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Bryan Strawser

Lebron? Who cares. But Comic Sans, really?

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 9, 2010

I could care less about Lebron…

That said, the letter that was written by Dan Gilbert, the owner of the Cleveland Cavs, Lebron’s former team, was published using the Comic Sans font.

Do people still actually use that thing? Egads.

Filed Under: Technology

Latest Livestrong Commercial: Engine

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 9, 2010



Filed Under: Cycling

Federal Judge Rules Part Of DOMA Unconstitutional | TPM LiveWire

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 8, 2010

What?! You mean the power of the federal government isn’t unlimited? Shocking.

A federal judge ruled today that part of the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman, is unconstitutional.

Judge Joseph Tauro, of U.S. District Court in Boston, issued rulings on two separate cases today.

"This court has determined that it is clearly within the authority of the Commonwealth to recognize same-sex marriages among its residents, and to afford those individuals in same-sex marriages any benefits, rights, and privileges to which they are entitled by virtue of their marital status," Tauro wrote in the decision for Massachusetts v. Health and Human Services.

"The federal government, by enacting and enforcing DOMA, plainly encroaches upon the firmly entrenched province of the state, and, in doing so, offends the Tenth Amendment. For that reason, the statute is invalid," he wrote.

In the other case, Gill v. Office of Personnel Management, Tauro ruled that DOMA violates the equal protection principles in the Fifth Amendment, according to Bay Windows. From his decision (PDF):

via Federal Judge Rules Part Of DOMA Unconstitutional | TPM LiveWire.

Filed Under: Politics

Jersey Swaps, a Ritual That Comes With a Story – NYTimes.com

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 7, 2010

The exchanging of jerseys at the end of a soccer match is a longtime ritual that is well established in the sport, even as it has evolved. With each swap — like the ones that take place after games in this World Cup — there is usually a story.

Often the tales are personal, speaking to a player’s standing in the game or marking a chapter in his career.

As for the jerseys themselves, sometimes they are washed, sometimes not. Sometimes they end up being given away, auctioned off, framed for display in a player’s home, boxed up in storage, or — as Berhalter learned — who knows where?

via Jersey Swaps, a Ritual That Comes With a Story – NYTimes.com.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

At least one liberal gets the 2nd amendment

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 5, 2010

And he’s posting Over at the DailyKOS of all places – in this piece Why Liberals should love the Second Amendment:

When it comes to discussing the Second Amendment, liberals check rational thought at the door. They dismiss approximately 40% of American households that own one or more guns, and those who fight to protect the Second Amendment, as “gun nuts.” They argue for greater restrictions. And they pursue these policies at the risk of alienating voters who might otherwise vote for Democrats.

And they do so in a way that is wholly inconsistent with their approach to all of our other civil liberties.

Those who fight against Second Amendment rights cite statistics about gun violence, as if such numbers are evidence enough that our rights should be restricted. But Chicago and Washington DC, the two cities from which came the most recent Supreme Court decisions on Second Amendment rights, had some of the most restrictive laws in the nation, and also some of the highest rates of violent crime. Clearly, such restrictions do not correlate with preventing crime.

So rather than continuing to fight for greater restrictions on Second Amendment rights, it is time for liberals to defend Second Amendment rights as vigorously as they fight to protect all of our other rights. Because it is by fighting to protect each right that we protect all rights.

The author goes on to write quite an impressive piece. There’s already nearly two thousand comments as of the time of this writing, I’m sure there will be more soon.

Filed Under: Firearms, Politics

Godwin’s Law at its best

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 5, 2010

Patriotism leads to fascism:

You see, I don’t believe in patriotism.

You can call me unpatriotic if you’d like, but really I’m anti-patriotic.

I’ve been studying fascism lately, and there is one inescapable fact about it:

  • Nationalism is the egg that hatches fascism.
  • And patriotism is but the father of nationalism.
  • Patriotism is not something to play with. It’s highly toxic. When ingested, it corrodes the rational faculties.
  • It gulls people into believing their leaders.
  • It masks those who benefit most from state policy.
  • And it destroys the ability of people to get together, within the United States and across boundaries, to take on those with the most power: the multinational corporation.

