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Unless they had explicitly named them, the Senate’s Kerry-Boxer and the House’s Waxman-Markey global warming bills could not have been better designed to inflict more pain on the states that swung red in the last election than on those that went blue. The American Clean Energy and Security Act in the Senate and House’s Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act both call for dramatic reductions in carbon dioxide emissions, eventually 83%. (Isn’t it curious that neither bill is titled after the impending global warming catastrophe that they are supposedly designed to avert?) When EPA’s data for carbon dioxide emissions...

Mission Our mission is to identify a select number of significant public issues and stimulate action on those issues through communications programs that make a measurable difference in our society. To that end, the Ad Council marshals volunteer talent from the advertising and communications industries, the facilities of the media, and the resources of the business and non-profit communities to create awareness, foster understanding and motivate action.

A few months ago, needing to cut my monthly budget way down, I examined every place where I could cut. One of the things I noticed was how much money I was spending on a liberal newspaper that was continuing to jack its price while constantly shrinking in size and increasing in content from other news agencies (i.e., less NJ news, which is the reason I bought it in the first place). So I quit the Star-Ledger cold turkey. Other than the comics and the weekly food sections, I discovered that I don't miss it. On Sundays, an acquaintance is...

The economic crisis combined with the election of a potentially anti-gun liberal to the White House acted as a big stimulus for the gunmakers. But it seems that all that happened was that gun demand got pulled forward, because now sales are totally falling off a cliff. A reader sends along some recent numbers from Ruger (RGR).If you look at the bottom line -- firearm sales -- it only looks like there was a slight sequential dip. But ignore that. The number to look at is orders received in 3Q, which were down 80%. Due to their backlog, actual firearms...

Joe Eboh, a conman who was persuaded to prove evidence of his initiation into the Holy Church of The Painted Breast in a reverse scam Dear Honourable Friend. Those generous Nigerians who e-mail you with promises of a fortune are themselves being targeted in a new drive to deter cyber criminals. Millions of internet users have received messages offering them a huge financial reward if they help to release money trapped in a foreign bank account. And, although the majority of these e-mails are deleted, the fraudsters still find a sufficient number of gullible Britons to cost the country millions...

Dayton is being considered as a potential retail and residential development site by Hong Kong business mogul Zengbin Song, of Tian An China Investments Company. Working with local business owner Jack Gong, the Dayton Economic Development Corporation has now established a relationship with the Chinese investment community. Mr. Gong is the President of Overseas Operations for the Dayton office of Lucky Toys, a Six Flags distributor. Most recently, Gong developed, and leased, a shopping center in Willis, Texas. As part of a 60-member Chinese delegation to the Houston market, Song was attracted to Dayton as a high-growth submarket in the...

Prypiat is an abandoned city in the Zone of alienation in northern Ukraine. It was home to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant workers, abandoned in 1986 following the Chernobyl disaster. Its population had been around 50,000 prior to the accident.

According to security researchers, computer servers at the government institutions of Poland suffered a well-synchronized cyber attack, which was allegedly launched by Russian sources in September 2009. The details of this attack on the Polish government are not yet revealed, as reported by the daily Rzeczpospolita. The attack took place in the beginning of September, a particularly intense moment, near about Westerplatte visit of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The purpose of his visit was to commemorate the outburst of the Second World War, as reported by NATIONAL on October 11, 2009. Meanwhile, security experts informed that generally botnets are...

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks tumbled Friday, more than erasing the previous session's gains, as investors dumped a variety of shares at the end of a rough week and choppy month on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost nearly 250 points, or 2.5%, according to early tallies. The Dow lost as much as 278 points earlier. It was the Dow's biggest one-day selloff on a point basis since April 20. The S&P 500 (SPX) index fell 30 points, or 2.8% and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) shed 52 points, or 2.5%. The selloff was broad based, with all...

Even with Friday's dip, both oil and retail gasoline prices are near their highs of the year. The good news is energy prices typically peak around this time of year amid buying in anticipation of winter heating season. "Odds favor we'll get a correction in oil," says Frank Holmes, CEO and CIO of U.S. Global Investors, which has about $2.5 billion of assets under management, including the Global Resources Fund. "Usually when it's coldest in NY is when oil prices are actually making their bottom." That's good news for consumers in the near term, but long-term "there's a real [trend]...

