More at the guardian.co.uk: “Russia is to increase sharply its production of strategic nuclear missiles, throwing down the gauntlet to the US president-elect, Barack Obama, who would have to deal with the Kremlin's response to US missile defence plans in Europe.
A senior government official in Moscow said the Russian military would commission 70 strategic missiles over the next three years. It was unclear whether sea-launched ballistic missiles were included in this figure, but military experts said it could represent up to a fourfold increase on the rate of production of land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).”
-- This is a frightening development. I do hope we don't get into a military spending contest with the Russians. We can't afford it and I'm not sure it's the best way to go.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Home Sales Drop To 18-Year Low
More at Huff Post: “WASHINGTON — Sales of new homes fell in November to the slowest pace in nearly 18 years, while new home prices dropped by the biggest amount in eight months.
The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that new home sales fell 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 407,000 units. That was a weaker performance than economists had expected and was the slowest sales pace since January 1991.
The median price of a new home sold in November was $220,400, a drop of 11.5 percent from the sales price a year ago. That was the biggest year-over-year price decline since a 12.7 percent fall in March of this year. The median is the point where half the homes sold for more and half for less.”
The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that new home sales fell 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 407,000 units. That was a weaker performance than economists had expected and was the slowest sales pace since January 1991.
The median price of a new home sold in November was $220,400, a drop of 11.5 percent from the sales price a year ago. That was the biggest year-over-year price decline since a 12.7 percent fall in March of this year. The median is the point where half the homes sold for more and half for less.”
Thierry de la Villehuchet: Madoff Investor Dies After $1.4 Billion Lost
Did Thierry de la Villehuchet kill himself? - Huff Postt: “Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet was found sitting at his desk at about 8 a.m. with both wrists slashed, New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said. A box cutter was found on the floor along with a bottle of sleeping pills on his desk. No suicide note was found...”
Obama Blagojevich Report: Team Claims Exoneration
More at Huff Post: “Barack Obama's chief counsel declared on Tuesday afternoon that only one member of the President-elect's staff -- incoming chief of staff Rahm Emanuel -- had any communications with embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his staff since Obama's election.
Emanuel's interactions, moreover, were not in any way improper, Obama's aides stressed, and the transition team was fully compliant both with the law and the U.S. Attorney's investigation into Blagojevich's alleged pay-for-play scheme.
"No one in the Obama circle was aware of what was going on in the governor's office until he was arrested," said Greg Craig, Obama's counsel. "They found out what the Governor was doing the same time the American public found out about it."”
Emanuel's interactions, moreover, were not in any way improper, Obama's aides stressed, and the transition team was fully compliant both with the law and the U.S. Attorney's investigation into Blagojevich's alleged pay-for-play scheme.
"No one in the Obama circle was aware of what was going on in the governor's office until he was arrested," said Greg Craig, Obama's counsel. "They found out what the Governor was doing the same time the American public found out about it."”
Sitting At Gate B56 At Denver International Airport - Flight Delayed
If you're on Twitter you may have noticed - or may not have seen -- that I just landed in Denver. But here I am after having caught a flight from Oakland to this hub with the intent of catching another flight to Atlanta. That flight, UAL 7515, which was to leave at about 7 PM, was delayed to 9:19 PM, giving me time to catch up on stuff like blogging.
I think this is the fourth time I've been at DIA this year, the other three trips courtesy of my work at the Democratic National Convention. But regardless of the city -- Denver, New York, Chicago, Atlanta -- I love to fly. To me, since air travel became so accessible to so many people due to low fares, one can gain the measure of America in an airport: fashion, concerns, and overall mood.
The mood I would describe as "mellow". It certainly feels like the holiday season but it's almost like people are going through the motion of traveling but don't have a lot of gifts to give. I don't see a lot of gift bags or bags that look like they've got gifts in them.
I see a lot of kids and families and college students traveling alone, presumably to see their parents. And of course there's an occasional single person, like me.
I think this is the fourth time I've been at DIA this year, the other three trips courtesy of my work at the Democratic National Convention. But regardless of the city -- Denver, New York, Chicago, Atlanta -- I love to fly. To me, since air travel became so accessible to so many people due to low fares, one can gain the measure of America in an airport: fashion, concerns, and overall mood.
The mood I would describe as "mellow". It certainly feels like the holiday season but it's almost like people are going through the motion of traveling but don't have a lot of gifts to give. I don't see a lot of gift bags or bags that look like they've got gifts in them.
I see a lot of kids and families and college students traveling alone, presumably to see their parents. And of course there's an occasional single person, like me.
Obama's Choie Of Rick Warren Caused Warren To Move To Center
Contrary to Blogger and Internet Guru Dave Winder, I think President-Elect Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren was brilliant in that it's forced a dialog America's not had, and will cause Warren to move to the center on the matter of Gays and gay marriage.
