Frommer on Air Transport

Arthur Frommer (of the guides) attempts to predict [smart] consumer behavior now that the airlines have started to announce flight cuts, higher costs. The whole situation is quite depressing, but as with so many things, maybe it had to get that way so as to inspire real change (which so often stems from anger and frustration). So let's go!

New Sigur Ros album coming out!

From what I've heard so far, it's going to be good!

Mmmm indie music goodness in obscure places. What's not to love?

La Blogotheque meets artists and tapes them performing in a non-traditional venue, i.e. an elevator, an alley, a hotel room, etc. Check out the Take Away Shows here.

Some suggestions: Sufjan Stevens, Au Revoir Simone, Jens Lekman, St. Vincent, the Arcade Fire. But there's so much more. Check out for yourself.

This has been driving me up the wall with its insane awesomeness.

I can't wait to see one in action - just the designs and sketches are enough to titillate me!

*originally turned on to this from Chris's blog, but it's been in every real estate news blast since - man, I am so jealous of Dubaians (does anyone know if that's right? I tried googling and all I got was a sketchy Yahoo answers post.)

Comics in the Chronicle

http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/asmussen/

Today's gave me a chuckle, though I have to admit I rarely read comics in newspapers anymore. There are some Internet ones I like... though I'm never consistent. Sigh. Anyway, the "World's Greatest Father" thing amused me.

Sweet!

Who's coming with me?!

p.s. I love that the Fillmore is like, 3 blocks away from my apartment.

p.p.s. I hate how expensive San Francisco is - I directed a friend to their Philadelphia show (at the First Unitarian Church - loooove that place) and tickets were more than $10 less in Philly. C'mon!

Stewart Butterfield resigns Yahoo...

...and leaves a fantastic resignation letter behind. A bit late, and thanks to Dagen for the link, just a bit of amusing Silicon Valley gossip.

Dear lord, who does this sound like?

He might be smoking, but it would be at a cafe, hunched over a New York Times, an Atlantic magazine, his MacBook and some organic fruit-flavored tea, listening to Bob Dylan’s “Blood on the Tracks” on his iPod.

Haha, it's actually excerpted from a Dowd column on Barack Obama. And while I've mentioned I'm not the biggest Dowd fan, she did turn me on to this quote in the same column: "He is, as Leon Wieseltier of The New Republic wrote, not the seed but the flower of the civil rights movement."

Note to self

Listen to this later. Thanks to Jon.

Private equity happenings worldwide

Just some interesting stuff going on...

"Recent reports indicate that the primary trade group for private-equity firms spent more than $740,000 lobbying against tax increases in the first quarter of 2008. The Private Equity Council, which includes Blackstone Group, Bain Capital Partners, Carlyle Group and TPG Capital, spent a total of $2.1 million in 2007."

"A newly proposed Dutch law threatens to increase taxes on private equity from 1.2% to 52%. This has investors in the Netherlands threatening to leave. The Dutch government proposed the new law last month."

"Apollo Management LP founder Leon Black is being sued for more than $3 billion over his attempt to ditch the takeover of Huntsman Corp. The chemical maker filed claims accusing Black and co-founder Joshua Harris of fraudulent interference."

1.2% to 52%! $3 billion! Can you imagine? Private equity is definitely one of the more dramatic asset classes, I'd say. Anyway, I'm done with my nerdy business release of the day. =)

Sustainability update

Man, people are so creative and wonderful. Here are some of the things (some new, some only relatively new) going on in the green front:

solar-powered bra

sustainable dance club

energy-generating backpack

human-powered gym

I wish I could dance like Seun Kuti...

The man's got moves, that's all I'm saying.

Seriously?

Why would anyone do this? Talk about peer pressure...

Mod Hair Ken

Haha, well, I was googling hair styles for some ideas as I have an appointment tonight, and in a moment of pure, random internet glory, I came across this page which just brightened my whole day. Beard, sideburns, 2 moustaches, too! I would have LOVED this as a kid (or, uh, now) - Mattel, bring back Mod Hair Ken!

I'd like to live near you, but first, I have some questions...

