Jan. 2011, A Silicon Valley software engineer tells me " We are still in GeekWorld with computers and software that are still too difficult and unsafe for most people to use."

Where, for instance, is the spam email blocker that recognizes the address and blocks it FOREVER on your list of unwanted email addresses ?

jan.2011,,,Problems with the Calfornia State Lotteries:1)tickets get moldy black too soon and are UNREADABLE,,,2)most clerks will not tell you to check/claim your ticket within 180 DAYS/6 months !!,,,and 3) lots of clerks will steal your winning ticket with a "not a winner" !!

and so it goes,,,

'ca-ca' California state law says if you are hit by accident debris on our state freeways,,,YOU ,not the responsible causal party, has to PAY OUT OF YOUR OWN POCKET

No wonder the CHP are so negligent about big accident scenes on our state highways, since state law--written by and for the state car insurance companies probably--says if you are not directly involved/hit by a multi-car collision, then only hit by the flying debris,,,YOU HAVE TO PAY OUT OF YOUR OWN POCKET !!


Gee,,, the insurance companies got what they wanted:all 'ca-ca' California drivers must buy car insurance. Now they limit their normal and fair liability by saying "pay for your own blown tires, bent wheel alignment requiring after-market Acura products to fix to original specs, and any and all body damage".  


Gee,,, Isn't is nice how the insurance companies got what they wanted,,,and we Californians got SCREWED, again !!?

Highway 101 goes right thru SF on Van Ness and Lombard Street,,, but SF ,not the state, is responsible for clearing breakdowns and accidents on that formerly computer timed lights major traffic street !!

SF dispatchers are too slow-incompetent.

And the SFPD cops do not do parking tickets or traffic jams, that goes to DPT, the meter maids and seldom seen also traffic directors in flashy vests,,,

So, again, don't count on the State of California ,,, it is leaving a major highway, 101, and 1 !! ,,, up to incompetent SF.

If you are going to SF and want to experience the Chinese culture,,,without paying the airfare to Commie China,,,enjoy STOCKTON STREET during the day !!

You may not want to take the little kids into the 'live markets' (butcher) ,,,but don't miss the fortune cookie factory on Ross Alley, since fortune cookies were invented in SF , by mr. hagiwara, a japanese-american, at golden gate park in the japanese tea garden in 1894 !! during the first world fair in SF.


Also, built on sand underground parking garages,,,one of the fish stews chippino, levi's the gold rush tents-cut-into-'jean' genoa sailor baggy pants,,, the martini whatever nyc says,,,1874 cable cars on clay street and nob hill,,,


Enjoy !!


Recommend you ride a cable car on the safer right side boarding at union square vs the 1-3hr line at market street,,,walk for free across the golden gate bridge about a mile vs pay $25 to go direct to jail alcatraz,,,and see 'beach blanket babylon' sold out for 25 yrs comedy on green near columbus in the former italian neighborhood n.beach !!

San Francisco ,,,Jan.2011,,,and San Francisco Bay Area are AM-FM Radio DESERTS !! With DEREGULATION, is this what we and the politicians WANTED !!

Soft Jazz 103.7fm is GONE,,,and not replaced in SF or the SFBayArea.  More rock and roll on that station now,,,


NOW ,,, 102.1fm is GONE,,CLASSICAL MUSIC,,, and ,despite some complaints by the effete that it was not good enuf, will be HARD TO REPLACE.


Where is the Hawaiian music?
Where is the ,,, Jamaican music?
We use to get Blues Music on Sundays,,,
from 'the house of blues' folks,,,so why not 24-7?
Where is the folk music?
Where is the funk music?
98.1 does a great job playing disco gold!
Where is the 2 or 3 classical music stations?
We have lots of rock and roll,,,
Some country,,,
But not much else.


7 MILLION people live in the SFBayArea and yet there is a virtual am-fm music DESERT around San Francisco !!  9 counties, lots of diversity, but very little diversity to listen to on AM/FM radio, and i am not talking satellite radio.


