Open thread

Non-computer disaster related open thread :-) Read More......

My new Sony computer is dead again

Sorry to be sharing so much with you guys, but what the hell, we're a community now, thought you'd appreciate the update (and at least this allows me to vent while listening to the nice music on my phone). And after this last call, I really need to vent.

My new rather expensive VAOI has crashed again. This would be the 4th reinstall of windows the guy on the phone just tried to get me to do, I told him enough was enough. We reinstalled last night, wiping out all my Christmas photos among other things, and then all was well until I tried making a ghost image of my drive and it jammed because there were errors on the drive. So I ran scandisk, which took, oh, about 4 to 5 hours (first sign of trouble), it found a few errors, fixed them, and now the computer won't reboot. The real helpful guy on the phone (sarcasm) first suggested I reinstall windows, that was real helpful.

Oh yes, now I'm being told that they can ship some repair disks to me. The great line she gave me was "your warranty is only for repair, not to get a new computer."

If anyone out there works at Sony, this is ridiculous. You pay nearly $2000 bucks for a new computer, it's a piece of crap, and now they want to send you more disks to repair what shouldn't even be broken, after your reinstalled the software 3 times.

You guys were right. I should have considered a Mac. At the very least, there was no point in buying a brand name. I thought a Sony would give me a more trustworthy system, better service at the very least, and I'm getting the typical bullshit runaround you get when you buy crap.

I've had it with this company.

PS And how great is Sony support for their computers? I'm told that there are no managers around, but one can back to me on Sunday. Sunday. Now that's service. Read More......

Open thread

Go for it. Read More......

Bush's Broken Promises

Here's a good, blistering editorial in today's New York Times that mocks Bush and his much ballyhooed plan the Millenium Challenge Account, which should be doling out $5 billion a year by 2006 to the poor countries (mostly in Africa and Latin America) that put in place common sense reform and work towards development. As always, Bush announces big numbers and then quietly cuts back funds after the spotlight moves on.

They tubthump this project all over the world as an example of the USA doing good. But how much have they doled out since starting the MCA last year? Not one dime. Zero. Zip. Nada. A number of countries have qualified according to Bush's lackeys, but none of them have seen any greenbacks. This echoes what Bush did about AIDS in Africa -- callously using the worst plague in our lifetimes to pretend he was a compassionate conservative and then DEFUNDING international groups already on the ground trying to fight the disease and save lives, refuse to back generic drugs because he'd rather send funds to pharmaceutical companies than save three times as many lives (the cost difference between name brands and generics) and finally demanding that science and common sense be abandoned by refusing to work with any project that mentions condoms.

Paul Krugman details today how Bush lies when he pretends black Americans are shortchanged by Social Security. Bush just wants to spend trillions to switch to a privatization plan and he's willing to con black Americans into thinking the system is stacked against them. (His lie is based on the fact that so many black people die at a young age.) But why let facts get in the way?
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College Republicans plan to hold a "straight pride" week

It's funny, but why is it that these "we're not really bigots" events are never held by groups that actually are known not to be bigots. For example, you never see well-adjusted, gay-friendly straight people holding "straight pride" events. It's always Republicans, and it's always people who don't like gays. If the events were unconnected to anti-gay animus then why are there never any people involved who aren't anti-gay? Same thing goes for "white pride" events. If they're not motivated by racism, then why don't any normal non-racist people ever participate - the events are always held by Klansmen and David Duke-types, but we're supposed to believe there's no racial animus involved. Uh huh.

Same goes for groups like the "ex"-gay groups. They don't hate gays, they tell us, but then why is that they never "cure" a gay who actually doesn't have it in for other gay people? I mean, you'd think there be at least one of those "thousands" of "ex"-homosexuals who didn't feel the need to join a big religious right lobbying group to fight to repeal laws protecting gay employees from workplace discrimination. I mean, if you really could "cure" your gayness, wouldn't you think there'd be at least one "cured" "ex"-gay who actually LIKED gay people and even supported some gay rights laws?

Just a thought.

Anyway, Pam has the scoop on the straight pride festivities, along with some choice comments from the freepers. Read More......

Open thread

Chat Read More......

Cheney dissed for dressing down at Auschwitz

For those of you who poo-poo'd my post of the other day talking about how Dick Cheney and wife were looking a little too happy at an Auschwitz museum exhibit in Poland, I believe it's time for some crow.

At yesterday's gathering of world leaders in southern Poland to mark the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the United States was represented by Vice President Cheney. The ceremony at the Nazi death camp was outdoors, so those in attendance, such as French President Jacques Chirac and Russian President Vladimir Putin, were wearing dark, formal overcoats and dress shoes or boots. Because it was cold and snowing, they were also wearing gentlemen's hats. In short, they were dressed for the inclement weather as well as the sobriety and dignity of the event.

The vice president, however, was dressed in the kind of attire one typically wears to operate a snow blower....

Just last week, in a frigid, snow-dusted Washington, Cheney sat outside through the entire inauguration without so much as a hat and without suffering frostbite. And clearly, Cheney owns a proper overcoat. The world saw it during his swearing-in as vice president. Cheney treated that ceremony with the dignity it deserved -- not simply through his demeanor, but also through his attire. Would he have dared to take the oath of office with a ski cap on? People would have justifiably considered that an insult to the office, the day, the country.

There is little doubt that intellectually Cheney approached the Auschwitz ceremony with thoughtfulness and respect. But symbolism is powerful. That's why the piercing cry of a train whistle marked the beginning of the ceremony and the glare of searchlights signaled its end. The vice president might have been warm in his parka, ski cap and hiking boots. But they had the unfortunate effect of suggesting that he was more concerned with his own comfort than the reason for braving the cold at all.