Really provocative Economist piece on the self-segregation of American communities. Includes all sorts of juicy implications in politics, economics, etc. Here's a loaded excerpt:

A good way to measure this is to look at the country's changing electoral geography. In 1976 Jimmy Carter won the presidency with 50.1% of the popular vote. Though the race was close, some 26.8% of Americans were in “landslide counties” that year, where Mr Carter either won or lost by 20 percentage points or more.

The proportion of Americans who live in such landslide counties has nearly doubled since then. In the dead-heat election of 2000, it was 45.3%. When George Bush narrowly won re-election in 2004, it was a whopping 48.3%. As the playwright Arthur Miller put it that year: “How can the polls be neck and neck when I don't know one Bush supporter?” Clustering is how.

**Credit goes to Andrea Cross for forwarding this, thanks!

The Irish Vote

I was really disappointed with Roger Cohen's recent column, "The Muck of the Irish", not so much because of its content (which I disagree with, but if it's presented properly, I have no problem respecting different opinions), but with the style, which consisted mainly of a series of wordy insults (some racist?) and one-sentence arguments with no evidence to back it up. What the hell, Roger?

While I think the EU should look east for expansion and growth, I think that democracy wins over 'efficiency' (do you really think more Brussels bureaucracy is going to lead to efficiency?) no matter what, and in that respect, I applaud the Irish. Here is a contrary viewpoint, courtesy of the Financial Times. I don't think this necessarily means no 27-member EU, but rather, a re-working of the Lisbon Treaty until all of the members can reach an accord. Need more time to address this issue properly, but just wanted to start a discussion here so I don't forget.

Another related opinion piece.

Rumor has it...

As a response to the slew of viral e-smears that have been circulating the internet, a Slate writer comes up with his own e-mail filled with the sorts of goodies all proper Americans want to hear about Barack Obama. Some excerpts:

Barack Obama has the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE tattooed on his stomach. It's upside-down, so he can read it while doing sit-ups.

There's only one artist on Barack Obama's iPod: FRANCIS SCOTT KEY.

Barack Obama goes to church every morning. He goes to church every afternoon. He goes to church every evening. He is IN CHURCH RIGHT NOW.

Barack Obama's skin is the color of AMERICAN SOIL.

Favorite Beatles song?

I've been thinking about this lately. For the most part, I never stick to any of my "favorites" for long, but I thought I might crystallize this moment in time by providing a list. It's a three-way tie, depending on my mood (haha my rock solid decisions always come with so many caveats...):

"A Day in the Life"

"Happiness is a Warm Gun"

"Revolution"

Now yours - go!

Haha and on a side note, while Googleimaging the Beatles for this post, I came across this argument (if you can call it that) that the Beatles were Satanists, chock full of typos. Pretty ridiculous.

Factoid

*From Wikipedia, how I love thee

"Abu Dhabi is the wealthiest emirate of the UAE in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and per capita income. The average net worth for Abu Dhabi's 420,000 citizens is AED 62 million (US$ 17 million), and more than $1 trillion is invested worldwide in this city alone."

Another wonderful facet to Wolfgangs Vault

The Crawdaddy Magazine

Read today:

-commentary on vinyl resurgence

-review of new Silver Jews record (yep, there's a new one!!!)

Great resource for distraction.

China's private equity

"One multibillion-dollar step at a time, China continues to wade deeper and deeper into the private-equity pool. China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange has committed more than $2.5 billion in the latest offering from TPG. This investment will be the biggest commitment made to a private-equity fund ever. That is, if you don't count the $4 billion mandate China awarded to JC Flowers a couple of months ago and China's $3 billion stake in Blackstone's management company. Those were not traditional commitments to funds managed by private-equity firms, but they do help to illustrate how sovereign-wealth funds, such as those controlled by the Chinese government, are propping up what might otherwise be a difficult fundraising environment. With this commitment, TPG's fund has about $17 billion and counting."
**Taken from Broadgate Consultants e-newsletter


Scary.

Effffffffffffffffffffff

When did flights get so expensive?

Does anyone else get the feeling we just might be ushering in a new era of tolerance? Feels good, right?

