Max: Rhino Drill

Now I know that if I am ever confronted by a rhino, I should hide behind a volleyball net and poke it with a stick.

Max: Will MO Be The New FL?

Campaign Attention Lavished on Presidential Bellwether of Mo. | Online NewsHour: Presidential, Senate and Gubernatorial Election Coverage: Vote 2008 | October 30, 2008 5:24 PM | PBS

...a big turnout could also lead to big problems for Missouri’s voters and vote-counters next week. Electionline.org, a nonpartisan research foundation, put the Show-Me State on a list of about 12 states to watch for widespread voting trouble.

“Like the other states, Missouri has several possibly troublesome factors, including new voter identification laws, a heated race for a statewide office, a ballot packed with candidates and initiatives, and a highly charged, partisan atmosphere. Missouri has the added complication of being a swing state in the presidential race, with the candidates virtually tied,” the Boston Globe reported. “Those factors, coupled with an unprecedented number of new voters and an expected record turnout, has led some political analysts to predict that Missouri could be at the center of ‘a perfect storm’ that could throw the 2008 presidential election into disarray.”

Max: Obama's Grassroots Supporters

Max: This Is Why I Am Voting For Obama

Max: WASSUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP

Max: Apple and Google = Teh Hawsome

AppleInsider | Apple gives $100,000 to fight California gay marriage ban

Apple has joined Google in publicly opposing California's Proposition 8, a measure intended to ban the rights of gay Californians to legally marry, and has contributed $100,000 to defeat the measure.

Both companies have a history of remaining politically neutral, but have chosen to take sides on this issue because it relates directly to the civil rights and opportunities of their employees.

In its Hot News feed, the company stated, 'Apple is publicly opposing Proposition 8 and making a donation of $100,000 to the No on 8 campaign. Apple was among the first California companies to offer equal rights and benefits to our employees’ same-sex partners, and we strongly believe that a person’s fundamental rights — including the right to marry — should not be affected by their sexual orientation. Apple views this as a civil rights issue, rather than just a political issue, and is therefore speaking out publicly against Proposition 8.'

Max: Hit A Jew Day In Saint Louis

Has it been a year already?

Mo. students face punishment for `Hit a Jew Day'

At least four students from a suburban St. Louis middle school face punishment for allegedly hitting Jewish classmates during what they called 'Hit a Jew Day.'

The incident happened last week at Parkway West Middle School in Chesterfield.

District officials said Thursday they believe that fewer than 10 children of the district's 35 Jewish students were struck.

Max: Tuvan Throat Rapping

Max: Opie, Andy, Ritchie and the Fonz for Obama

Jericho: Suck my pie!

So, the managing partner of the law firm I work for just sent out an announcement about the financial status of the firm. The firm is in great shape! It's in excellent shape. Some of our clients are slow on making payments, but the firm is doing fine.

Yet, in the middle of this message, the following phrase pops up:

No decision has been made yet on the discretionary year-end staff bonus pending continuing developments over the next six weeks.

Little explanation for you: the firm pays out a yearly bonus to all staff of 5% of their salary. I have never considered this a "bonus". I consider it part of my pay. It's not based on any metric or performance. If it is a bonus, it's a retention bonus, because you get it for having survived the previous list. After taxes, the "bonus" isn't all that much money, in fact, it barely covers the gap between what Perkins pays and what the larger Seattle market pays for the same position.

Now, this compares to the yearly partner share. Each firm partner gets a large chunk of the firm's profits at the end of the year. I have no idea what they will get this year, but, five or six years ago a local news paper reported that each partner in this firm received $400,000 dollars. At the time there were over 200 partners. Today there are over 300 partners.

There was no mention of curbing the partner share.

I am so FUCKING tired of getting screwed. I am tired of giving my money to the rich. I am tired of getting poorer as a few select, elitist individuals get richer. I am tired of breaking my ass to make other people's lives cush.

We have our presidential candidates talking about "growing the pie" and the size of the pie - well, where the fuck is my piece of the pie? I'll tell you, it's in someone else's pocket. Every time I hear politicians talk about pie, all I hear is "let them eat cake".

That, and the sound of Dr. Guillotine's masterwork!

