lizze

I am pleasantly surprised by some of the recent actions by the EU. I have never really like the last step of the EU, with forming a political union - I was more comfortable with an economic union with the 4 freedoms of people, goods, service and capital across the union. I believe that people that trade together will not go to war against each other.

Despite EU being a political union, I could see the benefit of the EU being a independent and a counterpart to the US agenda. Any system needs check and balances otherwise the risk for abuse is too great.

EU has stuck to their guns, so to speak, and made Microsoft pay a huge fine AND open up their code. This is something that US government has not been able to do, in fact they supported Microsoft’s efforts against the EU.

Another good thing is this the EU plan to create the equivalent of the US’s Green Card, which has the unimaginative name Blue Card.

Being on this side of the fence, I do indeed hope that the EU will create a better the system with not so high hurdles as the US system.

This plan will probably bring out the protectionists and the ‘can’t take jobs away from the EU worker’ bullocks. Increased competition will highlight any slacking and complacency which I am sure exist in Europe.

If you look at it from the company perspective, why can’t the company be allowed to decided who is the best person for the job? If they get the right person, then it is fairly safe to assume that the company will do better. This will probably lead to better innovation, efficiency, higher profits = higher tax revenue for the government.

This blue card employee will also contribute to the system by paying the income taxes, sales tax etc. There has to be a safeguard so that no abuse of the welfare system is taking place. EU has to be as hard as the USA at this point. Currently, we are paying into the Medicare and Social security but are not allowed to get anything back. Similar stipulations needs to apply within the EU too.

Fact is the EU is experience a brain-drainage to the US. I have not got a problem to this to other countries because I think it is up the individual themselves to decided what their future is.

If anyone with a skill that want to come and work in Europe, can find an employment, and adjust to the society they are living in - then I welcome them with open arms.

Immigrates with the goal of living off the generous European welfare system - I have 0 (zero) tolerance for and should be sent back to where they came from.

The ones I do like are:

Mad Men - I LOVE this show. LOVE IT!! Very well made, excellent dialog, smart, subtle, ironic, great acting with no clear & obvious ending.

Life - yes I know another cop show but this cop was sent to to jail for crime he didn’t do so he has a score to settle. He got lots of $$$ from a settlement, behaves independently.

Carpoolers - 4 dudes carpool to work. Funny sitcom.

The IT Crowd - hilarious! Second season much better then the first one.

Americans Next Top Model - season 9 and are still going strong. Even though it is predicable (the make-over ep was nothing special ;( ) the show still has IT. Heather to win!!

Chuck - an action film shorten to a TV ep And it is about a geek being a hero

Bionic woman - not completely sold on this one yet. The lead actress is slight dull. Starbucks from Battlestar Galactica is in it = rocks

The ones I don’t like:

Journeyman - it is based in SF (yay), the guy from Rome (yay) but it is dull and don’t have special chemistry.

Pushing Daises - quirky a la Ugly Betty style but I have not warmed to this show. Maybe if I continue to watch but uncertain if I will.

Gossip girl - ahem I read the books :sheepish: so I don’t think the TV series will be better.

Tell me you love me - about a 2 or 3 couple with almost too real couple problems. I use TV to distract me for real life.

Damages - started good but has lost tempo. More watching this to find out who did what. And Glen Close is in it - I love Glen Close.

My other shows are Desperate Housewives (still good), The Closer (season ended), Numb3rs, Reno911!, Weeds, Ugly Betty.

What is your take on these shows? Or do you have any other shows that you like or don’t like? Plz let me know

icanhascheezburger.com is a fab site!

Ok, something ironic happened for a spam that got stuck in moderation for Spammers Die In A Fire part 2

The stated email is from .ru which just rings bells and the ‘comment’ starts off (the link is not included!!):

Want to start your private office arms race right now?

I just got my own USB rocket launcher Awsome thing.

