Round One - Obama Takes It.

Well, I thought it was clear that Obama came out and displayed his character as clear contender as future President. He showed enthusiasm, courage, and determination for tackling the issues discussed. My biggest criticism for McCain was that he never really looked at his opponent...AT ALL. To me that shows weakness and I think displays an uncertainty of ones self. Yes McCain showed heart but I thought Obama showed strength and confidence in each counter argument. Obama came across as a person who is ready to face the nation and the world eye to eye. Critics say he lacks experience but I think he is up for the challenge.

Shared DR Space

A buddy of mine were recently talking about disaster recovery. Recently the company I work for has been breathing new life into disaster recovery so it's been a hot topic. In regards to offsite data storage or co-lo facilities, purchasing rack space...etc etc...that can be hassle. I understand companies do try to make it affordable. BUT, my buddy brought up a good point/idea...why don't companies in similar industries, for example banks/Credit Unions share space with each other? West Coast banks can share space with East Coast banks and vice-versa? It sounds like a good idea and your data is on opposite sides of the country.

The Greaseman is NOT dead.

Well...after all the fuss.

EITMfans | Elliot In The Morning Fans: The Greaseman Dead?

Is the Greaseman Dead?

DC101 has announced that "The Greaseman" is dead. However, it's been reported that this may be some sort of publicity stunt thanks to a video that has popped up on YouTube yesterday.

Wikipedia also listed an entry that has been updated several times. One of which included his death but it has since been removed.

So, I'm not sure what's going on..but in the meantime..enjoy these bits.

....Sept 24th. Here is an update.

Palin, Just An End User To

So the talk today is about Palin's Yahoo email account getting hacked. First of all, has it been confirmed that she was conducting State business through the account? Okay, so if she was, here is my take on it.

She probably doesn't use her government account as much because the State or Powers That Be's anti-spam filter blows and her emails get blocked. So after numerous calls to her IT dept, the problem doesn't get solved. Like any employee or general computer user I know, this get's frustrating after a while...so, gee I'll just use my Yahoo account.

Thoughts?

Excellent Dell Deals

If your in the market for Dell hardware but on a budget, take a look at Dell PowerEdge 1950 II generation servers. They are extremely discounted right now, like 40%. I just purchased 4 of them with (2) Quad Core Procs 3.0ghz, 32gb of RAM, and VI3 Enterprise. The new PowerEdge 1950 IIIs just came out.

Just wanted to pass that along. We are about to virtualize 30 or so small app servers so this works out great for us. The PowerEdge 1950's have reported great results with VMWare.

I'll be documenting our migration as that happens. Looking forward to it.

dont blog and drive

And that's exactly what I thought I would try this morning. Traffic ahead, bus on my right, speeding cop to my left, Rather Ripped in my head.

The coffee is good. This post isn't making sense.."What a waste, your so chased(sp?)".. Ahhh ijust had to break hard. The woman behind me is giving me looks.I'm really late for work.Martin..out.

Small things - big booms.

So I read today that in just a few hours, "soon after 9am on Sept 10 (0700 GMT), scientist will finally put to use their 17 mile Large Hadron Collider (LHC). hmm...whats that you ask? Well, its about a 10 billion dollar project to see if the "Big Bang" can be recreated. Yep, the Big Bang...you know, the thing that supposedly created the universe and all things in it as we know? Yeah that Big Bang...did I mention that scientists are trying to re-create it?

The real tests will actually be happening in a few weeks or so and I suppose we'll see then what becomes of them. I hope. That is, if I still have a living room to sit in. I'd at least like to get through what will hopefully be a good Ravens season before I have to start worrying about things like this.

Gerardus t'Hooft of the University of Michigan says, "What I would like to see is the unexpected".

On the plus side, perhaps scientists can figure out how to warp speed me to another part of the country or, maybe it will make the Internet fast for everyone, maybe it will solve the worlds oil crisis, or maybe it will just prove some scientific stuff like reveal the secrets of the Universe and really mess with religion?

There are quite a few people who have voiced their fears. For example, the biggest fear is that black holes will form, suck everything up and..well, let's get back to the Ravens. Go Flaco!

So What Is a Maverick?

