Student protests nationwide brings Internet traffic to a crawl

If you're in the Internet business and rely on traffic for revenue, today's a slow day. If you're wondering what the cause is, it's the millions of students, teachers, and people protesting college tuition increases and budget cuts nationwide. The only way this blogger could make such a determination is via the use of data from GetClicky, which measures traffic for the blog pages at SFGate.com. (And soon to switch from Google Analytics to Get Clicky for Zennie62.com.)

There's no universally known place to get up-to-the-minute Internet usage and visitor information as of this writing. (In other words, something that measures visitors to every website in the World and reports it at once. If someone knows of such a source, please send an email.)

The blog posts written today have appeared in Google Trends and recent posts, like the one on Chealsea King, are indexed on the first page of a search for, in this case, "Chelsea King": it's 8th down in a Google Search as of this writing.

So placement performance is normal. But what's happened is that traffic is down a dramatic 77 percent today, Thursday, over Wednesday. As of this writing there are 6,587 visitors, and 177 are online now. That number of visitors online is an upward trend from the 50 and 60 and in some cases just 40 earlier today, which means Internet usage is slowly returning to normal.

The students and teachers were out in force today. Indeed, with all of the preparation for this weekend, I managed to get out and make video interviews with the protesters in Oakland. They were of all shapes, sizes, and colors, and not all students: teachers and office workers too. Everyone's angry, and they should be. I was told a massive rally was to form at San Francisco's Civic Center, later tonight.

The University of California and really the colleges around the country should be ashamed of the society they've allowed to grow up around them. We spend more on prisons than on education and allowed a quasi-police state to form around us. I hope the students and teachers get out in force online and have any elected official who's voted against education gain a wave of negative blog posts and comments, fund their challengers, and get them booted out of office.

Stay tuned.

Videos show cruise ship hit by wave Wednesday

Related searches: tsunami, tidal wave, earthquakes and oceans, genoa, ship travel, ocean liner, cruise industry news

Two dramatic videos below show a huge wave slamming into a cruise ship called the Louis Majesty. The Louis Majesty was headed for Genoa at the time of the wave hit Wednesday evening in the Mediterranean Sea.

The wave hit occurred off the coast of the North Eastern Calolonia region of Spain. Five people were reported injured and two dead. The Louis Majesty was carrying 1,350 passengers and 580 crew members.

Raw video:



AP video:



The wave was said to have been as high as a three story building.

This blogger also found the video below of a cruise ship being tossed about by large waves. As of this writing it's not known if this is the Louis Majesty.




Stay tuned.

Oscar nominees Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, to present at Academy Awards

Related searches - crazy heart, the blind side, an education, invictus, inglourious basterds, oscar news

Oscar nominees Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock join fellow nominees Matt Damon, Anna Kendrick, Carey Mulligan and Quentin Tarantinoto as presenter at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards this Sunday.

Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman made the announcement today via The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Carey Mulligan, Sandra Bullock, and Anna Kendrick are first time Oscar nominees. Bullock and Mulligan are competing for the Best Actress Award for their performances in The Blind Side and An Education respectively. Jeff Bridges has earned his fifth nomination, this time for his amazing performance in Crazy Heart. Matt Damon's up for Best Supporting Actor for Invictus - his third time as an Oscar nominee. And the mighty Quentin Tarantinoto is up for Oscars for directing and writing Inglourious Basterds.

This blogger will leave for LA Friday to cover the Oscars from the Night of 100 Stars Party on Sunday, and on Friday and Saturday attend various Oscar-related events, thanks to AMPAS.

Sander Levin replaces Pete Stark and Charles Rangel during ethics investigation

Related searches: ethics investigation, democratic politics, rangel ethics, sander levin chairman, nancy pelosi, bush irag war, new york politics

California Democratic representative Pete Stark had an executive career that must rank as one of the shortest in history. After just one day as Chairman of The House Ways and Means Committee, Pete Stark, who took over for ethics-clouded Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), was replaced by Sander Levin (D-Michigan) according to The Associated Press.

