The Misery News Network – MSNBC

Image Credit: msnbc.com

The Misery News Network – MSNBC

In the nineteen-nineties when Bill Clinton was president, many people began to tune out from CNN, the 24 hour cable news network, when the reporting “loop” from the channel ran stories that appeared to be unbalanced and favorable to the daily goings on of the Clinton Administration, and Bill Clinton. This observation became so universal that the nickname of CNN was the Clinton News Network.

CNN Logo - Image Credit: Depauw.edu

After catching another edition of the daily morning political news and discussion program on MSNBC, Morning Joe, it is becoming clearer what MSNBC should change its name to when the rumored separation between software giant, Microsoft, and the National Broadcasting Corporation, removes its association from “MS”NBC.

Just in time for Carter’s Second Term, the Democrat Party will be able to trot out the MNN, the Misery News Network.

This is a place where in today’s broadcast, the performance artists pontiffs rantings are not really news to analyze or understand as it relates to the insights on the background of Barack Obama, the suicide rates of military personal in Iraq requires exhaustive review, Scott McClellan, former press secretary to the Bush Adminstration, is hailed as a hero for his recently released book that political consultant, Dick Morris recently characterized as a tome for money that really adds insights to … nothing (paraphrased … “we already know all of this information about public relations efforts on behalf of the Iraq war effort – executive administration’s do this – what was the purpose of the “Gettysburg Address” for example?”), and health care (a Government fixed health care system) is the biggest issue that needs to be addressed in this next election cycle. This just in … a crane collapses in New York City, thank-you, broadcast producers, for the cut-away.

My Box is The Most Viralist Video! - I got lots of nice emails after last night MSNBC named my video the "Most Viralist Video." Thanks to MSNBC... and thanks for the emails!! Caption and Image Credit: myboxinabox.typepad.com

We see the second coming of the Misery Index and the perfect messenger of this broader attitudinal “groundswell” – The MNN. The cable news outlet for the decidedly liberal General Electric corporate broadcast property of the NBC network (featuring Jeffery Immelt, CEO/Who does business with the mullahs in IRAN, Keith Olberman, Sportscaster turned Political Pundit/”Reporter”, Chris Matthews, Political Pundit who gets a strange feeling in his leg when he thinks of Barack Obama – HIS WORDS, cipher Mika Brzezinski, Boston plagiarist, Mike Barnacle), and the voice for Carter’s Second Term.

All Hail To The MNN!

Barack Obama “Doubles-Down” On Ignorance

We believe in Barack as a great leader and we are committed to working together. Our goal: Get the best candidate, Barack Obama, to be President in 2008. Caption and Image Credit: Oregon for Barack website

Barack Obama “Doubles-Down” On The Level Of His Ignorance

In a speech given to a crowd of Democrat supporters in Oregon, Barack Obama proves how totally ignorant he is in his template thinking and point-of-view.

He believes that all he has to do once he is president is talk to hostile nation leaders without pre-conditions. He improperly sites the activities of past presidents in his argument without any proof of how their activities were able to be compared to his declaration of unilateral talks without conditions.

Where Obama doubled-down is he compared the size of the nation and threat posed by Iran to Communist Russia during the Cold War. That Iran, in comparison to the former Cold War Russia, is tiny … they spend only one one-hundredth on their military than we in the United States spend.

The basics of what the clueless and self-centered Obama misses are the obvious threats posed through asymmetric warfare.

Questions:

How much money and weaponry investment did the nineteen people who took down the World Trade Center, and attempted to take out the Pentagon have?

How much does planning, boxcutters, airline tickets and surprise cost the people who wanted to take down our freedoms and way of life?

But for a little error in the execution and the bravery of citizens on the plane that crashed into a field … our government’s central meeting house was spared an attack.

This edited and excerpted from the Washington Post’s, The Trail –

McCain Blasts Obama Over Iran Talks
By Peter Slevin – CHICAGO - Updated 2:57 p.m.

