3D Printing Technology Needs To Be Regulated Now!!

Why 3D printers will cause an Extinction Level Event unless we regulate the industry immediately.  The 3D printer technology is 30 years old and is able to replicate itself. See how easily this simple invention could cause the end of the world if the technology falls into the wrong hands. In one month, a single 3D printer can replicate itself 1 million times.

 

I explained in my last article why 3D printers were technologically wonderful and benefited mankind with life changing innovative abilities. But as history has taught us, good technology can spawn lethal inventions and cause death and destruction besides innovation and advancement.

History of good turning to bad

We have had many technological advancements that have led to amazing humanitarian benefits. Without getting into a “10 interesting things about….” nonsense article, let’s discuss the ultimate discovery that unleashed massive amounts of death and destruction and still today is a threat that can one day lead to an Extinction Level Event and wipe out mankind forever. Yes, I am talking about the “splitting of the atom.”

Splitting the atom

Mankind’s greatest accomplishment and most dangerous has been the ability to split the atom. When mankind labored to find a way to harness the power of the universe. It was with clean hands an innocent mind and the motivation was to find a cleaner, more efficient power supply. Clean, affordable energy was the goal, not Nuclear weapons that could annihilate cities and kill millions of innocent people. That was the bad coming from the good. So today, we have Nuclear Power plants all over the world creating energy.

Simple explanation of a Nuclear power plant

A Nuclear power plant is a simple design by nature. Uranium is used to cause a chain reaction, thus producing energy which is turned to steam and thus runs turbines that make electricity. Extremely simple procedure getting usable clean energy. Problem is that using it to kill is just a easy. No one planned to use this technology to murder people. There is always someone that will see an alternate evil use of a good thing, you can rest assured that statement is true to many things.

Be real…How can printing be dangerous?

Before we get into 3D or three dimensional printing let’s look at how 2D or two dimensional printing has been used for bad things. Pedophiles copy and print pictures on the internet and disseminate them to like minded perverts. Without the ability to print those pictures, less acts of child molestation would occur. The 2D printer can print propaganda, it can print phony contracts, and it can print counterfeit money devaluing and destabilizing a country’s economy. Now let’s talk about a really dangerous technology, 3D printing that can actually bring destruction to mankind and start the chain of events leading to an E.L.E., Extinction Level Event.

3D Printers are a serious help to mankind

I didn’t really think of the bad side after I hear of scientists using organic material to develop artificial human organs that could one day be used for actual transplant and relieve the suffering of many people and extend their lives. That to me is awesome. But then I read about one invention that got me thinking and it’s not the ability to 3D print firearms which it can do, which makes a gun virtually undetectable since it is printed from thermoplastics and can thus be printed by anyone with a $600 machine and $10 worth of thermoplastics per gun printed. There is a much bigger threat.

The Goliath of all threats

The 3D printer can replicate itself. Let that sink in, I’ll say it again. The 3D printer can replicate itself. It CAN reproduce.! There is the issue. Think about the ramifications if some evil axis country like North Korea with their slave workforce and despotic leader and just one 3D printer. That’s a recipe for danger and disaster.

Cost of one 3D printer which can replicate itself.

Currently it costs $600 to buy 1 RepRap 3D printer that is able to replicate itself. It costs $20 in polymer plastic materials and $150 of electronic parts. That’s a grand total of $770 to print out the first replication, after the first one the cost drops to $170 per replication.

How quick can they reproduce?

It requires 60 hours to do one replication. There are 168 hours in a week, you can replicate almost 3 per week per machine. That isn’t counting how fast new technology makes the job quicker just like a laser jet prints faster than an ink-jet printer as technology advances. Anyone starting to get the picture here? If one crazy guy in a warehouse starts with one machine, inside of a week he will have 6. Now think about a lunatic who has the funds to start with 1,000 machines, has the factories to mass assembly the parts and you have a person who has an immense amount of power. If the machine could build a car and a gun, it can build a tank. It would take less than 1 month starting with 1 machine to have 1 million 3D printers.

The 3D printers would replicate exponentially: 1 prints out one in 60 hrs and then in the next 60 hrs, two print out two more to make 4, then in another 60 hrs, 4 make 8, etc. Think about rabbits.

Restraint and legislation

There needs to be a discussion started by the leaders of the world on how this technology can be limited and it’s use monitored. This is dangerous stuff whenever technology can enable mass production of organic and inorganic objects. I understand and get the argument that so much good can come from it imagine if someone is able to outfit a 3D printer/self replicator with a computer chip. Put it on an island with another robot that could assemble the parts, what would that population look like if both machines had a 30 year lithium battery source, This stuff is straight out of the sci-fi movies, but you would return to an island of millions of 3D printers and robots cause it would figure out that more robots make more 3D printers.

Birth of H.A.L.

Thus H.A.L. Is born. And soon Singularity will occur and mankind cannot compete with artificial intelligence that can reproduce as Vernor Vinge, Professor at the Department of Mathematical Sciences at San Diego State University wrote in his 1993 thesis, “The Coming Technological Singularity: How to Survive in the Post-Human Era..” End of mankind as we know it. One day man will be slave to the machine it developed. It is a path that can’t be denied.

The Difference Between Men and Women Can Be Seen at the Mall

Evolution is the reason men and women do tasks differently.

 

I was watching a re-run of the show “King of Queens” and in the show, Doug and Carrie, were at the mall shopping. They split up to accomplish individual tasks. Doug needed socks, so Doug made a beeline right to the store to get socks. Done! Carrie didn’t really go to the mall specifically for anything in particular and by the time they regrouped at the food court a few hours later, Doug had his pair of black socks and she had two armfuls of shopping bags. That got me wondering about the difference between men and women and how they handle a simple task as shopping so differently.

