Clipmarks | wiccantexan's Comments

Speak English Please: No more buzzwords

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:02:58 GMT

clipped by: kmcolo

LONDON, England (AP) -- British bureaucrats have been warned: no more synergies, stakeholders or sustainable communities.

The Local Government Association, whose members include hundreds of district, town and county councils in England and Wales, on Friday sent out a list of 100 "non-words" that it said officials should avoid if they want to be understood.

The list includes the popular but vague term "empowerment;" "coterminosity," a situation in which two organizations oversee the same geographical area; and "synergies," combinations in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Officials were told to ditch the term "revenue stream" for income, as well as the imprecise "sustainable communities." The association also said councils should stop referring to local residents as "customers" or "stakeholders."

"Why do we have to have 'coterminous, stakeholder engagement' when we could just 'talk to people' instead?" he said.

Tags: jargon, english, language, buzzwords

Obama's 50 state strategy

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 17:31:27 GMT

clipped by: Mikeylito
clipper's remarks: Sen. McCain's has spent the past week trying to convince us that Sen. Obama is a typical politician.

Let's review.

Sen. McCain spent the past week in Colombia, Mexico, and his ranch in Arizona.

Sen. Obama spent the past week flying all over the USA attempting to win voters in all 50 states, including those usually ceded by Democrats to the Republicans.

Yeah, sounds typical to me.

Clip Source: trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com

Obama's 50 state strategy

10:02 AM Sat, Jul 05, 2008

Todd J. Gillman

Where's mom and the apple pie?

Ah, Montana. So many electoral votes, so little time. Obama spent a wholesome Fourth of July in Butte. He's in St. Louis today and Chicago tomorrow. No surreptitious visit to Iraq this weekend, it turns out. Maybe next week. But no worries, the senator has plenty of time to sort out his thinking on Iraq before the first presidential debate in a few months.

Alas, no Americana photos of McCain celebrating Independence Day. He kept out of sight after returning from Mexico.

Tags: elections, politics, mccain, obama

Nobody Wants To Be On Obama's Ticket

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 06:12:55 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: McGovern had the same problem- and felt forced to pick Thomas Eagleton, who had to be replaced by Sargen Shriver, A Kennedy
apparatchik.

* Edwards says he's not interested.

* Biden says he's not interested, but might say yes if asked.
.
* Ditto Kerry.

* Governor Tom Strickland of Ohio says he would “absolutely not” join the Obama ticket.

* Webb says he's not interested in VP.

* Gov Bredesen says he's not interested.

* Sen Bayh says he's not interested - but might say yes.

At this rate Obama might have to pick Caroline!

Clip Source: astuteblogger.blogspot.com

"Remember the Hippocratic Oath that doctors take: first do no harm," said the South Dakota Democrat in a telephone interview. "You want to be sure that whoever you pick is not going to prove to be a controversial person and make it more difficult for you to run."*

McGovern should know. His initial choice for vice president turned out to be a monumental blunder after it was revealed that Sen. Thomas Eagleton had once undergone shock therapy. McGovern, who initially claimed to back the Missouri Democrat "1000 percent," was eventually forced to accept his withdrawal. Since then, the '72 campaign has become exhibit A for a vice presidential search gone wrong.

"We didn't have any time for [background research]," he recalled. "The first half dozen people that I chose turned me down. I guess they didn't think I had a chance to win or they just didn't want to be Vice President...."

