Political Stuff:

• Analysis: Why everyone is saying no to Obama
• U.S. regulator to unveil open Internet plan

Economic Stuff:

• HSBC bids farewell to dollar supremacy
• Sanctions and isolationism
• Car showrooms quiet after clunkers clamor ends
• Obama open to newspaper bailout bill
• US May Face ‘Armageddon’ If China, Japan Don’t Buy Debt – This article has a great video, which is below.

Recipe Stuff:

• Slow-Cooked Tomato and Herb White Beans – Haven’t made but plan to.
• Eggplants stuffed with ricotta and ham — Aubergines farcies à la ricotta et au jambon – Making on Tuesday!

Interesting Stuff:

• The Post–9/11 Roundup of Innocents
• US Detention Camps For Political Subversives

In 2002, FEMA sought bids from major real estate and engineering firms to construct giant internment facilities in the case of a chemical, biological or nuclear attack or a natural disaster. Okanogan County Commissioner Dave Schulz went public three years ago with his contention that his county was set to be a location for one of the camps. Alex Jones has attended numerous military urban warfare training drills across the US where role players were used to simulate arresting American citizens and taking them to internment camps.

• Halliburton Subsidiary Gets Contract to Add Temporary Immigration Detention Centers - (NYT Subscription)

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 — The Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a contract worth up to $385 million for building temporary immigration detention centers to Kellogg Brown & Root, the Halliburton subsidiary that has been criticized for overcharging the Pentagon for its work in Iraq.KBR would build the centers for the Homeland Security Department for an unexpected influx of immigrants, to house people in the event of a natural disaster or for new programs that require additional detention space, company executives said. KBR, which announced the contract last month, had a similar contract with immigration agencies from 2000 to last year.

The contract with the Corps of Engineers runs one year, with four optional one-year extensions. Officials of the corps said that they had solicited bids and that KBR was the lone responder.

A spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Jamie Zuieback, said KBR would build the centers only in an emergency like the one when thousands of Cubans floated on rafts to the United States. She emphasized that the centers might never be built if such an emergency did not arise.

“It’s the type of contract that could be used in some kind of mass migration,” Ms. Zuieback said.

• Jim Rogers Knows – His 10 Tips for a Successful Life
  • I think I should point out Jim’s list here and you can click the article for more.
    1. Conduct your own research and trust your own judgment.
    2. Focus on what you yourself love.
    3. Be persistent.
    4. Broaden your horizons and see as much of the world as you can.
    5. The most important thing you can learn is how to think and question everything you hear.
    6. Study and learn from history.
    7. Master more than one language – and make sure one of them is Mandarin.
    8. Don’t panic.
    9. Take care of yourself and don’t neglect the sunscreen.
    10. Remember that boys need girls more than girls need boys.

I was introduced to TED talks a few years ago.  Every now and again I remember to go and check them out as they are truly awesome talks that are very interesting and sometimes very inspiring. 

I came across the talk below yesterday and had never heard of Juan Enriquez.  I started to watch this video and was enthralled in just a few seconds of watching.  One thing I have read and heard about restring an economy after a bust is there needs to be a wave of innovation.  Juan thinks that wave is in the biotech industry.  I don’t disagree with him in the slightest, especially after seeing his case for it.  What I am worried about is after the bust of the biotech industry what is going to be the next wave of innovation to get us out of an economic disaster?

I think one of the major things that Juan misses here is discussing the root cause of economic cycles.  If he would only take a look at the Federal Reserve and talk about money creation and monetary policy it would go a long way in his presentation.  The fact that he completely omits it is disappointing.  He doesn’t leave his audience any smarter than when they came in, just more informed about the next bing innovation wave and opportunity for the Fed to create an environment to have malinvestments in ideas that shouldn’t be invested in due to cheap money.

At any rate, Fed monetary policy and the effects it has on investment and innovation is a whole other topic.  If you’d like a starting point I would suggest reading about the late 90’s dot com boom and bust.

Enjoy the video!

Food Stuff:

While browsing I came across this tidbit.  I guess I could be called a “foodie.”  Although, probably not as much as a foodie as others, but this next article would be a nice thing to see.  I don’t know how it would really pay for itself, considering how inexpensive stickers and label makers are.  Would still love to see it so I don’t have to pick off stickers or create stickers while at the super market.

Laser Labeling Coming Soon to Fruits, Vegetables

New laser labels. Photo: ARS/USDA.

Political Stuff:

This past weekend was the huge rally in Washington D.C. by the “Tea Party Express.”  The World Net Daily has a decent article about it.  The main thing I was looking for was a rough estimate of how many people where there.  It looks like there really is no “rough” estimate, thanks to our wonderful media outlets.

Though crowd estimates vary from as low as 60,000 to 70,000 according to ABC News to a high of 2 million by London Daily Mail, photographs and videos of the march and rally demonstrate its enormity. (WND)

It’s a good thing that Obama was fully aware of the rally taking place or was he?

The White House said Friday it was unaware of the rally. President Obama has traveled to Minneapolis, Minn., to promote his health-care plans at a rally there. (WND)

At any rate, below is a picture of the attendance.  You decide if you think it was a success or not.  Looks to me it was pretty successful and rivals some of the largest protests in our nation’s history.

Awesome Stuff:

This one needs no explanation.  It’s just awesome!

The Hurt Feelings Report – a.k.a. The Cry Me a River Whine Report

External Links:

• Juan Enriquez shares mindboggling science
• Laser Labeling Coming Soon to Fruits, Vegetables
• A million or more rock Washington
• The Hurt Feelings Report – a.k.a. The Cry Me a River Whine Report

For those of you that would like to purchase the bumper sticker you can visit Zazzle.com.  A preview of the product is below.

Awesome Stuff:
I love the show MythBusters. In fact I don’t get to watch it as much as I would like. However, thanks to the genius of the internet and Digg, where I found this gem, I can see some of the most awesome things that they do. Check out the below video. They take a million match heads and set them off. Talk about awesomeness!

Techie Stuff:
Check your unread Gmail from the command line
For all you techies out there this is for you!

Understanding Stuff:
Why It’s Called Pi
I’m very grateful that someone finally took the time to have a visual representation of how PIE got it’s name. Makes things so much easier to understand!

Art Stuff:
Crazy Contortionist Art: Bodies in Urban Spaces
I love this kind of “out of the box” thinking when creating “art” don’t you?

Ginormous Handknit Pink Bunny in the Alps
This is just so messed up I can see it sparking a new rage around the world!