I keep hearing John McCain being referred to as a "Maverick", and now his running mate. Just Google "Political Maverick" and review the results. Wow, Washington is filled with Mavericks. I didn't really have a clear definition of Maverick so some quick digging turned up -

According to Wikipedia, a Maverick can be defined as: a person who shows independence of thought or action, a non-conformist or rebel.

JoinMaverick.com has several definitions:
n. 1. an unbranded calf, cow or steer
e.g., If we don't fix that fence, the mavericks will wander off and we'll never get them back.
2. a lone dissenter, such as an artist or politician
e.g., The writer was a real maverick — ahead of her time.
3. a leading technology company with a unique approach to engineering, business consulting and systems integration
e.g., MAVERICK Technologies has helped clients in a variety of industries reach new levels of profitability.

v. 1. to break away from limitations
e.g., It's time to maverick this business and see what we can achieve.

adj. 1. dissenting or expressing independent thought
e.g., The maverick thinker thinks outside the box and makes a difference in the world.

They note some famous Mavericks as:
Famous Mavericks

1. Sir Isaac Newton (164–1727)

Newton is most famous for defining his three laws of motion and the concept of gravity. His mother wanted him to be a farmer, but with the help of the headmaster at his school, Newton instead pursued his education and became one of the world’s greatest thinkers.

2. Sam Houston (1793–1863)

Sam Houston was president of the Republic of Texas, a Texas senator and eventually the state’s governor. In 1861 he was removed from office because he was one of the few opposing the secession of Texas from the Union.

3. Rosa Parks (1913–2005)

As the mother of the modern-day civil rights movement, Rosa Parks instigated the Montgomery Bus Boycott when she refused to give up her bus seat for a white passenger.

4. Jack Kerouac (192–1969)

The King of the Beats, Kerouac brought a unique voice to literature and mastered the genre of spontaneous prose. The Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University was founded in his honor, but he was not critically acclaimed until after he died.

5. Tasmanian Devil (1954– )

Known as a crazed loner with an insatiable appetite, Taz appeals to many cartoon lovers who also have a bit of a wild side.

According to this article in the New York Times, "Andrei D. Sakharov, the Nobel Peace Prize winning dissident, Boris N. Yeltsin, the deposed Moscow Communist Party boss"..."two of the country's most famous mavericks"

And lastly, Answers.Com tells us :"One that refuses to abide by the dictates of or resists adherence to a group; a dissenter." Further down the page it says:

"Although most members of Congress still follow the advice of Speaker Sam Rayburn (Democrat–Texas) that “to get along you have to go along,” a few senators and representatives made their career not by “going along” but by becoming legislative mavericks. Mavericks tend to represent a minority viewpoint within their own party and tend to refuse to bend their principles to prevailing attitudes. Mavericks are often showmen who enjoy the spotlight of publicity. They will employ disruptive tactics to stop or slow down action on a bill, trying to make the majority agree with their demands. They may show contempt for the rules, courtesies, and elaborate forms of politeness that other legislators adopt with each other."

Take it as you may but I suppose in our own right, everyone is a "Maverick" to some degree.

RNC Energy Or Lack Of?

I first started watching the DNC I think on night two. It was the first time I had ever watched it on television. You see, I've never been into politics, have tried, am still trying..I think the idea of having smart people working towards the same goal - whatever that may be, and working for everyone as a whole, who can speak for themselves and the citizens of America would ultimately be who you want to work for or be "the boss". Recently, someone said you have your democrats, republicans, independents, etc..well, if were all on the same team, we might win the big game. Back to television...I turned on the RNC last night and watched it for an hour or so. It was dull. Where was the energy in the crowd? Speaking of crowd, why did everyone look so different than democratic voters at the DNC? Has Laura Bush had work done? Were they giving away Red Bull at the entrance in Denver and muscle relaxers in Saint Paul?
Wednesday night of the RNC ...huh? I don't want to stereotype anyone...but it was just different. From the mood of the crowd, to the energy in the room, the people themselves, all very different. I didn't enjoy it and it brought me down. I hope I'm not the only one to notice, but I don't want a bunch of downers in Washington, trying to represent me or the place where I live.

I'll give it another try tonight and look forward to the debates.

Omaha Steaks Anyone

Just wanted to share these coupons with anyone.

Omaha Steaks