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Monthly Archives: March 2008
Kitties need a home…
A friend of ours in the Boynton Beach area has terminal cancer. With only a couple of months to live, he will not go north to be with his family until his two beloved cats, Buster and Gus, have a good home.
No-kill shelters in the area are full. Both cats are in good health, one 8, the other 10, and Lee won’t tolerate the idea of having them put down.
If you know of a loving home for these cats, please contact me via the contact link beneath the picture, not by leaving a comment. We’d take them ourselves, but we already have two adult cats who don’t adapt well to strangers.
What’s New in Scams?
Here’s the current round-up of nine scams in the news… Although these scams are occurring in specific places, each of them can happen anywhere (so you aren’t safe just because you don’t live in Sioux Falls, SD, or New Zealand, etc.) And, just because a scam is on CraigsList, doesn’t mean it can’t — or won’t — happen on other sites.
Plants Converted Directly Into Biogasoline, Not Ethanol
MADISON, Wisconsin, March 27, 2008 (ENS) – A Wisconsin bioscience company and Royal Dutch Shell say they have developed a process to convert plant sugars directly into gasoline and gasoline blend components, rather than ethanol.
The sugars can be sourced from non-food sources like corn stover, switchgrass, wheat straw and sugarcane pulp, in addition to conventional biofuel feedstock like wheat, corn and sugarcane.
The companies have so far collaborated for one year on the research. They say the technology has advanced rapidly, exceeding milestones for yield, product composition, and cost.
Plants Converted Directly Into Biogasoline, Not Ethanol
I’m still not getting the part where this does much beyond depleting our ability to use land area for food crops, but at least it’s better than the ethanol scam.
Florida’s Nelson calls for national election reforms
Nelson said he will push for sweeping national reforms that would do away with the Electoral College in favor of direct election of presidents and a system of six rotating primaries from March to June in presidential election years.
Nelson said he will also file federal legislation that would encourage “secure” Internet voting and mail-in ballots.
Florida’s Nelson calls for national election reforms | news-press.com | The News-Press
I agree in principle, but I’m not sure I want my information in some online government database. Those folks just aren’t that good at security, regardless of what they want us to think.
Formal apology for slavery in Florida
Some senators wept while hearing the gruesome history of the state’s legal treatment of black slaves, from nailing ears to a post to receive whippings to being described as an animal in the form of a man.
Both House and Senate agreed on a formal apology for slavery Wednesday, but no one spoke on the resolution. Instead, lawmakers listened to John Phelps, curator of the Historic Capitol, give an oral history. …
Legislature gives formal apology for slavery in Florida | tallahassee.com | Tallahassee Democrat
The Bounce
I was just thinkin’ about the “bounce.”
Remember when you were fourteen, and you’d wake up and bounce out of bed with the whole world ahead of you and the worst thing that could happen to you was school? Then the day began, but for that magic moment, all things were possible.
I was a pretty happy guy at fourteen. After that things got sort of complicated, but it wasn’t until I was in my late thirties and early forties that I completely lost that feeling of possibilities. Alcoholism will do that to you.
Nowadays I’ve got a lot of the optimism back. It’s work instead of school, and the world has gotten a bit smaller, but I still feel pretty good when I roll out of bed, most mornings.
At least until my feet hit the floor. I sure do miss the bounce.
Florida Partnership to End Childhood Hunger
The Partnership proposes to address childhood hunger by drawing down and applying more of the existing but underutilized federal dollar entitlement for Florida communities as well as by increasing awareness of the Earned Income Tax Credit for low wage, working families. Counting only three of the federal food and nutrition programs, Florida did not use over $1 billion allotted for eligible families in 2006.
Florida Impact: Florida Partnership to End Childhood Hunger
This issue is simply a matter of education. THE FUNDS ARE THERE! Do whatever you can to spread the word. The sidebar links on the Florida Impact page are especially useful. You can do more with a little effort in this instance than you can possibly believe. ~ Crackerboy
Man Installing Satellite TV Shoots, Kills Wife
According to sheriff’s department spokesman Maj. Robert Hills, Ronald Long fired a shot from the inside of their home after several unsuccessful efforts to punch a hole through the exterior wall using other means. Investigators said Ronald Long believed his family was inside the house. Man Installing Satellite TV Shoots, Kills Wife – Kansas City News Story – KMBC Kansas City
This is way too tragic to be smartass about, but you have to wonder if alcohol was involved.
Listen…be careful out there!
FlashGet’s Security Hole Delivers a Trojan
Steve Bass, in his Tips and Tweaks blog, relates the following:
I just uninstalled FlashGet, my favorite downloading program. It’s got a big, inviting security hole that can — and did — let a nasty Trojan worm its way onto my system. I’m not the only one having to fend off the attack. Users on the FlashGet and Kapersky Labs first raised the flag.