We have one or two "20? NEW but yet tasteless" stations,,,


But where is the station playing all the popular music in WESTERN EUROPE ??


And no Japanese modern music either,,,


What are the Aussie's listening too ?


And not one African music station,,,!?


Do Canadians listen to music,,, or just the big empty ,,, ??


We have a few Mexican music and Mexican language stations, if you like to listen to mariachi 'zapatos stepping on los gatos' ear-piercing music,,,


So, yes, we have lots of Rock and roll, even unnecessary 103.7fm,,, and some Country,,, and some Mexican ,,,but where is the Brazilian !!??  They have lots of great music and musicians,,,


And not one French music and language station !! Sacre bleu !!


What kinda 'cultural capital' is SF if it has so little am-fm radio diversity, when it has such a DIVERSE POPULATION !!??


I use to listen to the German music on Sunday's for a few hours, but can not find even that any more,,,


Is this the best the SFBayArea politicians can do ??  Is this the best we can expect from the much touted, supposedly great but disastrous "deregulation" of most things, like home gas and electric-- got Gov. Grey Davis FIRED immediately for the first time in California history-- and airlines--how do YOU like those long long long OVER 3 HOUR WAITS ON INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS??-- and banking--bet you are enjoying all your free time with all these massive layoffs, massive OVER 12 % UNEMPLOYMENT caused by bankers and a.r.m. mortgages, and huge bank bailout and BANK PROFITS , during this second only to the Great Depression economic morass, eh ?--and 'deregulation' of the am-fm radio stations.


So,,, is this as good as "deregulation" gets !?

Jan.2011, President Obama's new PR push is "PROMISES KEPT",,,BUT how about SHOCKING UNCHARACTERISTIC SURPRISES NEVER MENTIONED AS BEING HIS POSITION IN THE CAMPAIGN, CHANGE-A-ROONIE !!??

The American Federal Inspector General in Washington , D.C. has found several rich and unethical drug companies guilty of stealing from hospitals, AGAINST THE LAW !!, and so President Obama ,,, has decided to 'change' campaign direction ,,, AND SUPPORT THE ILLEGAL UNETHICAL STEALING OVER-CHARGING IN-THE-WRONG DRUG COMPANIES !!  Gee, why did none of us see that one coming ,,, out of our President's campaign for 'change' ??


Santa Clara County in Silicon Valley , San Jose, California is leading the charge against the ILLEGAL OVERCHARGING AND STEALING BY THESE UNETHICAL TOO-RICH DRUG COMPANIES.  


BUT our President, Mr. Obama, is on the side of the already PROVEN GUILTY BY AMPLE EVIDENCE DRUG COMPANIES.  Is this some kind of "you scratch my back and get me elected and i will scratch your back" GREAT REASON TO MAKE CAMPAIGNS PUBLICLY FUNDED AND GET OUT !! all THIS CORRUPT CAMPAIGN CORPORATE AND RICH- BASTARD MONEY ??  That is what this looks like. The President certainly is not on the public or the right vs wrong ,,, or even the RULE OF LAW'S side.  Lawyers !!


Yeah, this is a subject i want to see the President B.S. his way out of !!

Why is it, Jan.2011, that super-profitable but still mediocre Microsoft Hotmail does not have a JUNK LIST than you can permanently delete the same SPAM from the same ANNOYING UNWELCOME BUSINESSES ,,, from ever ,unless you change your mind and the LIST, SHOWING DAILY ON YOUR HOTMAIL EMAIL !!??

For those of us hard or seeing, ok , over 50, why can't we STILL NOT SET A FONT SIZE FOR ALL EMAILS,,,it is our dam email account,,,or is Microsoft just too indifferent to the wishes of its fooled and cheated customers?