Appearances matter. And these guys don't seem to care about what people think of them, or us. Read More......

More from the "ex"-gay whiner

He just sent out another email, I had to share. (You can read my previous post on this goof here.) This is a great window into how the religious right thinks. My favorite part is where he says:

"Once again, the media elite strikes and tries to silence the message that homosexuals can in fact change - even though that was not the topic of the segment."

Yes, that's right. He was being censored from trying to make the show be about a topic the show wasn't about. You invite a guest to talk about Buster the Bunny and he says right out that he is going to talk about how homosexuals can pray away the gay. Um, not what you were invited for. But in the religious right's logic, that's liberal media censorship. I'll say it again, big girl.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 28, 2005

HUNTINGTON, CT - Stephen Bennett, executive director of SBM, was booked and scheduled to appear on "Good Morning America" today, Friday Jan. 28, 2005 at 7:00 am EST. He was to discuss "Postcards from Buster," Education Secretary Margaret Spelling's rebuke to PBS and PBS's decision to pull one episode from the air.

The episode in controversy "Sugartime!" depicts two lesbian moms and their daughters on a farm in Vermont. Many Americans are outraged, especially right on the heels of the "Sponge Bob" controversy (really known as the We Are Family Foundation controversy.) This episode of "Postcards from Buster" blatantly promotes the lesbian lifestyle as natural and normal to juvenile children.

"Sponge Bob may be off the hook, but Buster the Bunny has been busted," said Bennett. "Those who have an immoral agenda just refuse leave our children alone."

GMA also scheduled the two lesbians featured in the controversial episode to appear for the debate segment with Bennett.

After the pre-interview, when the lesbians were informed that Stephen was a former homosexual - now married to a woman with children, as well as Bennett's traditional stands on marriage and the family, the producers called and said the lesbians felt "uncomfortable" even being in the same room (studio) with Stephen. They wanted to set Stephen up in a satellite studio in another state.

After Bennett assured the producers he would show nothing but love, respect and kindness to the lesbian couple, GMA called and said "We've had a change in plans and are going to use some pre-taped interviews we already have for the debate segment."

GMA said, "Logistics just could not be worked out." They also said no satellite locations were available. SBM frequently uses one at the YES Network only 30 minutes away which is ALWAYS available at the drop of a dime. (GMA's studios in NYC are only one hour or so from SBM's offices in CT.)

Did GMA do what they said? Absolutely not. They immediately called Stephen's friend and colleague Andrea Lafferty of the Traditional Values Coalition, to do the live interview this morning via satellite in place of Bennett (Andrea did a fantastic job as usual.)

Stephen believes he was booted because of the lesbians' intolerance and bigotry toward him for being a former homosexual.

Once again, the media elite strikes and tries to silence the message that homosexuals can in fact change - even though that was not the topic of the segment. Also, Bennett is deeply disturbed by the blatant hypocrisy of the lesbians stating on air that they feel America treats them as if they "don't even exist."

It seems by these two lesbians refusing to debate Bennett - let alone even be in the same studio with him - in their book, former homosexuals DO NOT EXIST.

So who really is the recipient of "intolerance, hatred and bigotry" here? Obviously, NOT the lesbians.

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Open thread

So, besides my computer meltdown, how is everyone else doing today? Read More......

Why does Bush hate Jews?

From the National Jewish Democratic Council:

The Chicago Tribune reported yesterday, "An official U.S. delegation sent to Ukraine's presidential inauguration last weekend included a Ukrainian-American who has accused Jews of manipulating the Holocaust for their gain and playing an 'inordinate role' in the rise of Soviet communism."

Myron Kuropas was selected by the White House to fly to Ukraine with then-Secretary of State Colin Powell as part of the American delegation. Mr. Kuropas wrote in 2000, "Big money drives the Holocaust industry. To survive, the Holocaust industry is always searching for its next mark. Ukraine's turn is just around the corner." He has argued elsewhere that Jews played a driving role behind Soviet leader Josef Stalin's murderous policies in Ukraine. Mr. Kuropas' has demonstrated his hostility towards Jews for some time; Michael Kotzin, executive vice president of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, explained to the Chicago Tribune, "This is not new stuff. ...If you go back over the decades, he's taken these kinds of positions highly antagonistic to the Jewish people and Jewish interests and causes."

The Knight Ridder news service confirmed that "three State Department officials said the delegation was assembled by the White House."

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Open thread

Getting ready for a conference call. Chat away.

Oh, and for the geeks out there, I just bought a one-touch back-up drive, 300 gigs. How does the software that came with it, it will back up any files I've changed each night, from ghost software? Read More......

Is the world safer today?

Hmmm, what do you think? Not a bad overview here but I really wish the Brits would quit with the nonsense about Tony Blair standing up for whatever or how he was bullied into doing whatever. C'mon now, he's the same as Bush except he should have been smart enough to know better and he's had way too many opportunities since to break with Bush and he hasn't.
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Reinstalling Windows Open Thread

Yes, new computer, 3d time since I got it a month ago, reinstalling Windows and everything else on the 'puter. I WILL bitch slap the first person who mentions a Mac. We suspect a virus. Very weird shit. So I went out and bought a $300 300-gig back up drive that's amazing. I'll be backing up every night - fool me three times, and I won't get fooled again. Read More......

ANOTHER conservative journalist on the take

This is rididulous. Bush went out and bought off every reporter he could to support his policies. And they have the nerve - THE NERVE - to talk about the liberal media, to criticize the New York Times, and more. Love, love, LOVE to know if any of that money went to anyone at FOX News? This is scandal territory. What's really creepy is that these kind of tactics, buying off journalists, is the kind of thing the CIA does in foreign countries. You don't do it in America.

At least not until now. Read More......