Because that’s how they got saddled with Newt Gingrich.
Category Archives: Anything
Why Republicans are against unwed mothers and broken homes:
January 28, 2012
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Dear Facebook
November 4, 2011
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[Revenge] Who is Emily Thorne?
November 2, 2011
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Alias: Amanda Clarke
Personality Traits: Cunning, opportunistic, methodical, loyal, goal oriented
Counterpart in the Count of Monte Cristo : The Count of Monte Cristo, but not necessarily Dantes.
Bio: Emily Thorne (born Amanda Clarke) was raised by her father with whom she spent the summers in the Hamptons—presumably they lived in New York City for the rest of the year. There has not been very much information about her mother, but it seems as though her father had been trying to groom Victoria Grayson into becoming Amanda’s step-mother, before the betrayal. After the betrayal of her father, by their once close friends the Graysons, Emily was institutionalized in solitary confinement by a request from Victoria Grayson, who also bribed the psychologist at the juvenile detention center.
Nolan Ross was the first person of her previous life to bring her out of center once her term there was over and gave to her a chest from her father detailing the betrayal of him. In the time after her release, Emily began to build the platform for her revenge. For years, she spied on her targets through social events, organizations and using some spy-quality sleuthing skills. This also built up her reputation, so that she seemed more legitimate facet of the New York elite. This summer, her plans began to unfold.
The story so far
So far she has been picking off her father’s opponents one by one. I can only wonder if she’s going to run out of people who betrayed her family.
Revenge taken on:
- Lydia for being a false witness
- Bill Harmon for being a false witness and framing her father
- Tom Kingsley for prosecuted her father
- Dr. Michelle Banks for institutionalizing her as a child
- Frank for getting in the way and being a Grayson henchmen.
Each revenge increases the risk that she’s going to be found out, as all of a sudden this strange new woman appears and everyone in the conspiracy is getting knocked out. Frank is starting to pick up on the trail that Lydia ran in to, so we will see how Emily decides to finally take care of him.
On the flip side, you can kind of see her wavering focus on revenge as she escalates her relationship with Daniel. Is their relationship one more cornerstone on her path to revenge? Or is it a convenient break from the scheming and planning? I think that it seems genuine. If it turns out to be a ploy, Emily’s character is going to so much hard to empathize with, since weaponizing love into a form of revenge almost seems wrong.
Then add in the strong relationships she has with other males like with Nolan and Jack. The friendship with Nolan, which has a side-kickesque feel to it, makes me feel like there’s something behind their bond that Nolan isn’t sharing. Her interactions with Jack Porter so far have been fairly detached, and the affection has been mostly one sided. I’m kind of wondering how this is going to develop, since her relationship with Daniel seems kind of endearing.
End Game
Destroy Victoria Grayson… will she allow for collateral damage though?
MOTO-SPLT : How are the pieces of Motorola doing?
November 1, 2011
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Was Share-holder equity unleashed by the Motorola Split?
Companies splitting business units off is a hot topic in the investment world today. I personally don’t believe that there are many advantages to it, especially in companies that are highly integrated. That said, the Motorola split was fairly successful, albeit that success had a huge dose of luck.
Prior to the annoucement of Google’s plans to acquire Motorola Mobility, Motorola Mobility’s market cap was around $6 billion. Motorola Solution’s market cap was around $15 billion. This together was $21 billion market cap, which was about the same market cap for Motorola prior to the split in beginning of 2011. The investors who had pushed for the split had sold the company and other investors on the idea that splitting the company would unlock additional shareholder value, just from having 2 separately trading entities. It did not.
The second reason for splitting the business was to allow for another company to purchase either half of the company more easily. Thank goodness, they got lucky. With Google’s impending purchase of Mobility, the company’s halves are worth $11 billion (Mobility) and $15 billion (Solutions) for a total of $26 billion. This did unlock billions of dollars of value, which quite honestly given the context of the acquisition could have happened without splitting the company.
How are the pieces doing?
On the bright side, all the former divisions of Motorola seem to be doing a little bit better with growing revenue and profits (or reducing losses).
The untold story is that of the downsizing that has occurred in the wake of the split. Motorolans are looking like an endangered species.
Motorola Mobility: 19,000 employees 700 laid off earlier this year [source], and 800 more announced [source] for a 7.9% reduction of staff
Motorola Networks (now part of Nokia Siemens Networks): 7,500 employees were transferred to NSN and 1,500 are being axed [source] for a reduction of 20%.
Motorola Solutions: 23,000 employees 175 laid off [source] for a reduction of 0.7%.