Tags: obama, vp pick

Open Revolt Takes Top Position at BarackObama.com

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:46:44 GMT

clipped by: sahara
clipper's remarks: Do you think Obama will listen to his own supporters? It is sad to see that so much of what he offered up during the primaries has been tossed aside and he has "CHANGEd" his positions on, or rather, he has become more forthright with his positions on matters since the nomination was given to him. For me, that was why he never got my attention or vote to begin with, it was never very clear what his positions were from the start, I would always ask, "what are his values", "what is his position on such and such" and the answer was most often a rhetorical, "well, he is going to "change" things!" So now, what can people do? McCain is the same, 3rd parties rarely triumph, staying home doesn't really do much of anything except save the gas you might use to drive to the polls. Myself? I have joined in with the
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/ There's a peaceful revolution going on, everyone is welcome to be a part of it. As Obama has quoted, "be the change"! (~ Ghandi )

Clip Source: irregulartimes.com

Earlier today, I was surprised to see that the grassroots group at BarackObama.com that opposes the FISA Amendments Act had reached ten thousand members. I didn’t imagine at the time what is about to happen. By the time we wake up tomorrow morning, this insurgent group of Obama activists who are now opposing Barack Obama’s embrace of the FISA Amendments Act will be the largest grassroots group on BarackObama.com.

Clip Source: irregulartimes.com

The Audacity of Per Se

Per Se: A phrase used by politicians to signal to supporters that they’re about to break a promise.

Example: “The issue of the phone companies per se is not one that overrides the security of the American people.” - Barack Obama, June 2008

Clip Source: irregulartimes.com

Yet another website has arisen organizing people in protest against Barack Obama’s flip-flop from opposition to endorsement of the FISA Amendments Act (aka H.R. 6304).

Clip Source: irregulartimes.com

What it Means for Barack Obama to Have Lost My Vote

Clip Source: irregulartimes.com

Obama Supporters Against FISA Law Pass Ten Thousand!

Tags: obama, typical, politician, cfr

FARC Hostage Ingrid Betancourt Freed

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:21:20 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: But in becoming so famous, the 46-year-old Ms. Betancourt also became more valuable to the FARC, which was feeling the heat from the government under U.S.-ally President Álvaro Uribe (who, it so happened, hosted Sen. John McCain on Tuesday). FARC funds itself largely through drug trafficking and kidnapping, but despite such activities had found a friend in Hugo Chávez. The Venezuelan president and FARC had sought to use the selective release of hostages to get governments allied with him, such as Ecuador and Nicaragua, to grant the group diplomatic recognition -- a move that, if followed by other countries in the region, would undermine the Colombian government's offensive against the FARC and by extension U.S. influence in the region. Mr. Chavez had declared his motives to be purely humanitarian; but, in any event, it is the Colombian military that has now done the selective releasing.

Clip Source: online.wsj.com

On Wednesday, Colombia's defense minister announced that military intelligence agents, by infiltrating the guerrilla ranks, had tricked the rebels into giving up Ms. Betancourt and 14 other prisoners without a single injury. Among those freed were the longest-held American hostages in the world, three Pentagon contractors captured in 2003 when their drug surveillance plane went down. But Ms. Betancourt -- a minor presidential candidate when she was abducted in 2002 -- is the headline name. As reporter Jose de Cordoba described in a Page One story last month, Ms. Betancourt, who holds dual Colombian and French citizenship, had become the face of the hundreds of FARC captives and their heart-breaking suffering. In Europe, she is so famous that she is simply known as "Ingrid." Her portrait hangs on the facade of the Paris city hall and in Milan's main piazza, and across the world, more than 1,000 cities and towns have declared her an honorary citizen.

Tags: ingrid betancourt, farc hostage, president alvaro uribe, columbia military intelligence agents

The Media's "Wes Clark Hyperventorama"

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:05:05 GMT

clipped by: cptenaud
clipper's remarks: Gen. Clark was absolutely right in his praise and valid criticism of Sen. McCain.

Bob Schieffer has an opportunity here to show himself to be a responsible journalist by putting the comments back in their proper context, i.e. when he makes his closing comments on Face the Nation. But I'm not holding my breath on that one!

Brandon, can you get the vets in your "Veterans Respond to General Clark's Comments" on video? YouTube would be a great vehicle for this.

Thanks for the posts.

for the last four years, so I am not acclimatized to the US media anymore. WTF happened to my country?????