According to Roll Call, Democrats took issue with Stark's appointment by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)because of his unpredictable outbursts. What Roll Call's Tory Newmyer and Steven T. Dennis wrote in explaining the reasons behind Stark's ouster was both hilarious and sad:

But the 78-year-old Stark has a reputation among his colleagues as a loose cannon with a history of off-color remarks including calling then-Rep. Scott McInnis (R-Colo.) a “little wimp” and a “fruit cake” and accused then-Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-Conn.) of being a “whore” for the insurance industry. But that’s not all. Stark also has ethics troubles of his own and, recently, health problems, which sidelined him from 22 percent of House votes last year — the fifth-worst participation record in the chamber.

Stark also called Blue-Dog Democrats "brain dead" and in 2007 said that President George W. Bush sent troops to Iraq to get their “heads blown off for his amusement” according to The Hill.

Pete Stark's obviously saved his best lines for conservatives.

The whole affair has to give Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) fits. She's being attacked by some in the media for making "missteps" but it reads more like she's herding cats. Someone should have stepped in and advised her not to make the moves she's made, rather than watching her do it, then complaining about it. But if Speaker Pelosi acted on her own without seeking counsel and getting contrary advice, then the attacks are deserved.

Stay tuned.

Obama health care: President Obama turns to grassroots help

Related searches: President Obama, health care reform, washington politics, grassroots politics, the daily beast, the huffington post, gop health care, republicans, democrats

Just after President Obama gave a speech that The Huffington Post called "Obama's Last Stand" this blogger got an email from the Obama campaign that was a reach back to the days when then-Senator Barack Obama was running for President. In The Daily Beast video below, President Obama calls for an "up or down" vote on Health Care, in effect, laying down the gauntlet and saying "I do not know how this plays politically, but I know it's right...Let's get it done."



Then, this email appeared from the Obama campaign called "A final vote on health reform". It was edited to remove links and words that only report on link direction so that the post can be cross-placed; only the text appears:

Zenophon --

Last Thursday's first-of-its-kind summit capped off a debate that has lasted nearly a year. Every idea has now been put on the table. Every argument has been made. Both parties agree that the status quo is unacceptable and gets more dire each day. Today, I want to state as clearly and forcefully as I know how: Now is the time to make a decision about the future of health care in America.

The final proposal I've put forward draws on the best ideas from all sides, including several put forward by Republicans at last week's summit. It will put Americans in charge of their own health care, ensuring that neither government nor insurance company bureaucrats can ration, deny, or put out of financial reach the care our families need and deserve.

I strongly believe that Congress now owes the American people a final vote on health care reform. Reform has already passed the House with bipartisan support and the Senate with a super-majority of sixty votes. Now it deserves the same kind of up-or-down vote that has been routinely used and has passed such landmark measures as welfare reform and both Bush tax cuts.

Earlier today, I asked leaders in both houses of Congress to finish their work and schedule a vote in the next few weeks. From now until then, I will do everything in my power to make the case for reform. And now, I'm asking you, the members of the Organizing for America community, to raise your voice and do the same.

The final march for reform has begun, and your participation is crucial. Please commit to join with me to take reform across the finish line.

Essentially, my proposal would change three things about the current health care system:

First, it would protect all Americans from the worst practices of insurance companies. Never again will the mother with breast cancer have her coverage revoked, see her premiums arbitrarily raised, or be forced to live in fear that a pre-existing condition will bar her from future coverage.

Second, my proposal would give individuals and small businesses the same choice of private health insurance that members of Congress get for themselves. And my proposal says that if you still can't afford the insurance in this new marketplace, we will offer you tax credits based on your income -- tax credits that add up to the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history.

Finally, my proposal would bring down the cost of health care for everyone -- families, businesses, and the federal government -- and bring down our deficit by as much as $1 trillion over the next two decades. These savings mean businesses small and large will finally be freed up to create jobs and increase wages. With costs currently skyrocketing, reform is vital to remaining economically strong in the years and decades to come.

In the few crucial weeks ahead, you can help make sure this proposal becomes law.

When I talked about change on the campaign, this is what I was talking about: coming together to solve a huge problem that has been troubling America for 100 years and standing up to the special interests to deliver a brighter, smarter future for generations to come.

