Monopoly Bailout Edition:
http://www.thebailoutgame.us/
1.30.2009
The Bailout Game
Amazing game where you get to decide the fate of famed US institutions.
Monopoly Bailout Edition:
http://www.thebailoutgame.us/
Monopoly Bailout Edition:
http://www.thebailoutgame.us/
1.29.2009
gDrive
Google is set to launch a service this year that may change personal computing forever.
Instead of relying on your computer's hard drive you may soon be able to access your personal files from any internet connection in the world.
The Google gDrive is seen as an unprecedented shift to "cloud computing", where computer processes and storage are completed miles away in data centers.
Basically you would shift the content of your personal hard drive to Google's servers, making them accessible from anywhere you could log online.
Here is the million dollar question...
It is very likely that you already trust the internet to pay your bills, file your taxes, and compose your personal e-mail. Do you trust Google with everything on your hard drive???
Instead of relying on your computer's hard drive you may soon be able to access your personal files from any internet connection in the world.
The Google gDrive is seen as an unprecedented shift to "cloud computing", where computer processes and storage are completed miles away in data centers.
Basically you would shift the content of your personal hard drive to Google's servers, making them accessible from anywhere you could log online.
Here is the million dollar question...
It is very likely that you already trust the internet to pay your bills, file your taxes, and compose your personal e-mail. Do you trust Google with everything on your hard drive???
1.28.2009
Super Bowl Betting
Millions of people will watch the Super Bowl this Sunday.
Millions of people will have a financial interest in the game.
Last year it was estimated that more then 200 million people bet on the Super Bowl. The total amount wagered was north of $70 million.
Here are some of the more interesting bets you can make on the big game...
-Team to Win the Coin Toss
-How Many Times NBC will show Kurt Warner's Wife During the Game
Over 3
Under 3
-How Long it will take Jennifer Hudson to Sing the National Anthem
Over 1:54
Under 1:54
-Team to Score First
-Team with the Most Penalty Yards
Enjoy the Game and Good Luck
Millions of people will have a financial interest in the game.
Last year it was estimated that more then 200 million people bet on the Super Bowl. The total amount wagered was north of $70 million.
Here are some of the more interesting bets you can make on the big game...
-Team to Win the Coin Toss
-How Many Times NBC will show Kurt Warner's Wife During the Game
Over 3
Under 3
-How Long it will take Jennifer Hudson to Sing the National Anthem
Over 1:54
Under 1:54
-Team to Score First
-Team with the Most Penalty Yards
Enjoy the Game and Good Luck
1.27.2009
George Foreman Grill vs. The ShamWow
Well folks, we are down to the championship matchup.
From products such as OxyClean, the Snuggie, Video Professor, the Perfect Pushup, the Chia Pet, and the Bowflex we are down to the final 2 products.
In a matchup in the realm of Red Sox/Yankees and Duke/North Carolina, two products of epic notoriety will enter and only one will emerge victorious.
So what do we think...
The George Foreman Grill or the ShamWow???
From products such as OxyClean, the Snuggie, Video Professor, the Perfect Pushup, the Chia Pet, and the Bowflex we are down to the final 2 products.
In a matchup in the realm of Red Sox/Yankees and Duke/North Carolina, two products of epic notoriety will enter and only one will emerge victorious.
So what do we think...
The George Foreman Grill or the ShamWow???
1.26.2009
Who Knew?
Google averages over 150 million searches per day. Over 15 million people use a Blackberry. Apple has sold over 160 million iPods.
None of these products were even around 12 years ago!
Here are the humble beginnings of the products that define our technological lives:
None of these products were even around 12 years ago!
Here are the humble beginnings of the products that define our technological lives:
Steve Jobs Presenting the First iPod: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN0SVBCJqLs&feature=related
What product today will define our lives 10 years from now?
1.23.2009
Obamicon
The poster below became a culture phenomenon during the presidential election:
Now through an amazing website <http://obamiconme.pastemagazine.com/> you can immortalize yourself by uploading your own picture....
1.22.2009
Best As Seen On TV
CNBC has been running a tournament attempting to determine the greatest ever "AS SEEN ON TV" product ever.
There are allowing readers to vote in a 64 product tournament.
