How big a wave is too big to surf?
Posted By RichC on November 15, 2011
Obviously not a world record 90 feet … gulp!
Wall Street and market indices improve a bit
Posted By RichC on November 15, 2011
The news from Europe and lackluster leadership in Washington DC continued to dampen investors hopes that we might see a rebound in both jobs and economy, but for today the markets closed up after an early down move today. The Dow was up 17 points, S&P 500 about 6 and the Nasdaq an impressive 29 points or a 1% rise. Those who follow tech stocks believe that the technology heavy Nasdaq could be the leadership group “if” we are coming out of this long recession. We can all hope.
Of course the markets weren’t the only positive note on Wall Street … the police moved in on the Occupy Wall Streeter’s makeshift camp at 1AM and took back Zuccotti Park from the #OWS protesters. New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg gave the order on fears over health and safety after crime and disease have become noticeable. The two month protest has generated mixed support, most likely due to its obnubilated message. Most Americans are at least somewhat understanding to the plight of joblessness, lost homes and savings and the questionable relationship that has favored the big banks and their executives. They (we) have difficulty understanding why many of the protests are also anti-capitalism and business … or why the finger isn’t pointed at big government? I suspect there is plenty of naïveté in understanding just how much better it is in our country because of free markets and rewarding innovation.
I’ve often heard the comparison of the liberal leaning Occupy Wall Street movement to the conservatives Tea Party, but the more of the current protesters behavior I see … there is no comparison. I’m sure there are some decent, well intended individuals, but the mob behavior and squallier conditions they leave our public grounds in are shameful. It is time for them to go home and regroup … clarify your cause.
Trying out Google’s latest music beta. So far, so good.
Posted By RichC on November 15, 2011
Thanks to Google+ friend Paul Young, I had a chance to play with Google’s new Music beta on Monday. I can’t say that I’m a must have music listener (I’m not), 
but I do enjoy listening to tunes once in a while. I’m partial to Pandora but have enjoyed Spotify and do listen to several Internet radio stations on occasion. Since I have SiriusXM in the car, my couple of favorite stations are saved in the preset buttons, the “loaded” audio pretty much fulfill most of my listening desires … although I wouldn’t mind a buffer that could save a couple hours of each of my preset station even when my car was off! (let me know if there is such a radio head as I might be interested)
When I was primarily a Mac guy… and iTunes was less invasive … 
I ripped most of my CDs to the computer. But in the old days it was challenging to keep all the different devices working together – Apple loved loves keeping everything in-house. At the time (and currently), my favorite device is the original iPod Shuffle even though it is somewhat limited; I’m waiting for a “cloud connected Shuffle’” version … but suspect when there is one, it will only work with Apple’s iCloud. Nevertheless, having everything digitally archived on all my devices was never a priority and when online streamed music arrived I pretty much stopped keeping up.
My conclusion so far is that Google has succeeded in providing another way to stream and archive music as well as help suggest music that might appeal to one’s taste. I’m not sure its anything better than others have developed, but they do have the resources and staying power to compete if not eventually dominate in this area.
Let me know if you are interested in trying the beta (email) … I have a few invites left.
Good memories but perhaps bad parenting?
Posted By RichC on November 14, 2011
This content is restricted.
Remembering Veterans and the recent passing of Andy Rooney
Posted By RichC on November 13, 2011
A long time CBS journalist and 60 Minutes commentator Andy Rooney died this week after an iconic career in both reporting and “curmudgeon” commentary, or at least that’s the word I’ve heard bantered around this week. He commented after his last appearance that he was “lucky” in his career … and having noted that he retired only a month ago at age 92, I agree. What many forget or are too young to remember, was that he was a war correspondent for the U.S. Army in World War II … having reported on the D-Day Normandy landing. Perhaps veteran’s “weekend” is a good time to post a video of him remembering this back on the 35th anniversary of D-Day (below).
NEW YORK (AP) — Andy Rooney so dreaded the day he had to end his signature "60 Minutes" commentaries about life’s large and small absurdities that he kept going until he was 92 years old.
Even then, he said he wasn’t retiring. Writers never retire. But his life after the end of "A Few Minutes With Andy Rooney" was short: He died Friday night, according to CBS, only a month after delivering his 1,097th and final televised commentary.Rooney had gone to the hospital for an undisclosed surgery, but major complications developed and he never recovered.
