ICKY PEOPLE

The First Goalie on Goalie Hockey Game

2013-03-29T14:55:00.002-05:00

In a hockey game in 1905 a very unusual event occurred. In a game between the Montreal Westmounts and the Quebec Bulldogs in the Canadian Amateur Hockey League, every player except for the goalies were ejected by the referees. This resulted in the two goalies, Montreal's Fred Brophy and Quebec's Paddy Moran, taking turns shooting at each other. When Brophy beat Moran to win the game it became the first recored goal scored by a goaltender.

A side note, only 10 goalies have ever scored in an NHL game. The first NHL goal scored by a goalie happened in 1979 when NY Islanders goalie Billy Smith was credited with the goal after Colorado Rockies' defenseman Rob Ramage shot the put into his own net. (The Rockies would move to New Jersey 3 years later and become the Devils)

The complete list of NHL goalies to score in a game:

Billy Smith - NY Islanders
Ron Hextall - Philadelphia Flyers (twice)
Chris Osgood - Detroit Red Wings
Martin Brodeur - New Jersey Devils (three times)
Damian Rhodes - Ottawa Senators
Jose Theodore - Montreal Canadiens
Evgeni Nabakov - San Jose Sharks
Mika Noronen - Buffalo Sabres
Chris Mason - Nashville Predators
Cam Ward - Carolina Hurricanes

Brodeur scored a goal for the third time earlier this month.

Only 6 goals have been scored directly from shots taken by a goalie. Here are all 6:

Windows 8: An Animated Tale of Why It Sucks

2013-01-03T18:39:00.001-06:00

Brian Boyko, a professional reviewer, has an interesting and entertaining review of Windows 8, including it's fatal design flaws.

NY Times: Romney Campaign Is Broke

2012-09-20T13:26:00.000-05:00

Today's New York Times reports the Romney campaign is currently broke and cannot afford to run ads. The only ads on TV are Obama ads, and the only thing being said about Romney online and on TV is negative. There is no positive spin on Romney because he cannot afford to run ads.

They also report the Romney campaign lied about how much money they had raised. While they did bring in over $100 million a month the last few months, most of that money was donated to the Republican National Committee, not Romney. The RNC can only spend a total of $22 million on ads for Romney, the rest is being spent on other GOP candidates.

Yesterday's reports were that Romney is dropping like a rock in all polls in all states, only leading in 6 states right now, according to the Huffington Post, which aggregates multiple poll results.

Mitt Romney Fights With Reporter After Being Exposed As A Liar

2012-09-18T18:04:00.002-05:00

Obama Releases Ad Targeting Romney's Leaked Speech

2012-09-18T14:56:00.000-05:00

President Obama's campaign today released a man-on-the-street style video showing reactions to Romney's private speech to wealthy donors, where he says 47 percent of the country believe they are "victims" who pay no taxes and refuse to take accountability for their lives.

For more, head over to The New York Times.

King Kelly - America's First Superstar Athlete

2012-07-29T16:46:00.000-05:00

Mike "King" Kelly was America's first superstar professional athlete but is mostly unknown today. However, many of his accomplishments are still in practice today in major league baseball and are part of everyday life for celebrities. Read on for more about this fascinating player.

King Kelly started his career with the Cincinnati Red Stockings in 1878. After the 1879 season the Red Stockings released all of their players due to financial difficulties. Kelly signed with the Chicago White Stockings, who would later be known as the Chicago Cubs. (Yes, in 1901 when the American League was formed, the White Sox "stole" their name from the Cubs, who were no longer using it. The White Sox couldn't even think of an original name.)

It was with Chicago that Kelly blossomed into a superstar - both on and off the field. He won 5 pennants in his 7 years in Chicago, who were led by future Hall of Famer player/manager Cap Anson.

