Sun, 10 Feb 2008 11:23:07 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/ Kernmount.com NewsFeed en-us http://www.kernmount.com/images/logo.gif http://www.kernmount.com/ ryan@kernmount.com http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=106 Realtor Djuna Woods of Menlo Park used to take clients looking for a new home on tours of local schools and answer questions about test scores. Now she gives tours of local dog parks and answers questions about which neighborhoods are the most dog friendly. With 39% of US households owning at least one dog and annual spending on pets expected to exceed $40 billion, dogs have become the new children. Dogs now have play dates, day care, hair appointments, spa treatments, personal dog walkers, chauffeurs and clothing boutiques. According to a study conducted by the American Kennel Club, dog ownership heavily influences both lifestyle and purchasing habits. This influence can be clearly seen when dog owners purchase a new home. Sun, 10 Feb 2008 11:23:07 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=105 Well, after a month hiatus, I've resurrected the site. I had a lot of system issues with my previous provider, so I moved my site. And then I became very busy at work. But now the site is back up, finally. A little buggy here and there, but it's up Thu, 24 May 2007 15:06:20 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=104 OK, I'm not one to get all giddy about gadgets, but I gotta tell ya, this Nokia E61 is one neat piece of gear. Well it's more than neat, it's really changed the way I interact with people over the Internet. I decided to go with an unlocked GSM phone, versus purchasing the locked version of the E61 (called the E62) from Cingular because I wanted a more flexible service plan. Also the E62 has been gutted by Cingular: no WIFI adapter, some other firmware glitches. In fact, the only thing I didn't like about it was it's sluggish performance. Well with the latest firmware (v3.x), it stable and fast. In fact, it's zippy. I used to envy my Motorola Q bretheren due to their fast interface. Now my trusty E61 competes nicely with other Windows Media 5 smartphones. I bought my phone from MyWorldPhone.com and it's a Hong Kong version. I've since re-flashed it using the details on this site: http://www.averageadmins.com/blog/2006/11/12/force-flashing-the-nokia-e61 Discuss Here Wed, 20 Dec 2006 01:36:27 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=103 Fri, 03 Nov 2006 00:40:56 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=100 If we have anything to lament, it's not that we have career politicians, but that we have citizens who clearly flunked his/her civics lessons. Now read this carefully: If we don't like a politician, we are free to vote them out(see civics comment above). Term limits are just plain stupid and irrational and counter to our form of Democracy. But term limits, I guess, are to be expected when we have an electorate who is self-satisfied with their soda-pop equivalent of a Coke and Pepsi political system. We deserve this lousy government because we allow it. Politicians aren't to blame, we are and term limits are an ironic admission that we can't make reasonable decisions about our self-government. Comment Here Wed, 28 Jun 2006 23:41:38 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=99 Heh, I thought that the talk of putting up a Flag burning amendment by House and Senate Republicans was some kind of joke. It didn’t even occur to me until I read the news today that they were actually considering it . Again! I thought people were making fun of them, like “what will they try and resurrect next, flag burning?” Some are saying that this is some kind of ‘do nothing’ strategy. (ironic that they’re now in the same ‘do nothing’ category as the Democrats). So I guess we’re safe for now. However the cynic in me tends to think that this is some kind of diversion tactic for the failing currency and our dismal foreign policy. It’s almost formulaic: • 300 Marines Dead in Lebanon? Invade a tiny country called Grenada. • Caught lying under oath? Bomb the shit out of an African pharmaceutical factory. Lob ½ a billion dollars of cruise missiles at some Afghan Tents. • Marines murder a bunch of innocent civilians including women and children? Gay Marriage Amendment and blame the media. Good times, noodle salad. Thu, 08 Jun 2006 15:18:29 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=98 The National Uniformity For Food Act is clearly a move by big business to control what consumers know about our foods. Big Business Tyranny. Frankly, I'm not usually on the 'I hate big business' bandwagon, but I'm making an exception on this issue because it's clearly a move by the food industry to limit my access to information. It's Outrageous. I follow these issues closely as we are involved in our local Food COOP and this one caught me off guard. Clearly the industry wants us to know less about the products that they are selling. And that’s evil, plain and simple. Democracy