Doug the Hunter

Let’s look at Doug and as we look at Doug, let’s assume that he represents a LOT of men in general. He had a task and accomplished the task, mission accomplished. That is the “hunter” mindset. He hunted and killed his prey like a cat does when it brings back that bird and lays it at your feet proudly. Doug was that “hunter” mentality. He didn’t purchase anything else because “the hunter” had his prize. There were no other prizes to get today, that would be for another day.

Carrie the Gatherer

Now, we look at the wife, Carrie. She had no need at the mall, but she returned with many shopping bags. That is very interesting if you think about it because she emulated a “gatherer.” A person whose responsibility it was to gather things, like gathering berries off a bush or gathering water from a stream. Not knowing what will present itself, but she “gathers” objects as they present themselves. See what I am getting at. It’s all an example of evolution of the sexes over thousands of years. It is instinctual behavior and defines the roles of men and women going back 100s of generations; men are the hunters and women are the gatherers. That’s the natural order of things. Of course it isn’t a rule, because exceptions disprove rules and of course, there are people that transcend their evolutionary instincts and crossover.

The Hunter Hunted, The Gatherer Gathered…Missions accomplished

Doug came back with the one pair of socks because that’s all he set out to do. He didn’t “gather” anything else even though he spent a few hours perusing the mall as his wife shopped independently. That adventure took him to many stores and he didn’t “gather” anything. His wife, didn’t have anything to buy but bought everything. See, men and women are different by nature, not choice.

Can’t blame human nature

So the next time, you see a man wandering around endlessly in a mall looking confused. That is a hunter who wasn’t told what to hunt. Look upon him with sympathy as he is a lost man and needs empathy and compassion. If this is your husband, boyfriend or male friend, if you ever take them shopping, give them specific instructions to buy something and like your cat he will return with his catch and lay it proudly at your feet and you did him a huge service. And the next time, your wife comes back looking like she cleaned out the store, understand most of the things will be returned.

 

 

Why I Love Google’s Panda 4.0

Google is the Internet Police of Content.  Google rolled out a new search engine ranking system called Panda 4.0. It will again redefine how a search engine ranks websites. It will filter the junk content from the quality content. Many will hate Panda 4.0 but I love it. Find out Why?

 

Panda 4.0 is here and it isn’t going anywhere. If you are unfamiliar with Google’s search engine program, it is a content ranking quality quantifier. It is a program used to establish a pecking order in the search results ranking when people search for a subject. This type of algorithmic proprietary system has been tweaked, overhauled, redesigned, lamented and cursed and is basically the albatross of every person who does anything commercially on the internet.

Search Engine Optimizers

Cottage industries like Search Engine Optimizers (SEO), who do nothing but figure out how to “beat the system,” getting their websites a top listing are the bane to the optimum internet user experience. Their goal is to, at least get a first page listing, but the holy grail of success is to get the first listing on the first page. If that happens, that website will be a high traffic money making site with oodles of commercial success. Without tweaking the system and benefiting from “dirty tricks,” this is an impossibility for most websites unless they are extremely “niche unique.”.

Panda 4.0 Rolls Out

On May 21, 2014, Panda 4.0 was rolled out and it has truly upset a lot of these people. These people aren’t the mainstream players that have good content sites that “naturally” rank high because they do as they say, they deliver high quality content that the internet searcher is looking for. Imagine if Google didn’t have this technology in place. The internet would be an uncluttered world and every search would be an arduous sifting of useless junk content to find what you were looking for and in essence the internet would be “broken” and useless to everyone. These content filters remove the junk or bury it so far down the search listings, people will never find it. It’s like that junk content web page went into the “Witness Protection Program” and never was heard from again.

Panda 4.0 is the policeman of the internet

The same people who fear cameras in stores, will fear Panda 4.0, the unscrupulous “shoplifters of virtual time.” These people that manipulate the rankings with key word stuffing, artificial backlinks, spamdexing, bots that “like” an article, and bots that comment on an article,” all in the name of getting a higher ranking on Google and other search engines are the reason for “internet policeman of content”. These manipulators do a disservice to every user on the web. They steal people’s time. And in life, time is the most valuable commodity we own.

What would happen if there was no Panda 4.0 policing the internet?

There was an experiment done by Psychologist Robert Epstein and written about on PolicyMe, called “Google’s Secret Search Algorithm Could Manipulate the Results of an Election.” The experiment was the creation of a search engine called “Kadoodle.” It manipulated the search rankings to see if it could influence a person’s thoughts on a specific politician. He used Kadoodle to restructure the search rankings of a political candidate. It pushed one of the candidates to the top of the listings and it buried the other opponents listings to the back of the search pages. Epstein had a poll conducted on each candidate’s popularity before and after the experiment. The conclusion at the end of the experiment was that the manipulated “favorite” candidate popularity shifted tremendously in his favor and that 75% of the people polled had no awareness that the search engine results were manipulated rankings and their perception of the candidate. Subliminal messaging meets technology in cyberspace version 2.0.

Google President

With $20 Billion dollars spent annually on political elections, could you imagine if Panda 4.0 wasn’t “policing” the internet. How long before a Presidential election would be manipulated? With a 4% margin of victory in the last presidential election, a “Google President of the United States” would eventually be a reality sitting in the Oval office and not some experiment by a psychologist any longer.

Who is afraid of Panda 4.0?