Kelly hit .354 with 13 hr's and 95 rbi's in 1884 in baseball's "dead-ball" era. Two years later Kelly won the batting title by hitting .388. He then demanded a raise from the Cubs for the 1887 season. After refusing to give Kelly a raise, and being told he would never play for Chicago again, team secretary Al Spalding instead sold Kelly to the Boston Beaneaters (today's Atlanta Braves) for the unheard of price of $10,000. Kelly was known for his good looks, and after that he was bestowed the nickname "$10,000 Beauty."

Kelly became legendary for achieving many firsts. He played catcher and outfield, as well as other positions, but while behind the plate he become one of the first catchers to use a baseball glove and to wear a chest protector. Kelly is credited with inventing the hit and run.

Kelly also invented the hook slide, where he would slide in away from the opponent trying to tag him and attempt to touch the base by reaching back with his feet, which is still used today.

Kelly is also considered to have been the first man to popularize autographing, as fans pursued him on his way to the ballpark for his signature in the 1890's. (Wikipedia)

Kelly became as famous off the field as on. After arriving in Boston, he regularly performed on Vaudeville, where he was noted as a "natural born comedian" and famous for readings of Casey At The Bat, (which some reports incorrectly claim Kelly was the model for the poem) and for appearing with beautiful women. And while on the subject of beautiful women, Kelly's good looks certainly didn't hurt him with the ladies...

"A man who loved the limelight, he could be found almost every night about-the-town, enjoying what Chicago had to offer. A strikingly handsome man, his baseball celebrity only amplified his touch with the ladies. He could have his pick of almost any woman he wanted, and he usually did. He didn't have to frequent whore houses like some players because the ladies came to him, a real accomplishment during those conservative Victorian times of the 1880's. An impeccable dresser, he wore silk shirts and spats, and was once named one of America's Best Dressed Men." (The Deadball Era)

Kelly's base stealing prowess led to the recording industry's first hit pop record. Kelly became famous for not just his sliding but for stealing many, many bases, which again gave him the opportunity to show off his unique slide. His fans would cheer, "Slide, Kelly, Slide!" In 1893 George J. Gaskin recorded a song called "Slide, Kelly, Slide!" that became the first hit pop record. Prior to that song, most recordings were of opera, speeches, or patriotic themes. (side note, recordings then came on cylinders like empty tubes of toilet paper)

A 1927 silent comedy film also was inspired by King Kelly and titled, "Slide, Kelly, Slide!"

Kelly's style of base running was also legendary beyond his sliding. Back in the 1880's only one umpire would work a game. Kelly would use this to his advantage. He would look to see if the umpire wasn't watching him run, and run across the infield from first to third, skipping second base. This often worked, despite the protests of the other teams. However Kelly was called out just as often as he got away with it.

Kelly was also famous for his drinking, both on and off the field. On one hot summer day in the mid-1880's while playing for Chicago, Kelly brought a mug of beer out to rightfield with him. He took a drink, and before he could set it down, pitcher Larry Corcoran delivered the ball, which was promptly shot like a canon into rightfield. Kelly ran after the ball with the beer mug in hand and reached out to catch the ball with his other hand, reportedly not spilling a drop of beer. Kelly's heavy drinking occasionally required him to miss games or play drunk.

One result of the "beer mug incident" was Kelly's picture was posted in Irish bars in Chicago and Boston, where he became an Irish hero.

Players would take turns coaching the bases during Kelly's career, and he was well known for his mischief in that area as well. Kelly would distract fielders on other teams by yelling their names and using any means necessary for his teammates to reach base. Cap Anson called him a "genius" at distracting opposing players. "Man a run has been scored through Kelly's trickiness," Anson said.

Kelly was also adept at fouling off pitches to draw a walk. Back then, foul balls did not count, so Kelly would foul off ball after ball while working a walk. Baseball directly changed their rules because of Kelly (and others who followed his lead), and in 1894 foul balls began to count as strikes.

Later in his career Kelly would become a player/manager. One game he was in the dugout managing when a pop foul was hit. Realizing his catcher wouldn't be able to reach the ball, Kelly ran on the field, yelled he was replacing the catcher, and caught the ball. The umpire objected and the out did not count.