The 64 initial products have been whittled down by readers votes to the final 16.
Everyone's favorite pitchman Billy Mays had 6 products in the tournament but only 2 have advanced to the sweet 16 (OxiClean and Mighty Putty).
Some of the best matchups in this round are:
Big Mouth Bass vs. Chia Pet
Ginsu Knvies vs. Magic Bullet
OxiClean vs. Shamwow
Make sure and vote so your favorite product you don't need can be crowned champion:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/28773180
There are allowing readers to vote in a 64 product tournament.
The 64 initial products have been whittled down by readers votes to the final 16.
Everyone's favorite pitchman Billy Mays had 6 products in the tournament but only 2 have advanced to the sweet 16 (OxiClean and Mighty Putty).
Some of the best matchups in this round are:
Big Mouth Bass vs. Chia Pet
Ginsu Knvies vs. Magic Bullet
OxiClean vs. Shamwow
Make sure and vote so your favorite product you don't need can be crowned champion:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/28773180
1.21.2009
The Inauguration
The inaugural was everything a Washington inaugural should be. Maybe that's my problem with it.
The most historic candidate our country has ever seen, the candidate of change, in essence started his first day with the most expensive version of more of the same.
Obama is unequivocal the man for the job but what if...
Upon winning the election he promptly promised to completely re-vamp the inaugural. All he wanted was the oath at the Capital, a speech from the Oval Office, and then a meeting with economic advisers at 12:30.
He would then promise that parties would come when the work is done and $150 million dollars could be better spent elsewhere.
The rhetoric, as it has been since we were introduced to Obama was breathtaking, however I was left feeling that the event was missing substance. Not substance of language, or balloons, or flags, but substance of action.
The country is gripped in the greatest economic slump since the Great Depression and I was left wondering if any advisor suggested to Obama that he just get to work. His premise for the re-vamp would have been that after 4 years as president if I deserve a party, and as a country we deserve a party, then we can party, but our era of responsibility begins now.
Some will say that the historic moment was worth the pomp and circumstance, but to me the historic moment was and will always be his journey and his promise of something new.
He could have told the millions who made the journey to celebrate our country by volunteering in their community. He could have donated the millions spent on security, inagural balls and parades to charities in his new hometown. He could have exemplified his pledge that we have work to do.
An era of responsibility beings today and I would not have been at all disappointed to see it begin yesterday.
**************************
The Oath heard round the world: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/CNN_Roberts_screwed_up_oath_of_0120.html
From The New York Times:
"Just as President Obama was calling for an improved communications infrastructure in his inauguration speech, the demand for video of the events in Washington was weighing heavily on the Internet. Many visitors to news sites reported having trouble getting a consistent video stream."
"Akamai, which helps many media companies keep up with visitor demand on their Web sites, noted a 54 percent spike in worldwide Internet traffic tied to people hunting down the speech online."
"Shortly after the inauguration finished, Akamai collected its data and declared that the inauguration resulted in the most simultaneous video streams in the company’s history. More than 7 million video streams were being watched at 12:15 p.m. Eastern time."
The most historic candidate our country has ever seen, the candidate of change, in essence started his first day with the most expensive version of more of the same.
Obama is unequivocal the man for the job but what if...
Upon winning the election he promptly promised to completely re-vamp the inaugural. All he wanted was the oath at the Capital, a speech from the Oval Office, and then a meeting with economic advisers at 12:30.
He would then promise that parties would come when the work is done and $150 million dollars could be better spent elsewhere.
The rhetoric, as it has been since we were introduced to Obama was breathtaking, however I was left feeling that the event was missing substance. Not substance of language, or balloons, or flags, but substance of action.
The country is gripped in the greatest economic slump since the Great Depression and I was left wondering if any advisor suggested to Obama that he just get to work. His premise for the re-vamp would have been that after 4 years as president if I deserve a party, and as a country we deserve a party, then we can party, but our era of responsibility begins now.
Some will say that the historic moment was worth the pomp and circumstance, but to me the historic moment was and will always be his journey and his promise of something new.
He could have told the millions who made the journey to celebrate our country by volunteering in their community. He could have donated the millions spent on security, inagural balls and parades to charities in his new hometown. He could have exemplified his pledge that we have work to do.