Max: McCain Agrees With Obama Supporters

Max: How I Will Vote

This is how I am planning to vote on 11/4;

President
Barak Obama (duh)

Governor
Jay Nixon (no relation)

Lt Governor
Sam Page

Secretary of State
Robin Carnahan

State Treasurer
Clint Zwiefel

Attorney General
Chris Koster

US Rep, 3rd District
I had been planning to vote Green as protest against the bailout, but there is no Green Candidate. Given who is running, Russ Carnahan is where my vote must go

State Senator, 1st District
Joan Barry

State Representative, 97th District
Jan Polizzi

Ballot Measures

Constitutional Amendment 1
No. Go volunteer to teach someone English. It will do more to promote the language than this Amendment would.

Constitutional Amendment 4
Yes. Down with sewage!

Proposition A
Yes. More money for schools, sucked from then pockets of Missouri gamblers.

Proposition B
Yes. Being a Universal Health Care kinda guy, more money for in home care for the elderly is a no brainer for me.

Proposition C
Yes. Green energy! They should have included nuclear, but this is better than nothing.

Max: Writing A Zombie Story = Terrorism?

LEX18 - Lexington, KY - News, Weather, Sports - Student Arrested For Terroristic Threatening Says Incident A Misunderstanding

A George Rogers Clark High School junior arrested Tuesday for making terrorist threats told LEX 18 News Thursday that the 'writings' that got him arrested are being taken out of context.

Winchester police say William Poole, 18, was taken into custody Tuesday morning. Investigators say they discovered materials at Poole's home that outline possible acts of violence aimed at students, teachers, and police.

Poole told LEX 18 that the whole incident is a big misunderstanding. He claims that what his grandparents found in his journal and turned into police was a short story he wrote for English class.

Max: McCain Is Not Bush, But He Is Close Enough

Max: What First Amendment?

CBLDF - Press Releases: CBLDF To Serve As Special Consultant In PROTECT Act Manga Case:

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has signed on as a special consultant to the defense of Chistopher Handley, an Iowa collector who faces up to 20 years in prison for possession of manga.

Max: Cleese on Palin

Max: Screw Columbus Day

Columbus did not discover the Americas. There were already people here. You can't discover what has already been found.

Aristarchus of Samothrace calculated the circumference of the Earth 1600 years before Columbus sailed the ocean blue and the fact that Earth is a sphere was known even earlier.

When it came down to it, Columbus was a money hungry conman. Instead of celebrating him we should be setting this day aside as a day of atonement, a day to acknowledge this nation's bloody roots.

Max: Palin Found Guilty Of Abuse Of Power

From the Beeb:

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is guilty of abuse of power, according to a probe by the state legislature. Mrs Palin was accused of sacking a senior state official, Walter Monegan, in connection with a family feud.

From CNN.com:

Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin abused her power as Alaska's governor in the firing of her public safety commissioner, but violated no laws, a report for the state Legislature concluded Friday. Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan's refusal to fire Palin's ex-brother-in-law from the state police force was "likely a contributing factor" to Monegan's July dismissal, but Palin had the authority as governor to dismiss him, the report by former Anchorage prosecutor Stephen Branchflower states.

I wonder what if any fallout will come of this.

Max: Say Hebbo to Tarvuism

Say Hebbo! from Torvakian on Vimeo.

Max: More Petty Cash For AIG's Next Retreat

The Federal Reserve Board said Wednesday that it would provide up to $37.8 billion to the embattled insurer the American International Group to help it deal with a rapidly dwindling supply of cash.

More @ NYTimes.com

Max: 50 Impressions In 2 Minutes

See more funny videos at Funny or Die UK

Max: McCain Addresses His "Fellow Prisoners"

Max: The Police State

"The only way they can pass this bill is by creating and sustaining a panic atmosphere. … Many of us were told in private conversations that if we voted against this bill on Monday that the sky would fall, the market would drop two or three thousand points the first day and a couple of thousand on the second day, and a few members were even told that there would be martial law in America if we voted no."

More at Alternet.org.

Max: Welfare For Rich People

Jericho: Spreading the Truth

Ah, videotape. How we love you!