No one has bothered to look at McCains voting record on vet issues for the last twenty years. He's voted no on practically every piece of legislation benefiting the VA. If he used his "military/vet/pow" creds to boost the VA, then I and many of my younger brothers and sisters from Iraq and Afghanistan would probably not have the serious problems they have getting their benefits.

Clip Source: www.vetvoice.com

by: Brandon Friedman

Tue Jul 01, 2008

Wow. This compilation from Talking Points Memo spread across the internet fast:

[Video]

Yes, America, that's your media hard at work smearing General Wesley Clark (Ret.)--the last U.S. general to win a war, and a man who left Vietnam on a stretcher after being shot four times.

I only saw CNN "reports" on this and just chalked them up to typically obtuse CNN "reportage". But, this montage gives whole new meaning to the complete and total incompetence and ineptitude of the media and their beloved pundits. If this is any indication of where this campaign is headed, then God help us all!

News anchors seem to be in a competition to see who can escalate and misinterpret a persons comments. Instead of actually thinking about what Gen. Clark was actually saying. It's a joke. Ridonkulous.

Tags: : wesley clark

Fuel a car with wine

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:39:52 GMT

clipped by: tidbit2
clipper's remarks: although I can't imagine it workin too well in Ireland
where drink driving is already outlawed
and binge drinking is the norm for a lot of people

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

How can you fuel a car with wine?

Think of hillbillies brewing up staggeringly alcoholic moonshine and you're most of the way there. The modern miracle of turning wine into automotive fuel is all down to the fine art of distillation.

When Aston Martin heard that Prince Charles wanted to run his DB5 run-around on bioethanol, they contacted Gloucester-based Green Fuels for help. The company bought in 8,000 litres of surplus white wine from a nearby vineyard - for a mere 1p a litre - and ran it through their distillery. Understandably, the vineyard's owner is keeping his head down, for fear of mobs in search of free plonk.

Green Fuels ended up with hundreds of litres of 99.8% pure ethano

ready to go, on a mix of 85% ethanol and 15% petrol.

only waste is fruit juice

to make biogas for electricity,

ethanol was sold for £1.10 a litre.

Any car can be converted to run on it,

not something we'd recommend people do at home

You're producing something that's extremely flammable."

Starbucks Closing Stores

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:33:48 GMT

clipped by: pphilipp
clipper's remarks: Well, I for one am not surprised.
Finally people have come to their senses.
Don't get me wrong, I too love Starbucks but I've always wondered how they could be so successful by selling expensive coffee and very little else. I consider their brews to be a luxury which I can only occasionally afford to delve into. To me they don't sell a product or service which really competes with the already established businesses in the vicinity and when they open more than one store within a limited region, then they're only really competing with themselves. They're robbing business from Starbucks... not the McDonalds, Wendys or Dunkin Donuts next door.

Now, if they can only sell a good cup of coffee at half the price and give free refills, then they've sold me. But hey, haven't I just described places which have been doing that for decades?

Clip Source: www.mail.com

Starbucks to close 600 US stores, rein in growth

For a decade it appeared there was no such thing as too many Starbucks for U.S. coffee drinkers, whose willingness to buy its $4 lattes and dark drip brews rationalized a second green-and-white mermaid awning just down the street -- and sometimes even a third. But in a sign that those days are over, Starbucks Corp. announced Tuesday it will close 600 company-operated stores in the next year as the faltering U.S. economy hastened the pain caused by the company's own rapid expansion.

Seattle-based Starbucks did not say which stores will be closed, only that they are spread throughout the country. But it did say 70 percent of those slated for closure had opened after the start of 2006.

To put it another way, Starbucks is closing 19 percent of all U.S. company-operated stores that opened in the last two years, Chief Financial Officer Pete Bocian said during a conference call.

Would you kill your own son -- to save others?