Simple answer. People who manipulate search engine results and people that pollute the internet with poor quality content are terrified of Panda 4.0. Otherwise, no one else cares. If an article is judge and ranked on merit, only cheaters would care. Want higher search rankings? Offer more relevant, engaging content. Finally, Panda 4.0 will be something to level the playing field and disarm the manipulators and welcomed by the people who are playing fair. I’m not afraid, I love Panda 4.0.

Panda 4.0 impact on me

As a freelance writer, I write content to get paid and I am not concerned if Panda 4.0 buries my article in the search rankings. I don’t care because my articles shouldn’t be on the first page of a search engine and in most cases probably not even the first 5 pages. When I do get good rankings on one of my articles, I am very happy. It shows me that I wrote a good article and I have quality engaging content. When my articles get buried, it forces me to work harder. I am quite happy with these filtering processes as they force me to build my brand of readers and not hope to stumble upon thousands of people looking for a particular topic with nefarious methods of inducement. I say thousands cause it is all about “Page Views” on the commercial side of the internet to direct people using content to drive consumers to advertisers. And there isn’t anything wrong with that in a capitalistic world. Without commerce, everything grinds to a halt. No one forces anyone to click a banner ad or a sponsor ad.

Panda 4.0 impact on others

Panda 4.0 immediately impacts people who write garbage content. I mean the authors of articles like, “10 interesting facts about…..,” that are simply “copy paste jobs” compiled in meaningless lists stuffed with keywords that are useless time and byte wasters. They “steal” information, rewrite it by changing a few words and sell it as their own all in an effort to collect clicks and get paid. They are information thieves and steal the viewers time. They are the ones who fear Panda 4.0. They know their days of manipulating a system are drawing to a close. The wizard behind the curtain has been unveiled. They are the bane of the internet user and advertiser and should be exterminated. They are the reasons that bona fide writers on “content farms” get a bad rap and are internally despised by their own kind. When these impostors are gone, I will dance with profound happiness and again be reminded that there are no shortcuts in life.

I love Panda 4.0

I love Panda 4.0 because of the ability to cleanse the system of riffraff manipulators and contributors of pollution on the internet. I love Panda because it levels the playing field for all people to get good rankings. I love Panda 4.0 because it is a “report card” on a piece of content. “Grade A” content will receive high rankings and a high volume of viewers and “Grade F” content will be buried many pages deep in the annals of the search engine and not have an opportunity to waste someone’s time and an advertiser’s money. I also think the manipulators in the long run will love and embrace Panda 4.0 because it will enable them to cease their larcenous behavior and concentrate on something positive. The “fluff article” writers will also look back on Google panda 4.0 with love because it saved their souls. Imagine dying knowing that “The Best of…or The 5 most interesting…” articles was your claim to fame as a writer. That would be tragic considering they all joined to embrace the pen to express themselves and let the power of the “page views” change their ambitions all for 30 pieces of silver.

I feel like Jerry McGuire

“Who’s Coming With Me!” as Tom Cruise grabs the goldfish and asks his fellow employees who will join him after he published his manifesto on what is wrong with his industry and is being terminated. One person stood with Jerry and the rest of the office stayed in their own goldfish bowl. It is easy to stay. It is easier in life to cheat. It is easier for a ballplayer to take steroids to excel at their sport. It was easier for Rosie Ruiz, to hop the subway and cheat the organizers of the 1980 Boston marathon and say she won a hard race, than train hard and win it by merit.

Cream rises to the top

Panda 4.0 is nothing more than a filter. The content cream rises to the top and the content junk plunges to the bottom. Panda 4.0 is the Police of the internet. If Google wasn’t protecting us from the manipulators of information, the poor quality content and the thieves who steal our time by wasting it with frivolous information only serving their selfish agendas to make money, Who Would?

 

I Hate Reddit

Reddit is a Social Bookmarking Site that Sucks.  Reddit is a good idea with a poor real world execution. Reddit favors cliques and overzealous moderators ahead of people interacting sharing content. Reddit is an internet popularity contest. Reddit isn’t about sharing content, it’s organized trolling.

 

If you want to experience High School again and all the cliques and bullying that made high school a really “fun” experience, please go to Reddit. If you aren’t familiar with Reddit, it is a social bookmarking site where people post links to articles they find interesting. Readers either up or down vote the content and the article goes up and down the page rankings. On paper, I am sure it looks like a great idea but their website is flawed. The way it is set up it would only operate in a utopian world and the internet is as far away from Utopia as you will find in life. The experience is by far one of the worst encounters of bullying and gang mentality behavior that you will ever encounter.

The dynamics of Reddit

Reddit first off is very unfriendly to even look at. It is framed on the left side with sub topics and to be honest I am not even sure what all the links do. The top is another mess. It has all these topics like, television, sports, movies, etc. Problem is that is just the first layer of the onion. And this is one giant onion or maze to navigate. They call these main topics Reddits. Ok that’s easy enough, yes? Problem is they now have subreddits and they are subtopics and they have so MANY Reddits your brain will explode. An example of a topic and watch how far the chain spirals downward into insanity.

The Tree of Reddit

• Each Main topic has 6 categories, hot, new, rising, controversial, top, gilded, wiki and promoted
• Each main topic now has subtopics; example: Sports has Pro Sports, College Sports, Action Sports, Winter Sports, Other Sports

Then each subtopics have their own subtopics, called subreddits and that could be hundreds.

