I really can't see myself voting for McCain this election. I'd rather "throw my vote away" on a libertarian candidate. In a recent interview on Larry King Jesse Ventura sums up how bad our choices are better then I can. I agree with him, might as well vote none of the above.

Another site i use on a regular basis has been Pandora. This site lets you create stations seeded by your favorite bands and songs and plays other similar songs based on your selections. The songs they have in their library have been reviewed by music experts on many levels so its not as simple as just having a matching genre.

I do not write this by candlelight to pretend the year is 1776, but rather as an attempt to draw on the mood of our founding fathers as I consider the current state of affairs. This letter goes out to each person who is greatly concerned with the direction our great country is going.

In this momentous election year, with only 6.5% of the delegates decided, and with many primaries just around the corner, we do well for ourselves and our future generations to step back from the busyness of the moment, to thoughtfully consider, and then to make our voice heard.

I have discovered a candidate who truly loves this country, who consistently votes for the benefit of those he represents, and whose integrity is unmatched. While several other candidates are currently listed on the "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians" for 2007 list by Judicial Watch, you see a striking difference when you look at Dr. Ron Paul, who refuses to accept the congressional retirement program offered him because he has gone to Washington and remembered it is the people he represents who have to pay the bill for such things. Dr. Paul is the one candidate who consistently votes to reduce the tax-burden on hard-working Americans. While the other candidates promise more programs, Dr. Paul speaks out and votes against ever-increasing amounts of our paycheck going to the federal government, which tends to offer cookie-cutter solutions and includes more waste as it increases the layers of bureaucracy.

As for illegal immigration, again we see that Dr. Paul is guided by the principles that made this country great - freedom and opportunity, balanced with the rule of law. Dr. Paul makes sense when he says that you get more of something when you reward it. Therefore, in order to address this issue, we must secure the border, but we must also not have amnesty or birthright citizenship which motivate people to come illegally. For centuries, America has stood as a beacon of hope and a land of opportunity to the world; hope and opportunity that with hard work and ingenuity, one could enjoy the fruits of one's labor. But to systematically reward me with the fruits of your labor is ultimately de-motivating for both sides work ethic. Even where I thought it would be generous of me to help with my resources, it would be immoral for me to steal from you to "be generous" to others. Dr. Paul believes in motivating those that work hard by fair (lower) taxation, not in rewarding illegal behaviors by increased taking from the hard-working.

On matters of national defense, pretty much everyone agrees now that we went into Iraq on false pretense of threat to our safety as a nation. If we intended to invade to overthrow a cruel dictator, then we should have made it clear that was the mission, and we should have done it with well-laid plans for short-term military success and long-term stability and peace. I have the utmost respect and appreciation for each American who has enlisted to defend our country. But did not our founding fathers recognize the danger of absolute power corrupting absolutely when they carved checks and balances into our county's foundation? America needs a future president that is strong enough to resist the urge to take the power intended for congress to declare war. Following 9-11, when much of our countries leadership was pushing war, Dr. Paul voted in favor of going after the people involved in the attack, but was speaking out strongly in Congress against invading Iraq, who wasn't involved in 9-11. Isn't that what we need as a leader - someone with the foresight, clear thinking and wisdom to guide our nation in times of difficulty?

Similarly, a clear contrast can be seen between Dr. Paul and the other candidates in the recent discussion about Iran. While it appears that most of the candidates approach the discussion with the mentality of the local playground bully (with an arsenal of threats and intimidation), Dr. Paul speaks with wisdom, rather than more aggressive rhetoric that escalates the conflict. It greatly concerns me that some of these guys seem like they can't wait to get their hands on the "trigger button." When this country experiences a real external threat, we will have no shortage of volunteer troops to defend us. But with our troops spread so thin in police actions around the world, a draft is inevitable, and probably will be here soon with the current direction. The choice is ours: strength, wisdom and tact, or almost constant fighting.

It is worth noting that Dr. Paul comes to politics with a background as a physician, not as another lawyer. Our country needs a leader who can approach difficult issues to bring needed change toward good health for America, not special interests. Lobbyists pushing special interests go right past his door because he can't be bought. Another strong interest of his is the economy and monetary policy. He has studied these issues extensively, and I don't see any other candidate knowledgeable enough to debate with the fed chairman the short vs. long-term impact of the feds intervention and impact on the economy. Our economy cannot afford to have the leadership of this country anything less than well-studied on these and related issues.