Ex-Microsoftie says that Windows 7 is doomed and Linux, free software, will ultimately dominate.A lot of open source advocates like to rage against the machine at Microsoft, but when a former Microsoft Research employee says that Windows 7 won't stop Linux from market domination, that's an opinion to note. Keith Curtis, author of the book After the Software Wars, says just that. But he goes further. He thinks Microsoft and its customers would be better off if the company ditched Windows and instead built its own version of the Linux operating system. These topics came up yesterday during my interview...

A flurry of court fights, union-filed grievances and even a federal intervention are complicating the Schwarzenegger administration’s budget-balancing action requiring state employees to take three Fridays each month off without pay, which amounts to about a 14 percent pay cut and the administration says saves the state about $2 billion annually. The Social Security Administration, in a filing in Alameda County Superior Court, said the furloughs of personnel in the state Disability Determination Services Division, or DDSD, “does not save the state a single penny and actually costs the state money.” The Social Security Administration estimated the furloughs in the...

Stocks plunged Friday, erasing all of the previous day's big gains, as a drop in consumer spending fanned worries that the economic recovery won't be sustainable. Major stock indexes tumbled more than 2 percent in afternoon trading, including the Dow Jones industrials, which gave back all of Thursday's 200-point gain. The biggest declines were among banks, energy and materials companies. As stocks fell, investors moved to safer assets like the dollar and Treasurys. At the same time, the Chicago Board Options Exchange's Volatility Index, known as the market's fear gauge, soared nearly 25 percent to 30.88, the highest since early...

Battle of the South Florida billboards heats up The billboard catches the attention of drivers and truckers traveling on the highways. "YOUR WIFE IS HOT" -- BETTER GET YOUR A/C FIXED," it reads, in big bold letters. A clever and sexy slogan developed in January by Air Around the Clock, an A/C and appliance service based in Broward County. But now the slogan is generating a lot of heat after its competitor, All Year Cooling, flipped the phrase this summer. "YOUR WIFE IS NOT HOT! Because you called All Year Cooling to replace your A/C rather than the other guys,"...

Here is video of a CBS News report questioning the truthfulness of the number of jobs the White House is reporting that have been "saved or created" as a result of Obama's Stimulus Plan. CBS News reporter Chip Reid shows some shocking examples of jobs Obama's report claims were created, but turned out to be totally untrue. It calls into question the honesty of any numbers on the economy being put out by Obama's White House. CBS News might need to get ready for the "Fox News" treatment with reporting like this! . . . (VIDEO)

To hear President Obama crow in vindication of his Stimulus Bill, one would think the light at the end of the tunnel is visible on the economic front. Obama has taken credit for the third quarter GDP growth of 3.5% as well he should. However, we need to examine what that growth was based upon and whether it was a bona fide growth of the economy or the counting of stolen booty. The increase in real GDP in the third quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from personal consumption expenditures (PCE), exports, private inventory investment, federal government spending, and residential fixed...

Verizon Wireless opened up to us. Verizon Communications Inc. and Motorola Inc. proudly and excitedly showed off their new Droid smart phone in a meeting Wednesday afternoon.First impression: The device is fast, powerful, fully featured and well-designed -- a combination of adjectives we've never used for a Verizon cellphone.When was the last time a Verizon phone got this much hype? The BlackBerry Storm? Ouch.Yet, one is coming on Nov. 6, and it has a good chance of living up to the hype. A phone with Google's fast-improving Android operating system, a 5-megapixel camera with a flash and digital zoom, a...

NEW YORK (CBS) ― Face paints are a Halloween staple, but a new study has raised safety concerns around their use. The research shows they may contain toxins dangerous to kids, yet the harmful substances aren't listed on the package. It's a crucial part of many Halloween costumes, getting just the right look with face paints. But tests ordered by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics came up with some pretty scary results. "Unfortunately we found lead in all 10 of the products we sent to the lab and six of the ten contained heavy metals that are allergens," said Mia...

The father of Colorado's so-called Balloon Boy may not have gotten his reality TV scheme off the ground, but Richard Heene is at least getting his own action figure. Connecticut-based toymaker Herobuilders.com is adding Heene to a quirky collection that includes the Sarah Palin Super Hero and the Obama Joker doll. There's also a Bernie Madoff Action Figure with a fistfull of hundred-dollar bills and a Dick Cheney doll hoisting a shotgun. Heene's mini-me wears an "I'm with Stupid" t-shirt with the arrow pointing upwards. It sells for 34.95. Heene and his wife, Mayumi, called 911 earlier this month to...