Example of subreddits of a Reddit: NFL

• a subReddit for all 32 teams plus the below subreddits are just a small portion
• /r/nflfandom – NFL Show & Tell
• /r/nfffffffluuuuuuuuuuuu – NFL Memes
• /r/nflcirclejerk – Do it for Tebow
• /r/nflroundtable – NFL Discussion
• /r/nflofftopic – r/NFL for non NFL topics
• /r/nflfilms – NFL Films
• /r/madden – NFL Madden
• /r/nfl_draft – NFL Draft
• /r/nflblogs – NFL Blogs
• /r/nflgifs – NFL Gifs

Main Problems of Reddit that makes it a horrible experience

Main issue: IT IS DRACONIAN !!

1. Can only post a link once every 10 minutes and if you do three in 30 minutes, they put you on time out for one hour and stand you in the corner. They even have this obnoxious comment that comes up that says, “You have been doing too much, slow down” and then the punishment, no posting anything for an hour. “Are ya kidding me?” was my first reaction.

2. It is cliquish. Each subreddit is a room basically where all the relevant posts live. And in each room is a moderator, usually upwards of 10 people wielding the moderator hammer, all site members and they are the “guardians of content and the enforcers of law”in that room. Are ya kidding me? Again that was my first thought when I ran into one of these morons. What are we in prison or back in high school or was I in a prison made up of high schoolers. Hell, it was really weird. And the problem was there is zero structure between rooms. Each room is a world unto itself and every room has different rules.

3. All different rules with no standardization in each room. Imagine if every block in New York City had it’s own laws. Well, no need to imagine. There is a world like that, it is called Reddit. If someone told me this was real, I would have said, no way. But it is and these worlds are controlled by people who think they are the kings and they have the button to delete any content you post or any comment you make. Disagree and they probably will ban you. I haven’t made it that far yet but it is coming. In the rooms, it lists the rules. And being a good chap I try to conform when I can and really don’t care about making a stand on principle. I just want to do my business and leave. But it is very hard to be able to do this when every room you enter, you must spend 10 minutes looking at that FAQ to see if you are allowed to breath in that room. I did have a question about a posting I wanted to make and didn’t want to violate room etiquette so I mailed the room moderators, that was last week and still no answer back, but I can imagine they would have be on me like a fly on a cow-patty if I posted what I wanted and it violated one of their draconian rules.

4. The voting system is a sham. If you get more than 3 votes down, there is no way the article you are recommending will post well on the site. And there are a group of people who vote up their stuff and down anyone’s content or links that isn’t part of their group. So either join the gang or be ostracized.

Reddit is a waste of time

One of the worst sites I have been on in the last 17 years of surfing the internet. No standardization and over-organized makes it a sloppy experience. It almost feels like you are walking around blindfolded without a sense of direction. The rooms are moderated by a bunch of overzealous, thugs who think that opinion is for themselves only. Welcome to the North Korea of the internet!

There is no standardization of rules and that leads to a subjective experience subjugated by pretentious tyrants. Save yourself some time. Find a different social bookmark site, this one is broken. It isn’t just me saying it Type in Reddit sucks and watch 55 million results pop up on Google. Only 17.5 Million when you type in I Hate Reddit. And I thought I was alone. ROFLMAO!

Reddit, if you are reading this as I assume you are since one of your worms probably found it and is disseminating it through your little world. Here is my rule. Enjoy the journey, there is only one.

 

 

 

Does John Elway Deserve Two Plaques in the Football Hall of Fame?

Does a 2014 Super Bowl Victory Put Elway in the Conversation as One of the Best GMs?

 

On January 5, 2011, The Denver Broncos made a commitment to winning. They hired John Elway to be their Vice President of Football Operations. This is a fancy way to say, Top Dog in charge of everything related to the football field. The Broncos kept the GM Brian Xanders but he was the GM in name only, and subsequently left in May of 2012 to be the GM of the Detroit Lions John Elway, like his days on the field, wearing #7, is the play caller. He decides who to draft and who to cut. He decides everything that pertains to football. John Elway is the New Denver Broncos and the owner Pat Bowlen has his back.

Success strikes early and often

Since taking over the Denver Broncos, John Elway has gotten them to 3 consecutive playoff appearances and one Super Bowl appearance at Super Bowl XLVIII. He traded Tim Tebow after Tebow turned their 1-4 season into a playoff run. He orchestrated the signing of future Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning. He acquired some excellent talent through the draft in the first three years like CB Kayvon Webster, QB Brock Osweiler, DT Sylvester Williams, OG Orlando Franklin, FS Rahim Moore, DE Derek Wolfe, RB Monte Ball, OLB Danny Trevathan, TE Julius “Orange Julius” Thomas, and Defensive Rookie of the Year OLB Von Miller. That’s not even accounting for the 2014 NFL Draft class, where he got CB Bradley Roby and WR Cody Latimer, two future stars.

2014 NFL Season will start one of two conversations

The conversation will start that John Elway is one of the best GMs in NFL history if the Denver Broncos win the Super Bowl. If they make it and lose again, especially if it is a repeat disaster of a performance like 2013 Super Bowl XLVIII against the Seattle Seahawks, featuring an embarrassing blowout final score of 43-8, the conversation will quickly turn to how his executive career is mirroring his career as a player.