In 1888 Kelly again achieved a first, writing the first professional athlete's autobiography, titled Play Ball: Stories of the Ball Field.

Kelly’s big league career ended after the 1893 season, having compiled 1357 runs, 69 home runs, 950 RBI, and a .308 batting average. Unreliable record-keeping practices of the era prevent an accurate estimate of how many stolen bases Kelly compiled over his career, but statistics kept during his later years indicate he regularly stole 50 or more bases in a season, including a high of 84 in 1887. He also managed to steal six bases in one game. (Wikipedia)

Late in Kelly's baseball career he appeared in more and more Vaudeville shows, from Boston to New York City, to Dover, New Jersey, and other cities.

In November, 1894, Kelly took a boat from New York to Boston to appear on Vaudeville for a week of performances. He caught a cold on the trip, and his performances were canceled. While in Boston, the cold turned into pneumonia, and Kelly died a week later at the age of 36.

In 1945, Kelly was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

King Kelly's full career statistics can be viewed at Baseball-Reference.

Kelly's Hall of Fame plaque inscription reads:

MIKE J. (KING) KELLY
COLORFUL PLAYER AND AUDACIOUS
BASE-RUNNER. IN 1887 FOR BOSTON
HE HIT .394 AND STOLE 84 BASES.
HIS SALE FOR $10,000 WAS ONE OF
THE BIGGEST DEALS OF BASEBALL'S
EARLY HISTORY.

For more reading, the 1999 book by Marty Appel is a must:
Slide, Kelly, Slide, The Wild Life and Times of Mike King Kelly

Report: Romney Was In Charge of Bain During Outsourcing

2012-07-12T14:33:00.000-05:00

An SEC report filed by Mitt Romney contradicts Romney's own claims that he was not in charge of Bain Capitol when the company started outsourcing jobs.

From the AP (emphasis on the last paragraph):

"Federal documents filed by Mitt Romney's former company appear to conflict with the Republican presidential candidate's statements about when he left Bain Capital. The private-equity firm is central to Romney's legacy in the private sector.

Bain told the Securities and Exchange Commission in February 2001 that Romney was its sole shareholder, director, chief executive officer and president. It said Romney's "principal occupation" was as Bain's managing director.

Romney's campaign repeatedly has said Romney had virtually nothing to do with Bain's operations after February 1999.

Questions about Romney's control at Bain Capital from 1999 to 2001 are important in his campaign. That's when the company oversaw investments that either sent jobs abroad or filed for bankruptcy."

Full story at Boston.com.

Rock Shirts

2012-06-21T02:28:00.002-05:00

Chinese Bank Robber Uses Hammer On Bulletproof Glass During Business Hours

2012-06-04T18:16:00.000-05:00

A man tried to rob a bank in China using a hammer against bulletproof glass in February, 2011. Guns are outlawed in China, so thieves have to be inventive. This one almost got away with it.

High Fructose Corn Syrup Linked to Liver Damage, Cancer

2012-05-27T12:58:00.001-05:00

Research by the Duke University Medical Center has connected High Fructose Corn Syrup to liver scarring, damage, and cancer.

“We found that increased consumption of high fructose corn syrup was associated with scarring in the liver, or fibrosis, among patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD),” said Manal Abdelmalek, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology/Hepatology at Duke University Medical Center.

High Fructose Corn Syrup is the main sweetener in thousands of food and beverages in the United States, including most non-diet versions of soda (Coke, Pepsi, etc.). It is also in ice cream, ice cream toppings, frozen foods, processed foods, and much more. Unlike sugar, HFCS is metabolized by the liver, not by insulin released by the pancreas.

“Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is present in 30 percent of adults in the United States,” Abdelmalek said. “Although only a minority of patients progress to cirrhosis, such patients are at increased risk for liver failure, liver cancer, and the need for liver transplant,” she explained.