Back when Norman Rockwell ruled Saturday evenings, Adobe wasn't even a gleam in some nerd's eye, but a new book shows that the painter was, nevertheless, a photoshop god. Very few Gizmodo readers were even born when Rockwell painted his last Saturday Evening Post cover, but we all know them. You hear that name and suddenly you can picture those overly detailed, cartoonishly dramatic but ultimately kinda corny depictions of American life. Well, Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera, written and compiled by Ron Schick, has given me immense newfound respect for the man, for the meticulous photography, the real people...

What would happen if any other political party pushed for a cap and trade bill that could create green jobs of which 9 out of 10 created would be unsustainable, require government subsidizing and cost the nations economy millions of real jobs? And this is not to mention the increase in manufacturing costs that would be passed on to us in time of depression. No matter if you are a Democrat, Republican, Libertarian or an Independent, what do you think is going to happen when the government revenues are down and spending is quadrupled? As one senator from Florida was...

Poll: Offshore drilling Should Florida allow drilling for oil within five miles of its Gulf Coast beaches? Yes No

OSLO (Reuters) – A man was caught by Norwegian customs carrying a tarantula in his bag, and a further 14 royal pythons and 10 albino leopard geckos taped to his body, media reported Monday. The 22-year-old Norwegian was stopped in a routine check by Kristiansand customs after arriving on a ferry from Denmark, newspaper Faedrelandsvennen reported. Customs found the tarantula, before deciding to give him a full body search that revealed 14 stockings -- one for each snake -- taped around his torso, top selling tabloid VG said. Reptile smuggling is not uncommon in Norway, which prohibits people holding many...

North America - A man in the North America community reported Monday the burglary of his residence. Danny Brantley reported to Deputy Wes Bebout he left his residence at 70 Small Road and at some point between 10 a.m. and 1:05 p.m. someone took cash and a bottle of hydrocodone pills from his house.

Two solo homers for Chase Utley. The Bronx bombers appear to have wasted their ace as they are down to their final four outs.

The Mac and iPod slices shrank between '08 and '09. iTunes grew a bit. iPhone grew a lot.Source: Company reports Steve Jobs likes to describe Apple's (AAPL) business model as a stool built on three-legs: the Mac, the iPod and the iPhone. But a quick glance at the 2009 Form 10-K, which Apple filed on Tuesday, shows that it is now more like a four-leg chair, with a couple of wedge-shaped pillows on the side.

Apple's VP Industrial Design about the change of design and the new challenges they are faced with. First time to watch and hear details about the development of Apple's product design. You Tube video.

Note I sent to my elected representatives today: Dear xxxxxx, NO GOVERNMENT OPTION. No matter what it is called, government option, trigger, personal choice, opt out -- NO GOVERNMENT OPTION. Please vote NO on the health care bill package President Obama is trying to push on America. We can’t afford it and neither can the future generations. My husband and I would like to see: 1. tort reform. 2. the ability to purchase insurance in any state. 3. the deductible (high or low) of our choice. 4. medical savings account. Growing up in a low-income home, I do know that...

I need some Freeper help...Usually I'm asking advice about guns or stuff. But I need a different kind of help...a techie solution. A gadget. A CHEAP gadget. I'm setting up a video-conferencing solution for my company. What we'll be able to do is participate in each other's sales meetings, via the web, via webcam and microphone. It's not a static environment, but one where the leader is moving around, from place to place in the room; sometimes at the whiteboard...other times at another place in the room. I've kinda got the camera thing figured out. But what I need is...

Virus hunters are raising the alarm for a large-scale spam attack that uses fake Facebook password-reset messages to trick PC users into downloading a dangerous piece of malware. The malicious executable is linked to the Bredolab botnet, which has been linked to massive spam runs and identity-theft related attacks. Here’s a sample of the Facebook password-reset messages hitting e-mail inboxes this morning: According to Websense, the address of the sender is spoofed to display “support@facebook.com,” a trick commonly used to trick targets into believing it’s a legitimate e-mail from the popular social network. The messages contain a .zip file attachment...

