sell MXO 5.25 Buy WDC 12.89

(prices at close today).

WDC is underpriced and MXO is getting a deserved reputation for being unreliable.

http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=%5CNation%5Carchive%5C200501%5CNAT20050113c.html

Pretty soon all workers are going to be as hen-pecked as Tech Support/Customer Service workers are now...

www.aligo.com/products/workTrack/

Anyone read that sci fi story that was going around the net a while back?

It was a dystopian future where the computers ran the world - kinda. Really, it was a socialist utopian story, but the first 90% was this dystopia where the few wealthy business owners lived in luxury while the computers they owned ruled the country.

Anyway, it had many flaws in the Xtopian part, but the computers running (at first it was only) the fast food chains I thought was really neat and well thought out as far as plausibility goes. And while the story painted a bleak picture of computers cracking down on workers, all I thought about was the fact that every fast food worker I've known complained mostly about his BOSS. Having a computer tell you what to do seems to me far more pleasant than having some irrational human doing it, and I can't help but thinking now - every time i go into a fast food joint - how much nicer it would be if it was being run by a computer :-)

Of course, what I (and the story) failed to realize, is that the first step will just be all the monitoring tools that are so ominous in the story, *but* not in the hands of impartial computers - who aren't yet smart enough to do anything with that data - but in the hands of PHBs!

Now that's an actual dystopia.

[...]

This is the kind of moral decay that really ticks me off...
What kind of a scumbag has sex with a hot teacher and then rats her out?
It is despicable enough to kiss and testify, but does this kid have no concern for the younger children? What about the next batch of students? and the next!? Hell, this teacher is only 23, she is going to be hot for at least another 10 years or so...

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wedding picts of her and her hubby: http://www.mjmorningshow.com/morning_DebraPics2.html
good link + police report: http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0628042teach1.html

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In all seriousness, The only people who should be punished are the undeserving twit of a child and his jealous cousin who rolled over on this little girl from cherry lane.

The only person harmed was the husband, and I'd bet he would rather have not suffered the further humiliation of national attention that is the result of this prosecution.

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Now, I don't expect this from any of my readers, but before someone goes and makes the brilliant observation that I have a double standard, let me just answer in advance:

1.) no, I have (at least) a triple standard. One for males, one for females, and one for females who are related to me.

2.) I would be loath to jail anyone for consensual sex, regardless of the particular combo. The lack of harm, though, is not so obvious in all cases as it is in this one.

3.) If you really think this teacher harmed this "child" then you might want to consider the possibility that you are an idiot. (and/or a religious nut).

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Finally, it is not unreasonable to have a prohibition against sleeping with students. However this should result in the woman being fired, not jailed.

This makes me almost embarassed to be a Cal grad.

http://www.eastbayexpress.com/issues/2004-05-19/feature.html

[...]

O.k. Not exactly, but close:

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world_business/view/82132/1/.html

The WTO ruled that the US cotton subsidies encouraged over-production and "dumping".

For a back story see below

It is amusing that John Birchers and other conservative anti-(world)-government and anti-tax-and-spend types like me owe a debt of thanks to the WTO for at least TRYING (the US will probably appeal) to stop one of the more egregious wastes of U.S. taxpayer money. As does the rest of the world.

If you haven't read my original post below already you really should.

update: http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=asIENZsIZdcs&refer=latin_america

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/ordinary/view/

These guys are awesome. [...]

http://www.sundayherald.com/40592 [...]

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