WebCogito

‘Bin Laden’ blames US for global warming:

A new message said to be from al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has blamed global warming on the US and other big industrial nations.

The tape criticises the administration of former US President George W Bush for not ratifying the Kyoto Protocol on combating climate change.

“Bush the son, and the [US] Congress before him, rejected this agreement only to satisfy the big companies.”

Well, it seems that Bin Laden and Al Gore agree on something.

Since “Angels & Demons” takes place mainly in the Vatican, and is festooned with the rites and ornaments of Roman Catholicism, I might as well begin with a confession. I have not read the novel by Dan Brown on which this film (directed, like its predecessor, “The Da Vinci Code,” by Ron Howard) is based. I have come to believe that to do so would be a sin against my faith, not in the Church of Rome but in the English language, a noble and beleaguered institution against which Mr. Brown practices vile and unspeakable blasphemy.

A. O. SCOTT
Movie Review
Angels & Demons (2009)

Self-serving ad of the New Year

Would you drive to a restaurant, and ask the host(ess) if it’s a good time for you to eat out?  What do you think they’re going to say?

Wait. You say you think that’s stupid, and who would do that?  Well, apparently the National Association of Automobile Dealers (NADA) thinks that stupid person is you!

For the last few days, they’ve been running full page ads in some newspapers, that claim that “It’s the best time in years to buy a car.”

Granted, most stores make that claim at one time or another, but the idiocy of the ads rises to an new level. They are actually encouraging you to get your butt off your sofa, go to your nearest car dealer, and ASK YOUR DEALER IF HE THINKS YOU SHOULD BUY A CAR!

Anyone want to bet that he says “Yes”?

Now, I understand the desperation.  Just in the area where I live (North Texas), which actually has been one of the metropolitan areas that has been most spared by the current economic downturn, new car sales plunged 40% in November ‘08, the steepest one-month decline in 20 years, and a 23-year car dealer closed its doors and laid off its 55 employees 3 days before Christmas. Nationwide, things are probably worse, with 20,000 car dealer employees losing their job in October ‘08 alone, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Still, how about not insulting our intelligence?  Asking us to inquire from car dealers whether it’s in our best interest to buy a car is like asking us to trust a mortgage broker on whether we can afford a house: we’re not that stu–.

Never mind.

P.S. You can find the full page ads here.

So I finish making coffee, cuz I needed coffee, and the coffee thing is right in front of Bob’s (not his real name) office. So, I tell Bob (retired military, if his demeanor and medals on his wall are to be believed), “We have fresh coffee” and Bob says “Thanks, I’ll get some.”
Me: “I’d lie and say I made it just for you, but the truth is I made it for me, and it just so happens there’s more left over for other people.”
Bob: “That’s ok, I understand that. I appreciate it anyway.”
Me: “No problem.”
Bob: “The only other liquid that people would prepare for me is stuff that would kill me.”
Me: “You’ve made that many enemies over your lifetime?”
Bob: “Oh yeah… lots.”

“But it’s been fun!”

A Dry Cleaner shop in Richardson, TX.

THUS SPAKE ZARATHUSTRA:

The following conversation between a receptionist and an HR Rep was overheard in a company breakroom:

Receptionist: “Hey, I know you wanted to go shopping. I heard Dillard’s is having a sale. They have 30% off stuff already 80% off.”

HR Rep: “Oh great! Wait, but doesn’t that add up to more than 100%?”

Receptionist: “Yeah, I’m not really sure how that works.”