Motorola and Verizon Wireless on Wednesday unveiled the Droid, a smartphone that will test whether the companies can use software from Google to chip away at the dominance of Apple's iPhone. The Droid, a svelte slider with a full keyboard and an expansive touchscreen, will be available at Verizon Wireless Nov. 6 for $199.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate. Customers have to sign up for a two-year contract and data plan. Success of the new phone, which is being launched in a competitive holiday season, is crucial for Motorola, where co-Chief Executive Sanjay Jha has placed a heavy bet on...

Mikhail Simonov, designer of the iconic fighter jets Su-27 and Su-30, has been at the forefront of aircraft design for more than 50 years. To celebrate his 80th birthday this month, we hear from the man who gave Russia the edge in aerial combat.

Follow the money and watch the one world order establish slavery under its rule. The plan will fail and the dreams, schemes and flying machines shall be scattereed in pieces upon the ground. Read and become aware of the trap being set for our nation. There is a spirit in the USA that stands above and beyond the mind spawn. From the spiritual high ground that founded our Nation we stand and are free. http://www.barefootsworld.net/usfraud.html

History shows the Yankees can't lose with Obama in White HouseThe Yankees are in the World Series and there's a Democrat in the White House. There can only be one outcome. You might think that the Bronx Bombers and the GOP go together like hot dogs and mustard. With their enormous payroll and glittering new stadium, money is never an object. They woo superstars with huge salaries and the luxury tax they pay for doing so helps subsidize the poorer teams. If ever there was a sports team that behaved like a stereotypical rich Republican, it's the Yankees. But that...

Do I need pre-paid legal? Dear Dave, Do you have an opinion on whether or not pre-paid legal is a product worth purchasing? Anika Dear Anika, I’m not mad about pre-paid legal. But a lot of folks who recommend and advocate it don’t like me very much, because I tell people it’s a bad idea. Here’s why: Pre-paid legal will cost you about $300 a year. If you take $300 a year, and multiply that out over 10 years, you’re looking at $3,000. The truth is that the average American consumer doesn’t spend $3,000 on legal bills in this amount...

Opinion: Apple was blindsided by Windows 7. It wasn’t the product which they saw coming, it was the sustaining marketing budget and positive reviews from Apple loyalists like Walt Mossberg they didn’t see (though several Mac fans have told me that Steve Jobs has taken Walt to task and he is changing his tune).As a result they have shifted their negative campaign against Windows Vista into a FUD campaign against Windows 7 using innuendo and association to disparage Microsoft’s new platform. You can see the ads here but broken promises and PC News are pure but well done FUD. Granted...

In a stark reminder of how some battered financial firms remain dependent on government lifelines, GMAC Financial Services Inc. and the Treasury Department are in advanced talks to prop up the lender with its third helping of taxpayer money, people familiar with the matter said. The U.S. government is likely to inject $2.8 billion to $5.6 billion of capital into the Detroit company, on top of the $12.5 billion that GMAC has received since December 2008, these people said. The latest infusion would come in the form of preferred stock. The government's 34% stake in the company could increase if...

Some fans will do anything to go to the World Series. Bensalem police said they arrested a Philadelphia woman Tuesday after she offered to perform various sex acts to an undercover officer in exchange for tickets. According to police, Susan Finkelstein, 43, posted an ad on Craigslist that read: "DESPERATE BLONDE NEEDS WS TIX (Philadelphia) "Diehard Phillies fan—gorgeous tall buxom blonde— in desperate need of two World Series Tickets. Price negotiable--- I'm the creative type! Maybe we can help each other!" An undercover officer responded to the ad, police said, and arrested Finkelstein after she made her offer. Finkelstein, of...

Cisco boffins infiltrate a botnet to find out about online crime By posing as a rogue programmer, Cisco researchers gained a unique insight into the world of botnets and their owners Poor education, a criminal record and a dislike of authority can all turn programmers bad. That's the finding of Cisco researchers who posed as botmasters to enter the world of online crime. "I wanna do what I wanna do, whenever I want," one botmaster told the researchers. By posing online as a rogue programmer, the researchers got him to reveal how he spams thousands of instant messenger users with...

Freep this poll FWIW...this was the email sent to me: DO NOT MISS YOUR CHANCE TO CAST YOUR VOTE: Finally, a chance to vote on President Obama's performance on this Economy and where he is taking this nation .... AT&T/Yahoo Poll.... This totally non-partisan poll asks but one question. The question is stated very simply... and, to the point. No tricks. No hidden messages. JUST ONE SINGLE, SIMPLE QUESTION. I don't know why this hasn't been done before.. I'm impressed with the fact that the question is NOT "phrased" in a way that it can be interpreted or misrepresented later...to...