Do It Yourself: Cardboard Smartphone Stand for Skype Video or TV
October 30, 2011
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Why spend $10 on a plastic kick stand for your phone when you can make your own universal stand out of cardboard for free in minutes? It’s perfect for watching video, like on Hulu Plus Netflicks, or video chatting on Skype or Gtalk with friends.
This is what it looks like. I didn’t use scissors, so it’s a little extra ghettotastic. But if you want a classier version, you could break out a ruler, some wrapping paper, markers, and tape.
And this is basically how it’s constructed. Fold in the middle, and then 2 more folds on the ends in the same direction So basically the shape you’re trying to make is this: /_\_. The little tabs on the end help to keep the stand and your phone from sliding.
This is the stand from an angled side view:
This simple little stand is compatible with most Android and Apple smartphones that can lay horizontally on their sides. I think you might have some trouble with Blackberries, since it might be harder to balance them on their sides. Oh, and on the upside for you greenies out their this thing is 100% biodegradable, recyclable, and upcycled. 
Canker-X Review
October 29, 2011
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Getting Sued for Torrenting: What to do?
October 23, 2011
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- First thing is first, calm down.
- Does this go on my record?
- Should I contact the lawyer on the letter?
- What could happen, if I wait it out?
- Where to find a lawyer?
- What could happen, if I fight, or settle?
If you’ve just received a letter from your ISP that they’re being subpoenaed for your information, take a deep breath. My brother was in your same shoes, and my family decided to support him through the process. Not everyone has the same family support, so I decided to pull this all together based on our family’s experience dealing with a copyright infringement lawsuit. It’s definitely a more and more common occurrence, yet it seems like no one really knows how to react. I’m not a lawyer, so I’m just sharing what our lawyer told us or what we researched. I’ve shared his story with a few of my friends, and was surprised to find out that a few of them had been sued in the past or knew of someone who had.
So the next thing to do is stop pirating. Or if it’s a family member, make sure that they stop pirating. The cost of defending someone in a copyright infringement case is staggeringly high compared to the cost of purchasing the thing (music, movies, programs, whatever) that was pirated.
Well the good news is that the copyright infringement lawsuits are civil suits. You only admit or deny liability for whatever they’re suing for. So on the bright side, if you were worrying about the suit showing up on a background check, it won’t. Generally, background checks only look for criminal lawsuits; the reason being is that civil suits are more complicated and can be easily misconstrued by outsiders not familiar with the case.
Should I contact the lawyer on the letter?
Never contact the lawyer on the letter without a lawyer of your own. Talking to the opposition lawyer with out a lawyer could lead to you accidentally admitting or the lawyer might try to scare you to Jesus.
Here’s what happened to one guy that talked without a lawyer: they named him in the case and are suing him individually instead of in the mass lawsuit.
What might happen if I wait it out?
If you ignore it, there’s a risk of a default settlement or on the flip side the whole case could get dismissed. A default settlement would only happen if you’ve been summoned to court and don’t show up. In that case, the person suing you automatically wins. On the other hand, most copyright infringement lawsuits never go to court as there is some kind error on the part of the people doing the suing. In that case there’s a good chance that there might be a mass dismissal of Does. It happens pretty frequently, but I’m not so sure if you should bank on it.
Good resources to check up on for your case specifically are:
http://fightcopyrighttrolls.com/
The thing about these lawsuits is that the lawyers are trying out all sorts of different ways to sue lots of people at once, and when they do things like that there’s a higher likelihood that they did something wrong which might result in their case getting thrown out. It’s always good to check up on those two websites to see if the lawyers, going after you, might have done something like that. Now, if you decide to fight or settle, you need a lawyer.
Start off with the EFF list https://www.eff.org/issues/file-sharing/subpoena-defense for your state.
Also check with your local Bar Association to see if they have a lawyer referral service. We called our local Bar association and got some rude ghetto woman, so I would suggest searching through the Bar Association directory for someone who you would feel comfortable with before calling.
Sticker Shock! Lawyers will cost somewhere between $150-250+ dollars an hour. Generally, you can call them and talk to them about your case for free. But if you want them to represent you, you’ll need to deposit a couple thousand dollars. There are some lawyers, who will offer a flat fee for copyright infringement cases, and that could be $750+ total. For my brother, we got charged 7 billable hours for a total of $1,500.
Our lawyer was adamant that in a court, the liability would be found to be a fraction of what the people suing my brother wanted. He ultimately decided to settle for personal reasons, but I think it’s good to point out that the cost of going to court versus the decreased settlement costs.