Rooney talked on "60 Minutes" about what was in the news, and his opinions occasionally got him in trouble. But he was just as likely to discuss the old clothes in his closet, why air travel had become unpleasant and why banks needed to have important sounding names.He won one of his three Emmy Awards for a piece on whether there was a real Mrs. Smith who made Mrs. Smith’s Pies. As it turned out, there was no Mrs. Smith. "I obviously have a knack for getting on paper what a lot of people have thought and didn’t realize they thought," Rooney once said. "And they say, ‘Hey, yeah!’ And they like that."
Looking for something new to punctuate its weekly broadcast, "60 Minutes" aired its first Rooney commentary on July 2, 1987. He complained about people who keep track of how many people die in car accidents on holiday weekends. In fact, he said, the Fourth of July is "one of the safest weekends of the year to be going someplace."
More than three decades later, he was railing about how unpleasant air travel had become. "Let’s make a statement to the airlines just to get their attention," he said. "We’ll pick a week next year and we’ll all agree not to go anywhere for seven days."
In early 2009, as he was about to turn 90, Rooney looked ahead to President Barack Obama’s upcoming inauguration with a look at past inaugurations. He told viewers that Calvin Coolidge’s 1925 swearing-in was the first to be broadcast on radio, adding, "That may have been the most interesting thing Coolidge ever did."
For his final essay, Rooney said that he’d live a life luckier than most."I wish I could do this forever. I can’t, though," he said.
He said he probably hadn’t said anything on "60 Minutes" that most of his viewers didn’t already know or hadn’t thought. "That’s what a writer does," he said. "A writer’s job is to tell the truth."
True to his occasional crotchety nature, though, he complained about being famous or bothered by fans. His last wish from fans: If you see him in a restaurant, just let him eat his dinner.
Rooney wrote for CBS stars such as Arthur Godfrey and Garry Moore during the 1950s and early 1960s, before settling into a partnership with newsman Harry Reasoner. With Rooney as the writer, they collaborated on several news specials, including an Emmy-winning report on misrepresentations of black people in movies and history books. He wrote "An Essay on Doors" in 1964, and continued with contemplations on bridges, chairs and women.
"The best work I ever did," Rooney said. "But nobody knows I can do it or ever did it. Nobody knows that I’m a writer and producer. They think I’m this guy on television."He became such a part of the culture that comic Joe Piscopo satirized Rooney’s squeaky voice with the refrain, "Did you ever wonder …" For many years, "60 Minutes" improbably was the most popular program on television and a dose of Rooney was what people came to expect for a knowing smile on the night before they had to go back to work.
Rooney left CBS in 1970 when it refused to air his angry essay about the Vietnam War. He went on TV for the first time, reading the essay on PBS and winning a Writers Guild of America award for it.
He returned to CBS three years later as a writer and producer of specials. Notable among them was the 1975 "Mr. Rooney Goes to Washington," whose lighthearted but serious look at government won him a Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting.
His words sometimes landed Rooney in hot water. CBS suspended him for three months in 1990 for making racist remarks in an interview, which he denied. Gay rights groups were mad, during the AIDS epidemic, when Rooney mentioned homosexual unions in saying "many of the ills which kill us are self-induced." Indians protested when Rooney suggested Native Americans who made money from casinos weren’t doing enough to help their own people.
The Associated Press learned the danger of getting on Rooney’s cranky side. In 1996, AP Television Writer Frazier Moore wrote a column suggesting it was time for Rooney to retire. On Rooney’s next "60 Minutes" appearance, he invited those who disagreed to make their opinions known. The AP switchboard was flooded by some 7,000 phone calls and countless postcards were sent to the AP mail room."Your piece made me mad," Rooney told Moore two years later. "One of my major shortcomings — I’m vindictive. I don’t know why that is. Even in petty things in my life I tend to strike back. It’s a lot more pleasurable a sensation than feeling threatened."He was one of television’s few voices to strongly oppose the war in Iraq after the George W. Bush administration launched it in 2002. After the fall of Baghdad in April 2003, he said he was chastened by its quick fall but didn’t regret his "60 Minutes" commentaries.
"I’m in a position of feeling secure enough so that I can say what I think is right and if so many people think it’s wrong that I get fired, well, I’ve got enough to eat," Rooney said at the time.