“Our findings suggest that we may need to go back to healthier diets that are more holistic,” Abdelmalek said. “High fructose corn syrup, which is predominately in soft-drinks and processed foods, may not be as benign as we previously thought.”

The consumption of fructose has increased exponentially since the early 1970s, and with this rise, an increase in obesity and complications of obesity have been observed, Abdelmalek said.

“There is an increasing amount of data that suggests high fructose corn syrup is fueling the fire of the obesity epidemic, but until now no one has ever suggested that it contributes to liver disease and/or liver injury.” Abdelmalek said the next step is more studies looking at the mechanisms of liver injury.

“We need to do formal studies that evaluate the influence of limiting or completely discontinuing high fructose corn syrup from one’s diet and see if there are health benefits from doing so,” she said.

For the full findings, go to Phys.org

Chicago Cubs Owner To Smear Obama With Dirty Ads

2012-05-17T13:01:00.000-05:00

Joe Ricketts (in probably the only time he's been far left), with his children and wife.

Joe Ricketts, the billionaire owner of the Chicago Cubs, is planning on spending millions of dollars to run dirty ads against President Obama this fall.

The ads, which according to a SuperPAC playbook acquired by the New York Times, will include TV Commercials, full page newspaper ads, billboards, and aerial banners.

The ads will try to paint Obama as being influenced by Anti-Americans and having a secret agenda. They will try to paint Obama's pastor as being pro-911.

The playbook also includes a suggestion to hire an “extremely literate conservative African-American” who can argue that Mr. Obama misled the nation by presenting himself as what the proposal calls a “metrosexual, black Abe Lincoln.”

So a bunch of rich white guys will slander our black President, then try to hide behind a black guy they hired to defend themselves.

I suggest the Cubs change the marquee outside Wrigley Field to read, "This just in...Obama is black??!!"

Read the article for yourself at the New York Times.

What is most amazing is that the Cubs are in a predominantly Democrat supporting city, Chicago. That's a very smart move to alienate the majority of their paying customers.

I'm done as a Cubs fan. They'll never get another penny from me. Any business that lies and outright slanders the President of The United States can be crossed off my list of companies to patronize. I don't care what party the President is, you don't call him un-American and lie about him and think that's good business.

UPDATE: The NY Times has posted the storyboard for the 5 minute anti-Obama film Ricketts wants to produce. The best part is that after calling Obama every horrible thing one could imagine, Ricketts ends the 5 minute GOP propaganda-fest by saying it is brought to you by Character Matters PAC. Character Matters!

That's like saying "Obama eats white babies every day for dinner." Brought to you by We Don't Lie OR Eat White Babies PAC.

UPDATE II: The reaction has been extremely strong about this, from the Chicago Cubs being pounded with thousands of emails and phone calls from irate fans, to Democrats and Republicans both denouncing it, to Mitt Romney publicly denouncing it, the White House spokesman criticizing the plan's racist attacks, Chicago Mayor Emmanuel refusing to talk to the Ricketts and telling insiders that any plans to renovate Wrigley Field using taxpayer money is now finished, and Joe Ricketts claiming he never approved the SuperPAC, despite founding and funding it, and funding the creation of the plan's playbook. Amazing what a little push-back can accomplish.

Video: Cat Plays Shell Game

2012-03-01T13:05:00.002-06:00

Graphic Video: Cops Beat, Shoot, and Kill an Unarmed Protester

2012-02-28T20:48:00.001-06:00

South African police disrupt a peaceful protest march over the supply of drinking water, sewers, and garbage collection, then gang up on an unarmed man, beat him and shoot him twice (with a shotgun) right in front of the camera, killing him.

Jump to 47 seconds for the police to attack the man.

WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO.

The victim's name was Andries Tatane. The murder happened in April, 2011. Almost one year later, no police investigation was launched. No police officers were charged, neither were any officers fired, and not a single officer, including the one with the shotgun, was even reprimanded.