MACY'S.com has a pretty good seach for , say, men's socks ,,, but it could be MUCH BETTER with a few more filters

Today i went from 'men' to 'underwear and socks' to 'socks' to:
customer rating?
color? 
price?
brand?
size/oversize?


but the website search could be BETTER with:


made where ?  USA? china? other?
length of sock? quarter, crew length, half-calf, full-calf
content? all synthetic, or all cotton, or 'cotton-poly'
store availability?

Do many Men really prefer half-calf socks ,,, to full-calf socks ,that don't fall down all the time , almost immediately !!??

i think half-calf socks are one of the WORST male fashion design ideas ever !!  (they don't stay up)


What is your worst male fashion idea ever ?

NORDSTROM.com has a pretty good website search for, say, socks,,, but it could be MUCH BETTER with a few more filters

You can search 'mens' ,,, to 'socks' ,,, to 'size' ,,, and 'color' ,,, and 'price' ,,, and 'brand' ,,, and 'store availability'.


But wouldn't it be better to also have the filters :
1-made in USA ,,,or china ,,, or guam ? 
2-length of ,,, quarter socks, crew length, half calf, or full-calf?
3-content of all synthetic ,,,or all cotton ,,, or cotton-poly ?
4-big and tall ,,,or special sizing  , like 'diabetic socks'?
5-customer rating ,,,by one to 5 stars ?

Why doesn't every product site, like Nordstrom and Macy's, have a "MADE IN USA,,,or OTHER" filter option ?

Given a choice of buying 'made in USA' , but not puerto rico or guam,,, or 'made in china' and thus putting us deeper in debt to them, i believe most consumers want to know where there purchased goods were made.  And they should have that information before sale, not after !

COSTCO.COM does not list CLOTHING, but they sell tons of it. Strange,,,

Do not buy their men's cotton boxer underwear , by "Hathaway Sport" or "Arrow" ,,, as they will stretch out to 3 leg legs in less than 3 hours !!  VERY INFERIOR PRODUCTS ,,, sold to unsuspecting shoppers !!

Mrs. Maggie Rodriguez: You did a great job on CBS Early Show, We miss you, and Best Wishes

Such at-ease confidence, humor with balance, focus on what the viewer's want vs wandering too far into silliness, and beauty.

HOnda-ACura has made cars ,,,without rear wheel camber ADJUSTABLE rods,,,and without front wheel caster ADJUSTABILITY. Best look elsewhere for a Quality Car,,,

My 2000 Acura Integra does not have Adjustable rear camber ,,, nor front Adjustable caster !!   WHAT JAPANESE SHIT IS THIS ??!!


The neighbor's 2005 Honda Accord doesn't either !!
SSShhhiiittt,,,


And with either Integra or Accord , if your timing belt breaks then Y0UR ENGINE SELF-DESTRUCTS.
Not with a Toyota MR2.


HOnda, you make crappy cars ,,, to sell in USA !!

Have you noticed,,, how OFTEN Comcast has the tv schedule WRONG !!?? Like tonight the sked says "Critic Choice" yet it is a Jackass movie !!

That is so sloppy , careless and incompetent.
Guess Comcast is wasting all that PR-b.s. $ on telling us how 'responsible' their good service 'guarantee' is ,,,

The best and cheapest PC/computer repair store in Silicon Valley, San Jose, Ca. ,,, in my opinion ,,, is "MERIDIAN" at the N.E.corner of Meridian and Hamilton

Small place,,, but very fair prices and quality workmanship !!

Soon 'health food stores' might have the pick date on vegetables,,,WOULDN'T THAT BE GREAT?!!

We consumers would know where, chile?, and when, weeks ago?, some fruit or vegetable WAS PICKED !!

The "a.t.&t. real Yellow Pages ,,, No longer has a green cross directory ,,, and darn few listings for Men's Clothing ,,,, in Silicon Valley. So why waste paper on such a half-ass job ?

Remember back when Pacific Bell had free and polite 411 information operators ,,, ?

San Francisco,2011, is still THE WILD WEST: Some(see"60MINUTES" tv show) rude camera "sale sale sale" stores still sell second rate cameras to unsuspecting tourists, SF gov. looks the other way as raw sewage is still being dumped into SF shoreline Bay, and tourists still notice there are way too few police walking the streets in the tourist NE quarter

be careful.