An era of responsibility beings today and I would not have been at all disappointed to see it begin yesterday.
**************************
The Oath heard round the world: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/CNN_Roberts_screwed_up_oath_of_0120.html
From The New York Times:
"Just as President Obama was calling for an improved communications infrastructure in his inauguration speech, the demand for video of the events in Washington was weighing heavily on the Internet. Many visitors to news sites reported having trouble getting a consistent video stream."
"Akamai, which helps many media companies keep up with visitor demand on their Web sites, noted a 54 percent spike in worldwide Internet traffic tied to people hunting down the speech online."
"Shortly after the inauguration finished, Akamai collected its data and declared that the inauguration resulted in the most simultaneous video streams in the company’s history. More than 7 million video streams were being watched at 12:15 p.m. Eastern time."
From Dow Jones:
"The new president of the United States said in his inaugural address that Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath."
"That's wrong. Forty-three Americans, including Obama, have taken the oath of office."
"One president, Grover Cleveland, served two terms, separated by Benjamin Harrison's. Cleveland is counted as both the 22nd and the 24th president."
From Obama:
"On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord."
"To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
"Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America. For everywhere we look, there is work to be done."
1.20.2009
The Last 8 Years
As our country welcomes Barack Obama as our 44th president today, I thought it would be fitting to look back at the 8 years of George W.
Jay Leno and John Stewart's job just got a little bit harder...
Letterman's Top 10 George W Moments: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rToKEnySb7s
George W's Eloquence (Where Did it Go??): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9SOVzMV2bc
Bushisms
"Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?"
Jay Leno and John Stewart's job just got a little bit harder...
Letterman's Top 10 George W Moments: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rToKEnySb7s
George W's Eloquence (Where Did it Go??): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9SOVzMV2bc
Bushisms
"Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?"
"There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again."
"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
"The fact that they purchased the machine meant somebody had to make the machine. And when somebody makes a machine, it means there's jobs at the machine-making place."
"I remember meeting a mother of a child who was abducted by the North Koreans right here in the Oval Office."
"Too many good docs are getting out of business. Too many OB/GYNs aren't able to practice their love with women all across this country."
"Throughout our history, the words of the Declaration have inspired immigrants from around the world to set sail to our shores. These immigrants have helped transform 13 small colonies into a great and growing nation of more than 300 people."
1.16.2009
1.15.2009
Steve Jobs
From CNBC:
"Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs stunned shareholders and the tech world last night by announcing that he was taking a leave of absence until the end of June due to health reasons."
Speculation about Steve Jobs' health has been persistent for many years and it has always stirred the debate between what is personal and what the public has a right to know. In many respects, a CEO from a major public company is on the same level of most politicians and celebrities. Personal privacy is somewhat of a misnomer.
Most in the business community put Steve Jobs #2 on the hypothetical list of CEO's most vital to their companies success and public image. Number one on the list is Warren Buffet. I wish him all the best in his recovery.
Below I have linked to the video of Steve Job's commencement speech at Standford in 2005. It is quite the moving speech and well worth the time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA
"Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs stunned shareholders and the tech world last night by announcing that he was taking a leave of absence until the end of June due to health reasons."
Speculation about Steve Jobs' health has been persistent for many years and it has always stirred the debate between what is personal and what the public has a right to know. In many respects, a CEO from a major public company is on the same level of most politicians and celebrities. Personal privacy is somewhat of a misnomer.
Most in the business community put Steve Jobs #2 on the hypothetical list of CEO's most vital to their companies success and public image. Number one on the list is Warren Buffet. I wish him all the best in his recovery.
Below I have linked to the video of Steve Job's commencement speech at Standford in 2005. It is quite the moving speech and well worth the time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA
1.14.2009
Bush's Farewell Speech
Thursday night at 8pm will be President Bush's last speech to the nation.
According to the White House press secretary, the President is expected to reflect on his 8 years in office and how the country has changed during that time. He will defend his record but will also share his thoughts on the greatest problems facing the nation and what it takes to meet them.
CNN asked its viewers to post their thoughts to the obvious questions:
"What would you like President Bush to say in his farewell address to the nation Thursday night?"
Here are some of the best responses thus far...
-“I’m leaving five days early.”