is about transparency in our government and our society. This bill offers neither. This bill will not stand up to the scrutiny of the 10th Amendment. The Feds might try to go around the Bill of Rights by invoking the Constitution’ Interstate Commerce clause (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3), but I can’t see how the Supreme Court would say that removing warnings is good for the Republic. I’m just not that cynical. California will ignore this and challenge it in court if it passes the Senate. Both Boxer and Feinstein have openly opposed it. As you should too. So much for the Republican's stance on 'State's Rights." Prediction: it will die in debate/committee in the Senate, but this trend is deeply troubling. If it does pass, California will sue and win in the Supreme Court. Please discuss this here Thu, 09 Mar 2006 12:04:40 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=96 I've got a new song. It was co-written with Doug Shaw, a Nashville songwriter. It was written quite in the moment and the theme is not particularly about anything specific. It probably needs some work, but doesn't everything need some more, eh? Click here to listen: It's Gonna Be All Right (Windows Media Format WMA) Sun, 12 Feb 2006 15:34:55 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=95 There is a group of dedicated individuals out there who actually think there is some kind of conspiracy around vaccinations. That what they call 'Big Pharma', short for Big Pharmaceutical companies, is somehow behind some deliberate attempt to poison us via vaccinations. (and other things as well). And that vaccinations are somehow unnecessary, which is not only untrue, it is a profoundly dangerous assertion. I find it highly ironic that people who make these claims are not doctors or scientists, but usually ordinary people who are easily persuaded by faulty logic and irrational thinking. These folks are very fond of quoting specious articles on the Internet, and often reference then as 'facts' from leading authorities which further propagates these myths. As my buddy Stu points out (He's a scientist @ University of Wisconsin), much of these fallacies are born out of irrational guilt people have for their suffering children, as you see with parents of Autistic children, and with their suffering parents as we watch our parents wither away via Alzheimer's Disease. The most popular conspiracy theory these days is that the thimerosal (which contains mercury) in many popular vaccinations causes many neurological disorders. (Read More or Discuss Here) Fri, 10 Feb 2006 18:32:27 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=94 "Whenever this issue of compensatory or preferential treatment for the Negro is raised, some of our friends recoil in horror. The Negro should be granted equality, they agree, but he should ask for nothing more. On the surface, this appears reasonable, but it is not realistic. For it is obvious that if a man enters the starting line of a race three hundred years after another man, the first would have to perform some incredible feat in order to catch up." "I knew that America would never invest the necessary funds or energy in rehabilitation of its poor so long as adventures like Vietnam continued to draw men and skills and money like some demonic, destructive suction tube.’ "It occurs to me that what we are submitting them to in Vietnam is not simply the brutalizing process that goes on in any war where armies face each other and seek to destroy. We are adding cynicism to the process of death, for they must know after a short period there that none of the things we claim to be fighting for are really involved. "Over the past two years, as I have moved to break the betrayal of my own silences and to speak from the burnings of my own heart, as I have called for radical departures from the destruction of Vietnam, many persons have questioned me about the wisdom of my path. At the heart of their concerns this query has often loomed large and loud: Why are you speaking about war, Dr. King? Why are you joining the voices of dissent? Peace and civil rights don't mix, they say. Aren't you hurting the cause of your people, they ask? And when I hear them, though I often understand the source of their concern, I am nevertheless greatly saddened, for such questions mean that the inquirers have not really known me, my commitment or my calling. Indeed, their questions suggest that they do not know the world in which they live. "The war in Vietnam is but a symptom of a far deeper malady within the American spirit, and if we ignore this sobering reality we will find ourselves organizing clergy- and laymen-concerned committees for the next generation. They will be concerned about Guatemala and Peru. They will be concerned about Thailand and Cambodia. They will be concerned about Mozambique and South Africa. We will be marching for these and a dozen other names and attending rallies without end unless there is a significant and profound change in American life