People Are Crazy

Seems to me that people are really worked up these days. I just got off the phone with my friends at Cingular and they have no record of the 20 minute conversation with a nice fellow over there last week. So, I had to start at ground zero again.  Of course, asking her to make a note in my account of our conversation was about as easy as pulling teeth from an elephant.  Probably due to the fact that she liked to talk more than listen. Then I was browsing around over at Topix.net and noticed that they have a pretty cool new feature where you can leave comments on any piece of news you find on their site. Pretty cool idea. But, the problem is that there are some really hostile people out there…dare I say fanatical. The recent news about VP Cheney shooting one of his buddies is of course, stirring up a lot of action on and off line.  But, it got me to thinking about the current state of affairs around here.  People are just plain angry. I tell you what, I liked it better when we had moderates with fiscal responsibility in office. I am talking about “Democrats” and “Republicans” who all knew right from wrong, overspending from insanity and had some decency.  The team out east these days seem more like they simply want to piss everyone off and start some kind of civil war in this country. Did I miss something? What the hell happened?

Technorati Tags: Democrats, Republicans, Chaos, Cheney

Pat Robertson is on Crack

How do people like this get on television?  Worse yet, how is that that anyone listens to him? People who make statements like Pat Robertson has in recent months scare the heck out of me. I think we need to bring back a little bit of the old west in this country. What does that mean? Well, the way I see it, if you want to give someone the finger when you are in your car, and they happen to give you a black eye. Then that should be within your rights to do so…or theirs.  People in this country are being held to a lower standard of accountability every day.  Martha Stewart gets thrown in jail for some ticky-tack charge (the amount of money she made on that “insider trade” relative to her wealth makes me laugh out loud), while CEOs and executive officers of major corporations are allowed to lie to shareholders, pocket once-in-a-lifetime fortunes, and live the good life.  Time to take the country back from the radical fringes that have seized the opportunity left by the apathy of the masses.

Technorati Tags: Pat+Robertson, Ariel+Sharon, Politics, USA

Yahoo Teams up With Tivo

I just made a pretty lengthy post and review of the Tivo and Yahoo! partnership over at my personal blog. The more I think about Tivo’s business model, it is really all about users. They are willing to give away the equipment for cost…or less just to get people to sign up for their service. They have been around long enough to know what percentage of people who sign up for their service will continue to use it. I would assume their rentention rate is higher than most other paid services’ rentention rates. Tivo is a great service and system and I have been a really loyal user for a long time. But, I think they really lost some vision the past few years, when they should have been attacking. If there is one thing that I have learned in my time in the business world, it is that when you find something that works, attack. What does that mean? Simply, that if you find a product, service, niche, something, anything that makes you money, creates user signups or whatever you are working towards doing, you must attack it with all of your resources. Tivo created a great product and built a loyal user base. I am sure they saw very big growth simply via viral methods. However, there is really a need to grow quickly at a certain point, and I am not sure what kept Tivo from making that jump. They probably felt that they did not want to take on some kind of VC or equity based funding and now we are seeing what happens when you don’t attack.

I fear that Tivo will be gone within a year or two as products like Microsoft’s Home Media Center take what Tivo started and run with it. It is sad and unfortunate, but one of the great benefits of living in a country like the United States. So, I bid you farewell my little Tivo box. May you enjoy your future in the big computer heaven in the sky.

Anyone want to buy a series 2 Tivo with lifetime subscription?

Terrell Owens – What a Joke

I am never disappointed when I watch television. Last night, I had a great, mellow night with my fiance on the couch, drinking one of our favorite bottles of wine (2004 Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc…big fans of NZ Sauvignon Blanc), some cheese and other tidbits. We watched a couple of episodes of Law and Order and then decided to catch Sports Center for an hour before we headed to bed…yes, Danille likes sports and Sports Center (the latter more than I do). Dr. Dumbass, my new name for Terrell Owens, was all over Sports Center. It seemed as though they could not go 3 minutes without running a video clip of him or one of the Eagles’ staff or players talking about him. Once again, one of the most talented athletes on the face of the planet, is not content being rich, famous and envied by millions. Terrell Owens has to not only “stir the pot,” but he has to just plain show that he is a moron. I am sure there are plenty of people that would read this and say something like, “he makes a hell of a lot more money that you.” Yup, he sure does, and you are a sad person if that is the first thing you thought of. Do all of us a favor and move to Los Angeles if you already don’t live there. Thanks.

Maybe someone can explain it to me. Because, I just can’t seem to figure out why having more money than any one person can really spend, play football for a living, and pretty much being able to do anything you want, when you want, is not enough. I mean, yeah, I think it is a great idea to carry a Sharpie in your sock, so that when you score a touchdown, you can sign the football in the endzone. I think it is a great idea to talk smack about your teammates, after every game. I think it is a great idea to hold “press conferences” to “apologize” to your teammates after your coach, who you talk smack to and about, tells you that you need to, rather than telling them face-to-face in the locker room.

It was a little comforting to see that under terms of the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, a player can be suspended for a maximum of four games for conduct detrimental to his team. Translation, they can make him sit and not get paid for up to four weeks. I hope the Eagles don’t play him for the rest of the season and that nobody picks his big mouth up. What the NFL should do is make an example of people like him. There should be a rule that if you get suspended by your team for conduct, you are banned for life from the NFL. Yeah, the NFL would lose one of the most talented wide receivers ever to play the game, but the kids of the world and the fans of the game will ALL be happier and better off.

Dumbass, Terrell+Owens, NFL