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:43:39 GMT

clipped by: AcesLucky
clipper's remarks: Would you save your own son if it meant killing others?

Clip Source: video.stumbleupon.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, faith, bible, nick gisburne, atonement, jesus

Useful words for making phone call

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 19:10:30 GMT

clipped by: joycezhang

Clip Source: www.friends6.com

【生活在国外】请你记住这26个你全认得的单词，打电话时非常有用！

Alpha for A
Bravo for B
Charlie  for C
Delta  for D
Echo  for E
Foxtrot  for F
Golf  for G
Hotel  for H
India  for I
Juliet  for J
Kilo  for K
Lima  for L
Mike  for M
November for N
Oscar  for O
Papa  for P
Quebec  for Q
Romeo  for R
Sierra  for S
Tango  for T
Uniform  for U
Victor  for V
Whiskey  for W
X-ray  for X
Yankee  for Y

Tags: phone call, english

Would you kill your own son -- to save others?

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:43:39 GMT

clipped by: AcesLucky
clipper's remarks: Would you save your own son if it meant killing others?

Clip Source: video.stumbleupon.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, faith, bible, nick gisburne, atonement, jesus

Would you kill your own son -- to save others?

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:43:39 GMT

clipped by: AcesLucky
clipper's remarks: Would you save your own son if it meant killing others?

Clip Source: video.stumbleupon.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, faith, bible, nick gisburne, atonement, jesus

In America's Current Political Climate The Truth Is Heresy

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 07:50:16 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: - a maternal great-grandparent (Sen. Obama's great-great grandparent, thus the 6.25% ethnic contribution to the senator's ethnic composition.).

As you can see for yourself, Sen. Obama's African-American ethnic claim, when properly researched and documented, is a lie.

The question no one wants to answer - particularly Mr. Obama and his supporters, is, "Why do you think he has an Arabic name? Why does his father have an Arabic name? Why does every ancestor on his father's side have an Arabic name?"

The answer is obvious: They have Arabic names because his father's side of the family tree is Arabic.

That means that Mr. Obama is 50% Caucasian from his mother's side. He is 43.75% Arabic, and 6.25% African Negro from his father's side.

http://conservablogs.com/velvethammer/2008/01/25/obamas-family-tree/
How would the senator convince Americans still reeling from 9/11, Afghanistan, and Iraq, that now is the time for America's first Arab-American president.

Clip Source: www.conservablogs.com

Hate to break it to you Obama fans, but that “birth certificate” has clearly been tampered with, or newly created. It lists Obama’s Fathers race as: African.

African is not a “race”. Africa is a continent populated by people of many races.

The official US designation of Obama’s father’s race in 1961 would have been: Negro

I double-checked this with a black friend of mine who was born in Hawaii in 64. His parents race is listed as: Negro

This classification was not changed on the US Census until 1980.

Wonder what the Obama campaign is trying to hide?

Posted by: doobie | June 15, 2008 1:44 AM

I found this comment elsewhere. H/T David Drake

Clip Source: kennethelamb.blogspot.com

Again, a very inconvenient truth.

Why is the fact that Mr. Obama is only 6.25% African Negro not reported?

Mr. Obama is 50% Caucasian, that from his mother. What those who want Mr. Obama to write history by becoming "America's first African-American president" ignore is that his father was ethnically Arabic, with only 1 relative ethnically African Negro

Tags: barack obama, presidential candidate, birth certificate, fathers ethnicity, arab

Would you kill your own son -- to save others?

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:43:39 GMT

clipped by: AcesLucky
clipper's remarks: Would you save your own son if it meant killing others?

Clip Source: video.stumbleupon.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, faith, bible, nick gisburne, atonement, jesus

Would you kill your own son -- to save others?

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:43:39 GMT

clipped by: AcesLucky
clipper's remarks: Would you save your own son if it meant killing others?

Clip Source: video.stumbleupon.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, faith, bible, nick gisburne, atonement, jesus