and policy. Such thoughts take us beyond Vietnam, but not beyond our calling as sons of the living God." Wed, 08 Feb 2006 00:51:30 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=93 President Bush is a liar. Now I know what you're think. Not another 'liberal' attacking the President. Well not here my friends. My beefs with President Bush have only two points: 1) Fiscal crazieness/disingenuousness 2) This ridiculous war in Iraq which is related to #1. Tax relief, as President Bush puts it, is very tangible for me as well. I pay more in Federal income taxes now that my yearly income used to be the first 5 years out of college. But tax relief is a dangerous proposition if they don't cut Federal spending across the board by at least 10% (I say 20%) immediately. Because the Federal government will have to issue more 10, 20 and 30 year Treasury bonds which will be snapped up by large overseas institutions. And then those will come due just as my son and my daughter are in there prime earning years. So I will be 65 and have to explain to them that we took a tax cut they they have to pay for. Unless we cut spending. If President Bush came out and said, we're cutting spending by 10% across the board, and giving each American a tax cut (especially the middle class which pays most of the taxes in the USA), I'd support him wearing a sandwich board next to the Take Back Sunday/Jesus Saves people in downtown Grass Valley. As much I think Senator and Presidential Candidate Barry Goldwater was a lunatic, he did have the courage in 1957 to stand up in the Senate and scream that the government is/was starting to fiscally spiral out of control. No ones willing to do that anymore because people want their tax cuts, or what want their social spending. We can't have both unless we want 1/2 of our country owned by foreign powers. Starving the beast, which has been the Republican tax strategy since the Reagan years just creates an emaciated and ineffective animal of a Federal Government. Continuing the social spending ala-Johnson-era Great Society stuff will create a fearful 1984ish government which can provide everything, but delivers nothing. Discuss/Comment Here. Thu, 02 Feb 2006 13:08:43 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=92 New Song. I Believed In You. It's slow moving and a little on the melancholy side and the instrumental in the beginning was a result of listening to too much Pink Floyd. Such is life. The mix is a little unbalanced on the bottom and needs to be tighter there. I also am thinking about adding a more complicated drum arrangement, but for now I'm keeping it simple like the song. So other than that, it's essentially all there. Click Here to Listen in the Windows Media Format. Click Here to hear the rest of my songs Mon, 26 Dec 2005 18:25:10 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=91 I'm not into Bush-bashing like some, but dang, this one's hilarious: Click for a Bigger Version. Many thanks to Djuna and Wendy for a great Christmas Card! This is a Classic and it shows impeccable taste! Mon, 26 Dec 2005 14:30:39 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=90 I find many of these "Religion in Public Life" lawsuits frivolous,, costly and stupid, however I would like to remind readers that we live in a Constitutional Republic and not a majority rules Democracy. So just because, for example, 77% of the voting population thinks that we should allow slavery to exist again if the slaves are Democrats, this still has to stand the scrutiny of the Constitution which is interpreted by the courts, not by Congress, the President, nor even the voters. There is a mountain of evidence that since the 19th Century the courts have cited more judicial/legal precedence over the years with the exception of the Warren courts in the 50s and 60s. So that pretty much shoots the whole 'activists courts' thing in the head. The complaint is that the courts (9th Circuit is arguably the exception) are less 'Constitutionally' and Precedence-based and therefore more 'activist'. So these complaints seem to have more basis in unfulfilled agendas (no gay marriage, environmentalists trying to prevent logging on private lands, no flag burning, etc) than anything connected with reality. That's why the uninformed, equally on both the Left and the Right, get so bent out of shape when we go to so much trouble in this State to pass a Proposition, only to have it thrown out of court for being unconstitutional. You can call that an 'activist court', but is what we call a balance of power: the greatest government achievement in the history of humanity. There's only one way around this: change the US Constitution to say, "The United States is a country that believes in one God and this is the official God of the Country". I suspect, however, that that 'One God' is a Judeo-Christian one. If you're an American Hindu, Native American or whatever, you are going to find it hard to believe that you're not a full citizen if you don't believe that. Comments Here Sat, 