Obama has stuck firmly to his position that the president should be willing to talk with America's enemies as part of a return to a more open and ambitious use of diplomacy. He cites President Nixon's opening to China and President Reagan's negotiations with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. He frequently quotes President Kennedy's position during the escalating nuclear arms race that the United States should be willing to meet with its adversaries.

"So let us begin anew, remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness and sincerity is always subject to proof," Kennedy said in his 1961 inaugural address. "Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate."
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Obama did not use the word "tiny" to describe the threat, but to describe the size of Iran, Cuba and Venezuela compared with the former Soviet Union.

"Iran, Cuba, Venezuela -- these countries are tiny compared to the Soviet Union. They don't pose a serious threat to us the way the Soviet Union posed a threat to us," Obama had said.

"And yet we were willing to talk to the Soviet Union at the time when they were saying, 'We're going to wipe you off the planet.' And, ultimately, that direct engagement led to a series of measures that helped prevent nuclear war, and over time allowed the kind of opening that brought down the Berlin Wall."

Obama went on, "Iran, they spend one one-hundredth of what we spend on the military. If Iran ever tried to pose a serious threat to us, they wouldn't stand a chance. And we should use that position of strength that we have to be bold enough to go ahead and listen.

"That doesn't mean we agree with them on everything," Obama concluded. "We might not compromise on any issues, but at least we should find out other areas of potential common interest, and we can reduce some of the tensions that has caused us so many problems around the world."

McCain said the United States should "communicate with Iran our concerns about their behavior" at an "appropriate" diplomatic level. But, he said, "a summit meeting with the president of the United States, which is what Senator Obama proposes, is the most prestigious card we have to play in international diplomacy. It is not a card to be played lightly."
Reference Here>>

McCain added his remarks to a prepared speech on economic policy. Before he turned to a discussion of jobs, taxes and trade, he said he wanted to respond to comments about Iran made Sunday in Oregon by Obama.

"Senator Obama claimed that the threat Iran poses to our security is 'tiny' compared to the threat once posed by the former Soviet Union," McCain said. "Obviously, Iran isn't a superpower and doesn't possess the military power the Soviet Union had. But that does not mean that the threat posed by Iran is insignificant."

Accusing Sen. Barack Obama of "inexperience and reckless judgment," Sen. John McCain blasted his likely Democratic opponent on Monday for being willing to talk with Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad without preconditions during his first year as president. McCain said such talks would only embolden "an implacable foe of the United States."

What we, at MAXINE, do not understand is why isn't the MSM able to back away from their absolute love of the presumed Democrat Party candidate for President and do the math on Barack Obama's level of ignorance?

Barry just isn't ready for PRIMETIME!

You know, he only hears the responses from the 70,000 person adoring crowd that is in front of him (he is so self-absorbed and clueless) but he can't hear the reaction of the 750,000, or so, people that are listening to him on the radio or television that understand the depth of the ignorance of his statements.
(ht: Hugh Hewitt)

Google Shareholders On Human Rights: Not So Much

The starting view in Google Earth. If one were to type in an address in Denver, Colorado, USA, one can zoom in and out from 1600 Curtis St. and watch it disappear into a satellite view of the Earth and then zoom back in as if one were falling onto 1600 Curtis St. from space; and if one were to click on "Forbidden City" in the "Sightseeing" column, one would see what it would look like to fly Superman-style from 1600 Curtis St. in Denver to the Forbidden Palace in Beijing, China. Image Credit: Google Earth™ mapping service via How Stuff Works

Google Shareholders On Human Rights: Not So Much

It wasn’t long ago when the business information and technology airwaves were filled with human interest stories about the emerging search engine powerhouse, Google, and how the company should be held out as an example of what a socially conscious corporate society should be.

The Google campus boasted a multitude of social services like gyms, flex-time, in-house medical services, an accommodating and understanding rules infrastructure with staffing to help employees with everyday human life problems … in short, a social/corporate wonderland.

Apparently, this commitment to recognize the plight of the human condition does not extend or apply outside of the walls of the corporate environment.

In recent votes on proposals that would have the search engine giant recognize and adhere to policies that would help to enforce human rights agendas, the shareholders voted down moves in taking a stand.