-That he had to cancel the speech for lack of interest
-“Wow, I really had no business being here. My bad.”
-I would like the Bush farewell speech to be completely drowned out by the sound of a hundred million Americans singing “Nah nah nah nah…. nah nah nah nah…. hey hey hey…. goodbye.”
-"It’s been fun, It’s been real, but it hasn’t been real fun."
-I’d like to hear a prison door slam behind him.
-I’d enjoy hearing him sing “So Long, Farewell” from the ‘Sound Of Music’.
-"It should have been Gore."
-"Oops"
-"I am not smarter than a 5th grader."
So what would you like to hear him say?
According to the White House press secretary, the President is expected to reflect on his 8 years in office and how the country has changed during that time. He will defend his record but will also share his thoughts on the greatest problems facing the nation and what it takes to meet them.
CNN asked its viewers to post their thoughts to the obvious questions:
"What would you like President Bush to say in his farewell address to the nation Thursday night?"
Here are some of the best responses thus far...
-“I’m leaving five days early.”
-That he had to cancel the speech for lack of interest
-“Wow, I really had no business being here. My bad.”
-I would like the Bush farewell speech to be completely drowned out by the sound of a hundred million Americans singing “Nah nah nah nah…. nah nah nah nah…. hey hey hey…. goodbye.”
-"It’s been fun, It’s been real, but it hasn’t been real fun."
-I’d like to hear a prison door slam behind him.
-I’d enjoy hearing him sing “So Long, Farewell” from the ‘Sound Of Music’.
-"It should have been Gore."
-"Oops"
-"I am not smarter than a 5th grader."
So what would you like to hear him say?
1.13.2009
Amazing Animals
18 Dalmatian Litter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhrvgchQSjI
Pet Deer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYCGPCQQ-48
Salsa Dancing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDWTjkHb9nY
Skateboarding Dog: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQzUsTFqtW0
Pet Deer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYCGPCQQ-48
Salsa Dancing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDWTjkHb9nY
Skateboarding Dog: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQzUsTFqtW0
1.12.2009
Violence at Chuck E. Cheese
From the Wall Street Journal...
"In Brookfield, Wis., no restaurant has triggered more calls to the police department since last year than Chuck E. Cheese's."
"Officers have been called to break up 12 fights, some of them physical, at the child-oriented pizza parlor since January 2007. The biggest melee broke out in April, when an uninvited adult disrupted a child's birthday party. Seven officers arrived and found as many as 40 people knocking over chairs and yelling in front of the restaurant's music stage, where a robotic singing chicken and the chain's namesake mouse perform."
"In Pennsylvania, Susquehanna Township police are searching for suspects involved in a Nov. 9 altercation at a Chuck E. Cheese's outside Harrisburg. The police department gets called to respond to disputes at the restaurant as many as 15 times a year, Police Chief Robert Martin says."
"To appeal to adults, about 70% of the chain's locations serve wine and beer. Some city officials have pinpointed that as the main cause of the fighting. Milwaukee Alderman Tony Zielinski called for the removal of Chuck E. Cheese's beer-and-wine license in 2006 after he received police notification and complaints from constituents about fighting there. The company stationed armed security guards inside the restaurant in an effort to make it safer."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122878081364889613.html
"In Brookfield, Wis., no restaurant has triggered more calls to the police department since last year than Chuck E. Cheese's."
"Officers have been called to break up 12 fights, some of them physical, at the child-oriented pizza parlor since January 2007. The biggest melee broke out in April, when an uninvited adult disrupted a child's birthday party. Seven officers arrived and found as many as 40 people knocking over chairs and yelling in front of the restaurant's music stage, where a robotic singing chicken and the chain's namesake mouse perform."
"In Pennsylvania, Susquehanna Township police are searching for suspects involved in a Nov. 9 altercation at a Chuck E. Cheese's outside Harrisburg. The police department gets called to respond to disputes at the restaurant as many as 15 times a year, Police Chief Robert Martin says."
"To appeal to adults, about 70% of the chain's locations serve wine and beer. Some city officials have pinpointed that as the main cause of the fighting. Milwaukee Alderman Tony Zielinski called for the removal of Chuck E. Cheese's beer-and-wine license in 2006 after he received police notification and complaints from constituents about fighting there. The company stationed armed security guards inside the restaurant in an effort to make it safer."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122878081364889613.html
1.09.2009
Cut the Cord
Between cell phones, cameras, and iPods, there are a plethera of items that require power charges leaving you in a drowning in cords. Well the future has the potential to be a little less tangled...