Lastly, on the issue of electability, a Republican will win the Republican nomination, and that is for certain. But I would argue that the Republican Party would do itself no favor to bring to the November election another voice that echoes the same old thing you hear from the current administration. In fact, if our nominee sounds like they will offer four more years of the same, I will wonder if the Republican Party strategists were hijacked by the Democrats. Trouble on the economic home-front and trouble abroad plus four more years isn't exactly a recipe for success, no matter how unappealing the other options are. Meanwhile, Dr. Paul garners support from every spectrum of the political rainbow, not because he promises the government can give the pot of gold, but rather because he stands for hard-work, personal responsibility, freedom, and opportunity, within the rule of law. Isn't that what made us the envy of the world?

Yes, there is a lot at stake. The future is shaped by our actions now. If you want to vote for the status quo, there are plenty of others to choose from. But serious concerns on our shores and abroad require serious solutions to move us back in the right direction. With only less than 10% of the votes cast to determine the Republican nominee, let’s just go ahead and give the remaining 90% to the good doctor - representing Hope for America - Dr. Ron Paul.

David A. Shinn
Chattanooga

There is a huge online buzz about this guy. There is also tons of video about Ron Paul on YouTube so getting up to speed on him is easy to do. Here are some videos I recommend to start with.

- Summary of Ron Paul

- Ron Paul at South Carolina Debate
- Ron Paul in New Hampshire Debate
- Ron Paul educates Guiliani on Terrorism
Ron Paul at Iowa Rally (These links are the best for getting details on policies he supports.)
- Economy
- Economics of Foreign Policy
- Non Intervention Politics
- Health of the State in a time of war.
- Liberty

The Main Stream Media, particularly Fox News, is just not giving this guy the credit he deserves. Although he's not doing strong yet in telephone polls remember that lots of people these days don't have land lines(Like myself and every one of my friends). Those are the same people are likely to find out about candidates on their own though the internet. I'll give three examples of just how biased Fox News is against this guy.
- Ron Paul rocking a Text Page Poll following the FOX Republican debate

- Ron Paul being talked about on Fox News about his belief that perhaps our Foreign Policy has something to do with Terrorism. *Keep in mind Ron Paul does not believe the conspiracies about Bush knowing about the 9/11 attacks prior to them happening and does not believe it was a missile that hit the pentagon.
- One more attempt to link him to some crazy people. Look at how well he handles the attack. Imagine Bush trying to stand up to this kind of questioning.

With Main Stream Media still not giving him the attention he deserves, if you like his message, pass it on to others. Tell them to go search on Google and YouTube about his view, speeches, and writings.

Aerospace companies and government space agencies are working on a wide variety of methods to capture, store, organize, and distribute key knowledge from space experts and missions to explore space and the Earth around us. These successful methods often involve a set of policies, processes, people, and technologies in order to accomplish the goals of the organization. This conference looks to bring together that distributed group and provide a forum for shared understanding and conversations in how organizations are successfully managing knowledge for space missions and how we can, as a global community, do so in the future.

International Workshop on Managing Knowledge for Space Missions
Where: California Institute of Technology, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Pasadena, California, USA
When:July 17-19, 2007
More Info:km.nasa.gov (http://km.nasa.gov/home/event_KMMarch2007_detail.html)

There is a call for presentations and papers
Abstracts due May 18!

This workshop will

Provide a forum for the space community to discuss current activities in space missions and knowledge management, share best practices, and provide focused discussion on specific topics
Communicate and bring focus to applied knowledge management activities oriented in the space missions arena

Who Should Attend?
Aerospace industry and contractors
Government space agencies
Academic researchers in applied methods (students are encouraged)
Knowledge management professionals focused on the aerospace community

Conference Format
Keynote and all-session lectures
Exhibitor area and demonstrations (vendors and case studies from organizations)
Break out focus topics (half or full day)
Birds of a feather lunches
Panel discussions
Fee ($150 USD)

If you have any questions, please check out the web site or contact Jeanne Holm at Jeanne.Holm@jpl.nasa.gov.

Rapidly Cooled Last Minute Espresso Martinis
* Your favorite expresso martini recipe can easily be substituted.

1 shot of espresso
1/2 shot of baileys
1/2 shot kalluha
2 shots vanilla vodka (I use Stolli)

Take a large bowl and fill with ice, water and salt. I got the idea for salt water vs. regular water from a Myth Busters Episode where they experiment with ways to rapidly chill a 6 pack.

Make your espresso. Pour the very hot fresh espresso in a large zip lock bag and then place the bag into the iced salt water bath making sure to not let any of the salt water mix with the espresso. Add in the other ingredients and mix while still in the bag. The mixture was chilled in only a few minutes when I did it. For an added chill you can place ice water in your martini glasses and empty it before serving like some martini bars do it.

Vertically integrated knowledge management systems, also sometimes referred to a stove piped systems, collect and disseminate information to a specific business unit up and down the chain of command. An example of vertical integration would be a system used by only the sales group that collects information about sales leads and disseminates that information to individuals throughout the chain of command.