I look forward to signing this historic reform into law. And when I do, it will be because your organizing played an essential role in making change possible.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

It's clear President Obama's pulling out all the stops to win the Health Reform battle. And why not? There are more people without health care than ever before and the situation's only getting worse, not better. The time to make changes in the health care system started decades go and only now is American catching up to the problem in the form of any policy action.  It just happens to be at a time when it's needed the most.

President Obama should do it with 51 votes and get this over with. Even if "Reconciliation" (as it's called when a bill that mandates tax and spending actions is passed with 51 votes) upsets Republicans, so what? Republicans have shown no remorse in upsetting President Obama. Obama's not going to "nice-them" to fall in line; it's not working. Sometimes, when all else fails, a good, legal Presidential punch in the mouth is a good thing.

That time has come.

Daily Cal asks where will you be on Student Action Day March 4th?

Related searches: u.c. berkeley, california berkeley, uc action day, california education, student protests berkeley, berkeley, california, uc system protests

Tomorrow is March 4th, Student Action Day in Berkeley and around the University of California's statewide campus system.

Student Action Day is held to protest the dramatic tuition increases and budget cuts that have plagued U.C. system students. In the video below, The Daily Cal asks "Where will you be on March 4?" Many of the students presented said they would be in class or studying for a midterm.



But as one looks around the Internet, Student Action Day is a Worldwide happening, just on different days. For example, The University of Toronto had a student action day November 5th, 2008 and there was one November 5th at the University of Ottawa.

In fact, the Student Action Day was nationwide in Canada and all over the same issues that the U.C. Student Action Day is about: tuition and budget cuts. One day, some brilliant genius will start one Worldwide Student Action Day.

Where will you be on March 4th? Stay tuned.

Nissan recall, Toyota recall, Ford beating GM in sales

If you're older than 35, you can remember a time when Ford cars and General Motors cars always seemed to be the subject of auto recall news. You can remember when Nissan and Toyota were symbols of quality and the term "recall" was never associated with them. You can remember GM selling a lot of cars, too.

Well, that's in the past. Today, the news leads with a massive Nissan recall, a Toyota recall that's crippled the brand, and Ford beating GM in sales. Why the 180 degree turn in auto industry brand expectations and performance? Before this blogger focuses on that question, a recap of recent events.

On wednesday, Nissan announced a recall of 539,864 vehicles for brake pin and fuel gauge problems. The recall effects six Nissan brands (Titan, Armada, Frontier, Pathfinder, Quest, and Xterra), the luxury Infinity model the OX56. While Nissan, like other car companies, has had recalls of individual model brands from time to time, this is the largest recall in their history. The Nissan press release with the full information is here: NISSAN RECALL INFO.

Just a month before it was Toyota with a massive recall effort that's now damaged the brand's reputation for quality and safety. The culprit? A gas pedal accelerator problem that results in sudden car acceleration. The Toyota problem impacts millions of their cars around the World, and is now exacerbated by the perception that Toyota's management is moving too slowly to fix the problem.

Toyota and Nissan are starting to look very much like the Ford and GM of the past. And in the 21st Century, it's Ford that's emerged as the quality, top selling car brand. Ford is the one U.S. auto organization that did not accept a large American government bailout (even though Ford Worldwide has pressured the German government to extend that nation's version of the "Cash-for-Clunkers" program), making key concessions with its unions to lower costs and avoid additional layoffs in 2010. Now, Ford is hiring: an additional 1,200 workers at its new Explorer plant in Chicago.

Ford has also beat GM is sales and leads for the first time since 1998, to some small extent because of "bailout backlash" but the real reason is Ford has really worked the rental car and business market and Toyota has the problems mentioned above. Part of the reason is Ford finally has some interesting cars at lower prices and hot cars like the Mustang never seem to wane (but there's Lincoln brand, which this blogger maintains is not what it used to be and has been badly mismanaged).

What's happened is the end of the fall of the American car company. After decades of market share reduction, cross-tech sharing with foreign car makers and Worldwide auto market focus, the Ford, GM, and Chrysler brands have become the Japan of the 21st Century. Ford, in particular, has made cost cutting concessions and taken on innovative marketing approaches in the case of the Ford Fiesta that seem far different than what the firm was historically known for.

It's a new day. While it's too early to call it "the new normal" in this industry that seems to be in a constant state of flux, the result is the slow resurgence of the American car and at just the right time.