Mail & Guardian Online has this shocking statistic:

"Media coverage following the killing of Tatane has been quick to highlight the sharp rise in deaths in police custody in the past three years in South Africa. Gareth Newham of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) reported that the number of people shot dead by police has doubled since 2006. Overall deaths in police custody or resulting from police action, at 860 in the 2009-2010 year, are markedly higher than they were in the five-year period from 2003 to 2008, when they averaged 695 a year.

Not only has the number of people shot dead by police jumped from 281 in 2005-2006 to 521 in 2010, South Africa also has one of the highest recorded rates of homicides by police officers in the world. The United States (overall population of 311-million) had 439 arrest-related homicides by law enforcement personnel in 2006."

Let's repeat that: 860 people died in police custody in South Africa in 2009-10.

South African police shot and killed 521 people in 2010 in a nation of 50 million citizens. The United States, a nation of 311 million citizens (more 6 times the population of South Africa), had 439 homicides by police in 2006 (the last year full stats are available).

Amazing Video of a Snowboarding Crow

2012-02-20T19:14:00.000-06:00

Apple Siri Vs. Furby

2012-02-17T14:42:00.002-06:00

Talk To A Live Hologram - Star Wars Is Now Real

2012-02-10T14:41:00.000-06:00

Cisco has unveiled an amazing new technology that is light years beyond Princess Leia talking to Obi Won Kenobi. TelePresence was shown off in public for the first time recently:

Imagine how cool, yet creepy, this will be once we can make phone calls and the other party appears in front of you.

U.S. Used Nazi Salute During Pledge Of Allegiance Before WWII

2012-02-05T15:16:00.000-06:00

Today's Forgotten History: Americans used to salute the flag during the Pledge of Allegiance until 1942, when Congress banned the practice because it was too similar to the salutes used by Nazi's and fascists during WWII.

The salute was called the Bellamy salute, created by Francis Bellamy, who also created the Pledge of Allegiance. When the practice was banned in 1942, it was replaced by the hand over the heart gesture still in practice today.

Below is a picture of U.S. school children saluting the flag while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

Hitler Youth saluting:

American school children:

Hitler Youth:

Pelosi: Something In Gingrich Past Will Stop Presidency

2012-01-26T10:40:00.000-06:00

Nancy Pelosi claims to know "something" about Newt Gingrich's past that will prevent him from becoming president.

CBS News has more:

"The Democratic leader, who served on a four-person ethics committee that investigated Gingrich in the 1990s, has said in the past that "I know a lot about" Gingrich, and that "one of these days we'll have a conversation" about him. But when it was suggested that Pelosi was suggesting in those comments to the possibility of leaking private records from the ethics investigation, Hammill insisted she was referring to "information that is in the public record."

The committee looked into 84 counts of ethical wrongdoing against Gingrich, and ultimately, they voted to reprimand and fine him for wrongdoing involving breaches of tax law and making misrepresentations to Congress. It's unknown if Pelosi was privy to any confidential information surrounding the ethics investigation, but Gingrich himself has pointed to a 900 page report on the investigation that is available to the public.

In a response to Pelosi in an interview with the radio show "America's Morning News," Gingrich dismissed her comments as "hysterical" and "factually incorrect."

"As my campaign has gotten stronger, the attacks have become more hysterical and more factually incorrect," he said. "I have a simple challenge for speaker Pelosi: to speak up or shut up. I have no idea what she's talking about, I don't think she has any idea what she's talking about. But bring it on.""

What exactly Pelosi is talking about, no one knows or no one is willing to discuss it. One thing that could come up is Gingrich's hypocrisy of calling for the resignation and impeachment of President Bill Clinton for the Monica Lewinsky scandal, while at the same time Gingrich was cheating on his own wife with one of his staff.

Gingrich claimed he had an affair because his lust for America needed an outlet. I'm not kidding.

