Leading Music Labels: Scew the Consumer, We Don't Need Them!!

Some leading music labels are in talks with online retailers to raise wholesale prices for digital music downloads in an attempt to capitalise on burgeoning demand for legal online music.

I WILL NOT pay more than $.99 for a song online.

The moves, which suggest the labels want a bigger slice of the fledgling market's spoils, has angered Steve Jobs, the Apple Computer chief executive behind the iTunes online music store.

iTunes is the best online digital music service out there. If Apple caves and the prices go higher, I won't buy. I will just buy my CD's used at pawn shops for much, much, much less than they sell for new.

Music industry executives said introductory wholesale prices for digital tracks had been set low to stimulate demand, but Apple's success had prompted concern that they may now be too low.

Oh no! Apple's being too successful! Raise the prices! ::shakes head::

I don't get it

President Bush (news - web sites) won the Golden Raspberry Award on Saturday for worst actor of the year for his appearance in Michael Moore's documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11."

I don't get it. How can someone in a documentary -- usually not actors -- get nominated and win an acting award (a razzie in this case)? I guess you could argue that politicians are actors. But the President wasn't trying to follow the script that Moore had written for him (which is why Moore had to doctor images and queue up sound bites in just the right way). Maybe I should just be happy that one of the best fictitious (as in fake, made up, 100% not real) movies of the year won a razzie, an award that only the worst movies get.

NCAA Basketball Chaney's punishment should be dismissal, not suspension - CBS SportsLine.com

NCAA Basketball Chaney's punishment should be dismissal, not suspension - CBS SportsLine.com: "In Temple's 63-56 loss Tuesday to Saint Joseph's, Chaney sent in a goon -- his word, goon -- to send a message. That message went all the way to a hospital in Philadelphia, where Saint Joseph's forward John Bryant was diagnosed Thursday with a broken arm.

Chaney sent a player into the game for the express purpose of roughing up Saint Joseph's, and the result was the probable end of John Bryant's career."

You know, there is a reason they call it Thug Ball...

" For years, we've looked the other way. All of us have. Chaney once grabbed the neck of a rival coach, George Washington's Gerry Gimelstob, in 1984. Everyone looked the other way. That's just John Chaney.

Chaney once threatened to kill a rival coach, Massachusetts' John Calipari, in 1994. The threat was captured on video. It was embarrassing, a career-ending move for most coaches. Not for Chaney. Everyone looked the other way."

You know, we do expect our Thug Ball coaches to be... THUGS!!! Duh.

"If Bob Knight grabbed another coach around the neck, would Knight still be coaching?"

Yes. Brawll Ball needs thug coaches.

"If Mike Davis threatened to kill another coach, would Davis still be coaching?"

Yes. Brawll Ball needs thug coaches.

They Are Crazy in Florida!

My eighth installment of "They Are Crazy in Florida!"

February 23, 2005

Florida boy accused of assault with rubber band

13-year-old suspended 10 days after confrontation with teacher

WKMG Local 6


Suspended from school. Robert Gomez has been accused of threatening a teacher with a rubber band. WKMG Local 6 image.

A 13-year-old student in Orange County, Fla., was suspended for 10 days and could be banned from school over an alleged assault with a rubber band, according to a WKMG Local 6 News report.

Robert Gomez, a seventh-grader at Liberty Middle School, said he picked up a rubber band at school and slipped it on his wrist.

Gomez said when his science teacher demanded the rubber band, the student said he tossed it on her desk.

After the incident, Gomez received a 10-day suspension for threatening his teacher with what administrators say was a weapon, Local 6 News reported.

"They said if he would have aimed it a little more and he would have gotten it closer to her face he would have hit her in the eye," mother Jenette Rojas said.

Rojas said she was shocked to learn that her son was being punished for a Level 4 offense -- the highest Level at the school. Other violations that also receive level 4 punishment include arson, assault and battery, bomb threats and explosives, according to the Code of Student Conduct.

Level 4 offense eh? Tossing rubberbands, sharpening pencils, making the shape of a gun with your hand, beating the crap out of the people around you with hard backed text books or desks, talking trash during Thug Ball at PE, tripping and falling, giving your buddy's a high-five?

The district said a Level 4 offense includes the use of any object or instrument used to make a threat or inflict harm, including a rubber band.

Rojas plans to fight the ruling but her son still faces expulsion.

"It's ridiculous, it's a rubber band," Rojas said.

The school's principal could not comment because the case is still under investigation.

A district spokesman said there is still a series of meetings the district will have before Gomez is officially expelled.

This is way beyond common sense to me. I don't get it. What does this solve? I guess if you want the kids living in fear of being expelled because a shoe came untied, you've got it.

scent of a woman

How does a struggling would-be Romeo attract a sweetie? By surrounding himself with honeys, of course. That's the premise behind Wingwomen.com, the self-proclaimed "revolutionary service for men who want to meet women."