24 Dec 2005 18:29:01 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=89 I just figured out the true difference between the Blue and Red States here in the US. It comes down to food. 1) Red States cook a mean breakfast 2) Blue States cook a mean dinner. Comments here Sun, 04 Dec 2005 00:36:50 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=88 Oran & Jennifer Anne Miller are proud to announce the arrival of their son, Nicholas Alan. He was born November 14 in Ventura, CA and weighed 9 pounds exactly! Mom is doing well now and has even begun to return to her philosophy lectures at UCSB. The Miller's are currently living in family housing just off campus in cute Goleta. Dad is working as a designer from home and assembling his application to the MFA at UCSB. Both parents are adjusting their sleep habits to fit the baby's. Jennifer Anne said Friday, "Don't you just love our little meep! I love our meep!" Meanwhile, Dad is helping Nicholas with his curveball and slider. AP RKM--added picture. Sat, 03 Dec 2005 15:48:01 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=87 It's a bad day to be a Californian. The thing that bothers me most about this election was not so much how much it cost, but rather how people used this as a referendum against the Governor. Did anyone actually read the propositions or did they just take vote based on partisan ideology? The Governor, as I pointed out during the recall election, has very little power in this State. 70% of the State budget is already locked up by the legislative spending by law. And budgets = power. The problem is in the legislature, not the Governor’s office. That’s why we have this idiotic proposition system in the first place—to get around the legislature. Was I the only one who found it ironic that the Public Employees Union paid over 100 Million dollars to defeat Proposition 75? It was the proposition that was designed to give public workers more control over how their Union dues are spent. What an ironic waste. That’s $100 million that won’t be available to its Union Members. Regardless of what one thinks of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Proposition 76 was not only a good idea, but without it I believe we are fiscally doomed in this state. It was the most sensible proposition I’ve seen in years. What a novel concept: spending only what you take in. The reason we’re in this fiscal hole is because we spend more than we take in. I don’t understand why people have such trouble with this. We run our businesses and households this way, why does the government get a pass? It’s so maddening, that it makes me want to take a crap on the capitol steps. OK. So people that voted against Prop 76, the ball’s in your court. What’s the plan? My prediction: nothing will happen and people will blame the Governor. Discuss Here Wed, 09 Nov 2005 14:19:37 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=86 What? The most powerful name in news? What does power have with the news? Oh. Whoops. We're talking about FoxNews here. I know I used to think CNN was ridiculous. They'd have probably about 15-30 minutes per day of real news and the rest of the 24 hour days was filled with fluff and advertisements. But the FoxNews Channel takes this unnecessary formula to a new jingoistic low. They essentially have the same ridiculous format as CNN with a clear Republican Apologist slant. (Compare with CNN's Democrat slant). What makes FoxNews different is their claims: "We report, you decide" and "The most powerful name in news" and "Fair and Balanced". None of these claims are even remotely true and "The most powerful name in news" doesn't make any sense; it's categorically stupid. But heck, who ever said the chronic Television watcher had any critical thinking skills. Television is not the medium of the thinker, it's the platform of the entertained. We only need about 15 minutes of 'news' per day, if even that. These 24 hour 'News Channels' are not news. They're entertainment disguised as news. They really don't report on anything. At least CNN attempts to report on events. They end up reporting nothing. FoxNews has mastered the pundit as news form. But Hannity and Colmes, Bill O'Reilly, et al are not news. Let's say that louder: THEY'RE NOT NEWS! When I ask people why they watch CNN or FoxNews or whatever, they almost always say, "I watch _____<fill in the TV personality> because I agree with him/her on the issues." That's NOT news God Damn it.. That is, at best entertainment and worse narcissistic and self-satisfying folly. Discuss here Wed, 02 Nov 2005 13:13:40 -0800 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=85 I just had one of my songs professionally my at Blue Bear Sound in the great Province of Ontario. Bruce, the owner and head engineer there did a spectacular job taming my unruly mix. His handiwork on the mixing board really made a tremendous difference in the sonic quality of the song. Have a listen for yourself: Take a Look at Me (Blue Bear Sound Mix) Feel free to discuss this