Andrew Aitken Rooney was born on Jan. 14, 1919, in Albany, N.Y., and worked as a copy boy on the Albany Knickerbocker News while in high school. College at Colgate University was cut short by World War II, when Rooney worked for Stars and Stripes.With another former Stars and Stripes staffer, Oram C. Hutton, Rooney wrote four books about the war. They included the 1947 book, "Their Conqueror’s Peace: A Report to the American Stockholders," documenting offenses against the Germans by occupying forces.
Rooney and his wife, Marguerite, were married for 62 years before she died of heart failure in 2004. They had four children and lived in Rowayton, Conn. Daughter Emily Rooney is a former executive producer of ABC’s "World News Tonight."
LINK
Should fuel efficient diesel get equal tax incentive credits?
Posted By RichC on November 12, 2011
After reading a recent article in the WSJ discussing the tens of thousands of high paying energy sector and supporting jobs that would be immediately available if the Keystone XL pipeline project would be approved, its clear that politics are more important to President Obama that U.S. jobs. He must have decided that the votes to be lost over approving the pipeline are more crucial than the thousands of good job and our countries independence from middle eastern oil. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for clean energy and improving technology when it comes to transportaion, but when it comes to choosing whether to use oil from North America or having Canada pipe it across the Rocky Mountains and ship it across the Pacific Ocean to China in supertankers … I’d rather the oil stay here and aid our economy. We aren’t going to eliminate the world consumption of oil in 5, 10 or even 20 years … or eliminate the the use of fossil fuels … so let’s help our economy and create jobs here since we’ll still be importing oil from overseas anyway … plus be tankering it from Canada to China as well. Senseless!
This brings me to another pet peeve … the government picking the preverbal winners and losers when it comes to energy. Why is it that clean and highly efficient gas and diesel cars aren’t eligible for tax credits, but EVs and hybrid models are? If it is efficiency and low emission we’re after, then a small diesel car is perfect for American highways … as buyers demonstrate. A recent white paper is pretty convincing and buyers are choosing diesels even though they have to pay a couple thousand more (particularly in suburbia and rural areas). Why do only the EVs and hybrids that make good sense in cities get the tax credits – the power to charge them in most cases comes from burning something?
Let’s either be fair and offer tax incentives for all efficient vehicles … or just let the consumer and the markets decide and stop the credits all together.
Choice Favors Diesel
Despite such incentives for electric-drive vehicles, consumers are already favoring diesels as a way to increase their fuel economy, the paper argues. Mineta points out that sales data shows that for models that offer both clean-diesel and conventional gas versions, such as the Audi A3 hatchback (top) and Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen Diesel, almost 40 percent of customers are choosing diesel.
After opining on the early part of this topic and sourcing the Wall Street Journal, I figured it only fair to add a PBS video news clip below.
Recognizing two special veterans today – a wonderful son
Posted By RichC on November 11, 2011
My son made his father proud today by recognizing Veterans Day 11/11/11 in this way … he posted a nice note to his Facebook page.
The absent minded professor has very little on me …
Posted By RichC on November 11, 2011
After a couple of busy days traveling, last night found me swapping cars and scrabbling to get back to Cincinnati. Unfortunately in the confusion, I left behind my computer bag … it goes something like this:
- 8AM – text my daughter that we need to return the rental car by 5:17PM and head to Marysville to pick up her VW TDI (repair and a full timing belt change)
- No reply as she is on rounds in the hospital
- NOON – send another text and an email while eating lunch thinking she might check her text and email while she has lunch
- No reply … no time to check her phone
- 5PM – call her phone and then text one of her friends to find out when she might be getting off work? (6:30 – 7PM was the answer) UGH.
- 5:15PM – returned the car and waited until they closed at 6PM. Called Jon to let him know I would be late to pick up the car. He was heading out but his wife would be around … whew. Thanks.
- 6PM – called a taxi and unloaded all my stuff including my suitcase, cooler, tool bag, books, phone holder, wires, etc that I put in the rental car …
- 6:30PM – paid the fare and haul all my junk up three floors to my daughter’s apartment … thankfully I had the key.
- 7PM – My daughter called and says “Hi, how are you doing? I’m just getting out of work. What’s the plan?”
- 7:15PM – She picks me up, I load all my stuff into my Honda Pilot and we head off to get her car in Marysville.
8ish … we pick up her car and she heads for Columbus and I head for Cincinnati. - 10PM – I pick up my wife at her sisters, eat some late dinner and we drive the 45 minutes home.
