Apple remembers Steve Jobs. (that link will probably only be good for the weekend as it's the main Apple page) The man was a micromanager and could be somewhat of a dick, but I love what he gave me. I love what his drive to create "better" gave to us all. Looking back, there were so many missteps almost taken, and some that were, that it's amazing we live in this future. Looking at society as a whole, someone somewhere would have come up with similar products. None of those people would have done them half as well. So many people look at the cosmetics of what Apple produces and tries to mimic them and they totally miss that the only reason those cosmetics work is because the dovetail into the product, the packaging, the manufacturing, and are the byproduct of an intense focus on the user and giving them a better experience. One that they may not understand at first, but then realize years down the road just how much better it was. And Steve's legacy, I hope and dream, will be the continuation of thinking about the total experience of a product and striving for "better." Thanks, Steve, for everything. (Steve Jobs, 1955-2011)
The official unemployment rate drops below 8%. Let the spinning begin (note the various "updates" on that NPR blog post).
This is why I try to find all the data from a poll before I link to it. Here's the CNN Snap poll from last night showing Romney way out ahead. Sounds pretty damning. Until you hit the demographic breakdowns starting on page 8. Go ahead. I'll wait here. Okay, back? Did you notice all the "N/A" areas. No non-whites. No one under 50. A little skewed to all attending college (it's difficult to suss out how many were over or under $50k). While some said they're Democrats, no one identified as liberal. Also, no one in the Northeast, Midwest, or West. It was all South and Urban. And then look at those error brackets for the individual columns. Some of those go over 8% sampling error. Um, your methodology, you're doing it wrong. (Grokked from Steven Gould)
The 10 most unreadable metal band logos. Within design we talk about readability and legibility which is the differences between being able to "read" a logo (or text layout) and being able recognize and "grok" what's going on. (Pointed to by Dan)
Also related, and I'm not sure if I pointed to this before, but the Glossary of Brand. It's a mostly humorous list of new "brand" words. "The Promised Brand – Heaven for creatives; The place where all free thinkers aspire to be, and spend their entire careers attempting to reach. Also commonly referred to as someone else's blog."
Debunking the myth of the decline of the male. What you're seeing in society is another attempt to end the hegemony of certain groups. Okay, not really that. What we're seeing is the pendulum having slowed in it's arch back toward male privilege (after it has sung toward women in the early 90s, it had been swinging back for more than a decade). So boys can't just claim to be boys and get away with shit anymore. You can see the same thing with Christian Persecution, White Persecution, and Wealth Persecution (not all three groups having very public hissy fits in the past year). It has nothing to do with a tipping point. It all has to do with them not automatically getting their way just because they happen to be Christian, White, Wealthy, or have a penis. (Grokked from Mer Haskell)
"(Maine State Senator Candidate) Lachowicz uses salty language in some of the (DailyKoS)comments, but someone needs to sit the Maine GOP down and explain the difference between fantasy and reality… By suggesting a World of Warcraft hobby should disqualify someone for office—and implying that voters are too dumb to tell the difference between virtual and real violence—the party is only embarrassing itself." Actually, they're playing to their base. Did I ever tell you my secret plan in case Newt Gingrich actually got the nomination? Remind his potential voters Newt wrote "alternative history", "fantasy" and "science fiction." Maybe with a photo of some CosPlay people. (Pointed to by John)
"Riiight… and if you were told by your supervisor that you were expected to give money as part of your new job, how voluntary would you feel that was, no matter what the piece of paper said?" You know all those stories about union employees being forced to give money in union dues that are then used to support candidates they don't like? Know why conservatives think this is coercion? Because their supporters twist their employees arm. Which is, you know, illegal. Which is why the lawyer for Murry Energy vociferously says there the giving form included in the employment package, and the keeping track of who gives and who doesn't, is entirely not connected to the bonus system. And you always know you can trust Murry Energy to tell the truth. Especially to inspectors from the government. (Grokked from Teresa Nielsen Hayden)
"Americans are more supportive of one-party government now… mainly due to a surge in Democrats' preference for unified party control of government… Republicans also prefer unified government… these findings suggest that Americans may be somewhat less open to ballot splitting than in prior years." That could make this election very interesting (as the House is more representative than the Electoral College). Right now the GOP is softening their stance on "taking the Senate." I wonder if we'll hear the fear of them losing the House by the middle of this month (either real fear or a get out the vote whip)?
Alligator Quotient: We're stacked 10 high today. They were all waiting for Friday morning. It's like they have their own Google calendar they use to coordinate.
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