This excerpted from IDG News Service via Computerworld -

Google grilled on human rights
Google shareholders voted down two proposals that would have compelled the search giant to implement more stringent human rights policies
Nancy Gohring (IDG News Service) 09/05/2008 10:57:04

Google's shareholders, following the advice of the board, voted down two proposals on Thursday that would have compelled the search giant to change its human rights policies, but the issue dominated the company's annual shareholder meeting nevertheless.

Sergey Brin in participation at a Web 2.0 Conference Q & A. Image Credit: James Duncan Davidson/O'Reilly Media, Inc. (2005) via Wikipedia

Sergey Brin, cofounder and president of technology for Google, abstained from voting on either of the proposals. "I agreed with the spirit of these proposals," Brin said. But he said he didn't fully support them as they were written, and so did not want to vote for them.
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Google has come under fire for operating a version of its search engine that complies with China's censorship rules. Google was criticized for launching a search service in 2006 aimed at Chinese users that blocks results considered objectionable to the Beijing government. Google argues that it's better for it to have a presence in the country and to offer people some information, rather than for it to not be active in China at all.

In March Google's board of directors indicated they opposed a ban on Internet censorship as well as the creation of a committee that would review the company's policies on human rights, according to the company's proxy statement filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission and released publicly Tuesday.
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The proposal, presented by an Amnesty worker, suggested that Google institute a series of policies to protect freedom of access to the Internet. The policies should include using all legal means to resist demands for censorship, informing users when the company has complied with requests for censorship, and hosting information that can identify users only in countries that don't restrict the Internet.
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Google is participating in an initiative to develop voluntary guidelines for how Internet companies should respond to censorship demands in countries like China, said Tony Cruz, the Amnesty International member who presented the proposal. While that's a step in the right direction, he said, Google still hasn't made any improvements since its launch in China.

"We've seen little more than talk and defensiveness from Google since the problems emerged," he said. "Nothing precludes Google from taking steps to ameliorate this problem while conversation about the standard goes on."

Harrington Investments submitted a related proposal that was also voted down. It would have created a human rights committee at Google to review the implications of company policies on human rights.

Brin defended Google's activities in China. "Google has a far superior track record than other search companies with respect to making information freely available," he said. He may have been referring to Yahoo, which turned over information to Chinese authorities that led to the imprisonment of a writer.
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That explanation didn't seem to placate everyone in the room. Another Amnesty International member said he appreciates the difficulty of the situation in China, but Google hasn't gone far enough.
Reference Here>>

This lack of action toward the issue of human rights may give a whole new twist on the expression "Google Earth".

So what do we, at MAXINE, think about Google Corporation's recent activities and moves to absolve themselves from being a responsible player on the world's human rights front?

Ahhhh, Not So Much!

At Xerox, It's Here Today ... Gone Tomorrow!

Graphic showing the "invisible ink" effect of the Xerox "photochromatic compound" transient document process. Image Credit: Xerox Corp.

At Xerox, It's Here Today ... Gone Tomorrow! - Originally posted 2/24/07

Just when you begin to think that paper documents are about to be a thing of the past ... "Everything is going digital!" ... Xerox reveals that it still is applying R&D assets on hardcopy processes.

That's right, there is an identified need to have a printed (on a sheet of paper) document that has a ticking-time value for its intended use. The image is applied to the paper, then, after about sixteen hours, the image disappears.

We at MAXINE will define the document derived from this process as a "Workday Lifetime Document" or WLD.

Output from a Xerox inkless printer. Images last only about one working day. Image Credit: Xerox via TFOT

Excerpts from PC Pro (United Kingdom) -

Xerox reveals transient documents
By Alun Williams – PC Pro - Originally published Thursday 7th September 2006, 11:04 AM

Xerox has lifted the veil from some of its research and development work in the field of printing. The cutting-edge research highlighted at a press event involved current projects that are expected to see the commercial light of day within 18-months, including a twist on the theme of invisible ink.

