I finally got my blog off the ground, and I figure its time to give credit where credit is due.

I have wanted to start some kind of blog ever since I became a regular reader of Wonkette, but my early attempt at Blogger fell flat. Freelancing left me with a lot of time to find other blogs that I enjoyed reading, and I now have well over 100 blogs on my Netvibes.

So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.

Genesis 11: 8-9

The movie Babel follows the story of several groups of people that are spread out across the world.

There it is, I said it, open-source has achieved victory at last!

Ever think about how much time you spend at www.google.com?

A blogger over at Ecoiron decided to do the math and figure out how much energy was being used on a given day by people searching.

The latest buzzword to hit the business world is Corporate Social Responsibility. CSR basically means corporations doing more than they have to to help their employees and their customers lead better lives.

Love is the only thing we have to share
Don't you forget that I hope you hear
Sending my message to you out there
I hope you get it clear, yeah
Do not mistake me
And mistake every sound
Whenever you see my face
Always a smile
Counteracts a frown

Jah Cure - Love Is

The question is, what exactly does an employer owe its employees?

As many people know the United States is the worst offender in providing quality benefits for its employees. Lets compare some figures...

Paid Maternity Leave

United States - 0 days

Afghanistan - 90 days at 100%

Sweden - 480 days at 80% (cost shared with the government)

Look on the label of almost any processed food and one ingredient always shows up. High Fructose Corn Syrup. HFCS is created by processing corn into a sugar like substance. This substance keeps longer than conventional sugar as well as being cheaper to produce. But what is the real cost of high fructose corn syrup?

High fructose corn syrup has gotten some recent bad press related to products that were almost entirely HFCS being labeled as "all natural". This deceptive practice should surely be illegal with the high rates of obesity in this country, but we had to wait for the Center for Science in the Public Interest to file a lawsuit to have it stop.

Tired of paying your local provider for the privilege of heating your home? A man in East Amwell New Jersey has become completely energy independent.

Michael Strizki's has a barn near his house that has its roof completely covered with solar panels. Inside that barn water is converted into hydrogen during the more sunny summer months, the hydrogen is stored for less sunny days during the winter.

The setup at this home cost almost $500,000 dollars, which is far more than the cost of using conventional means to heat a home for 30+ years.

For those of you who aren't in the "know" RPCV stands for returned Peace Corps Volunteer. Chris Dodd a RPCV and Senator from Connecticut has decided to run for President.

Knowing that Dodd spent two years in the Dominican Republic and is fluent in Spanish seals the deal for me.

As I recall Bush had hardly left the country before he became President never-mind actually living abroad.

I realize that most people are more excited about Obama's announcement today but...

Can anyone say Obama / Dodd 2008 ?