  • Plus, it’s a war toy, wheeled out whenever a leader needs to improve his ratings by attacking some other country—often after invoking God’s name, too.

Who knew!

Filed Under: Politics

What’s in my bag 2010

by Bryan Strawser · Jul 3, 2010

It’s been three years since I’ve written about What’s in my Bag, so it’s finally time to update this list of what I decide to tote around with me.

The Bag

Four years ago, I switched from my trusty Brenthaven bag of several years over to a Tumi Nylon Briefcase capable of holding my then-17″ Macbook Pro. Four years later, I’m still trekking along with the indestructible Tumi bag. It has nary a tear or a blemish. Hands down the best bag that I’ve ever owned.

Unfortunately, the bag isn’t always suitable for some cross-country trips. In those cases, I switch to a Swiss Army backpack with a laptop padded compartment.

Between the two bags, we’ve been to several states, the UK, Germany, France, and India together over the past four years – and we’ll see some other places together before my time here ends. Both have served me well.

The Technology

  • 15″ Apple MacBook Pro. Earlier this year, my 3.5 year old 17″ MacBook Pro started having some power and logic board issues. Soon after the latest generation of MacBooks were released, I bought a stock lower-end 15″ MacBook Pro and haven’t looked back. The current generation of machines come swimming in hard drive space and RAM – and I haven’t seen a need to upgrade anything with this one. It’s my lead non-work machine.
  • Dell Latitude D630 Laptop. For work, this is my windows based portable machine. It’s a lot heavier than my MacBook Pro and nowhere near as capable, but I live in a Microsoft windows world at work – and when I need to actually do work on the road, this machine comes along. Mine has a privacy screen on it so that folks can’t see what I’m up to as I travel.
  • Apple iPad 3G+Wifi (64GB). I came a bit late to the iPad game, but purchased one, along with the bluetooth wireless keyboard. I’ve taken several trips with nothing but the iPad and my keyboard for computing, email, and communication needs. I’ve found it to be an invaluable tool for reading, entertainment, games, and general productivity. Hopefully I’ll be able to sync my work e-mail on it at some point in the future, then I will be traveling with my laptop far less than I do today.
  • Apple iPhone4 (32GB, Black). I was upgrade eligible and received the new phone on June 23rd. This is been my main personal phone for three years, back to the original iPhone, and my main work phone for well over a year. It has been the single best productivity aid and communications device in my personal and professional career.
  • iPod (60GB). I’m still using my Apple iPod from four years ago – nearly crammed with music and videos at 60GB. I haven’t seen a need to upgrade. Using the new Shure SE420 headphones – expensive, but worth it for the sound. At work, this sits in an iHome dock.
  • Verizon MiFi 2200 portable hotspot. As I have a redundant need to be able to be on-line no matter where I am due to the role I hold at work, the MiFi helps me fulfill that need by providing a portable hotspot for up to four connections at once. I’ve used this extensively throughout the United States to great affect.
  • Levenger Notebook – I use leather three-ring binder from Levenger to hold my daily schedule, executive summaries, tasks, and various notes as I motor throughout my day. My tabs and some forms are custom made based on how I like to organize and plan. I also use several forms from David Seah’s various productivity tools.
  • Amazon Kindle2. Last year, a co-worker talked with me glowingly about his Kindle, I wound up ordering one that very night. It’s been one of the best devices I’ve ever owned, I’ve hardly purchased a paper book since picking up the Kindle last March. I carry it in a simple Amazon Kindle case.
  • Business Cards. I carry between 100-200 business cards for work at all times. I’m constantly running into folks at conferences, etc, that are interested in exchanging cards. Besides, Target business cards are cool!
  • Moleskin notebooks. I use a wide variety of Moleskin products. Some larger notebooks I use for specific projects, the smaller notebooks that are pocket-sized I use for store visits or just for jotting down notes as I wander about town. I’ve never found a better notepad.

What’s in your bag?

Filed Under: Business, Technology

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