Mitt Romney Lost Iowa, Hiding Millions Offshore

2012-01-19T00:45:00.004-06:00

Mitt Romney's fortune just went from the presumed clear cut GOP presidential nominee to potential footnote in history if Wednesday night's news reports have teeth.

First, ABC News reported Mitt Romney is "hiding" up to $33 million in offshore Caribbean accounts, and rumors immediately circulated it was to avoid paying U.S. taxes on the princely sum. Romney's campaign claimed he had paid taxes on all of the money, but Romney continues to refuse to release his tax returns. This latest development could force him to release those returns before he is comfortable, with him citing he would "likely" release the tax information in April, which would be after he has sewn up the GOP nomination and too late for competitors to do anything with the material.

However, the report by ABC News is quickly sprouting legs, with other news agencies and political blogs picking up on it, and the possibility that Romney has been avoiding paying U.S. taxes on the income. Reuters reports Romney also has funds in Ireland, Bermuda, and Hong Kong.

The IRS claims over $100 billion in taxes goes unpaid and unreported every year from money hidden in offshore accounts. To many Americans, the idea of keeping millions of dollars in offshore banks sounds seedy and gives the impression something dishonest is going on. I would bet good money, perhaps the $10,000 Romney offered to bet Rick Perry during one debate, that the Super PAC's will jump on this story and have new commercials attacking Romney as a tax cheat and a fraud airing on South Carolina Television stations by Thursday afternoon. One word we haven't heard yet: Criminal.

The other big news rumored to be announced on Thursday has been brewing for weeks. Recounts and certification of the Iowa caucus results show Mitt Romney did NOT win Iowa. Original results had Romney winning by 8 votes, but the recounts have reportedly found Romney was credited with 22 votes at the Garret Memorial Library when the recount shows he actually had 2. Subtracting 20 votes from Romney's results means Rick Santorum won Iowa by 12 votes. However, the New York Times is reporting late Wednesday night that instead of announce that Santorum won Iowa, the GOP will do the all-American thing and will void the entire election and throw out all results. Iowa will not count and not get to vote in the GOP primaries. The "reasoning" is that the GOP cannot certify the results in their own required time line. I find it fascinating that as Romney has appeared to have the nomination completely sewn up, Santorum appears to have picked up many delegates in Iowa and been given a second chance, only to find those votes will just disappear. So much for the illusion of democracy. Lawsuits will surely follow.

But the Iowa story is likely to be buried by the damning revelations about Romney and his millions hiding in offshore banks.

One GOP consultant told the NY Daily News the truth about Romney is irrelevant, “This will be wrapped around his neck in the fall. It fits perfectly into Obama’s theme that Romney is another Republican robber baron getting rich at the expense of the poor middle class.”

It also fits into the theme that the richest people in the world always find a way to cheat the system, avoid paying their share, and then spin the truth, what we poor people call "lying."

UPDATE: The GOP did announce Santorum won Iowa but the state's results cannot be certified because they have lost 8 precincts votes.

1967 Interview with MLK

2012-01-16T20:10:00.000-06:00

This is a fascinating clip of Martin Luther King Jr. on the Mike Douglas show in November, 1967.

I'm almost embarrassed to say that I've never seen any clips of MLK being interviewed before. I've watched his famous "I have a dream" speech, but I have never seen a clip of him in an interview. I can see why people were attracted to him, he sounds move level-headed than any public figure of today.

New Ron Paul Ad Reveals Gingrich Hypocrisy

2011-12-05T17:04:00.001-06:00

The GOP presidential nomination appears to be wide open, with Mitt Romney leading the pack but Newt Gingrich of all people starting to gain in the polls. Herman Cain, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, Jon Huntsman, and Michelle Bachmann all have either dropped out or seen their support dwindle to single digits.

But there is a third candidate who is still a force in the polls, despite getting the shaft from major media, and that is Ron Paul.