John Elway and the Denver Broncos go “ALL IN”

John Elway literally pushed all his chips into the middle of the table in the off-season free agency signings for an immediate run at a consecutive Super Bowl appearance. Obviously still stinging from the embarrassing lopsided defeat, Elway is throwing all he has into the 2014 NFL season since he knows, the day will come when Peyton Manning will soon retire. He managed to sign, CBs T.J. Ward, and Aqib Talib, and DE DeMarcus Ware . These moves will immediately give the Denver a huge upgrade in the secondary and add a pass rushing machine in DeMarcus Ware. The Denver Broncos lost WR Eric Decker to free agency but John Elway signed Pittsburgh Steelers free agent WR Emmanuel Sanders to replace Decker and re-signed WR Andre Caldwell so Peyton Manning has a quintet of excellent, sure-handed receivers.

Add another plaque

If The Denver Broncos win the 2014 Super Bowl it is because of John Elway. Sure the players got him there but he got the players. There should be a second plaque installed at The Football Hall of Fame in Canton Ohio for NFL legends like John Elway. He has been a legend of the NFL on and off the field.

 

New York Jets Coach Rex Ryan Will Be Fired by End of the 2014 Season

The New York Jets Have No Option but to Fire Rex Ryan Regardless of His 2014 Season Results.

 

The New York Jets have become the Ringling Bros and Barnum Bailey Circus of the NFL. This hasn’t been a rush in evolution, it has been orchestrated by a string of mistakes that should never have been made. Mike Tannenbaum, the ex-Jet GM, now sports agent for Priority Sports and Entertainment, deserved a lot of blame but that dog doesn’t hunt anymore with the Jets freeing up their salary cap space. Will the circus leave town now that the Jets have a new GM, John Idzik?

Dysfunction personified

The New York Jets are to dysfunction as the Magic Kingdom is to the “Happiest Place on Earth.” The last few years in New York has been a series of laughs and fits of crying. Just look at the affable, loud mouth Rex Ryan , now, “I am skinny Rex, the timid one” as the ringmaster of this circus environment. Comes in and guarantees the playoffs, makes two of them but loses fast in both first rounds. Cue the circus music, the show is coming to town and it is staying for a long time. From “The Butt Fumble” to the Tim Tebow media circus, it is one tragic event after another. To dismantling a defensive secondary by not signing LaRon Landry, to trading Darrelle Revis and now the release of Antonio Cromartie is a ridiculous strategy if the goal was to win. They created their own QB controversy, had a glaring need to replace their entire receiver corps and then decided to self implode their secondary. Who does these things? The general idea was to build upon the secondary, not have to re-invent it. But that’s The N.Y. Jets and this is their world and no wonder they took to that reality show, like ducks take to water.

Jets hire new GM to fix things

With the hiring of John Idzik has come change. Proclaimed falsely as one of the builders of the Seattle Seahawks, he was able to capitalize on this nonsense and become GM of the Jets even though he has never held that position in the NFL. In reality, he was the paper pusher who did player contracts and watched the salary cap, his title with the Seahawks was “Vice President of football administration.” A glorified accountant, not a good judge of football talent.

GM Idzik’s strange moves

Some strange moves since becoming GM have been the recent passing on wide receiver DeSean Jackson when he was released by the Philadelphia Eagles. The cutting of Darrelle Revis and then the subsequent passing on re-acquiring Revis when he was released by the Tampa Bat Buccaneers. Then unforgivably allowing Jet enemy #1, the New England Patriots sign him for $4 million less than the Jets would have paid him. Not resigning CB Antonio Cromartie and allowing the Arizona Cardinals to sign him for pennies on the dollar after Cromartie matures as a man and understands New York better than any player on the team. A true leader, an excellent player and Idzik lets him walk . The signing of running back Mike Goodson who found himself in a legal mess almost instantly with the possession of a firearm illegally, the signing of veteran QB David Garrard who quickly retires with a knee injury in two short months and THEN comes back in October saying his knee is fine. Then in last year’s draft The Jets use the 1 ^st round pick that they got from Tampa Bay for Revis and they spend it on a CB. Are ya kidding? This is the world of Gang Green, my beloved New York Jets. You just can’t make this up.

Good Moves BY GM Idzik

I am a fair guy and have no issue giving credit where it is earned. GM Idzik drafts Sheldon Richardson, a true star that will anchor the Jets front four for many years to come. The free agent signings of WR Eric Decker, QB Michael Vick and Chris “CJ2K” Johnson are sure to upgrade the Jets immediately. The 2014 NFL draft saw the Jets prioritize their secondary again by taking Safety Calvin Pryor with their first round, 18th pick. I can’t say it wasn’t a good move as they needed the help desperately at Safety but I wonder why they didn’t draft a wide receiver like Brandin Cooks who was on the board and get a safety later.

Rex is under the gun

Rex is in his 5^th season and most likely his last if the Jets don’t figure out how to win on the road and make the playoffs. I am almost certain Rex Ryan had little say in the 2014 NFL draft as evidenced by GM Idzik conservative style. He should have been trading up and down all day, cherry picking the players that would immediately impact on the field. He didn’t , he started the day with 12 draft picks and finished with 12 draft picks and didn’t get a bona fide #1 wide receiver. Jets finished 8-8 last year and with the great job GM Dennis Hickey is doing with the Miami Dolphins and the perennial AFC East, odds on favorites to repeat, the New England Patriots, the Jets will be lucky to break the .500 mark. Personally, I see very little chance of them making the Playoffs. Oh well, I still love my Jets and I like Rex Ryan but he will be fired at the end of the 2014 season unless they win the division and make a VERY deep run in the playoffs.

 

Eagle’s Coach Chip Kelly Will Be Fired at the End of the 2014 Season

Will the Release of DeSean Jackson and the Loss of Michael Vick Cause the Eagles to Fail?