Plug into your computer and you got a remote controlled office missile launcher with 360 degrees horizontal and 45 degree vertival rotation with a range of more than 6 meters - which gives you a coverage of 113 square meters round your workplace.

Yeah, I rather use the USB rocket launcher on all the spammers.

It was very convenient to fly to Maui, Hawaii … on the domestic flight, no customs or immigration coming back and ‘only’ 5h30min flight time = no jetlag.

It was my first time and I loved the weather. Nice temperature, strong sun and not too humid so the AC went off quickly. The beach of Kaanapali was superb.

The sea was equally superb. It has a strong changeable current.

Maui is a fairly small island but there is still few things to see & do. I don’t DO too touristy things - it bores me beyond belief so no Hula dances, no booze cruises etc. In the literature available, the ‘10 top things to do in Maui’ are all commercial stuff.

This is what we did, except being on the beach, one trip to the volcano Haleakala, which is 10,053 feet above sea level.

Not every day one can look down on the clouds The drive was fun and interesting to see how the vegetation changing so quickly. On the way down the visibility got so bad that it was only possible to see 5 meters / 15 feet ahead.

And speaking of fun driving, in north Maui the (only) road is so narrow - at points barely 1 lane wide - that the rental car companies states that no rental cars are allowed on that road. Unfortunately we read that after the trip.

There is another road trip to do, driving to Hana. Around 600 turns and is apparently test of patience. Since I am the one doing the driving, I knew that would bore me to death - click on this to see why. Plus there is nothing in Hana to see either.

I was surprised to see Gucci, Louis Vuitton and numerous art shops in the shopping malls near the Resorts. Guess there is a lot of rich people that goes to Maui and need some distraction too

People were friendly, well except for the lady in the Kaanapali Beach Hotel Gift shop who didn’t like to be given a $20 bill for a $2 purchase …

More pics at my Flickr.

In a Free world there is tolerance for those who speak against this Freedom.

We have some friends visiting from overseas and they found out that there was a Festival in Chinatown here in SF. The Chinatown here in SF is rather authentic and quite similar to Shanghai, that we have visited on a holiday. London’s Chinatown is awful and v touristy btw.

It was not that much of what I call a Festival, more like an excuse to trade. But what did impress me was this banner, telling us what the occasion was.

Celebrate the 58th Anniversary of the Foundation of the People’s Republic of China.

Somehow I don’t see there will be an anniversary festival of the founding of the United States of America in China

Plz note that I, accidentally, managed to get the Flags of the US and California in this picture too!

It is impressive to see this celebration being allowed to take place, and I am so sure if this could be done in all of the countries in the Western World.

After walking down the street, I saw this woman carrying a sign for Falun Gong, a movement against the current administration in China.

Again, this is a fantastic display of Freedom of Speech and Expression.

Freedom of Speech is above anything and anyone; No Person, No organisation, No Country, No Government and NO RELIGION are above Freedom of Speech.

As expected, there was some weird stuff at this Festival - my pic are over at my Flickr in the normal random order of Flickr but here is some best bits.

It is to my joy that I read on Torrentfreak (such a great blog!) that The Pirate Bay will press charges against 10 media companies.

TPB feels that they have found proof in the leaked, hacked, information from Media Defender by the MediaDefender-Defenders. In the 1,000s of emails, TPB + supports have found the information and have filled a compliant at the Police which is the proper way of doing things.

Allegedly the Police is the one who should do the investigating before a case gets presented to the Prosecutor. I know, such a novel idea.

Now it is up to Swedish Police to do a diligent work, with no less effort then what was shown with the raid against The Pirate Bay. The difference this time around is there is proof which will be easy to find, time & dates of the emails. Now the Police needs to verify that this information is valid and that the actions have been done.

I am sure that the co-operation between the two countries will be as effortless as when the MPAA pushed for the raid of TPB. The findings from that turn of events … is still waiting as the Prosecutor needs more time to find the non-existing evidence. After all, it has been 1 year 4 months since that incident occurred.

