Red A's Spring Offensive

China: March 02 - March 15

Europe: March 20 - March 31

Any ideas for a second career for me?

Because I'm sort of bored and pissed off by my current job.

You know, I often feel bad when I fuck around on the internet at work. Shouldn't I be developing customers or something?

Then you have a day like today when I am essentially waiting around for quotations, replies, price increases, photos, etc. in order just to service my current dwindling amount of customers.

I am also beginning not to believe in the "Taiwanese factories are better" theory. They certainly seem to be better at having their managers fly back to Taiwan all the time and thus never can answer any pressing customer questions.

And one of the few that are still based in Taiwan told me on Friday to tell the customer to place as many orders as possible because steel prices are rising. Plus I told the customer price increases would be coming.

Today they told me they don't want any orders until the end of March because steel prices are "volatile." Okay, let's just tell all of the consumers that they can't buy any products until the end of March. If beer suppliers did this, or there would be riots.

I think I'll just raise prices now, as it seems to be the way the current is running and worry about late March prices in late March.

Hmmmm, maybe I'll completely depress myself by looking at my Chinese competitor's catalogs, you know, the ones where they have copied all of my products, plus developed a bunch of new one's faster than me, and they have even come up with the same selling points I used to use.

Okay, the good news is that they are hopefully screaming about the RenMinBi appreciating. It hurts me too, to some extent, but with my little hedge, I can at least get some Schadenfreude.

The style is called "Socialist Realism"

but shouldn't they be looking towards the sea if they want to get to Taiwan? Not very realistic. Plus it looks like the 7th fleet is blocking their way in the background.

Found among a bunch of interesting images. (nothing to do with China or Taiwan.)

No Child Left Behind

Apparently this is an unpopular policy. Bread, J-Hole, and Karl oppose it. Meanwhile Bush & Ted Kennedy passed it. That covers a fairly wide spectrum of people on both sides. I really don't know much about it, so I read the wiki.

I don't get why its a bad policy. I know AJ had discussed with me why "teaching to the test" is a bad idea, but after listening to this podcast, I think I no longer buy that criticism. Sure, we don't want a Taiwan style system of only rote testing, but certainly measuring basic abilities is not impossible.

Listen to the podcast and let me know if you find it compelling that the problem is not about money, class size, but about providing incentives to get better teachers and allow for more choice.

There is another podcast with the same gentleman about education and growth which was interesting as well.

And for all the teachers out there. Yes, I get it. You're important. You don't want to have the pressure of having your results measured. You don't like the idea of having your job security on the line. I really do get it. Because that's what happens every day at my office where I work, too, and I hate it. Keep up the good work and don't worry so much.

CORRECTION: Karl does not know if he opposes this policy. I mixed him up with Bread. Sorry Karl.

Jesus Wept

A post about beer and politics, but it really doesn't matter once you see this guy's beer fridge.

And remember, Canadians, you're not supposed to have a beer fridge.

Those are only for wasteful Americans who don't give a rat's ass about global warming.

Man am I jealous of Jim in Colorado.

Browsing through Amazon.com

You can do a search inside the book to find out such important information that Fireball is a very good spell for a wizard. It also tells you not to be a poor loser. Strangely, there are no references to Mountain Dew at all.

I wonder if the gold farming phenomena has hit D & D yet? Okay, here's my pitch. Basically you e-mail your character to my new company in China where we play your character during the week, helping you amass experience points, gold, and magic weapons. Then we e-mail him back to you in time for your Friday night game.

If your DM questions your sudden rise from level 2 to level 7 and that +4 Vorpal Sword you now have, our company will have documented every playing session that our three shifts of employees and certified DM's have played out, all using official D&D scenario packs, e.g. Keep on the Borderlands, Vault of the Drow, etc.

Castro Retires

"A charismatic leader famous for his long speeches delivered in his green military fatigues, Castro is admired in the Third World for standing up to the United States but considered by his opponents a tyrant who suppressed freedom."

1. Probably should read, "admired by some in the Third World for standing up to the United States." Heck, maybe even remove the words "in the Third World." You don't think some Europeans admired him for that as well?

2. So, its a clear fact he stood up to America (a not unreasonable statement) but only his opponents think he is a tyrant who oppressed freedom? Like that is not a fact? Perhaps some links to opposition parties operating in Cuba and election results where they ran candidates would persuade me that its only an opinion that he was a tyrant who suppressed freedom. Even communists, who explicitly talk about a dictatorship of the proletariat, might consider him a dictator who oppressed freedom for the common good.

It would be interesting to find some Pinochet stories to compare and contrast.

"Thousands were killed, tortured or exiled under Pinochet's rule."

Admittedly, Pinochet is dead, so if Castro dies perhaps the press will mention similar things.

I always thought that when Castro started appearing in those Adidas sweat suits that he was probably not running the show.

A funny blog

Stuff White People Like

Lying down on the job

Inspecting sofas, so its allowed, nay, encouraged.

Yahoo News

In that incident, a Russian Tupolev flew over the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk in the Sea of Japan on Jan. 29, 2004. Since then, however, relations between the U.S. and Russia have deteriorated to their worst point since the Cold War, largely due to the United States' plans to put a radar system in the Czech Republic and 10 missile defense interceptors in Poland.

Really the worst point since the end of the Cold War? I'd argue maybe that occurred when Russian troops seized Pristina airport and surprised NATO troops who were almost ordered into conflict with them by Wesley Clark. I guess technically since that turned out okay, it doesn't count?

I also doubt that if we canceled missile defense plans that US-Russian relations would suddenly soar to the stratosphere with goodwill and love.