Soon 'health food stores' might have the pick date on vegetables,,,WOULDN'T THAT BE GREAT?!!

We consumers would know where, chile?, and when, weeks ago?, some fruit or vegetable WAS PICKED !!

San Francisco,2011, insider tourist advice,,,Try the FW/fisherman's wharf BEACH STREET GRILL for Breakfast

Ihop,,, is too bland plastic generic tasting,,,(went the McD route and forgot how important 'flavor' and 'taste' is)


Pat's,,,you too might wait over 30min for a coffee refill offer,,,


Knuckles at the Hyatt,,,has cleanliness issues, like menus with yellow grease drops on them, tables with greasy globs on them,,,and rude staff.


And the street sidewalk shops on Northpoint at Taylor,,,do you really want to eat breakfast,,, on such a narrow sidewalk?


Mama's at old italian Washington Square,,,so popular, yes, and how long a line can you wait in? for how long??


Does IN and OUT,,,have breakfast,,,yet?


Beach Street Grill is at 380 Beach x Taylor.

Big, Famous from the ground up anyway, West coast bus company for sale, for fire sale $5-6M !! with yards in SEATTLE, PORTLAND, SF, and LA !!

please , no pirates need apply !!
we have enough lying dishonest steal-your-bridge toll receipts limo and bus companies in the USA. And payroll.  Why do the limo and bus company magazines not have an industry pledge page of honest ,legal, well maintained ,like no thin tread tires and fuel filter replaced on sked vs on breakdown, signees ?? Short list ?


But for the right honest owner, this might be a good match. 


Most of the drivers i am familiar with in SF are among the best, and from the street/bottom up, have a very good reputation on the west coast.  No dirty ,dust flies when you slap seats, dented old old nasty buses.  Mostly polite,top touring and very professional safety-first drivers. And where some might say 'a bus co. reputation is nothing',,, why do people still talk about 'TTC'.


  Profitability, at any legal or maintenance cost, is not everything!


The judge auction is in a day or two.

Jan.2011, So very disappointed in Obama and the Democrat Majority sloth of the recent past

Why could we not have voted for a President who actually would end the no-win Middle East wars?
Now,,,not years and years in the future!!
Oops, don't we one tent Democrats feel foolish now.


Don't someone, the Democrats, believe in progressive taxation anymore? 1% owns 34% of the nation's wealth and 90% doesn't own even 34%. Who cares. Certainly not the Republicans who seem to prefer an oligarchy and cash is king. Now the weak, dithering Democrats. What's the 'dif' for voters?


Do you  remember Obama saying he would close Guantanamo prison in one year from his inaugural?
Thought so. But no.


The Bush rich tax cuts should have been cut that first day, not allowed to linger for 2 years to 'end date'. And then have the President Obama meet with Republican leaders to extend it ,,,2 MORE YEARS!!  shite,,, who can we "trust"?  There is a much abused word , like "change".  (chump change, America!!)


And the Supreme Court ruling that money equals votes and corporations are people with full rights ,,, IS SO WRONG AND NOT CONSTITUTIONAL.  But do you see the touting Republicans doing anything,no. And the Democrats did not write a bill to make a law to CHANGE THIS !! Damn, what a waste of time Congress led by Democrats is !!


Why do we still have the same corporate servant, civil servants in the Department of Labor, who when you talk confidentially about your employer in these tough times stealing your wages, the DOL employee says 'oh, we were just chatting. You have a case already, but wait and gather more evidence before filing a formal form with us."  Then a day or 2 later your boss is so suddenly very angry vs happy with stealing wages from you, and still doing it !!  


We could have elected a Republican for such sloth, double-dealing and incompetence !!


The easiest way to save Social Security is to take the payroll tax cap off so that all income is taxed. Did the President and Democrat majority do THIS ONE EASY THING?


no. This is crucial!!  This is the biggest failure of this administration!!  The biggest failure of many,like quickly ending wars we can not afford and have zero chance of victory.  


