What POS means...

Here in Ohio and I'm sure in other places we have a not so nice reference to junk cars where we will call them a "POS" so it was not until recently I discovered that the real definition for "POS" was "point of sale" and that there are many different retail pos systems out there that retail stores use. This has of course influenced my thinking and now when someone talks about why they feel their car is a total "POS" I have to laugh and let them know what the term really means, which in a way could still fit since a few would be more than happy to unload these cars.

:-)

Television's forgotten candidates

Gee, it's always nice to read about presidential candidates being compared to missing children on milk cartons...That is however unfortunately a true comparison that is made in this Miami Herald article. Some of the recommended article:

The lefty media critics at Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting issued a Barr Nader study Tuesday that says the three broadcast-network news divisions -- ABC, NBC and CBS -- have mentioned Barr and Nader a total of 31 times all year along. (In poor Nader's case, two of the mentions came when he was the punchline in jokes by late-night comedians that were included in newscasts.)

The study, which also mentions two lesser third-party candidacies (the Green Party's Cynthia McKinney and the Constitution Party's Chuck Baldwin, notes that the traditional network explanation for excluding everybody but Republicans and Democrats -- that they won't attract enough votes to make a difference -- "makes this outcome more or less a self-fulfilling prophecy." That's a fair point, though I'm not sure it's entirely correct: Until the bottom dropped out of the economy a few weeks ago, the election looked close and it's entirely conceivable that Nader or Barr could deprived one of the candidates of victory, as Nader arguably did to Al Gore in 2000.

Problem is no one is going to do anything about it, we've allowed the two party system to take total control and the media is just as responsible for that as the two parties are. They could cover these candidates if they were actually interested in real historic firsts or new ideas.

I could never be a patent engineer...

I came across the description through the patent office for ball lock pins because someone mentioned it and I really was not sure what it was. When I read the description, it was much more confusing than looking at an actual picture of what a ball lock pin was. First the description:

A device for holding together two objects with aligned holes has a body formed with a passage centered on an axis, a tubular bolt axially displaceable in the passage and having a front end projecting from the body and a rear end, and a first spring braced between the bolt and the body for urging the bolt axially rearward relative to the body. A pin axially displaceable in the bolt is formed with a radially outwardly open recess having an angled front flank. At least one retaining element, normally a ball, is radially displaceable in the body front end between a retaining position projecting radially from the bolt and a retracted position recessed in the bolt and engaged in the recess. A second spring urges the pin axially rearward in the bolt and thereby urges the angled flank axially into engagement with the retaining element to press same outward into the retaining position.

Now the picture, and if you are like me, you said, "Oh...Now I know what that is."

Interview with Bob Barr

Recommended interview in the AJC that I found while searching tonight. A few parts of what was reported:

His purpose now is to make the difference between Obama and McCain in as many states as possible in the final days, Barr said. Power, and respect, comes with the ability to change the outcome of a given situation.

“We’ve deliberately left the last several days very flexible, depending on what the poll numbers and the spread between Obama and McCain show in several state,” Barr said. Which Ohio, North Carolina — and at least two days here. He’s got a 2 p.m. Monday appearance at the University of Georgia in Athens.

“From what I’m hearing, and looking at the numbers, the dramatic increase in registration, the dramatic numbers of early voters, there is an awful lot of support building for Obama. And I think Republicans have a lot to be worried about in Georgia,” he said.

I remember when...

I remember when updating your computer to 128 was "the ultimate" and had as much memory as your computer could handle. Now of course that's different and you need more than that just to run the Windows operating systems. Thankfully while the required amount of memory has changed, how easy it is to add more memory to your computer has not changed. It's one of the easiest things you can do on your own to enhance your online experience.

Nader polling above Barr

It would be interesting to figure out why Nader is polling above Barr. I know several democrats who have stated that they would vote for Nader as a protest vote, yet I wonder if some of the traditional libertarians are leaning towards McCain because they believe the election is going to be close...

Wearing many hats...

Part of the reason I've been absent here has been because I'm involved in trying to promote a non-partisan voter information forum here in Toledo for the unhoused and volunteers who work in our community. In addition to that, my "normal" life duties of being a mother, a wife, a grandmother and a weekly newspaper columnist have made me feel as if I'm wearing more than one hat at a time. It's been a challenge, but one that is worth it.

The election has been crazy...

For those who have noted my absence, my other local blog has been really time consuming. I'll be glad when this election is over. That said, an interesting article that suggests that Both Parties Should Lose this Election that makes some very valid points.

A few of those:

The anchor of this election season has been a fairly fixed sentiment among the electorate that they have had enough of George Bush and Republican rule.

That, in and of itself, doesn't determine the outcome. Candidate races come down to: Compared with whom? John McCain, for example, has consistently outperformed the Republican brand in the presidential race.

