Here's some good news out of Africa: A South African court has ruled that Zimbabwean state property held in Cape Town can be auctioned to compensate white farmers evicted during Zimbabwe's criminal 'land reform' program. Good for Tsvangerai. This is definitely not something we would have seen under Mbeki.
Tech Watch: People are doing really interesting things with their Microsoft Kinects. Microsoft regrettably, is reacting in a knee jerk fashion to the idea of people modifying property they own, for purposes not originally intended. Personally, I think its one thing to nullify a warranty if someone tinkers with a product, but what's this nonsense about getting law enforcement involved? So if I rig a Kinect to cooperate with my computer, somehow I'm a scoundrel, but if I take a hammer to it, I'm golden? I don't understand.
I am very, very cautiously optimistic about this. The TSA appears to be accepting that their new screening procedures are outrageous, expensive and offensive and may be toning them down. Personally, I'll believe it when I see it. They've got a big ol' budget for big ol' shiny machines that I'm sure they want to justify. Notably, Hilary Clinton has said that she would not go through a pat down if she could avoid it. I think these policies will end A) when TSA agents can no longer stand being publicly and justly reviled and refuse to perform the procedures and B) When politicians like Clinton or John Boehner have to be subjected to them.
Strange way to prop up an economy but hey, at least it's based on a renewable resource.
Steelers picked up a lovely win over the Raiders yesterday. But good lord! The officiating! The awful, awful officiating that seemed to lead to fouls on EVERY SINGLE PLAY! Absolutely unbelievably bad. Granted, quite a few were warranted. But seriously? Our pro-bowl linebacker, James Harrison was flagged for Unnecessary Roughness for falling on the quarterback "with the full weight of his body." I thought this was football? I thought that was by definition, a tackle? I thought that was precisely Harrisons job?
More on the TSA: Some four years ago, scientists working for the government had predicted the public outcry that would erupt over the nude scanners and developed a cheap, simple and effective modification that would distort the image of the body into a funhouse mirror image while accurately displaying any contraband. Sounds like a good solution, no? Oh but this is a government agency...
Wattenburg is semi-retired and works as a consultant to Livermore and several major government contractors. Familiar with the federal bureaucracy, he said he doubts the TSA will take the simplest course of action.
"They are so far down the road in buying all the equipment that they're too embarrassed to reverse course," he said. "Their very sophisticated equipment can be made to do this."
After Haitian sewer scrubber, I think collecting on debts owed by the deceased sounds like the least savory career.I'm a bit surprised that this is only happening now: Netflix is shifting away from the mail business towards streaming only. It seems as though it would save the company a ton of money. Inasmuch as products like the Wii now allow people to watch streaming movies on their televisions rather than their computer screens, I can't see how a physical dvd could provide a better experience. I've wondered actually: How does Netflix determine what will and will not be available instantly?
Interesting article over at The Economist concerning Japans rapidly graying population. It really does represent a major, major problem and flies contrary to understandable concerns about overpopulation. Hopefully, Japan will be able to work through it but this is pretty dire:
Ten years ago each person in retirement was supported by four in work. In ten years that burden will fall on only two workers. Already, the rising cost of caring for the elderly has pushed up the government deficit and the national debt. If Japan’s workers cannot shoulder their burden, the country will find itself unable to honour fully its pension and health-care commitments. In effect, it will be forced to default on its obligations to society.
You know your acting careers in trouble when you can't even keep a job as a porn star. That said, I can't think of any other industry that would ever show the level of patience that Hollywood has with these sorts of shenanigans. Being photogenic and reasonably capable of acting must be awesome.
Last Friday, I posted a link in my Morning Blog, providing the science behind cheating at coin flipping. In the spirit of foul play, I'd like to present you at this time with: the Jenga Pistol.
Why can't more family games involve ballistics?
Huh? Something I was not aware of but this article seems to imply that sandwiches play a big role during Christmas in the UK. Is my take on that accurate? I mean, I love sandwiches. Really love them. A lot. But it seems a bit weird to include them in the holiday festivities.
And finally as a local shout-out, I would note that local eateries Primanti's and Isaly's both made the list for the PBS documentary Sandwiches You Will Like.
And yes, here in Pittsburgh we put our french fries on the sandwich. I know! The horror! The delicious, tasty horror...
Of course for that matter, we also put them on our salads. And frankly, the less said on that, the better.
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