Mario Jarmasz, an engineer from one of the company's R&D centres, in Grenoble, was speaking at the launch of the Xerox's entry-level A4-only multi-function printers. As well as a looking at 'print infrastructure mining', which brings the techniques of data mining to enterprise print logs to better optimise the flow of print jobs around an organisation, he also demoed the very intriguing 'transient documents'.

This offers the prospect of reusable paper in the sense that the content is automatically erased after a period of time, ready for fresh printing. Inspired by the fact that many print outs have a life-span of a few hours (think of the emails you may print out just to read, or the content you proof read on the train journey back home), the specially prepared paper will preserve its content for up to 16 hours.

XRCC researcher Peter Kazmaier with erasable paper output in the lab. Image Credit: Xerox via TFOT

The paper has a photochromic compound that changes from a clear state to a coloured state under ultra-violet light. This can create the print face, which will duly fade with time. Further research is being undertaken to give the option of subsequently preserving the content if the user desires, which might literally involve warming up old data through the heating of the paper.
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Jarmasz also demonstrated the company's work on mobile document imaging, for example capturing data from business cards through a process of OCR compression and then transmission. Possible developments of this work include expanding email interfaces to incorporate handwritten input and the management of distributed forms.

Xerox, of course, is legendary for its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), which claims credit for developing Ethernet and laser printers as well as the first personal computer. Having developed the machines, the researchers then wanted to connect them and then to print, and the rest is history.
Reference Here>>

Okay ... so, what do you think about this technological document imaging "breakthrough"? MAXINE would like to hear your thoughts. The lines are open!

And this, from an interview posted at The Future Of Things 2-15-2007 -

To learn more about Xerox's inkless printer technology, an interview with Dr. Paul Smith, laboratory manager at the Xerox Research Centre of Canada provides updated insights.

Q: When did you start working on the erasable paper technology and what was the motivation for the project?

A: We began work on erasable paper about three years ago. This followed extensive research by our work practices team from PARC who spent time with customers in offices. People still like the feel and look of paper—it is one of the best ways to communicate and show information. But our customers told us they would like to use a little less paper, so we began working on ways to create paper documents that could be reused.

Q: Did you have a Eureka! moment during the development?

A: The Eureka moment really came during the discussions with customers when we determined that two of every five documents are only used for as little as a day or even for less than a minute. Individuals might print their calendar or memos for a meeting or even the header sheet that goes with networked printers that tells who the document belongs to. You use that literally for only a minute and then put it in the recycle box.

Q: How does the erasable paper work? Could it be used to print in color?

Dr. Paul Smith with inkless output from two different runs. Image Credit: TFOT

A: The erasable paper is not really printed. The paper is coated with a coating of only a few microns. This overlay contains chemicals that are activated by a light bar in the printer or multifunction device that creates the image. At this time the image is black or a dark purple color. It is conceivable that color could be created, but we are not working in that area now.

Although on the surface it may appear simple to develop a paper that can be imaged using UV light alone and then fades at a specified rate at room temperature, in practice there are many complex elements which must come together to make this a viable technology. Erasable paper technology is based on a photochromic concept similar to transition sunglasses which turn dark in bright sunlight and are seen through in a dark room. In the case of sunglasses the photochromic molecule, normally from a class of molecules such as spiropyran, reversibly converts from a colorless form to a colored form. In the case of the erasable paper, the compound that is present within the paper also turns from a colorless form to colored when exposed to a specific wavelength of light. The compound then gradually reverts back to its original colorless form over a period of time.

The end result is a reusable paper which feels very much like regular paper and is not at all like the older, waxy fax paper. The reusable paper technology has been developed from scratch but does incorporate elements which have been disclosed before. With respect to the light source, it is just beyond the blue end of the visible light spectrum. The intensity required is directly related to the writing speed that one would like to support.

Q: Can we describe what you have developed as an inkless printer?

A: People normally associate printing with inks and toners which are deposited onto the paper to make the image. This in fact is an inkless printer. The media itself creates the image after exposure to light.

Q: How many write-rewrite cycles did you perform with each paper?

A: We have been able to rewrite on the paper as many as fifty times.

Q: What printing resolution did you achieve?