STAR TREK MOVIE TO FINISH NEXT WEEK - AN OFFICIAL MESSAGE FROM JJ ABRAMS
Dear All Those Who Checked Out the Trek Trailer on Facebook:
THANK YOU!
We're just making final tweaks to the movie -- we should be totally locked next week. Then we're going to flash-freeze it so it's totally fresh for you in May. I can't wait for you to see the movie. The cast is awesome. The action and effects pushed the stunt team and ILM beyond their limits. I'm so grateful to this cast and crew -- and to all of you for your interest and patience. We'll continue to update this page with new info and exclusives, so check back when you think of it. In the meantime, have a happy, healthy, fun holiday!
From the last days of the sound mix,
JJ
THANK YOU!
We're just making final tweaks to the movie -- we should be totally locked next week. Then we're going to flash-freeze it so it's totally fresh for you in May. I can't wait for you to see the movie. The cast is awesome. The action and effects pushed the stunt team and ILM beyond their limits. I'm so grateful to this cast and crew -- and to all of you for your interest and patience. We'll continue to update this page with new info and exclusives, so check back when you think of it. In the meantime, have a happy, healthy, fun holiday!
From the last days of the sound mix,
JJ
Monday, December 22, 2008
Zennie62 On Seesmic.com
After months of thinking about doing it, I finally did it: contributed a video on Seesmic.com , Loic Lemur's video conversation venture, featuring my friend Cathy Brooks, who was one of his first staffers.
I remember when Cathy was totting around a laptop showing Seesmic at work; that was last year, 2007 at a STIRR Founder Hacks Meetup! Wow, how time flies!
YouTube Partners - THE FACTS !
"TheFatAussieBastard" gives a great set of reasons why it's good to be a YouTube Partner, like myself. His take is laced with f-bombs but he has a way of making a good case with them. Oh, YouTube Partners are paid for their vidoes via views versus ad buys. It's a worthwhile effort.
Ecuador v. Chevron And The Associated Press' Bad Coverage
I saw the Associated Press' report on the Ecuador / Chevron case and was shocked at the lack of mention of Ecuador's responsibility to it's poorest people. Here' I take on Ecuador for its poor economic development record.
Toyota predicts first ever loss as sales drop - Dec. 22, 2008
More at CNN.com - Dec. 22, 2008: “NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Japanese auto giant Toyota said Monday that it would suffer an operating loss due to plummeting auto sales and a strong local currency.
About 30 minutes after the market closed in Tokyo, Toyota said it expected to lose approximately $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion this fiscal year. Toyota reports earnings on a fiscal calendar beginning in April.
This would be Toyota's first operating loss since 1950, Toyota spokesman Steve Curtis said.
Despite the likely operating loss, Toyota expects to post a $557 million net profit for the fiscal year. The profit stems, in large part, from joint ventures whose revenues are not included in the automakers' accounting for its operating profits.”
--- This should show others that it's not just American car companies that are hurt by this economy.
About 30 minutes after the market closed in Tokyo, Toyota said it expected to lose approximately $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion this fiscal year. Toyota reports earnings on a fiscal calendar beginning in April.
This would be Toyota's first operating loss since 1950, Toyota spokesman Steve Curtis said.
Despite the likely operating loss, Toyota expects to post a $557 million net profit for the fiscal year. The profit stems, in large part, from joint ventures whose revenues are not included in the automakers' accounting for its operating profits.”
--- This should show others that it's not just American car companies that are hurt by this economy.
More At The Denver Post
Banks not saying where bailout money is going - The Denver Post: “WASHINGTON — It's something any bank would demand to know before handing out a loan: Where's the money going? But after receiving billions in aid from U.S. taxpayers, the nation's largest banks say they can't track exactly how they're spending the money or they simply refuse to discuss it.
"We've lent some of it. We've not lent some of it. We've not given any accounting of, 'Here's how we're doing it,"' said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in emergency bailout money. "We have not disclosed that to the public. We're declining to." The Associated Press contacted 21 banks that received at least $1 billion in government money and asked four questions: How much has been spent? What was it spent on? How much is being held in savings, and what's the plan for the rest? None of the banks provided specific answers.”
-- This is an outrage! One of President Obama's first axts as President should be to write an executive order forcing the banks to tell where the bailout money they've got is going!
"We've lent some of it. We've not lent some of it. We've not given any accounting of, 'Here's how we're doing it,"' said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in emergency bailout money. "We have not disclosed that to the public. We're declining to." The Associated Press contacted 21 banks that received at least $1 billion in government money and asked four questions: How much has been spent? What was it spent on? How much is being held in savings, and what's the plan for the rest? None of the banks provided specific answers.”
-- This is an outrage! One of President Obama's first axts as President should be to write an executive order forcing the banks to tell where the bailout money they've got is going!
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