salary while they don’t work. This is part of a program implemented in the 80s as a concession by auto manufacturers to the union to get support for productivity improvement efforts. In other words, the union realized that improving worker efficiency would mean fewer workers needed, so brought in this program as a way to keep paying some of the people who lost their jobs as a result.
How much does this cost the auto manufacturers? Well, we don’t know for certain, but looking back a few years gives us at least some idea:
Never doubt the ‘hoff
He is one of the greatest performers ever, wouldn’t you agree? This is 211 seconds of heaven wrapped up in a sexy black spycoat and wintry fur…
I hear he is huge in Germany, although all the video I’ve seen him makes me think he’s really the same size as all the other people there. Therefore, either everyone in Germany is huge, or Hasselhoff is the same size in Germany as when he is in the US.
Technorati Tags: I can’t stop this feeling, Ooga chakka, Hasselhoff, Huge in Germany, Ich bin ein Hasselhoff
D.C. tries new method for “controlling” guns in the District
After losing the fight to keep the Unconstitutional gun ban in the District, the Washington D.C. council has now turned to harassment law in hopes of reducing firearm ownership. Rather than saying you just can’t own a handgun, the new law will require permit renewals every 3 years and included a mandated annual recertification of ownership with district police.
Since September, D.C. residents have been allowed to register magazine-loaded semiautomatic handguns as well as revolvers. The legislation banned magazines that are capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition.
Yesterday’s legislation would also require firearms owners to take a safety course and undergo a background check every six years.
After the vote, council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large) said in a statement, “Today’s vote puts the District at the forefront of using regulation to reduce gun violence, rather than the simpler, prior approach of hoping that an outright ban will be effective.”
I am not a firearm owner, but to me the 2nd amendment is pretty clear on the right of ownership. While my limited reading of the recent legislation seems to follow the letter of the law, I think there is some question as to following the intended rights protection inherent in the amendment. I have to question my visitors who partake of this right – doesn’t it seem that the proper way to reduce gun violence to implement much harsher penalties for misuse? Rather than making legal owners suffer under laws illegal users will just ignore, isn’t it smarter to make sure the chance of repeat offense is reduced? Increase jail time for theft of a firearm. Increase jail time for theft carried out via firearm. Tack on additional sentencing mandates for homicides carried out by firearm.
I don’t directly benefit from loosening firearm restrictions for legitimate users. I do, however, know that if someone tries to rob a McDonald’s or a bank while I am there, I want to have the hope of someone in the facility being a legal carrier. My interactions with those that carry suggests to me that I am safer with them around than with most police.
Technorati Tags: Firearms, 2nd amendment, Washington DC, Right to bear arms
Robots will take over
Further proof that in the near future, we will all be ruled by sentient, all-powerful robots.
I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords.
Technorati Tags: Robots, Our new robot overlords, Robots will take over, The coming robot insurrection, Pbfffft Asimov
Because sometimes, math *IS* hard
While looking at my deal sites, seeing if I could come up with a reasonable purchase option for my CyberMonday spending, I found that GameStop is having some holiday shopping deals today. Checking them out, I found one deal that struck me as just off a shade.
They are only off a little, but I did laugh a little on the inside.
Technorati Tags: Unreal Tournament, UT3, Math is hard, Loi
Drinking was involved – dead from overdose
Now normally, drinking and overdosing might be a forgettably passable story. However, when one overdoses on sexual enhancement drugs…
Well, that’s just all kinds of crazy, for sure.
A French man was found dead with drug overdose. Officials found twenty-four DORMILAX pills missing from the strips, a bottle of Thai whiskey and a pack of LM cigarette in the room. Bargirl said that the man took quite a few pills and wanted more sex.
I guess so. Somewhere in there is a joke about too many sex pills and death that’s just waiting to be expressed right.
Technorati Tags: Sex, Drinking was involved, Overdose
They tried to teach my baby
All credit for this due The Onion.
Far too funny to pass up.
Technorati Tags: The Onion, They tried to teach my baby science, Intelligent Design, Anti-science
Rep. Michelle Bachmann and the Urban Legend
Today, we have a video daily double. Play along at home and see if you can win the prize.
In early October of this year, Rep. Michelle Bachmann said The news media should do a penetrating exposé and take a look. I wish they would. I wish the American media would take a great look at the views of the people in Congress and find out are they pro-America or are they anti-America? I think people would love to see an exposé like that.
(view video clip starting at about 1 minute and 50 seconds)
To me, this leaves no doubt that she believes some Congress-critters are anti-American, and that with investigation Americans could find out who these critters are.
Cue up an interview last week on Hannity and Colmes in which she was asked about this, and she claims she never said it – it is an urban legend. Responding to a quote read by Alan Colmes taken word-for-word from the above-viewable video, she says Actually, that’s not what I said at all. Actually that’s not what I said. It’s an urban legend that was created. That isn’t what I said at all.
(about 15 seconds in)
I didn’t say the media needs to investigate Congress-critters and find the anti-Americans!
Whatever. I get that we all sometimes say things we don’t mean, have a slip of the tongue/brain and say something wrong, or say things we shouldn’t have (e.g., Obama’s 57 states or McCain’s my fellow prisoners). But let’s at least ask that she own up to what she said and at least apologize or stand behind her suggestion that President-elect Obama and some Congress-critters are anti-American. The first two times I ever listened to Rush Limbaugh, he did the exact same thing and wouldn’t stand behind the comments he made when his listeners called him out on them just 2-3 minutes later. I realized then that he doesn’t really believe what he says, and now I know the same about Rep. Bachmann.
Technorati Tags: Bachmann, Lies, Urban Legend, Colmes, That’s not what I said