- 11PM – While unloading the car I realize I’m missing my computer bag. In a panic I call the cab company and have my daughter check her apartment but KNOW that I left it in the backseat of the rental car. Good grief … what a doofus!
- 5:30AM – off I go to Columbus and arrive at the rental car office as they open …and thankful find my computer bag. Whew. I’m tired but glad … I’m backing up my computer this weekend.
A rejected Issue 2 in Ohio is going to cost jobs and growth
Posted By RichC on November 9, 2011
The voters in Ohio have clearly made their desires known when it comes to restricting collective bargaining for public employees — over 60% rejected Governor John Kasich and the Republicans (perhaps they asked for too much?). What I don’t think voters realize is the big picture cost of rejecting Issue 2. Unions are now in a strong position to collectively bargain for public workers which will hamstring Ohio cash strapped school districts and cities – the state has little extra to help. Even union members understand that private sector workers contribute to their health care and retirement … and many understood the need to ask them to pay “at least 15 percent of their health-care insurance premiums and contribute 10 percent of their pay to a pension fund.” Unless funding is passed locally, jobs will be lost and services cut … there just aren’t enough tax revenues to continue paying the mandatory increases and costly premium benefits.
The bigger picture being painted by yesterday’s “No” vote is that Ohio has just become a less friendly place for business. After the 2010 election we were just starting to see the potential to attract business and investment to our state, but the more costly environment now becomes one more hurdle for those trying to bring and create jobs in Ohio.
Message receive — Ohio is now a more expensive place to live and do business.
The measure would have restricted bargaining to wages, hours, working conditions, barred strikes and allowed government entities to impose contracts in an impasse. It also required workers to cover at least 15 percent of their health-care insurance premiums and contribute 10 percent of their pay to a pension fund.
A similar bill pushed by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, also a Republican, triggered weeks of protests at the Capitol in Madison and spurred recall elections in nine Senate districts.
Tougher Than Wisconsin
Unlike the Wisconsin law, which exempted police and firefighters, the Ohio bill included them. We Are Ohio featured safety forces in their ads.
Kasich, 59, has said the law was needed to help local governments control costs. Now, he’ll “take a deep breath” and reflect on the outcome, the governor told reporters at a statehouse news conference.
“It’s clear that the people have spoken,” Kasich said. “They might have said it was too much, too soon.”
Voters didn’t want government to use the law as a tool “to help our communities go forward,” Kasich said.
“That’s OK,” he said. “Let’s find out what the set of tools are that will help them to be able to compete and win the jobs.”
Portions of the law struck down today may be re-introduced next year, House Speaker William G. Batchelder told reporters Nov. 3. Even so, Republican lawmakers, many of whom will be up for re-election then, must be careful not to thwart the will of the voters, said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka.
‘‘Politicians that vote for that, whether it’s in a big hunk or in little pieces, are going to pay a price,’’ Trumka said in a telephone interview before the vote.
VW TDI woes. Ford Focus. And a busy start to the week
Posted By RichC on November 8, 2011
My daughter called to tell me her dependable Volkswagen Jetta TDI wouldn’t start. So far it has made it through high school, college, med school and to her medical residency without letting her down. Unfortunately it just cranked and wouldn’t start this time. I attempted to diagnose over the phone – having her check for bubbles in the fuel line and looking for a stuck anti-shudder valve, but unfortunately the little diesel engine just cranked without firing.
I put the call into one of my Columbus TDI gurus but he was unfortunately tied up … so I took a half day off yesterday and zipped up to Columbus armed with a new fuel filter, my battery charger and a few tools. Unfortunately the shorter day got the best of me and a quick filter change did not solve the problem. Since Marysville was only a short trip to the northwest, I opted to have the car hauled ($115 – ouch) to Jon Hamilton’s garage to figure out the problem and while there get the timing belt scheduled as well. Unfortunately at a paramedic, he is working a 24 hour shift and won’t be able to get to my daughter’s car until the end of the week … but at least he is squeezing me in.
Location of the A4 VW Jetta TDI anti-shudder valve and linkage
As for the Ford part of this post …
I left my Honda Pilot with my daughter and rented a small 2012 Ford Focus until her car is repaired … and on my way home was impressed both with the Sync to my Palm Pre and the excellent fuel mileage – at least what th display was showing. Mind you, I was on the interstate and not necessarily driving above 65mph. (not bad, although I might do a real physical test since I have a road trip coming up this week – image below)
Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee
- lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
- digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.