While I do not agree with everything Ron Paul believes, he still strikes a chord for speaking like an actual human being and not a robot candidate. One senses that Romney and Gingrich will both say and do anything to get elected (which is probably no different than 99.9% of politicians anywhere), but Ron Paul's viewpoints have stayed the same for years.

The first caucuses begin in one month, and today Ron Paul released a 2 1/2 minute web ad pointing out just a few of Newt Gingrich's hypocrisy. People need to remember that Gingrich left Washington in shame, and has a history of questionable, to say the least, personal behavior that for me would rule out ever voting for him.

Here is the new Ron Paul ad:

Now go read an article I wrote 4 years ago that explained a few reasons the media love to paint Ron Paul as a crazy candidate nobody with a sane mind would vote for (when they do actually decide to mention his name): Why The Media Hates Ron Paul And Dennis Kucinich

Microsoft's Siri Competitor Could Get You Arrested

2011-11-26T12:34:00.001-06:00

Microsoft claims Apple's revolutionary voice technology, Siri, is no big deal. Microsoft says they've had their own version of a Siri-like service for a year, called TellMe, and that Apple is getting unjustified publicity.

Is that accurate?

Jason from TechAU did a short video comparison of Microsoft's voice technology vs. Siri, with each doing relatively simple (for Siri) tasks...

Bottom line: Microsoft's voice technology works "great," if you want to get arrested for searching for teen anal, or ruin your marriage if your wife finds out what you've been searching.

Cable TV's Excuse For No Ala Carte Channels Is A Farce

2011-10-09T00:27:00.000-05:00

We're told we can't just subscribe to only the cable TV channels we actually want because we would only choose channels, and all of the other channels that fewer viewers watch would go out of business.

That reasoning is a farce.

No other industry is allowed to behave like that. We don't have to subscribe to 87 magazines we'll never read just to get the one car magazine we want to read. We don't have to buy 20 different frozen foods just to get the one pizza we want. Nobody forces me to buy 12 pairs of shoes just to get the one I actually want.

Premium cable channels still offer free preview weekends to allow viewers to sample what they offer and decide if they want to subscribe. That should be the business model of all television networks.

Businesses succeed or fail based on their own merits, not some b.s. forced on us with the sole purpose of making and keeping huge conglomerates rich. If a TV network can't stay in business because they don't offer anything people want to watch, it's not our responsibility to pay them anyway. If a person does not watch sports, they shouldn't have to pay for 12 different sports channels in their cable package. The same goes for sports fans who will never watch TLC, NatGeo, Smithsonian, and other informational networks but have to shell out monthly for them anyway.

The cable companies argue that if they were forced to offer ala carte subscriptions, that it would end up costing the consumer more money. Not true.

"The average cable customer watches only 12 to 15 channels on a regular bases, but cable companies bundle 50 to 75 channels in the expanded basic package, and upward of 200 in digital cable packages." (source)

Even if the price passed down to consumers for each individual TV channel tripled or quadrupled, it would still be less expensive to pay for only the 12-15 channels the average viewer watches instead of a huge bundle. The average cable TV channel charge cable companies .50 - $1.00 per viewer. A handful of channels charge more than $1.00 per viewer, for example, ESPN charges an average of $4.69 per viewer for their main channel alone. However, many channels charge nothing or a very small fee of far less than .50 per viewer. Even if the cable companies averaged that out to charging viewers $2-3 per channel, and even charging more for ESPN to over actual costs, it would still be cheaper for 99 percent of viewers to purchase channels ala carte.

It's also not the American people's responsibility to subsidize the destruction of forests and printing and delivery of piles of junk mail just so postal workers and the direct mail industries can survive.

If nobody wants a product, the company offering it should adapt or go out of business, period. That's how it is in the real world, except the world of cable television.

Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

2011-10-05T21:14:00.003-05:00

At a 2005 commencement address at Stanford University, Steve Jobs shared the philosophy that drove him.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life,” Jobs said. “Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

Mitt Romney Explains Why You Shouldn't Vote For Him

2011-08-16T13:22:00.000-05:00