The majority of information systems today are more vertically integrated then horizontally integrated. Reasons for this include political, technical, and financial reasons such as:

• Maintaining tighter control of who can view information.
• The system is funded by a specific business unit that does not want to spend the additional resources to disseminate information to different groups.
• Older software typically did not have the ability to easily share data with other systems without significant custom programming.
• Fear of "dirty laundry" being scene by other business sectors.

As with any KM system Technology alone will get you no where. A good approach to improve horizontal integration is to first develop scenarios or use cases detailing ways in which information can effectively be utilized between sectors. These scenarios can be used to develop requirements and also make the case to management on why improvements to the infrastructure need to be made. The rest of the development lifecycle should utilize a traditional Systems Engineering Approach however now you have new technologies in your toolbox you can leverage to implement your solution more effectively.

1 small fresh ripe pineapple, with leaves attached
1 medium onion, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
8 mushrooms, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 sweet red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut in 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 sweet orange or yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut in 1/2-inch cubes
8 to 10 raw large shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 tablespoons butter
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 tablespoons rum or brandy

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Using a sharp knife, cut pineapple in half lengthways from top to bottom, leaving leafy crown on each half. Leaving a 1/2-inch-thick shell, remove the core and flesh; discard core and cut half of pineapple flesh into 1/2-inch chunks (reserve remaining pineapple for another use); set aside. NOTE: Be careful not to puncture the shell of the pineapple because it will be used for serving the finished dish. Turn the empty pineapple skins upside down on a tray to drain.

Place the pineapple shells with fronds still attached on a rimmed baking sheet. Wrap pineapple tops in aluminum foil to prevent browning. Warm in the oven until ready to serve. When ready to use, Remove from oven and place on individual serving plates.

In a large frying pan or wok over medium-high heat, sauté shrimp in butter for approximately 4 to 5 minutes or until shrimp have turned pink and opaque in center (cut to test). Remove from pan with a slotted spoon or spatula to a plate; set aside.

Add onion, mushrooms, and bell peppers to hot butter; sauté approximately 5 minutes or until vegetables are slightly soft. Add pineapple, shrimp, and black pepper, stirring until just warm. Remove from heat. Using a slotted spoon, divided the pineapple mixture among the hot pineapple shells. Sprinkle lightly with shredded coconut.

In a small saucepan, heat the rum just until bubbles begin to form around the edges. Can also be heated in a microwave oven by heating 30 to 45 seconds in a microwave-proof dish at 100 percent power.

To serve, ignite warm rum with a long match. NOTE: Always ignite the fumes and not the liquid itself. Never lean over the dish or pan as your light the fumes. Using a ladle, pour flaming rum over each pineapple boat.

For additional information on how to flambé, click here.

Makes 2 servings.

• Swell Magnet - This is my favorite site for getting good, up to date, reliable local surf reports. They simply have people go out every morning (sometimes evening) and tell you what the conditions are first hand. They also post some good pics.
• Surfline - This is probably the biggest worldwide surf site. They have lots of extras like graphics and charts that are useful but require a subscription to their site. Their forecast and webcams are free.
• PacificWaveRider.com - This isn't my favorite site but has some good surfing pics on it.
• Wavewatch.com - This site has the best graphical way to understand the different swells coming at you. It may lack first hand forecasts but is still a site you need to check out when figuring out where to go.
• WetSand.com - This site has a pretty good overall SoCal Surf Forecast with some decent graphics for swell.
• www.oceanweather.com/ - This is a pretty good winter link. You can see the storms coming from Alaska and where the energy is going to hit.
• WannaSurf.com - This site is good to see all the different breaks in So Cal and see what they all about. I used this site to initially learn about the local scene and go back to it when there is a road trip planned to a new far off spot.

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From the drudge report

In the ad, Zucker, producer of SCARY MOVIE 4, recreates former Clinton Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's 2000 visit to North Korea. During the visit, Secretary Albright presented North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il with a basketball autographed by former NBA superstar Michael Jordan.

An actress playing Secretary Albright is shown presenting Kim Jong Il with the Michael Jordan basketball, painting the walls of Osama bin Laden's Afghanistan cave and turning a blind eye to suicide bombers. In one scene her skirt rips as she changes the tire of a Middle Eastern dictator's limousine.

One GOP strategist said "jaws dropped" when the ad was first viewed. "Nobody could believe Zucker thought any political organization could use this ad. It makes a point, but it's way over the top."

Zucker is the producer and director of comedies such as "Airplane" and "The Naked Gun." In 2004, Zucker, a longtime Democrat, embraced the Republican Party based on concerns he had about national security issues and voted for President George W. Bush.