David S. Broder - The Blagojevich Show: It's No Joke to Illinois - washingtonpost.com

David S. Broder - The Blagojevich Show: It's No Joke to Illinois - washingtonpost.com

Broder is pissed. I agree with him 100% on this. Blago has been the worst governor ever. His sheer incompetence is only matched by his narcissistic bluster. we all know this, but it's amazing that the national media is getting snookered by this chump. I guess it makes sense, these are the same people that obsess about missing white women.

Taxpayers told not to worry about Olympics cost :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago 2016

Taxpayers told not to worry about Olympics cost :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago 2016

I wonder who is lying?

$200 Laptops Break a Business Model - NYTimes.com

$200 Laptops Break a Business Model - NYTimes.com

I know that autos are many times more complicated, but there is something to be said for disruptive technologies. Many have been co-opted by the Auto industry, but there is a chance for some serious changes in the near future. While PCs cycle is maybe a couple few years, cars go much longer than that. Add in government regulation and the massive amounts of capital needed, it will be slow going. However the new technology introduced at the auto show may upset the current hegemony of the auto industry. Tesla, that Chinese battery/car company could change the way we drive. The question is how fast can the auto industry as we know it adapt.

Detroit Says Emissions Proposals Are Too Strict - NYTimes.com

Detroit Says Emissions Proposals Are Too Strict - NYTimes.com:

"“I want clean air and clean water just like the next guy,” said Erich Merkle, an independent automotive analyst in Grand Rapids, Mich. “But in the real world, there would be consumer outrage with the fact that they’re limited to maybe two vehicles and there’s nothing there that would meet their family’s needs.”"

These guy a short sighted reactionaries. The market will find new ways to make consumers happy. It's called "creative destruction" and it works all the time. Why don't we all have landlines or all work as farmers? Things change, we change and adapt. It's too bad if some companies can't adapt and it does cause suffering, but it is coming one way or another.

Second thing is that they should all be going advocating 100% the strictest environmental and safety laws possible. It's a way to get a niche, be green, and get the people on your side. right now folks are looking at Detroit and saying, "hey you've screwed up since I got the Cougar 20 years ago and now you want my money for a bailout?" Aggressively push for change and get ahead of the curve instead of run over behind it.

Delays in Cabinet Nominations Demonstrate GOP Resolve - WSJ.com

Delays in Cabinet Nominations Demonstrate GOP Resolve - WSJ.com

No Honeymoon for the President. This is terrible and needs to be addressed by the Senate. The article doesn't do a good job of this, but how is the minority party holding this stuff up?

The other thing is that America voted for change and the GOP is all about "no". This is only a short-term strategy that only drives up the partisanship on Washington. How do you attack this problem? I'm thinking that giving the GOP plenty of rope will help.

The Capitol Fax Blog � The governor’s media event

The Capitol Fax Blog � The governor’s media event

He might be the worst person ever. Not evil or malicious, just the worst person. I'm so ashamed that I voted for him.

Barack Obama's humble start to long journey :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Lynn Sweet

Barack Obama's humble start to long journey :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Lynn Sweet

Today is Inauguration Day and our long nightmare of W. are done. It' sunny here in Chicago, with some Lake Effect snow, and all is right with the world. I am worried about our soon to be Prez. Expectations are so high and the challenges so difficult. He has done little to lower expectations. The plan for the economy and the financial crisis sound like vague Washingtonese. We need to hope for the best. Obama's going to need it.

Japan’s Governing Party Is Plunging in Polls - NYTimes.com

Japan’s Governing Party Is Plunging in Polls - NYTimes.com

The death notices of the LDP have been coming for years. Still they hang around and take control. They have the support of the bureaucracy. The voters can't seem to find someone with a consistent message. The LDP becomes the default again. They remind me a lot of the PRI in Mexico. You can beat them here and there, but they are like zombies and keep coming.

An answer to David Carr's question on "how to build an iTunes for newspapers." - By Jack Shafer - Slate Magazine

An answer to David Carr's question on "how to build an iTunes for newspapers." - By Jack Shafer - Slate Magazine

I don't think that this is the way to do this. The people that use iTunes buy music. That's something that is very compact and they reuse many many times. The problem with the news is it is disposable. Once it is read once, it's done. At most you might have someone forward it. That's it though. Outside momentous events does anyone want to hold on and reread the paper. The iTunes model that Carr proposes would fail.

The Kindle is a solution looking for a problem. How many people do you know read 200 books at one time, plus two or three newspapers a day? I lose stuff all the time in airplanes and however cool it would be get the Kindle, it would seriously bum me out to lose my $359 newspaper when a $1 one is pretty convenient on its own.

The better model is the Rhapsody model where the newspapers, surprise surprise, sell monthly subscriptions. The better way to charge for it is the big problem. How much does it cost to run a major newspaper? What are acceptable profit margins?

the other option is to go nuclear and remove themselves from the Web and sell physical copies of newspapers. If the Washington Post didn't give it self up for free what would you do? If you live in Chicago like I do, I'd be SOL, but if I lived in DC, I'd get the paper every day because its worth it to me. Some newspapers have done this and it might make sense.

Sally Jenkins - Dungy Retires a Champion of Decency - washingtonpost.com

Sally Jenkins - Dungy Retires a Champion of Decency - washingtonpost.com

I'm sad to see him go. I think as time goes on, his esteem will rise. He took a perennial loser and with some savvy GM work, helped turn them into a perennial winner. Coaching such a diverse team at such a high level for so long is an accomplishment on its own. However being a nice guy and leaving at the top is only gravy. How long till he's called back?

Howard Kurtz - Palin Pummels the Press

Howard Kurtz - Palin Pummels the Press

This Palin stuff is rich. Why is she criticizing something she doesn't even read? How important is the media if you don't believe anything it writes? Could it be that they do matter?