This is why me must go to publicly funded elections and take the toxic corporate campaign money out of politics completely.  Otherwise, as we all know by now, our politicians are first bought by 'special interests' and then elected,,, and then owned by the same 'special interests'.


Did we get a public option? Or single payer? 
no.  But there was all that campaign talk about it,,,?


And we still have Bush JRs "no child left behind" total failure in national public education, just ask most public school teachers.  And we still, still allow public school superintendents golden parachutes and golden handshakes and bloated salaries,like private corporations a license to steal as much as possible from shareholders.  This can not last !!  Shame, shame, shame on all you public school robber barons!!


Did we get an much needed overhaul to the Tax Code? no.


The bankers got the bail-out and are sooo arrogant ,again!!  But what about a much needed federal ,all states public works project to start to fix our "Crumbling American Infrastructure"?!! 
no.


It is all about the corrupt ,too risky and illegal(they say they did nothing "improper" like forging signatures on mortgages they did not know who owned,,,oh, no , lying and forging and fraudulent financial transactions are what we expect nowadays from Wall Street) bankers and financial companies and not about the touted 'middle class' and their a.r.m.-screwed plight, with millions of Americans holding rotten mortgages that the Feds can't even fix with a corrupt and broken Fannie and Freddie.  They should have cut the interest out on all troubled mortgages, taken over the principles, and given out 1% fixed rate ,30 year federal mortgages.  Screw the bankers that got us into this mess, and now have profited mightily from their disregard!!


 But our new President has always been with the de-regulators , not they re-regulators, who want tough active oversight of American financials.  So Obama just appointed more Wall Streeters, and USAToday says American corporations are sitting on huge cash ,,,but NOT HIRING AMERICANS ,,, but instead buying back shares and increasing dividends.  WHERE and WHEN WILL WE EVER GET A DEMOCRAT PRESIDENT WHO ACTUALLY DOES GREATLY INCREASE JOBS FOR AMERICANS !? And the USA so badly needs infrastructure repair ,,, in every state, ok forget Arizona,,, and Nevada for welching on the nuclear repository after taking all those $Millions.  


If we knew then how 'compromised' Obama would be to meet with Republican leaders instead of Pelosi and the Demo./his party leaders, i never would have voted for him. Someone who talks big and does little has lost my vote in 2012.

The easiest way for the Republicans to beat Obama and the Democrats completely in 2012: show the videos of campaigning Obama and what he said he was for versus what he says and does now.

No need for Mr. Cantor to embarrass himself on ABC morning news with a lie that new Obama-care is more expensive than old Capitalist-gone-wild system,,, or avoid a straight answer from George S. and not say the spending target in $Millions the Republicans are boasting about.  Sooo embarrassing to be a lying deceiving dishonest non-straight-talking Republican, in a fancy suit !! ;)


And his distortion of a 'Republican majority',,, but only in the House, SLICK !!  You shuck n' jive Republicans are going to be such great cannon fodder on SNL !! ;)

Northern California's CHP are too careless and irresponsible and lazy at highway accident scenes !!

Last night, New Year's Eve, i was leaving work in SF early to avoid the drunks, about 10pm. I got down dark 101S to Oyster Point right bend and here RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME  was all this black collision debris ALL OVER 4 LANES OF LIGHT TRAFFIC, like tailpipe and muffler, and broken parts from a shredded car/2 nowhere in sight.  I could not swerve fast enuf at legal speed and hit the black tailpipe with my left front and left rear tires, both of which immediately went flat !!


BOY WAS I PISSED !!  Dark, no collision cars that caused all this in sight,,, and 2 $80 tires to unnecessarily toss to some land fill or tire fire !!  And i am not NOT going to get home anytime soon and get to 'bed early' !!  So i pulled to the right shoulder and got out a bunch of flares from behind the driver's seat. 