 

The Philadelphia Eagles flipped the script from 2012 to 2013 completely turning around a 4-12 season into a 10-6 season with a playoff berth resulting in a devastatingly close loss to the New Orleans Saints, by a two point margin, 26-24. There is no doubt, this resurrection from the ashes was the firing of Andy Reid and the hiring of Oregon head coach Chip Kelly. A leap of faith by owner Jeffrey Lurie paid off despite the naysayers that Chip Kelly’s high octane offense couldn’t work in the traditional NFL. They were so wrong it was hysterical.

Chip Kelly changes the game, sort of

From the opening game, Philadelphia amazed people with the volume of plays it was running and the games they lost were defense-related losses and couldn’t be blamed on the offense. In the last few months, some weird happenings have been occurring in Philadelphia and I would opine they will prevent the Eagles from duplicating their 2013 run. I predict that they will be lucky to be 8-8, thus regressing. Attention, Chip Kelly, the honeymoon is over, defensive coordinators have went over every inch of tape and there are no surprises to pull out of the hat. They see the man behind the curtain pretending to be the Wizard. Enjoy the NFL, you won’t be around much longer.

Off season hijinks of the 2014 season

DeSean Jackson, DJax, was released for allegedly flashing gang signs by the Philadelphia Eagles. They tried shopping DJax and failed because they “poisoned their own pool.” Whether or not DJax is a gang banger has no relevance on anything. DJax has denied the rumor vehemently and hasn’t had any legal issues because of alleged affiliation or anything else for that matter. DJax had a Pro Bowl season catching 82, passes, 9 TDs and over 1,300. Philadelphia eventually releases him and gets nothing in return. Huge bonehead move that makes them totally retool any plans for the 2014 NFL Draft.

Michael Vick is the next amazing occurrence in Philadelphia as they don’t tender an offer to him and just let him walk with again no compensation. Granted QB Nick Foles is the starter but Vick did express a desire to return and had no objection to being a back-up. Kind of crazy that Chip Kelly couldn’t see the value in having a QB that already new his wacky system of placards and vernacular. Vick has plenty of gas in his tank and still a shotgun for a left arm. Getting older but can still beat all but the fastest players on the field. So, it’s a mystery why the Eagles wouldn’t sign him to a short term deal.

Riley Cooper Eagles WR last season had the misfortune to show his racism in public that is caught on video and goes viral on YouTube. The Eagles turn a blind eye to the racial incident and he plays the season out having a few big catches. What happens is the next wacky event, they sign him to a 5 year $25 million dollar deal. Barely catches three balls a game and is an obvious issue since the NFL is a polarized locker room, but they re-sign him anyways. WTF!

Summary

Just like I am willing to say the quick turnaround in the Philadelphia Eagle’s record is due to Chip Kelly, I will also lay 100% of the blame for these events at his feet as well. He owns them lock, stock, and barrel. He is the primary change on the team, not Vick and not DJax. Agreed, DJax was a prima donna and whined a lot, so what, he didn’t do anything illegal and had a bona fide contract. Agreed, Michael Vick went to prison for running and financing a dog fighting enterprise, ancient history, get over it. Riley Cooper is a racist, and that hasn’t changed. The NBA expels Los Angeles Clippers owner, Donald Sterling, for vile racial comments and conduct detrimental to the league but we allow the Eagles to fire a player with no misconduct, only alleged affiliations, and at the same time allow them to re-sign a player who extols the same racist behavior as Donald Sterling. When did knowing someone become an actionable offense? Why does the NBA have a higher standard than the NFL? How is this equitable and why aren’t lawyers battling it out in court somewhere? Blind Insanity.

Bottom Line

Philadelphia Eagles get rid of two black players and they resign the white racist. DeSean Jackson signs in Washington making the Redskins a viable playoff team immediately. The Philadelphia Eagles will face the Washington Redskins twice a year which should make DJax very happy to bury Chip Kelly on the field. Michael Vick signs with the New York Jets and possibly will be their starting QB. Philadelphia Eagles will be forced to change their entire draft strategy now trying to find a replacement or two for DJax.

Winners

Michael Vick wins getting a chance to start for a much improved New York Jets. DeSean Jackson wins going to a team that has a new chance with a fresh coach and all the tools to make them a playoff contender.

Losers

Philadelphia fans are the losers here as they watch their team regress and implode in Chip Kelly sophomore season. Jeffrey Lurie will realize the “real mistake” is Chip Kelly and fire him. Takes more than making flash cards and drawing Xs and Os to be a head coach in the NFL. Enjoy the 2014 season Philadelphia, it should be one helluva ride.

 

Will We Be Immortals?

Will We Be Remembered when We Die?

 

Sometimes I think about immortality. People that have received the “gift that keeps on giving.” Most people that find “immortals” are people that did something heroic, were pioneers of their time, discovered something that benefited the world and in other cases harmed the world.

Good and Bad are immortalized

Some immortal people are the ones written in the Iliad, some written in the bible and some written in history books. Sometimes the actual writers got their own immortality telling the tales of other immortals. Wow, that’s interesting in itself. Immortality came to others because of atrocities committed like Hitler and Stalin. Genghis Khan is long remembered by all for his acts of cruelty. Christopher Columbus and Ponce de Leon both are immortals for their discovery. John Wayne Gacy and Jeffrey Dahmer will be immortals for their savage acts on innocents. The names go on and the categories from which they come stretch the span.

Will I be an immortal?