According to the site, the agency provides beautiful women to accompany men to bars, lounges, clubs and so on. In a nutshell, the theory goes, women are often attracted to guys who have other attractive women around them. So for $50 per "Wing Woman," a dateless dude becomes a ladies man. The dud becomes the stud.

Says the site:

• "Women want what they can't have."

And since I'm easy to have women don't want me... at least the women I want to want me don't want me.

• "Women are very jealous and love to compete with one another."

I guess I'm not worth competeing over?

• "Women tend to lower their defenses around men who have other women around them. Most women tend to see these men as having a seal of approval and being less hostile."

I have no clue what that means.

So for those guys who continually whiff at the plate in the pickup game, Wingwomen.com may be just the ticket to get them to first base and beyond.

You get what you pay for

I got roped into photographing my cousin's wedding this past weekend. I've never photographed a wedding before. I have a friend who knows his way around a camera, you can see some of his work here: excelsiorphoto.com, and he has let me help at a couple of the wedding's he has photographed. I think I've taken a total 7 "real" wedding photos, until last saturday that is. Took over 280 this time. So far everyone but me seems happy with the photos. I guess that is good. If I am the only one who can see all the mistakes... I don't know. I did my best, but you do get what you pay for.

In the end I like to think the more shots I take the better I'll get, some day :)

Too Funny, Too True

Via The Drudge Report

IRONIC: Canadian Singer Alanis Morissette Becomes American Citizen...

Welcome to America. I won't point out too much that you must be one dumb Canadian American because just about all of the other "smart" celebs and Hollywood types are planning on moving to whence you came.

BLASTED U.S. LAST YEAR OVER 'ERA OF FEAR', 'CENSORSHIP'...

Perhaps you just realized that even though you think the U.S. is full of "censorship" and "fear" its still a pretty good place to be. I think if it wasn't so great, you wouldn't be here :)

They Are Crazy in Florida!

My seventh installment of "They Are Crazy in Florida!"

Cops: Teacher taught bomb-making
One of his students set off a bomb at a golf course and videotaped it, the Sheriff's Office says.

By Amy C. Rippel | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted February 16, 2005

A 42-year-old Freedom High School chemistry teacher was arrested Monday after students told authorities he taught his class how to make explosives, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said.

David Pieski, a teacher at Freedom for two years, used an overhead projector in class to give students detailed instructions in bomb-making, including advising them to use an electric detonator to stay clear from the blast, according to an arrest report.

Authorities said in Pieski's classroom, they found information, including the chemical breakdown, for an explosive predominately used by Middle East suicide bombers.

One student said he set off an explosive device at Hunter's Creek Golf Club on Jan. 6 and videotaped it, according to Pieski's arrest warrant. The videotape shows a fiery explosion, and the voice of a young man shouting an expletive can be heard.

"[The student] said Pieski approved of the explosion and stated 'cool' when he observed it," the arrest warrant said.

The Sheriff's Office was called to the golf course after residents heard the loud explosion and saw a fireball on the fifth hole.

Investigators found a charred coffee can perched on two concrete blocks and a small piece of burnt wick nearby.

A month later, authorities were called to a home at a Hunter's Creek subdivision, near the golf course, because of a report of an acid bomb. There, investigators talked to two juveniles on the scene. One mother said her son told her he had been working on a chemistry project for school.

A youth told investigators that Pieski showed students in class how to make the explosive device, the arrest report said.

On Feb. 8, sheriff's investigators interviewed Pieski at the school. He told investigators he detonated chemicals in a coffee can by a ball field four times for his students. He said he did this as a chemistry project to show a reaction rate, the arrest report said.

"Pieski admitted to me that he observed [the student's] video and approved of his successful results," the arrest warrant said. "Pieski disagreed with the project being an explosion."

School officials told investigators that Pieski had previously been told he was not allowed to have any form of explosive on campus.

Pieski guided investigators to an unlocked metal cabinet in the back of a classroom, where there was "a can of black powder stored next to other chemicals."

"Earlier, Pieski stated he was aware he was not supposed to have the black powder on property," the report said. Pieski also provided Sheriff's Office investigators the "electric detonator he used to set off the devices on property."

Investigators also found a book marked "Demo," containing information, including the chemical breakdown, about an explosive known to be used by suicide bombers in the Middle East, according to the arrest report. It is unclear if the information was shared with students, the arrest report said.

"This explosive does not burn but detonates at 17,389 feet per second," according to the arrest report. "This explosive, which the intelligence community attempts to keep secret, is one of the explosives of choice for foreign terrorists. This explosive is extremely unstable yet easy to produce."

School district area Superintendent Judy Cunningham said Pieski was reassigned late last week to a desk job in her office after he was interviewed by the Sheriff's Office. He is the focus of an internal investigation, Cunningham said. He is still earning his salary.