Max: Venn Diagram of Tina Fey and Sarah Palin

Here.

Jericho: Is it wrong?

Is it wrong for me to want the whole fucking thing to fall apart?


So those are my dreams
And these are my eyes
Stand tall like a man
Head strong like a horse


Is it wrong that I want the end to come? That I want to watch the Rapture? That I want to witness the end times? That I want to watch The Big Man embrace his freaks and carry them to a better place - which, as I define it, is anywhere not near me?


When it's all mixed up
Better break it down
In the world of secrets
In the world of sound

It's in the way you're always hiding from the light
See for yourself you have been sitting on a time bomb
No revolution maybe someone somewhere else
Could show you something new about you and your inner song
And all the love and all the love in the world
Won't stop the rain from falling
Waste seeping underground
I want to break it down


Is it wrong that I want to watch it all burn? I want to watch the world crumble like a house of smoking, flaming cards; made of the coal, oil and all the lies we've told ourselves. I want to sit back, 40 ounce in hand, and watch the executroids gawp at their monitors as the dollar, then the yen and finally the euro become useless paper. Insignificant information in uncaring machines. When the shit hits the fan, I'll stand down by the door and catch the gray men when they dive from the fourteenth floor - or maybe I won't.


Break it down again

So those are my schemes
And these are my plans
Hot tips for the boys
Fresh news from the force

When it's all mixed up
Better break it down
In the world of silence
In the world of sound


Is it wrong that I want to watch the mushrooms sprout out of the corpses like they sprouted in the sky of every major city on the planet? I want to be there to watch the rats and roaches and the ants and the bees take back the land that we stole from them. Maybe they can do a better job than we could. They certainly couldn't do worse.


"No sleep for dreaming" say the architects of life
Big bouncing babies, bread and butter can I have a slice?
They make no mention of the beauty of decay
Blue, yellow, pink umbrella save it for a rainy day
And all the love and all the love in the world
Won't stop the rain from falling
Waste seeping underground
I want to break it down


Is it wrong that I want to watch the computers fail? I want to see the viruses win. I want to see the infrastructure crumble, the people to riot, the politicians to die. Is it so much to ask for a rebirth in mass destruction, wiping the slate clean?


Horsin' around
Pray to power
Play to the crowd with your big hit sound
And they won't simmer won't simmer, won't simmer down
Play to the crowd
Pay to the crowd
Play yeah yeah


Is it wrong that I want the soldiers to turn on their masters, to say "NO! I will not die to line your pockets!" Is it wrong that I want to see the wage slaves break out of their bondage? Low pay, no health benefits, no retirement, no houses and still we work 90 hour weeks for the robber barons with the golden parachutes. Time to shoot the chutes! FIRE!!!


It's in the way you're always hiding from the light
Fast off to heaven just like Moses on a motorbike
No revolution maybe someone somewhere else
Could show you something new to help
With the ups and downs
I want to break it down
Break it down again


Is it wrong to want a revolution? But not just a revolt. The final revolt. The revolt that ends it all and leaves nothing to revolt against ever again. A smoking crater. Is it wrong to foresee the world in flames and the flame-thrower in my hands? I wouldn't fiddle and I wouldn't kibitz. Right in the middle, pumping fossil fuels on the flames.


Break it down again
No more sleepy dreaming
No more building up
It is time to dissolve
Break it down it again
No more sleepy dreaming


Is it wrong that I want it all to go away? Is it wrong I want change on an epic, even biblical scale?

Is it?



(Apologies to Tears for Fears, Steely Dan, Pink Floyd and my mother.)

Max: Tr2n

Wired has a low rez leak of Jeff Bridges's "trailer" for a proposed Tron sequel.

Max: Slim Benny Who Hill Shady

More here.

Max: Sarah Palin Remixed

Merci au BoingBoing.net

Max: Sarah Palin != Middle Class

Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin released tax records today that showed she and her husband earned $166,080 in 2007 and, in line with the national average, paid income taxes of $24,738.

If that's middle class, what am I? A fucking untouchable?

More @ IrishTimes.com

Max: Clearest Explanation of the Markets I've Heard

Max: A Preview of Election Day