This article was heart-warming. And while I'm not always 100% into the California way of doing things (I'm all east coast, baby), there are definitely times when I'm really happy to be living in this state.

Telepathe

Going to see this band in the city with the lovely Leslie Emmons this week. Should be interesting. The Pitchfork reviews were good - let me know if you have opinions of your own.

For the folks back east...

This festival looks ridiculous - what an eclectic (and pretty great, for the most part) line-up!

Spell with Flickr

Imagine no religion...

Times columnist muses on the glorious (though seemingly unlikely) prospect of an actual separation of church and state in American politics.

CYOA for adults

This book does look pretty hilarious.

Product Description (courtesy of Amazon)

Why Do All the Nice Girls End Up Getting Kidnapped and Held for Ransom?

In this book, YOU, the reader, are a thirtysomething part-time actor/full-time waiter suddenly caught up in a kidnapping. Julia, the girl you went out with last night, has been TAKEN HOSTAGE. What will you do? Will you go to the police and ask for help? Will you burst into the hideout, killing everyone in sight, then tell Julia that she shouldn’t misinterpret this as some sort of big commitment? Or will you unplug your phone and just get really, really drunk? The choice is yours!

You awake to the sound of the phone ringing.
“Hello?”
You hear a man’s voice. It is muffled. “We’ve got Julia.”
“Wait, what do you mean?”
“We have kidnapped your girlfriend. If you ever want to see her again---”
“Whoa, she’s not my girlfriend,” you say. “I just met her. I mean, I had a good time with her and all, but I wanna take it slow with this one, I think.”
“We understand,” the voice says. “But she’s new to the city, and presently, you’re all she has. Give us fifty thousand dollars by tomorrow or we’ll blow her head off.”

If you want to go and ask your parents if you can borrow fifty thousand dollars, go to page 173.

If you want to have sex with your ex-girlfriend, consider getting back together with her, then think better of it, go to page 183.

BE VERY CAREFUL! You’re directing the story and the CHOICES you make can result in MURDER, GRADUATE SCHOOL ENROLLMENT, TORTURE, MARRIAGE, POST-APOCALYPTIC SLAVERY, UNWANTED PREGNANCY, even TEMPING! It’s YOUR STORY and YOUR LIFE. All you’ve got to do is decide which page you want to turn to. JUST MAKE A CHOICE!

There's no doubt we're getting thriftier.

I mean, the country has maxed out its credit, so it all makes economic sense. But still, the evidence is everywhere.

Jazz quote

"I don't care much about music. What I like is sounds."

-Dizzy Gillespie

Former "War on Drugs" advocate admits it's a gigantic failure

Bob Barr, former federal prosecutor and member of the House of Representatives defending the federal pursuit of the drug prohibition writes in to the Huffington Post about the colossal waste of time and money known as the "War on Drugs". Despite having libertarian leanings, I'm not crazy about Barr but thought this commentary was interesting.



Another HP article using the phrase "public enemy #1" got me both enraged and nostalgic... remember when Lieberman used to be cool?

CD sales down, LP sales up

The Onion's take, but an interesting factoid nonetheless.

Neat house.

Really interesting place - love the windows/views. Side note: I'm such a real estate voyeur.

100 mpg...

... so what the heck are we doing?!

My mom and I look way too much alike.

Millennials

Interesting, amusing article on the culture gap between Generation X and Generation Y (aka Millennials or "my generation" though I seriously frown on some of my cohort's behavior - see article).

p.s. Despite being 24, this article made me feel a bit old!

500th post!

Ha ha.

Calorie count legislation

As I'm sure you probably know, New York and California legislators are pushing restaurants to publish calorie counts. While I think it is important to have this freedom of information, particularly in chain restaurants and fast food joints, I am wholly against the idea of calorie counts on all menus, hell maybe even all chains (see link below). Maybe give patrons the option. I just don't think I need to know what that delicious piece of meat topped with sizzling butter or the pastry shelf at Tartine is doing to my waistline -- I'm already racked with guilt for my ability to afford such gluttonous luxuries, does one really need to bring health into it? In my opinion, the answer is a definite "no" - taste like that is too good to corrupt. In this case, ignorance really is bliss.

