6/1     There is a lot of panic. Euro. Greece. Unemployment. GDP.
        VIX is up. That means one thing: BUY BUY BUY!!!
        \_ Eh, I'm not sure we're at BUY BUY BUY yet.
        \_ Eh, I'm not sure we're at BUY BUY BUY yet.  I think
           things may still go lower from here.  1280 was my target
           before that jobs report.
           \_ you're right. We're at buy. We'll be at BUY BUY BUY
              when all shit breaks and Warren Buffets buys a bunch.

5/26    http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/05/revisiting-why-incompetents-think-theyre-awesome
        Why dim wit thinks he is so awesome.
        \_ I didn't realize I had a Following Bitch. Cool. --dim
           \_ are you getting any brighter?
        \_ why is dim stupid? does he believe in intelligent design?

5/16    Can anyone tell me what Greece is hoping for by rejecting austerity?
        From here it seems like the austerity is a pretty generous attempt
        to keep Greece from imploding entirely.   Are they hoping the
        Germans will put them on eternal state welfare, or what?
        Also, why would an outright default mean they must leave the Euro?
        Is it just that they won't be able to pay basic gvmt services
        w/o the ability to print or borrow money, so they must leave the
        Euro so that they can print money?
        \_ The complaint is that austerity is not likely to help the country's
           economy in the long term.  It's either a short-sighted cash grab
           by creditors who want some money now, even at the cost of hurting
           the economy further, or an attempt to punish the country for living
           beyond its means.  The latter makes some sense, but the people who
           caused the problem in the first place are unlikely to be the ones
           hurting from the austerity measures.
        \_ They need to devalue their currency so that they can reduce their
           debt burden and have their labor costs be competitive enough for
           export growth without forcing deflation on everyone. To do that,
           they need to leave the Euro. It is too hard to have a monetary
           policy that is appropriate for both Germany and Greek. In the US,
           we do it, but only because more productive areas like California
           massively subsidize the less productive areas like Mississippi.
           \_ This is an argument that the Euro is due to breakup in any
              case.
           \_ is their debt burdon in Euros?  If so, how would devaluing
              their currency help?
              \_ I had assumed that if they left the Euro they would just flat
                 out default as part of the deal. -op
              \_ The would either default on the Euro debt or swap it for
                 Drachmas, which they could then devalue. Even more
                 importantly, they could start paying everyone in devalued
                 Drachmas, which would make imported goods cost more but
                 domestic goods would get cheaper, boosting demand for
                 locally produced goods. If they can continue to export
                 good cheaply, they would get increased demands for exports,
                 boosting employment even more.
        \_ Interesting article in Rueters:
           http://preview.tinyurl.com/ckblo4q
           Apparently the Greeks think the rest of Europe is bluffing and
           will continue to bail them out.
           \_ They may be right, but I'm not sure I'm willing to be my savings
              on it.  I will be vary dangerous to kick them out.
           \_ They may be right, it would be very dangeous to kick them out.
              On the other hand, if they are never going to be able to solve
              their problems, it's better to cut losses early.

3/26    GCHQ receives a pair of Enigma machines:
        http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17486464?print=true

1/19    Transcript between the Italian cruise ship captain and the Port
        Authority
        http://www.csua.org/u/v9i (abcnews.go.com)
        This captain is amazing.

1/10    Want financial assistance from the government?  Go to Greece and molest
        a kid!  http://www.csua.org/u/v6j (news.yahoo.com)  (And I don't mean
        the free goodies in jail.)
        \_ That Penn State guy has a future!

12/12   "Dutch architects apologize for 9/11 blast look-alike design"
        http://www.csua.org/u/uz3 (news.yahoo.com)
        First they offended the Muslims, then they offended the Americans.  I
        guess they probably don't want any friends.
        \_ Why do you think it looks like 9/11?

11/21   Forget about the top 1%.  The real target should be the top 0.1%:
        http://www.csua.org/u/us5 (news.yahoo.com)
        "The Top 0.1% Of The Nation Earn Half Of All Capital Gains"

10/29   Remember that $16 muffin? Turns out it wasn't"
        http://news.yahoo.com/muffin-didnt-cost-taxpayers-16-191255266.html

8/19    "American girl in Italy" wasn't a staged photo after all:
        http://www.csua.org/u/u2d (news.yahoo.com)

6/3     One Nepalese soldirer in the UK Army fought off more than 30 Talibans!
        http://www.csua.org/u/thj (news.yahoo.com)
        Kudos.
        \_ I knew before even clicking on the link that he was a Gurkha. It is
           rumored that during WWII the Italians would desert if they
           discovered that they were facing Gurkhas.
           \_ Or was it because the op said he was from Nepal.
              \_ Are all Nepalese soldiers Gurkas?
                 \_ In the UK Army? Yes. It's pretty strange for the UK army to
                    still be raising regiments in Nepal, but it works because of the
                    Gurkha regiments' history of being bad ass, and they only take
                    the best. And they get to settle in the UK afterwards. More or less.
                    still be raising regiments in Nepal, but it works because
                    of the Gurkha regiments' history of being bad ass, and they
                    only take the best. And they get to settle in the UK
                    afterwards. More or less.
           \_ Yawn.  Will you be talking about Gurkhas and the Taliban when
              china invades?
        \_ Come Mr. Taliban, tally me banana...

1/1     US students indeed have worse scores on paper in PISA (Program for
        Int'l Student Assessment) than those from Asian countries, but don't
        blame our education system:
        http://www.csua.org/u/s8a
        \_ And yet US students make bajillions inventing things like credit
           default swaps and a fake housing market. Life ain't the boy scouts.
        \_ Those tests show who the good white collar slaves are; eg
           "work hard, dont stop working, don't go home, stay at work
            U B rich!"
            \_ Ah if only the world actually rewarded work with pay linearly.
        \_ Not very PC, but very interesting.

12/15   I'm planning on traveling to Europe and I was wondering if there's
        any reason I shouldn't be able to use a US power tap/strip (no surge
        suppression) with just a plug adaptor (i.e., no voltage conversion).
        This would be for use with electronics that accept 100V-240V. While
        the power strip is intended for use at 120V, it's just wires, right?
        (Also, this power strip has no power LED or similar.) If anything,
        my understanding is since US voltage is lower, the wires generally
        need to be heavier gauge, so Europe shouldn't be a problem.
        Am I missing something? If so, what do you guys do when traveling
        to countries that use ~230V power? Thanks.
        \_ if that power strip has any form of surge protector in it, that
           will blow the first time you plug it into 240V.  Other than that
           you'll have to deal with different outlet format.

8/29    http://www.google.nl/trends?q=ramadan,+porno&ctab=0&geo=ma&date=all&sort=0
        Funny graph.  -- linkpusher