Technology & MSG

Until recently, I knew very little about Haiti. I knew that a coworker did mission work down there, supporting an abysmally ad hoc network. I knew that it was an island. As far as I knew, Wyclef Jean was the most notable product from the country (in regard to his origins, not as a source [...]

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I found Tom Clancy’s Battle Ready to be an interesting portrait of USMC General Tony Zinni (now retired) and how he progressed in his career through some rather tumultuous engagements.
A lot of the book is set in Zinni’s own words, with minimal narration and filling in by Clancy. This is a good thing, since Zinni’s [...]

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I like that the White House has a blog. I like knowing what’s going on without having to watch hours of C-SPAN. Seriously, who has time for that? I really like that there’s an RSS feed for it. It would be a lot better if it were a full text feed, however.
So this morning I [...]

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When I arrived at my polling center this morning at 6:50am there were approximately 500-600 people in line. I’m thrilled that it was such a great turnout, but I still couldn’t believe it. The parking lot was beyond full, so I opted to leave and try my luck after work. I’m not sure whether the [...]

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I usually don’t watch the news, but while at the car dealership yesterday I had some time in the waiting room. On the one hand I don’t feel that the taxpayers ought to be bailing out either individuals or corporations that made poor financial decisions. Like a friend helping out your friend because they made [...]

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On November 19th, the Maryland General Assembly voted to increase the state sales tax 20% (from 5% to 6%). At the same time they added computer support services, data center support, custom programming, consulting, and disaster recovery services to the list of services that will be taxed at the new rate (up from 0% previously). [...]

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Due to a poor laptop security policy, here are some snippets from the diary of an American Community Survey (ACS) Field Representive.
Friday, 6 July 2007, 5:55PM
Every single time I want to take the wife down to Rehobeth for the weekend Mr. Fancypants Fitzpatrick strolls into my cubicle like the boss from Office Space at ten [...]

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Here is a rough copy of the American Community Survey questionnaire. I wasn’t able to locate a scanner, but I’m a quick typist. The only thing you’d gain from a scan is the design of the survey, which honestly isn’t too difficult to follow. I can confirm that there are no choices for you to [...]

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The American Community Survey (ACS) makes me very uncomfortable. It is a nationwide survey that is being forced upon the unlucky that happen to live in one of homes selected at random. I was one of those unlucky people and took immediate issue with some of the questions being asked and the manner in which [...]

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I don’t like putting stickers on my car. I don’t feel like I should be advertising my preferences on my windshield, if for no other reason than a police officer might not agree with my views when he’s considering whether to give a warning or write a ticket. My views might change, too… then I [...]

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Just like when you see SWAT officers riding the Metro with submachine guns and dogs, this has become a sign of the times in the DC metropolitan area. Here’s what I saw the other day.
A guy is sitting on the curb of a busy street, several feet in front of a barbed wire fence. He [...]

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Just a day after the Virginia Tech shooting, RIT student Jonathan Hackenburg (pictured at right, probably with a severe case of sleep deprivation) was taken into custody for possession of assault weapons. The whole thing came about because Rodney White — the facilities supervisor at the hotel who is being praised in the media and [...]

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I just returned from seeing Fools & Horses play a nice couple sets at Nottingham’s. Despite my disdain for cover charges and previous bashing of Nottingham’s, tonight was a good time. The bar went smoke-free since the last time I was there; that’s well worth an extra couple bucks. In addition our server (Alley G) [...]

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Some independent film is excellent and some is crap. Seldom does an independently filmed documentary make your jaw drop. Loose Change does exactly that, examining the events of September 11th, 2001.

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The FairTax Act is proposed legislation that would eliminate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and do away with all income taxes and payroll taxes. Instead, a national sales tax would finance the government.

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