song here Fri, 28 Oct 2005 03:26:24 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=84 What is George W. Bush's position on Roe vs. Wade? Actually, he really doesn't care how people get out of New Orleans. Sun, 18 Sep 2005 02:33:55 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=83 The median age of “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” 11:00 p.m. (premiere) airing is 35, while its median income is $67,000. The median age of “The O’Reilly Factor” 8:00 p.m. (premiere) airing is 63, while its median income is $54,000. Viewers of “The Daily Show” are 78% more likely than the average adult to have four or more years of college education. Viewers of “The O’Reilly Factor” are only 24% more likely than the average adult to have four or more years of college education. Source: Nielsen Media Research Discuss Here: http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=55 Mon, 12 Sep 2005 23:47:52 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=82 I love this guy. I always have. He's one smart cookie. So I've been surfing around today, looking for rebuttals to Keith Olbermann's precise and devasting editorial regarding the way we handled hurricane Katrina. Most of the conservative blogs really can't keep up with his rhetoric. Most dissolve into personal attacks. So before you read the transcript of the editorial, please watch the video. Here's a summary: 1) The Administration that promised to protect us from terrorism and WMDs, couldn't protect us from the standing water. The Rhetoric from the Bush Administration was 100% bullshit? Where's Dick Cheney who last year thumped his chest and told Americans that if we voted for Kerry, more terror attacks would come. 2) While New Orleans is/was dying, our leaders told them (in the future tense mind you) to 'let them eat cake'. Here's the Windows Media video: http://www.kernmount.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Web_Links&file=index&req=visit&lid=88 And here's the transcript: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8514671/#050905a Discuss it Here Tue, 06 Sep 2005 23:23:24 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=81 I'm no Clinton supporter. Never voted for the man. In fact, I haven't voted Democrat since 1988. I usually vote Green or Libertarian depending on which party presents the less whacky candidate. But you gotta love this! What a bunch of scum hypocrites. ____________________________________________ Ironic Quotes from when Clinton committed troops to Bosnia "You can support the troops but not the president." --Rep Tom Delay (R-TX) "Well, I just think it's a bad idea. What's going to happen is they're going to be over there for 10, 15, maybe 20 years." --Joe Scarborough (R-FL) "Explain to the mothers and fathers of American servicemen that may come home in body bags why their son or daughter have to give up their life?" --Sean Hannity, Fox News, 4/6/99 "[The] President . . . is once again releasing American military might on a foreign country with an ill-defined objective and no exit strategy. He has yet to tell the Congress how much this operation will cost. And he has not informed our nation's armed forces about how long they will be away from home. These strikes do not make for a sound foreign policy." --Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) "American foreign policy is now one huge big mystery. Simply put, the administration is trying to lead the world with a feel-good foreign policy." --Rep Tom Delay (R-TX) "If we are going to commit American troops, we must be certain they have a clear mission, an achievable goal and an exit strategy." --Karen Hughes, speaking on behalf of George W Bush Thu, 18 Aug 2005 16:51:41 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=80 Comergent Technologies (the company I work for) has an immediate opening for a System Administrator; this junior to middle level candidate should have a firm understanding of UNIX-based servers, Networking Equipment, Internet Communications and Java applications in a hosted environment. There's a finder's fee which I will split with you if you help me find the right person. Here's the job description: Word Document Wed, 03 Aug 2005 12:17:44 -0700 http://www.kernmount.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=79 This Karl Rove 'controversy' is just as pointless as as the Clinton Whitewater thing. And probably just as silly (and a waste of time) as the Clinton/Monica Lewinsky thing. Both Democrats and Republicans should just get back to work. This partisan feeding frenzy and political hackery has to stop now because it's driving the country into the ground. It's also turning what once was an optimistic American electorate into a suspicious brood of cynics. Stop the partisan madness. You're turning this country into one big Jerry Springer show. No one is thinking objectively here. This is a complete waste of America's time. People don't like Bush and they love a 2nd term scandal. It's a perfect political storm. Thu, 14 Jul 2005 15:23:55 -0700