Powermat, a start-up company from Israeli, has a product that allows you to charge a device simply by laying it on a mat. The principle at work is electromagnetic induction and it truly is amazing.
Here is an excerpt from the Wall Street Journal's article on Powermat:
"Just plop a gadget on a charging surface, and power starts flowing without plugging anything in. And its charging pads can send just the right amount of juice to different kinds of gadgets, the company says. Powermat says its devices can save on energy, and eliminating wires should ultimately save money once the technology is a built-in feature on portable devices."
1.08.2009
A Review of Wall Street
October 1999: James Glassman, author of Dow 36,000
“What is dangerous is for Americans not to be in the market. We’re going to reach a point where stocks are correctly priced, and we think that’s 36,000 … It’s not a bubble. Far from it. The stock market is undervalued.”
---A year later the Dow had fallen from 10,500 to 8,840 a decline of 16% .
December 1999: Larry Wachtel, Prudential Investments
“Most of these stocks are reasonably priced. There’s no reason for them to correct violently in the year 2000.”
---The Nasdaq fell 50% in 2000.
August 2001: Lou Dobbs, CNN
“Let me make it very clear. I’m a bull, on the market, on the economy. And let me repeat, I am a bull.”
---The market lost a third of its value following this call.
April 2001: Abby Joseph Cohen, Goldman Sachs
“The time to be nervous was a year ago. The S&P then was overvalued, it’s now undervalued.”
---2 Years later the market was 20% lower.
1.07.2009
Coming Soon...
Netflix Built into your TV: http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/05/technology/netflix_lg_electronics/index.htm?postversion=2009010509
Internet Usage Caps: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SmartSpending/FindDealsOnline/using-the-web-might-get-a-lot-pricier.aspx
Watch your home DVR on your iPhone: http://www.cnet.com/8301-19515_1-10131943-234.html
Internet Usage Caps: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SmartSpending/FindDealsOnline/using-the-web-might-get-a-lot-pricier.aspx
Watch your home DVR on your iPhone: http://www.cnet.com/8301-19515_1-10131943-234.html
1.06.2009
Amazing Stories
Cheering for the Other Side: http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?section=magazine&id=3789373
Last Lotto Ticket: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090104/ap_on_re_us/lottery_legacy
Animal of the Year: http://www.goodnewsdaily.com/show_story.php?ID=9095
Last Lotto Ticket: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090104/ap_on_re_us/lottery_legacy
Animal of the Year: http://www.goodnewsdaily.com/show_story.php?ID=9095
1.05.2009
2009 At A Glance
2009 is the year of the Ox in the Chinese calender years.
The Ox years of the past were: 1901, 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, the next one will be in 2021.
The basic characteristic of an Ox in Chinese culture is methodical and calm, hardworking, dependable and patient, materialistic and an ambitious character.
Top 9 New Year's Resolutions '09:
1. Spend More Time with Family & Friends
2. Go to the Gym
3. Lose Weight
4. Quit Smoking
5. Get Out of Debt
6. Learn Something New
7. Help Others
8. Get Organized
9. Enjoy Life More
The most anticipated movie releases of '09:
-Angels & Demons
-Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
-Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian
-Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
-Jurassic Park IV: Extinction
-Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel
-The A-Team
-Star Trek
-Sherlock Holmes
The Ox years of the past were: 1901, 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, the next one will be in 2021.
The basic characteristic of an Ox in Chinese culture is methodical and calm, hardworking, dependable and patient, materialistic and an ambitious character.
Top 9 New Year's Resolutions '09:
1. Spend More Time with Family & Friends
2. Go to the Gym
3. Lose Weight
4. Quit Smoking
5. Get Out of Debt
6. Learn Something New
7. Help Others
8. Get Organized
9. Enjoy Life More
The most anticipated movie releases of '09:
-Angels & Demons
-Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
-Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian
-Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
-Jurassic Park IV: Extinction
-Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel
-The A-Team
-Star Trek
-Sherlock Holmes