Left largely unexamined, however, is the flip side of the sentiment to give the Republicans the boot. What would it mean if voters gave Democrats largely unchecked power at the national level, the presidency and large enough majorities in Congress to run over the Republican minority? Would the result be something the American people want?

In reciting this litany, however, it becomes clear how little grounds the Republicans have to criticize it, except for taxes.

Big government spending programs? Bush proposed the largest expansion of the federal role in education since Jimmy Carter with No Child Left Behind and the largest expansion of the entitlement state since Lyndon Johnson with his Medicare prescription-drug benefit. Most congressional Republicans supported them.

Racking up deficits? Bush is the champ.

Interfering in the private economy? The Bush administration just partially nationalized the banks, forcing healthy banks to accept public capital they didn't want.

John McCain once could have legitimately claimed to serve as a check on Democratic excesses, particularly on spending. And Americans seem to like divided government.

However, McCain supported the $700 billion bailout and proposes that the federal government spend an additional $300 billion buying up mortgages at face value. Vetoing earmarks isn't going to make up for that.

So, there you have it: An election Republicans deserve to lose but Democrats don't deserve to win.

The plastic bag weight loss theory?

My husband is convinced if he wears a plastic garbage bag under his shirt that he will increase his sweating and somehow loose more weight. I can't seem to convince him that while it will make him sweat more that he's not going to drop any appreciable pounds that way. He'd be much better off looking at some of the top rated diet pills or finding a low calorie diet that he can live with. Not to mention I wouldn't have to hear him crinkle every time he walks by...

Go wireless young man..

Cheesy take off on "Go West Young Man" but having a wireless router can make things much easier when it comes to having more than one computer in your house. It stops you from having to run cat 5 from the top floor to the basement and with some of the new routers they have out there, there is no huge difference when it comes to connection speed.

Most new laptops have a wireless card built in but even with towers it's not a difficult situation to add a wireless card or to use a USB.

Media coverage of third party candidates

I was shocked, USA Today actually wrote about third party candidates, in Georgia while at first you might think it was nice to see some actual news coverage for once. A few parts of the recommended article first create hope that it might actually be real coverage:

ATLANTA — One is a blunt-spoken former Georgia congressman who helped lead the drive to impeach President Clinton in 1998 and later became a strong advocate of civil liberties after the 9/11 attacks.

The other is a firebrand former Georgia congresswoman who filed articles of impeachment against President Bush and Vice President Cheney and later became an impassioned voice for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Then we get to the typical way third party candidates are treated:

David Johnson, CEO of the public relations and public affairs agency Strategic Vision, doesn't expect Barr to exceed 3% on Nov. 4. "This race is very close," he says of the national campaign. "Republicans who might have basic difficulties with McCain, former Hillary (Rodham Clinton) supporters who might have basic difficulties with Obama, they're not going to waste a vote on a third-party candidate."

Third-party candidates usually poll better early in a campaign when voters disgruntled by major-party candidates consider voting for them, says Larry Sabato, a political scientist at the University of Virginia. "But as you approach election day, it is obvious that either the Democrat or the Republican will be elected president," he says. "At that point, people do not want to throw away their vote."

Any vote is never a throw away or a wasted vote...

Still on the topic of babies...

Currently we have one of those portable play pens that we use when my grand daughter is over to play in and take naps in. Now with a second baby arriving in the family it seems as if it's time to purchase a crib to have here. Since the baby area of the house is in the living room, I started searching for crib bedding that would not totally throw off the color scheme for the rest of the downstairs. At BabyEarth I found some really nice sets, some in organic cotton that would perfectly match what I have without it looking as if I've turned my living room into a nursery room. Another plus to this site is orders over $99 are shipped free.

On a happier note...

Not long ago I learned I was going to be a grandmother again, which probably isn't the proper way to phrase that since once you are one, you are one. It's way to early to know the sex of the baby, but it is never too early to start shopping for items like baby bedding since there are many styles and patterns out there that would work for either a boy or a girl. At times you can find some really great deals.

Gee even with the bailout stocks still slumping...

I don't know why some of our media is shocked that the bailout plan that was already quickly signed by President Bush didn't help the stock market to recover. It's pretty clear that quite a few experts realized that it wasn't the solution, or at least the way it was written wasn't the solution and that it would take years for this to have a real impact on the "Main Street" they keep trying to say they are focusing on. It makes you wonder if anyone in Congress has taken any kind of budgeting and planning courses to even have a common sense clue as to how we got here and what it will take to fix it.

Rehabbing our government...

At times when you watch our government and it's addiction to pork and spending, I can't help thinking what would happen if we created some type of a 12 step drug treatment program for government and elected officials. Would it help create a scenario where they saw their self destructive behavior needed to be addressed?

Then I remember one of the first steps of drug rehab, you have to actually first admit you have a problem before any type of help would work. Getting our government and especially some of our elected officials to take personal responsibility instead of finger pointing might be more than we could ever expect...