Suspected looters given Scarlett Letter treatment

Apparently, looting has become a problem in the Sichuan Province following the massive earthquake. I did not know that the public shaming tactic was still used. Does anyone else feel like we've had more than our share (and by "we", I mean "the world") of natural disasters recently?

Interesting things going on.

Building envy.

Apple geeks freak out over potential greasy fingerprint.

Old people doing it.

Electric cars being produced by somebody!

Governments compete in spy-off.

California Facing Drought

With this spring being the driest on record for much of the state, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared California to be in an official drought. What is being done to offset the effects of the water crisis?

• Gardeners must haul their own water from Mexico


• Wolfgang Puck to unveil new line of waterless meals


• Upon the conclusion of each Shamu Show at San Diego's SeaWorld, all persons seated in the Splash Zone must wring out their wet clothes over the lip of the orca tank


• Local radio stations required to play Garbage's "I'm Only Happy When It Rains" on the hour


• San Francisco will probably think up something young and hip to do


• Wildfires only allowed to rage out of control on odd-numbered days


• Spending $40 million to promote Napa Valley's new Chunky Pinot Noir


• Top scientific minds will be summoned to see if they can somehow utilize the immense body of water immediately to the state's left

*From The Onion, though the drought is very real.

Meanwhile, in Vegas (which is in the middle of a $%!&ing desert):

Monday - Friday

3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
show every 1/2 hour
8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
show every 15 minutes

Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays

12:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
show every 1/2 hour
8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
show every 15 minutes

America going the way of the Romans, Greeks, etc.?

David Brooks examines the debt culture in America and the deterioration of financial morals. When did we stop being able to control ourselves?

Some scary figures excerpted:

Between 1989 and 2001, credit-card debt nearly tripled, soaring from $238 billion to $692 billion. By last year, it was up to $937 billion...

The agents of destruction are many. State governments have played a role. They aggressively hawk their lottery products, which some people call a tax on stupidity. Twenty percent of Americans are frequent players, spending about $60 billion a year. The spending is starkly regressive. A household with income under $13,000 spends, on average, $645 a year on lottery tickets, about 9 percent of all income.

Fifty-six percent of students in their final year of college carry four or more credit cards.



If financial values had not shifted so much, I do not think it would have been possible for certain things to have happened - obviously, the housing crisis is the first example to come to mind, but I think it probably also contributed to the spreading income gap in America (be sure to read "The Rich and the Rest of Us" for more talk of that). I need to meditate on this topic more, but I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.

Oh la la!

I really like this.

Play-by-play of Hillary's speech last night

From Wonkette, pretty funny.

Some excerpts:

9:30 — Ha ha, Terry McAuliffe just introduced Hillary Clinton, and then nothing happened, and he walked off and it was silent. Oh look, Hillary and Bill, coming out together. Bill is taking the lead, because he still thinks he is Governor of America.

9:36 — CROWD BACKGROUND EXAMINATION: Left to right: Gay photographer, Walt from Lost, a black gal with turtles on her shirt, Tony Soprano, fair-skinned Puritan pilgrim (from England), YO MAMA.

9:42 — She is very certain that her supporters have been “invisible.” Well sometimes, Hillary, the whiteness blends in with the clouds? If you’re looking from a certain angle? We don’t know, at all, what the hell she is saying.

9:53 — Well, she’s done. It seems pretty obvious that she’s using her leverage to force Obama to let her take over health care reform. Go for it, killer.

At last!

It's about bloody time! Now if only somebody would concede...

Doesn't surprise me.

95 percent of all returned gadgets still work, Americans don't read manuals.

Another war on drugs gone wrong.

This time in Mexico. Can we stop exporting bad policy now?

Hank's Divorce

At the end of this clip, Rip Torn has the most fantastic line (worth the wait) around 6 min, 50 sec. I've discovered that I really like the Larry Sanders Show - filled with 1990s nostalgia, and hilarious. Rip Torn and Jeffrey Tambor are definitely the cast highlights.