After King County Superior Court Judge Gregory Canova awarded Microsoft an $8.7 million judgment in a 2008 lawsuit involving unpaid software licenses, he might have been surprised to learn that Microsoft isn’t actually in the software licensing business in Washington – or at least that’s what it reports to the state Department of Revenue. For tax purposes, Microsoft reports that it’s earned its estimated $143 billion in software licensing revenue in Nevada, where there is no licensing tax. However, for legal purposes, Microsoft executes its licensing contracts so they are governed by and rely on the protections of Washington law...

That message? LET US SEE THE BILL!!! That’s a simple philosophical argument that hits at the heart of a representative democracy and that we win. The CBO will put a number on the health care bill in about a week. The DEMS with the help of the MSM will then come out with their innocuous misnomers for things like gov’t healthcare and back it up with dubious facts and statistic. The way to stop this Bill is not by waiting to argue its merits BUT to make the process THE issue BEFORE the Bill hits the floor.

SafeLink Wireless is a government supported program that provides a free cell phone and airtime each month for income-eligible customers. Yes, the newest entitlement - a free cellphone and airtime for a wide variety of people. Including those who get free school lunches. And you thought the Obamassiah was going to stop at just nationalizing the auto industry, the banks, and the health industry. No, he's going after telecom, too!

Six weeks after Jay Leno moved to primetime, NBC's wait-and-see approach to his sinking ratings is testing the patience of affiliate stations across the country. The Peacock network maintains that putting Leno on five nights a week will pay off when fresh episodes of his show go up against reruns on other networks, but so far Leno has been a disappointing lead-in for the late newscasts that follow him. After a strong start, his program at 10 p.m. is down sharply from its premiere week and is drawing one-quarter fewer viewers than its scripted predecessors a year ago. This is...

LONDONDERRY TOWNSHIP, DAUPIN COUNTY - The Three Mile Island Nuclear Power station shut down its unit one reactor on Monday capping off a record run. The unit one reactor broke the world record for the longest continuous days of operation for all pressurized water reactors. The Dauphin County based plant operated for 705 days before shutting down for a scheduled refueling and maintenance outage on Monday. The old record of 692 days was set earlier this year by a nuclear power plant in Maryland. "We don't really set out to break world records, but they're a result of what we...

Steve Ballmer recently stated that Windows 7 is the best version of Windows ever. Now that Windows 7 is officially out, the public at large can join that debate and determine if Windows 7 is the best version of Windows yet, or even the greatest operating system of all time. Let's consider the hypothetical question of whether Windows 7 is the greatest operating system of all time. Before the flaming comments start flowing about what a Microsoft fanboy I am, let me begin by stating that it's a hypothetical question, not a statement of opinion, never mind an assessment of...

The more I think and learn about the curious pricing of the 27” iMac, the more bizarre and incredible it seems. It has a resolution of 2560x1440, which no other monitor in the industry seems to have (that I can find). 30” LCDs are the same width but 1600 tall. Shrinking 2560-wide into a screen that’s 3” smaller diagonally yields an impressive pixel density, especially given the panel’s still-immense size. It has an IPS panel. IPS is the best and most expensive LCD type, giving the best viewing angle and the least color- and brightness-shifting as the angle increases in...

While a congressional races are drawing national attention, I wanted to let everyone know about another CONSERVATIVE candidate running for SC 4th Congressional district. His name is Jim Lee. His website jimleeforcongress2010.com Jim needs our help. Especially from the local SC constituency. He is not a Lawyer, not a career politician, and adheres to true Conservative values. He is running against the incumbent, Bob Inglis who has abandoned Conservative values by voting for TARP, sided with the Democrats on the Joe Wilson incident, amongst many other non conservative issues. Jim Lee has already committed to the New Contract with America...

I have a confession: I'm a switcher. My long journey with Windows, which began even before Windows with MS-DOS, ended with Windows Vista. While so many others navigated the Vista debacle by sticking with Windows XP, I gave Vista a try -- and gave up. I leapt to the Mac OS. Could Windows 7 lure me back? Windows 7 was built to fix the problems that plagued Vista, and it unquestionably succeeds in doing that. It's a bit less bloated, and it runs a bit faster. The annoying security alerts from User Account Control have been quieted. And the compatibility...

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