A: We currently use 150 dpi, but this is not a limitation, this is just due to the resolution of the image bar that we use. This resolution is more than adequate considering the documents that are being considered for use with transient documents such as cover sheets and e-mails. We could have a much higher resolution if required.

Q: Since the paper is sensitive to U.V. radiation, what happens if you leave paper near the window or even outside on a sunny day?

A: This paper responds to a specific wavelength of light and requires a certain intensity level to change color. The intensity required is higher than the intensity observed in sunlight.

Q: Many other technologies developed in the past by Xerox failed to materialize and were later introduced by other companies. Do you fear a similar fate for the erasable paper?


Xerox's erasable paper—gradual disappearance over time. Image Credit: Xerox via TFOT

A: It is sort of a Silicon Valley myth that Xerox has not been successful in bringing technology products to market, yet we are a $15.7 billion company based on technology that we created ourselves. Our researchers invented the Ethernet, the first laser printer, the first plain-paper fax machine and the graphic user interface. There have been more than 40 successful spin-outs and startups based on Xerox technology. We are confident, based on our extensive focus groups, that there is customer interest in this project and that we will be able to develop a successful product.

Q: Can the erasable paper be used for security purposes?
A: There are many potential applications and a large amount of interest for this technology. Xerox is currently considering all potential commercialization avenues.

Q: When do you predict the erasable paper to reach the consumer market, and what obstacles do you still face in its development?

A: This is a very early research project that is several years away from reaching the market. We will be looking at a number of elements related to quality of image, length of time for the image to fade and more. There is a great deal more work to be done before this will be a product.

Q: How much do you predict the erasable paper will cost when launched?

A: Because erasable paper is still in the research centers, there is no way to speculate on what the cost of the paper will be. However, I want to clarify that this may not require a stand-alone special printer. In our prototypes, we use it as an added feature in existing Xerox multifunction devices. The erasable paper would be in one of the three or four paper drawers that these devices typically offer.

Q: What are the current limitations of the erasable paper technology? Will you be able to control the time it takes for the text to disappear?

A: Currently the image fades in about 16 to 24 hours. We do expect further research will be able to control how long the image lasts. You can also immediately erase the paper and use it again by applying a heat source or putting the paper right in the machine to be reprinted.

Q: Do you fear people will mix regular paper and erasable paper and print important documents on erasable paper? Will it be possible to allow future printers to recognize the type of paper as erasable or regular and notify the user accordingly?

A: The way Xerox multifunction devices are set up, you can currently select what type of paper you wish to use, based on sizes, color, transparencies, and so forth that are loaded into the drawers. So it will certainly be an option that you will be able to tell the printing device when to use erasable paper.
Reference Here>>

Originally Posted At Symblogogy (updated 2-24-2007) September 8, 2006

UPDATED 5-2-2008:

Xerox touts erasable paper, smart documents
The hi-tech paper can be reused up to 100 times
By Agam Shah - April 29, 2008 (IDG News Service)

Xerox Corp.'s research arm yesterday showcased its latest innovations, including erasable paper and tools that make documents "smart" by adding a deeper meaning to words and images.

Since its establishment in 1970, the Palo Alto Research Center Inc. (PARC), funded by Xerox, has created numerous technologies now available on PCs, including Ethernet, the graphical user interface (GUI) and the computer mouse. The laboratory, with other Xerox research facilities, is now trying to help its parent company and other start-ups by focusing on printing and other innovations to access, use and secure electronic documents.

Scientists demonstrated paper that can be reused after printed text automatically deletes itself from the paper's surface within 24 hours. Instead of trashing or recycling after one use, a single piece of paper can be used a second time, and reused up to 100 times, said Eric Shrader, area manager at PARC.

Predictions that paper would disappear in the 1970s in favor of electronic documents were wrong, Shrader said. As the number of electronic documents produced increases, about two to five pages are printed in the office for daily use, like e-mail messages and Web pages, which are discarded or recycled after being read. Reusable paper reduces waste, is environmentally safe, and helps reduce overall printing and paper costs, Shrader said.
Reference Here>>