He was arrested at Cunningham's office Tuesday morning on a charge of possession or discharging of a destructive device and culpable negligence. Pieski, who was booked into the Orange County Jail on Monday afternoon, declined to comment. He was later released from jail on $1,000 bail.

Amy C. Rippel can be reached at arippel@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5736.

If I ever have kids, they sure are not going to a public school in Florida! You want to learn how to make bombs? Graduate high school and join the Army!

Gizmodo : Wacom Cintiq 21UX Touch Screen Flat-Panel

Gizmodo : Wacom Cintiq 21UX Touch Screen Flat-Panel

It doesn't get much hotter than this: a 21-inch LCD flat-panel display with an integrated, touch-sensitive Wacom integrated overlay. The new Cintiq 21UX is shipping in March for just $2,500—really a pretty amazing price, considering what you're getting.

Yummy!

Tuesday can't come soon enough!

Singles at the Crossroads - Albert Y. Hsu, pg 170

Valentine's Day is another case. Singles don't need to be reminded that February 14 can be one of the most difficult days of the year. In face, more suicides occur on Valentine's Day than any other day of the year except Christmas.

Few People realize that this day is named after a Christian, Valentine, who lived in Rome in the third century. Tradition has it that he was both a priest and physician who sent about doing good deeds in imitation of Christ. He was arrested during a persecution of Christians, and the Roman emperor Claudius Gothicus handed him over to a magistrate. While in custody, Valentine healed the magistrate's blind, adopted daughter, and the entire family was converted to Christianity. Upon hearing this, the emperor had Valentine beheaded--on February 14. From then on Christians commemorated that day in memory of valentines life of selfless service and ministry.

Nevertheless I still feel depressed. I know I'm not suppose to, but I do. I'll be fine on Tuesday. Tuesday can't come soon enough!

They Are Crazy in Florida!

My sixth installment of "They Are Crazy in Florida!"

Woman Makes Up Story About Tossed Baby

Feb 11, 4:09 PM (ET)

By CURT ANDERSON

(AP) The newborn boy, believed to be hours old, who was thrown from a car onto a street, is shown in the...
Full Image

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) - A woman who claimed to have witnessed a newborn being thrown from a moving car was the baby's mother and concocted the story as a way to abandon the child and conceal her pregnancy from her family, officials said Friday.

That's crazy!

Do You Ask or Beg?

Do You Ask or Beg?: It's better to beg forgiveness than ask permission.

It's an interesting thought. Maybe I'll try it out. Might change that mood over on the right to something other than frustrated.

They Are Crazy in Florida!

My fifth installment of "They Are Crazy in Florida!"

Wrestlers Accused of Hog-Tying Teahttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifmmate, Zapping Him With Grill Igniter
DELTONA, Fla. -- Three high school wrestlers face expulsion based on accusations they hog-tied a learning-disabled teammate and zapped him with a grill igniter.


10-Year-Old Accused Of Raping Classmate
POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- Officials said the alleged attack happened on the grounds of Sanders Park Elementary School.
A 10-year-old boy has been suspended from a Pompano Beach elementary school amid allegations he raped an 8-year-old classmate.

The Drudge Report has these to storys labled as "FLORIDA FREAKS:" and he's right!!

Update - And now this: Children Tortured, Toenails Pulled Out With Pliers

TAMPA, Fla. -- Authorities in Tampa, Fla., are searching Friday for a couple accused of torturing seven children by pulling out their toenails, shocking them and hitting them with a hammer, according to a Local 6 News report.

Investigators say some of the children show signs of physical injury, including missing toenails, which were reportedly ripped out by pliers. Other children told deputies they were also tortured by electric shocks.

Update - Officers injured while on patrol on Jacksonville river

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Two police officers patrolling the St. Johns River to prevent Super Bowl terrorism were seriously injured when their boat crashed into a bridge support.

Umm... Oops?

More ThugBall

ThugBall, Brawl Ball, no matter what you call it the Thugs will show.

PRATTVILLE, Ala. — A fight broke out in the stands of a girls' high school basketball game, prompting police to fire Tasers to stop it and clear the gym, authorities said. Eleven people face charges.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,146267,00.html

Sounds to me like your average ThugBall game with your average Brawl Ball fans. They only show up for the fights you know, and if the "players" (translation = THUGS) don't fight, they will.

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Kansas coach Bill Self wants the profanity-laced chants that come from the student section at Allen Fieldhouse to stop.

Some Kansas players brushed off their fellow students' potty-mouthed antics.

"Some people think it's just part of the game," senior guard Michael Lee said. "...when it's Missouri and Kansas, I guess that brings out the best..."

The college game prepares "players" for the National Brawl Ball Association (NBA) game. If the students can't cuss out the "players" then the "players" will be unprepared for the professional level of thughood that they will need to literally survive.