Today's Distractions

• I'm listening to football (soccer) podcasts. I'm starting to remember names of teams and players.
• China
  
• The U. S. sub-prime trouble is nothing compared to the teetering juggernaut that will bring the world financial markets to their knees when China has something happen in it's market. They just don't have the backups that the other markets have. It may be a fortunate thing that China does not allow foreign investors to directly invest in their market.
• China keeps their currency artificially low. Other countries are going to retaliate. I'm convinced this is why the U. S. has let the dollar plummet.
• With all the recalls, the get rich quick free market in China could topple at any moment. Perception is not everything, but it is a lot.
  
• The Israelis prepare as I type for ware with Iran. The fallout shelter business is ... skyrocketing. I talk to people here in the States and no one seems concerned in the least about Iran having Nuclear weapons. Oh, they pay it a bit of lib service when prompted, but they are busy bullshitting about the weather to be bothered otherwise. I'm terrified. I believe it is a rational fear.
  
• The U. S. military has said the U. S. does not have sufficient ground forces to handle the challenges of the current world stage. In other words, They want more troops and more equipment.
• I'm getting to the point where I do not listen to anything any one famous has to say.
• Egypt is 9% Coptic Christin. Who knew?
  
• More people keep guns in their homes in Switzerland than in the U. S.. I wonder if the Air force park their jets in th back yard. It is all due to the mandatory military service. This is all going to change due to liberal shifts in the government. That's good news for potential attackers.
  The suicide rate is higher in the U. S. though.
  
• NPR had a story about air travel. All I can say is that I'm glad I have nowhere to go. I'm also glad I do not work in the industry. It is just plane too cut-throat. I blame deregulation. Just because I can.
  
• Employees get pay cuts every couple of years.
• Worse pensions ever
• Poor management (make themselves rich while stepping on the other employees)
• Passengers know 30% of flights are at least an hour late. They come in looking for a fight.
• Flights are way over scheduled (more tickets sold than seats)
  
• Planes get stuck on the tarmac for hours passengers and can't leave. Then get arrested if they protest.
  
• The system of traffic control is from the fifties. Spotty coverage and no one uses GPS to its potential. The hub and spoke system just doesn't work any more.
  
• I was hungry pretty much all day today. I had a fair lunch. Nat got me some of those room temperature dinner things. I noticed, they are good, but have small portions. I blame the one serving per container rules that came in several years ago. I had three sodas, two bags of potato chips. I also had six Oreos. Now that I think of it, there is no wonder I'm still hungry at the end of the day.
• Three billion fags a month in in Great Briton. That's a lot.
  
• MySpace, Face Book, et al - They may have to come up with a way to verify people's age. I can't wait to find out how they intend to do that without alienating half the people on the page. I have several friends without credit cards. The Texas ID database is not online and I don't think any one wants it online. Even if I plug a biometric scanner in to my computer, how do go online from school or elsewhere unless every computer has a scanner.
• Alternate titles for this post It scares me how much I will agonize over the title of some posts. This one was nothing.
  
• Very Local News - Well, it is mostly about non local stuff.
• Random Crap - Too Generic.
• Random and Local News - Bumpy somehow.
• Miscellaneous facts - Well, most of them are not facts. Nor, are they miscellaneous for the most part.
• Leftover Topics - The truth, but no zing.
• Things I'm Too Lazy to Write About - Nearly went with this one.