The same amount of time and effort should be spent on these new charges if justice is free from any political influences.

San Francisco has a huge problem that only newbies (like me) seem to talk about, the vast number of homeless people in this city.

Every single time I am out and about, there are always some beggars around approaching asking for money. I am simple not used to it and I don’t see why I should.

I have noticed that they have their ‘own’ street corner and I rarely see more then one beggar at each intersection. To me, that indicates that there is some sort of social order among them. If they can coupe within that social order, why not do this within the ‘normal’ society?

Some of them are bound to have mental and/or drug problems and frankly if they have, I am not so sure I want their unpredictable behaviour out on the street. It is treatment they should have, not cash.

Then there is Market Street … Market street is an unused asset of San Francisco. It could be a great parade street - almost like Paris’ Champs-Élysées, with shops, restaurants etc. Instead it is a run-down, filthy street with lots of homeless people. Only from 5th St to the Ferry building is the good part (beggars are there too though).

On average once a week, while walking the street of SF, the smell will be so bad that I gag. Sometimes it is the sewers, sometimes it is the homeless. I avoid the Trans-Bay Bus terminal at all cost, I will walk around that block even though the shortest way is through / underneath it.

Here is two things from recent memory:

1. While walking pass a sleeping place (heap of boxes, trash) for a homeless - the smell was awful - I saw this big fuckoff rat in the middle of it. I was wearing flip flops and felt so damn exposed. I screamed, ran, jumped away.

2. A homeless man was walking his (??) cat on a leash at a construction site. The cat was severely pissed off. The guy kept yanking the leash and pulling the cat around. I mean, was this fucking man in a rush? He had put up his sleeping box 10 meters away. At least, give the cat some time to walk around. I was so upset of what I saw, but what could I do? Call the SFPD?

I have heard these stories that other cities bus their homeless to SF (allegedly Seattle). True or not, the problem is here and it will not go away.

Maybe SF is known to be a generous city but it sure as hell is causing trouble if this attracts more homeless people. Those few times I have been walking passed Essex Street (onramp to the Bay Bridge) and I have seen drivers hand out money to that same guy who always stand there. He is making lots of money - certainly more then me.

The short term solution is to get that damn California driver licence, buy a car to not have to walk around in SF or move to the suburb. But the problem would still be there.

The thing that really bothers me is that San Francisco is supposedly social aware, liberal city but it only goes so far. I have not seen any progress for the year I have been here. It is like all those people that drive their big trucks to Whole Food to buy organic produce.

In London, there used to a problem with homeless people however enough investments were made so there are more shelter beds then homeless people. The public was informed NOT to give any money to them and it worked.

Regarding the case with the missing Madeline and the blood/DNA found in the parents rental car … I wonder when this car was rented?

Was it on 25th day from her disappearing or did they have the same car on their whole holiday and then subsequently the period when Madeline was missing?

It is easy to cast judgement but none of us should do so until the facts have been presented.

But it is certainly looks like to be an either or case … either the parents are completely innocent or they have held their nerve to cover up an awful crime.

I use Windows Live Writer for writing my blog posts and it is great program. It works, easy to use, never had any problems with it and every so often there is a new version to download.

To my surprise, Microsoft was pushing for me to download their other products. (And below is also a sneaky peak of what is on my desktop )

Let me be clear, I was only interested to download the Writer not the whole Live suite and nowhere on their site did it mentioned  other products. If it did, it was not clear. Wrong wrong wrong!

I use a PC and Microsoft products, I am aware of the ‘evilness’ done by them. However for me, M$ works and makes my life easy. But not to any price.

For IM’s, I use other software like Pidgin (open source, I think), online spreadsheets there is Google’s or Thinkfree. The latest one MH showed me was Smartsheet. I have only had a quick look at it but it looks like a good way of sharing info, email etc.

Maybe Mircosoft is feeling the competition more & more and going to further length to make the user have their products. Be aware!