I was walking back against traffic and here were 3 OTHER CARS WITH DAMAGED TIRES FROM THE SAME COLLISION debris !! ,,,and still no 'accident' in sight in the dark w/ my flashlight.  I put out flares every 50 paces ,tho they last only 15 minutes and got behind the last car, when FINALLY HERE COMES THE CHP I HAD CALLED 911 FOR !!  Finally.


So i walked on the emergency parking strip with traffic back toward my Acura ON 101S NEAR OYSTER POINT and here IN THE BUSHES were some Mexicans and 2 ROLLED AND TOTALED CARS!!(no apologies and no flares,,,just standing in the bushes, the irresponsible speeding probable drunks that caused of all this destruction!!) and the cop in loud speaker telling me to 'get over on the shoulder',,,!! ,,, NO THANKS AT ALL FOR BEING THE ONLY RESPONSIBLE DRIVER TO PUT OUT FLARES.


I got back to my car and here was another CHP telling me to get my car off the freeway,,,NOT NOT NOT 1)PICKING UP THE LARGE PIECES OF DEBRIS OF CAR PARTS, OR 2)SLOWING DOWN THE FEW PASSING MOTORISTS, OR 3)CLOSING A LANE WITH CONES AT THE START OF THE ACCIDENT. !!!!!


While i was getting in my car i heard 5 OTHER CARS GET FLAT TIRES, just because these rookie CHP officers were too lazy and too irresponsible to TAKE PROPER CARE OF AN ACCIDENT SCENE TO LIMIT FURTHER DEATH AND DAMAGE.  The CHP cops not could care less about all this totally unnecessary damage going on well after the initial 2 cars collided and went off into the bushes.


What should the CHP have done?
1, close all lanes until one cop car goes down the two left lanes with another officer walking in front for 100-200 yards to pitch all big debris off the freeway. What?, CHP too lazy to walk?!!


2, cone off the 2 right lanes with the accident in the r. side bushes to protect the civilians all over the shoulder.


3, open the left 2 lanes as passing lanes ,but leave one cruiser blocking the behind the cones , the 2 right lanes,,, before it rains, as forecast.


4, again take a cruiser up the 2 right lanes and with an officer walking in front of the full on bright head lights and that walking officer tossing all threat parts ,like black hard to see mufflers, to the shoulder,,,for Caltrans to pick up later.


5,Then open the 3 left lanes but leave the cones in the slow lane and the one blocking cruiser with it flashing lights on to try and slow down the light traffic.


Why the senior CHP officer on the scene or the one in dispatch was SO CARELESS AND IRRESPONSIBLE OF THE POTENTIAL FURTHER DEATH AND DAMAGE AT AN ACCIDENT SCENE should be investigated by the State!! That was a very sloppy ,needlessly so, job and not professional. A high school g.e.d. grad could have done a better mgmt /supervisor job !!


When i pointed out to the CHP officer telling me to move my car that OTHER CARS WERE STILL BEING DAMAGED WITH FLAT TIRES,,, he said,,, "the cars will push the debris away" !!,,,  What low standard jr. college did you go too ?!!


CHP heads should roll on this one !!
New Governor Brown, please take note and improve the CHP mgmt guidelines of accident scenes !!


If the CHP had responded faster to the first 911 call and been on-scene with flashing lights in the right lane, i would have slowed way down and been able to put my headlights on high and probably avoid having to insurance buy 2 new tires and lose a few days of work.  That accident scene was BOTCHED BY THE CHP.


Weeks earlier i was driving up from SJ in the dark up 101N and saw a new big expensive electronic highway sign saying "accident ahead, 2 left lanes closed", so i continued when i should have used alternate 280N. When i got to the CHP cars and accident scene, the 3 LEFT LANES WERE CLOSED,not "2".  So why did the big expensive highway electronic sign not say that ?!!  SAT IN TRAFFIC FOR OVER 30 MINUTES, NO MOVING.  Another CHP accident scene MISMANAGED !!