Bottled Water

Something I will never ever ever understand.

People who complain that Gas is $4/gallon but have no problem buying bottled water, which is nothing more than municipal tap water, sold back to them at a 1900% profit after their taxes already paid to pump and filter it.

P.T. Barnum was so right. A sucker truly is born every minute.

Budget Musings

Congress continues to fight over the United States Budget and all the talk seems to be about cutting social services in the name of debt reduction. On the chopping block is funding for critically important things such as Planned Parenthood and NPR.

I love math. Remember, it was my high math score that got me into computers in the first place, so let's do the math for the budget.

The Federal Budget is $1.3 Trillion. Of that Planned Parenthood gets about $300 Million and NPR gets about $428 Million. That equates to an itty bitty teeny weeny percentage of the total budget.

Planned Parenthood gets about 0.02% of the budget and NPR gets about 0.03% of the budget.

Now let's look at the War Budget (sorry, I can't call it the Defense Budget because it has nothing to do with defense). The United States of America is spending about $719 Billion to make war.

That translates into 55.3% of the budget. 55%!!! We are the only Super Power on Planet Earth. We are the biggest baddest most awesome military in the history of the world. However, we really don't need to be spending that kind of money on our military. It is completely unnecessary.

Imagine the utopia this country could be if we cut war spending by a few hundred billion. Let's bring it down to a level where we can blow up the earth 5 times over instead of 10 times over. We'd still be the biggest baddest bully on the block, but we'd also be able to care for our citizens.

Stop funding Planned Parenthood. Really? A much needed and depended upon service for women's healthcare. Do Republicans hate women that much? How do they view their wives and daughters?

Stop funding NPR. Really? Are the Republicans that terrified of an informed electorate?

As per the United States Constitution, only Congress can declare war. The last time congress declared war was 70 years ago in 1941. So why are we stomping all over earth blowing up people? Oh right, they have the audacity to put a country where our resources are.

Stop spending more than half of every tax dollar blowing up people and we can provide health care for all Americans. We can provide an education for all our children. People can afford to go to college and oh so much more.

Math doesn't lie. Politicians do. Look at the math and don't let people trick you into believing that cutting funding for important services for people has anything to do with reducing debt. It doesn't.

Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes … known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few.… No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.
— James Madison, Political Observations, 1795

Becca's Musik

Since moving to California I have had an extremely difficult time describing the music I listen to.  For me it's perfectly normal.  Doesn't everyone listen to this?  Apparently not.

So here is a bit of musik for you to enjoy.  Like the punk rock I started listening to in the late 70's, to the "New Wave" of the 80's and the Gothic of the 90's here is a sampling of the Industrial Music I listen to today and, in my opinion, is the greatest, most thought provoking musik ever created in the history of mankind.

So, without further ado, enjoy...

Velvet Acid Christ, Pretty Toy


Pride and Fall, Border


Apoptygma Berzerk, Kathy's Song


Life Cried, Waiting for an end

Tech Tip

If you've struggled with Microsoft's Virtual PC you know it, well, sucks.  I have started using VirtualBox and it's totally awesome.

If you create a virtual drive for your virtual box, say an Ubuntu Linux box, and you suddenly are running low on disk space and you smartly created a dynamically expanding variant then this is how to expand the virtual size without affecting the physical size and having to copy it.

• Open a command window.
• Go to the VirtualBox directory, usually C:\Program Files\Oracle\VirtualBox.
• Type VBoxManage modify hd <VDI filename and path> --resize <size in megabytes>.

Voila! You now have more virtual disk space!

Note: the size in megabytes is what you want the final size to be.  For example, if you currently have an 8.00GB virtual drive and use --resize 8192 you will still have an 8.00GB virtual drive.  The size is not how much you want to increase it but rather what the final size will be.  So if you want to make an 8.00GB virtual drive 16GB then the switch would be --resize 16384.

Enjoy!
~Becca

I'M A MILLIONAIRE!!!

Mr. Adamu H.Sambo told me so.  LOL!  Got this awesome 419 scumbag scam in my inbox. This is the email...

Our Ref: IKG/NG/CO
  This is to officially inform you that a visa card has been accredited in
your favor,in the just concluded ikobo 3rd quarter promotion that was
conducted for regular email users by the ikobo company recently.Your
winning parcel has been sealed in a brown envelope and also with a manual
that will enable you activate this ATM card in any ATM center in your
country of residence.
However the ATM card is accredited with the total sum of $2.5 Million
United States Dollars Only.
 You are advice to contact Us through the email bellow
(Name:Mr.Williams Oyenka )
(Email: ikobomoneytransfer@w.cn)
He is in charge of the delivery of
your winning parcel with the details below:
Full Name:.............
Residential country:..............
Delivery Address................
Telephone number:............
Date of birth:............
Note: you are to make the payment the payment of 150 USD for the delivery
of your ATM CARD worth 2.5 Million USD. if you know that you can not afford
to make this payment don,t border to reply us 
And also you are further advice to stop every communication with any person
or coperations regarding any monetary transaction for their are alot of scammers
online wanting to scam people. 
Below is the account officer information with which the $150.00 USD for the
security keeping fee is to be sent via WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER or MONEY
GRAM.
BELOW IS HOW TO MAKE THE PAYMENT
Name of Receiver: Obaraye Foster Nedium
Address of Receiver: 18 AGIDI STREET OBIARUKU, DELTA STATE 
Country:NIGERIA. 
 
As soon as you have made the payment, You are to send to this office a scanned
copy of the Western Union Money Transfer  payment slip via email as issued
by 
the Western Union agent and also endeavor to provide me with the information
listed below for verification:
 
(1). Name of Sender.........................
(2). Address of Sender......................
(3). Phone number...........................
(4). MTCN number...........................
(5). Amount Sent.............................
(6). Text Question...Who........................
(7). Answer...........Me..........................
  
You are advice to contact your delivery officer immediately through the
provided e-mail given above.
On behalf of the entire Ikobo company we say Congratulations on this great
winnings of yours.
Signed.........
Mr. Adamu H.Sambo
Ikobo Promo Co-ordinator 2011.
Contact Mr. Adamu H.Sambo
Email: ikobomoneytransfer@w.cnTell: +234-816-065-0249
So, should I start playing with his head?

HRC 2011 buyers guide

Do you vote with your dollars like me?

• Macy’s (100%) vs. Saks (30%)
• Staples (100%) vs. Office Depot (45%)
• Nike (100%) vs. Adidas/Reebok (15%)
• UPS (100%) vs. FedEx (80%) vs. DHL (30%*)
• Whole Foods (85%) vs. Trader Joes (15%)
• Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams (100%) vs. Pottery Barn/West Elm (30%)

HRC buyers guide 2011

The place I called home for decades

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.