There are 310 million people in the United States and 6 billion people in the world. That is a lot of competition for what I would estimate only allows the absolute smallest percentage of inclusion into the club. Celebrities of course will certainly have a chance but I can’t see one of the 2014 top trending search names like Kim Kardashian or Justin Bieber achieve that immortality. They will soon be forgotten and only mentioned rarely as evidenced by a bad example by the me. Anna Nicole Smith. For awhile she occupied the papers after her death, but now, not a peep. We have all moved on. A better example is someone who reached the pinnacle of fame and we barely hear his name uttered or see it in the papers anymore, Michael Jackson, King of Pop. How long before no one remembers him?

Will we be remembered by anyone?

Sadly, but I don’t think so. Even if you continue your bloodline by having children, your family as well will soon forget you. When I say soon, I mean in less than 200 years you will be all but forgotten. I say this with conviction after doing some experimenting. The experiment can be conducted by you with anyone you like and I am almost certain that you will find the same result I did and have to come to the same sad conclusion.

The Experiment

First ask yourself and answer honestly.
Question #1: What are your maternal and paternal grandparents names and what did they do for a living?

• How did you do? I did well, I knew all four and their occupations. This is where you start eliminating people because you will be surprised by the amount of people who don’t know.

Question #2: What are the names of both your maternal and paternal great grandparents and what was their occupation?

• I did terrible, I didn’t know any. No names and no jobs.

I could go to the next question, but after trying this experiment on at least 20 people I didn’t meet anyone who knew all four great grandparents names, so I stopped there rather than continuing on with a question on great, great grandparents. It was rather depressing.

Conclusion

If we forget the very basics of what are great grandparents did for a living and not even know their names, I would have to conclude that they are not in our thoughts or memories. They are a shadow of thought. Someone, we can’t even put a name to a face, yet we all owe our very existence to them and none or few of us know who they were or how they survived. That’s sad but it is a reality. For even the lucky person that can remember such information on their ancestors, there will come a time when they too don’t know a name or details. When that happens, the “immortality” ends there.

Summary

We will die one day but will our memory last throughout time? Probably not. If we do something amazing or horrific, we will almost forever secure our place amongst the immortals. The internet will give us all a chance to achieve immortality. If you write articles or author books or a photographer, this will be your chance to achieve life everlasting. Your articles and pictures will survive in cyber world from the minute you post them and outlive you. They will be able to reach and touch generations to come. The sites like ancestry.com will help us all remain in the memories of our offspring but will we be remembered or just a jotter entry on a blotter or a twig on the tree of life. Most of us will be forgotten in 200 years but the fortunate few who invest some time will achieve immortality without having to reinvent the wheel or by doing some dastardly deed. Just some food for thought and you will decide if you will be immortal.

 

Tips to Survive Office Politics

The office environment is full of obstacles, pitfalls, and personality conflicts. The office workplace can be a fun place to go or it can be a stress monster and the most hostile place in your life. The change can happen quickly with little warning, be totally out of your control and will make you miserable quickly. once that snowball starts going, it is very hard to alter its course or slow it down.

Lose, Lose situation

My friend is recently involved in one of these office workplace disasters. She has gone from the “do-it-all alpha” in the office to be the most despised person. She is miserable, stressed out,on the verge of unemployment and a very unhappy person. She is a victim of gang mentality, with the weak employees ganging up on her to rid the workplace of someone who held them accountable and ran circles around them at performing the tasks of the position.

“Big Brother” reality TV meets Real Life

It almost feels like an episode of “Big Brother” coming to life. All of this nonsense has been tolerated and exacerbated by a supervisor who does not believe in procedure or standardization and is only interested in being liked by his subordinates. Personally, I believe he likes this internal conflict as it distracts his supervisors from his shoddy performance. My friend is totally innocent but that won’t mean a reprieve from execution for her. This definitely isn’t reality entertainment. It’s serious stuff and will affect her future trying to explain what happened to future employers and will dramatically alter her life being separated from an income. All and all, no matter what happens, she loses. And rightfully so, so do they. They lose a competent person who actually cared about the company and wanted others to succeed.

 

Survival Tips to keep you safe from workplace politics

 

Stay neutral and don’t participate in “water cooler” chat

• Remaining neutral on issues is a key to survival. Refraining from pointing fingers at someone will save that same finger from being pointed back in the future at you. Let the boss criticize your co-worker, don’t confide in someone else who you think is an ally, they might not be in reality.

Don’t overstep your boundaries

• Makes sure that when you supervise or correct a fellow employee it is with the knowledge and encouragement of a supervisor. Also, make sure that the person who will be corrected or retrained in a process understands that it is understood and with the authority of the immediate supervisor. In simple terms, don’t become the teacher until it is expressly permitted that you are in charge to teach. People sometimes feel threatened and insecurities set in. They previously viewed you as a co-worker and that perception has now changed and they may feel that you are now an enemy and a threat to their job.

Documentation

• Just like an employer will document any actions against company policy, it is a wise person that keeps a daily journal on happenings at the workplace. If you were late to work because of an emergency at home, document that with a calendar journal. If you had an extended lunch because you combined a workplace chore with a lunch, make a notation. That way, if in the future, that day is called into question and used as evidence of misconduct, you will have a detailed journal of your side on the facts of the issue. A daily journal is a good tool for everyone to protect themselves against unfounded accusations that could lead to wrongful termination. With the dissolution of most unions, we are an easy target for an employer to dismiss since most states subscribe to “right to work” law.

A new broom sweeps clean

• There will always be people coming and going. New hires, retirees, temps filling in for vacationing permanent staff, new supervisors coming from the outside. These are all pitfalls to be especially careful, as they can lead to mortal danger if not handled correctly and prudently.