When my brother decided to settle, the opposition basically submitted a form to the court that the case against Doe X had been dropped with prejudice. The prejudice part is important because that means that they won’t try to sue him again for the same thing. And that’s where his story ends.
Conclusion
Breathe, this will be a stressful situation to be in, but it all comes down to economics. The people suing you are trying to get as many people to settle as possible to keep their costs low and bring in as much money as possible. You are trying to keep the amount you’re going to pay for either lawyers or settlement as low as possible.
No Root Screenshot It: On the Incredible 2
October 22, 2011
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There is now an easy way to take screenshots on your HTC Droid Incredible 2 android phone, without having to root it. It’s kind of an oversight that there isn’t an easy way to take screenshots. But, thanks to No Root Screenshot It there’s a kind of easy way to get your droid to take screenshots.
So basically, go over to the Android Market and buy No Root Screenshot It by Edward Kim. There’s a couple versions out there, but for an Incredible 2 that is not rooted you need to get the No Root version that sells for $5.
The instructions for installing the are great and walk you through the general steps, but I just wanted to share a couple tips that apply to the Incredible 2.
The instructions tell you go download the USB drivers for your phone at this URL:
http://developer.android.com/sdk/oem-usb.html
It redirects you to HTC’s website, and then you need to find your phone, the link to the Incredible 2′s diver is here: http://www.htc.com/us/support/incredible2-verizon/downloads/
Download HTC SYNC for the Incredible 2, and the USB driver will be installed with it.
And then here’s the link to the Desktop installer for Screenshot It, which enables your phone to take screenshots: http://www.lindylabs.com/screenshot_it/
The app’s not perfect. It seems like when I try to use the shake feature, it fails the first time. But, I really can’t complain until Android builds something into the software.
Herman Cain’s platform
October 20, 2011
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Terra Nova Episode 3
October 10, 2011
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Overall, tonight’s episode was alright. The plot of the whole series moved forward a little bit, and we’ll see if some of the doors they opened will actually be used.
Things we found out
Apparently there’s a smuggler Tom = smuggler. How do you smuggle people here?
Mark is the army dude with Maddy. They’re totally macking on each other. How old is Mark supposed to be? Because Maddy is totally like a teenager.
Taylor used to have a family but they got killed in Somalia
Josh is working for Tom so that he can bring his girlfriend over, and Skye is helping him. Maybe she wants to have a menage a trois?
Tom is the one who is feeding Mira (Simone from Pushing Daisies) information about Terra Nova. Apparently he trades medicine and energy for…. sorghum.
Some one was working on genetic manipulation research… interesting.
Dinosaurs like to chew on power wires, like giant rabbits.
The common cold protects against memory loss viruses.
And Plot Synopsis
Welcome to the research station, there’s some dude goggling a scarab beetle looking thing; he seems a bit off and you can hear screams in the background. What is going on…
Oh look, he’s forgetful and infantile like an Eloi. Oh, no there’s a hungry dinosaur, and we have an Eloi staring at a dinosaur.
Back at the basecamp, British Dude/Malcom/Chief Science Officer who is crushing on Elisabeth (the wife) wants to be a hero and go out and see what’s up at the research station. I guess they forgot to call back or something.
Skye bought Josh a guitar, and they share a moment. She really likes him, and doesn’t seem to care that he’s sort of in love with the old girl friend. This is an odd dynamic.
I might know a guy who might be able to help you with that – Skye, famous last words
Elisabeth and Taylor (Town Leader) enter the cave/research station, and find crazy writings and people chained to tables.
Super Creepy Lady who remembers being in Detroit in the winter.
Oh noes, Elisabeth and Taylor are also infected.
Policeman (Jim) is all like, “I’m going to go out there to save Elisabeth.”
Apparently the virus makes your mind forget sequentially. First she forgets Zoe then Jim (her husband),but still remembers Malcolm (British Dude). She then points out how life would have been so much easier for everyone to time travel right after the ice age.
Something’s chewing on the power cables. Go look outside Jim.
Maybe it’s a crazy crazy man.
Hello creepy eyes. Who runs back to Terra Nova and is sonic blasted by Wash.
Oh is Jim magically immune to these gene retrovirus thing?
Malcolm looses more memory and then gets confused as to why they’re hauling a random soldier back to the infirmary.
Elisabeth looses the rest of her mind, but has an epiphany that Jim is her husband when she finds some flashcards that she wrote. Why is their paper see through?
Oh it’s the cold of course. That’s why he’s immune. Obviously, and you can whip up a vaccine/cure in hours.
And just like that we’re all safe.
Now who was doing gene experiments?