Prolific Programmer on the Internets!

Well, why won't she?

That is a graphic from the website of Max Motors, a used car dealer in Butler Missouri. They're offering, as part of a cash rebate, a free gas card or a gun. Yes, that's right, in a country where we go on about road safety to no end, we're now arming drivers. In an interview on talksport, he said he supports John McCain and he's an African-American!

With SFist reporting that the last son of Joe Kennedy in politics has brain cancer, and alleging that Camelot has ended, Was Camelot supposed to have a fixed start and end? Any of my more literary-inclined readers want to weigh in? Who will be the heir to Kennedy legend?

Lifehacker posts the 10 best drives in America. How about the 10 best outside the US?

From the Trey Parker movie, Team America: World Police.

Evan Williams says that if you want to be big in a nascent industry, you must go to where the action is. So far I agree, the part I take issue with is further in the article:

Go to where the action is. And if you're in the Internet, that's Silicon Valley. There are more opportunities, companies, like-minded/impressive folks, and knowledge to be gained through osmosis here than anywhere else.

With respect, Mr Williams, I beg to differ. The action can be created anywhere and exists outside this bubble as well. When I graduated, in 2001, I didn't come out here, at least not immediately; I went to Ireland first.

Why? Because there's a lot going on there too. Further, the quality-of-life is a lot better than here. And now that I am in the Bay Area, I'd love to go back.

Newcastle United sweeper Michael Owen spoke to the New York Times GOAL weblog. Money quote:

I couldn't agree more.

Americans simultaneously get the least vacation in the 1^st world, while not producing the most wealth per hour. We only get 2 weeks off per year on average and work 60-plus hours per week. However, this gentleman I met yesterday has come up with a novel-to-me way to get more time off.

He'll work from August/September till May/June, live frugally in the US, and spend the rest of the year in the beach resort of Curçao, Venezuela. It sounds like a wonderful life and one that would give me a heart attack, because I value consistency, above damn near everything else.

I am of the firm belief that a so-called terrorist group thrives in what is generally known as a "failed state". However, it's not strictly a state. It can exist within a state and between parts of several states. Think the transnational criminal gang MS-13 for an example of this. They thrive in places like South Central Los Angeles, precisely because they provide the populace with services the government is unwilling to (or can't). The powerless authorities see them as extra-legal only because they can't tax their activities.

Now, let's move from the streets of America to the Gaza, where Hamas is strong. What's up with that? The Israelis left, taking with them, the tools to keep a semblance of control over a rapidly growing populace and jobs for said populace. Hammas steps in to provide the basic service of a civilised society -- insurance against loss of life and property. In exchange, they gain some monetary compensation in the form of extortion money. Petty criminals are punished by being sent away as suicide bombers into Israel. The families of these suicide bombers are then paid using the extortion money.

How are the two different? They aren't too different. So why is one not talked about while the other is seen as satan incarnate?

Americans are notoriously clueless about the world. They are all on Facebook. Now, if Zuckerberg and Co want to do a public service, they ought to add the NYTimes quiz app to every new account. Sure, I'd prefer a different news outlet, but the Times is a decent start. Also, I take the quiz blind, without reading the Times, out of principle.