• With the introduction of a new supervisor, it is of extreme importance to refrain from the words, “Well, Mr. Jones used to have us do it this way.” Wrong thing to say and can immediately sour a new relationship. Instead bite your tongue and understand that there is a new boss and a new procedure. If not, you might find yourself on the wrong side of that broom.

• New hires need guidance but be careful here as well. If they make mistakes early, your well thought, good intentions could back fire as they lay the blame of their mistakes at your feet. “Well, Ms. Smith said I should do it that way.” This could lead to an issue with your supervisor or down the path to an antagonistic relationship with the new hire when you feign innocence that you never trained that way. Not a good place for either of you.

• Temps filling in for people away can also be problematic. They are all looking for full time employment and will be devious at times to get what they want. Watch out for the overeager temp. They are the ones that will double deal you behind your back.

 

Maturity vs. Immaturity in the workplace

I was once told that maturity and immaturity are separated by a thin margin. A mature person responds and an immature person reacts. The difference can be seconds apart. So the next time presented with an issue, think for a few minutes before responding rather than reacting. Those precious seconds can be a life and a job saver and will define your maturity level for everyone to witness. This is good advice for anyone anywhere in life not just the workplace.

 

Office politics can be a job in itself. But it is as important to maintain good interpersonal relationships in the office as it is to produce good work. Staying under the radar and remaining neutral are always good tactics to be the “good guy” in the workplace.

Does TV Advertisements work on you?

$464 Billion dollars was spent on ads last year, was that money wasted?  Does TV advertisements work on you? Do you watch QVC or infomercials. Do You buy things after seeing them advertised? Are you a consumer than is influenced by advertisements?

 

We are bombarded by advertisements in every medium. From billboards, to newsprint to ads on websites. In 2011, There was $464 Billion dollars spent on advertising total in the United States, according to Publicis’ ZenithOptimedia. Imagine that number. Try to wrap your mind around that and the amount of ad campaigns it takes to spend that amount. Each year the Super Bowl commands a price exceeding $8 million dollars per advertising minute. The TV ads at Super Bowl are almost as important as the game itself. 37% of the 100 million people who watched the Super Bowl did so to see the advertisements according to Adweek’s article, Ads Trump Football in Super Bowl Survey.

Does Advertising work?

Well sometimes, an old adage on Madison Avenue attributed to Henry Ford. He once said, “Half of every dollar I spend on advertising is wasted. I just don’t know which half.”

Basic Principle of advertising regardless of medium

All ads are created using 4 principles to get the consumer to act. They are Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action. The ad game is this simple. Let’s explore each word, it’s purpose and importance.

“May I have Your Attention!

The trumpets sound, the new hot tune from Madonna comes on the TV. That’s the way the ad gets you to refocus your attention back to the TV. The volume is higher than the program you were watching and they are setting the table to stop you dead in your tracks to watch their message. You are now watching, back in your favorite chair and they have your attention.

Are You Interested?

Now that they have your attention, it is their job to keep it focused on their message, to build interest. They need to first entertain you by having a Gecko driving a Ferrari, or a Bay Watch Babe popping a refreshing can of Pepsi, or maybe even a camel walking through an office asking the workers if they know what day it is? We are all familiar with the above and that’s a guarantee. Ever see the Burger King Whopper being advertised, every onion in it’s proper place, the cheese melting so perfectly. Everything is perfect and they have your interest and we all know the photo on the TV doesn’t reflect reality at all. But they have your interest don’t they?

Don’t You want me Baby?

This is the desire stage. They set you up to drool over that Whopper sandwich and you can taste it. Now they hit you will the tag line. For a limited time, you can have Two for $5. Wow, really, I can have two? Might as well appeal to your gluttony at this point and sell you a half dozen, wouldn’t matter to you at all. You WANT that Whopper. You DESIRE IT.

I WANT IT NOW!

The Action phase. The TV commercial for the Whopper just ended and you just can’t seem to get it out of your mind..2 for $5. “Man, That looked good” you think to yourself. You look outside, its 11PM and a fresh blanket of snow has fallen and its 20 degrees outside. You are in your pajamas and wearing your favorite slippers. Doesn’t matter, they hooked you and you want what you want and when you want it. So, you go upstairs quietly not to wake anyone. You change into a pair of pants, just throw a jacket on, no shirt and put on your boots. You trudge out to the car and scrape the windows, You are getting closer to the promised land. The car is warm and you slowly drive to your goal, Burger King, Home of the Whopper.

You are so close

The building dressed in the orange, which by the way is a color that promotes appetite so you don’t digress from your mission and weave into Taco Bell by mistake, makes us tremble with excitement. You pull behind the other cars occupied with people who saw the same commercial as you and you wait patiently reading the menu. You are salivating, it won’t be long. You order and the minutes feel like hours, and then the moment of victory. The bag of food is handed through the window and you are enroute back to your home and you can’t wait. The bag is so warm between your legs that you want to reach in and grab a fry since you ordered two large but you are a patient man and drive on. Reaching home, you park the car, shedding you shoes and coat and settle back into your favorite recliner for a picnic in the living room. Ha, You made it! You open the bag and pull out the treasure and Damn, one large fry was forgotten, They always screw you in the drive thru. That’s ok, You have the Whoppers. You rip open the packaging and there it is a hunk of Yuck on two soggy buns. Burger King won, Madison Avenue won and you lost AGAIN! That’s the power of advertising. Lights Camera, Action.

Next time you see a commercial on TV, see if you can specifically see where they are attempting each phase of the seduction. Now, you know what to look out for, it makes watching ads a sport in itself.