I just wanted to provide you with a quick update on the EntreCard system which I initiated last week on this site.  Below you will see a graph of the first week of activity through the EntreCard widget:

It’s a bit hard to read on the screen, so let me give you some quick details:

Nov 15 (Thursday):  6 dropped cards, 0 click throughs
Nov 16 (Friday):  8 dropped cards, 0 click throughs
Nov 17 (Saturday):  10 dropped cards, 2 click throughs
Nov 18 (Sunday):  13 dropped cards, 4 click throughs
Nov 19 (Monday):  9 dropped cards, 3 click throughs
Nov 20 (Tuesday):  7 dropped cards, 10 click throughs
Nov 21 (Wednesday):  10 dropped cards, 7 click throughs

A “dropped card” occurs when a registered EntreCard user visits my site and clicks the “Drop Yours” button on the widget.  So on average, 9 EntreCard users visits the site each day.  A “click through” is when someone clicks on my “U.S. Common Sense” graphic when it is being advertised on someone else’s web site.  The first few days there are no click throughs since I either did not have enough credits to buy ad space on someones site, or I had to wait a few days until my ad was displayed.  Now that I have ads running, I am averaging 5 visitors a day through my ad.

In my view, this is a good service for you to reach more customers.  I do not believe these viewers would have come to the site on their own without some sort of advertising.  So, if you have a site of your own out there and are looking to increase your site traffic, go ahead and give this system a try.  You might be surprised!

Oddly enough, it might happen.

For starters, I don’t put much weight into numerical values on polls.  Polling is an art, and when done improperly, the results can be quite skewed.  Just changing one word can change a positive response to a negative.  Additionally, comparing poll results between different polling agencies is like comparing grades on English tests taken by two different students in two different schools.  That is why I look more at trends than the actual numbers.

With that being said, there is a new trend occurring in Iowa this month.  In a newly published ABC News poll, Obama’s lead has increased since July while Hillary Clinton’s position remains unchanged.  Numerically, Obama raised from 27% to 30%.  Clinton remained even at 26%.  With the margin of error of 4.5%, the two are statistically tied, though there is a sign of forward momentum by Obama.

On the other side of the ballot, Mike Huckabee has surged in the past two months to catch up with state leader Mitt Romney.  In the latest American Research Group poll, Huckabee rose from 19% in October to 24% in November, while Romney fell from 27% to 26%.  With a margin of error of 4%, this places the two in a statistical tie for first in the state.  Like Clinton, Romney has plateaued.  Does this mean that Iowa is not happy with the assumed front runners and are looking for a change?  To answer that question, you need to wait six more weeks – January 3rd, to be exact.  Will these two win in Iowa?  I hope so, if anything just to shake up the election.  Will they face each other in 12 months? 

You tell me.

Source:  The Fireside Post

Son,

The debate is on. Again, I will try to capture what is happening as it happens- sometimes this works – sometimes I should just go to bed.

The commentators – Senator Clinton must reassert her self as the leader. They have to clarify their positions on Iraq and Iran. Campbell Brown – It will be interesting to watch Senator Clinton, should she go after her opponents – or will she try to take the high road and posture herself as the frontrunner. Can Barack Obama and John Edwards crack her armor. It feels to me like the commentators are biasing the audience before it happens – perhaps they think we can’t listen for ourselves – they have to tell us what to listen for. The talking heads can be really irritating.

Wolf Blitzer is giving the rules. Candidates must stay on the topic of the question – or Wolf will ‘gently ‘ move them back.

To Senator Clinton – You were not at your best in last debate – your opponents say this is typical. Senator Clinton “My suit is asbestos tonight. I think the American people know where I stand from my 35 year record. I have put forth very specific policies.” She is good – she stayed out of the fray.

Wolf to Obama – You say she is triangulating, running a text book campaign. Obama – “Senator Clinton is a capable politician but the people are looking for straight answers…. I am absolutely convinced that we need a different kind of politics … Washington is not listening to the people.”

Senator Clinton – “Obama talks a lot… but he does not step up with a comprehensive health plan… We can have a different politics but the Republicans are going to give up the White House voluntarily.”

Senator Obama -”The only difference is that she think that no one has mandated the people to have health care… I suggest that people cannot afford health care.”

Senator Clinton comes back – several minutes into this and only two have spoken. Obama is insisting on a comeback – Wolf caves in, lets Obama talk.

Wolf to Edwards, talk about your charges of parsing. “Edwards – ” The issues is can the new President restore trust in the people…goes on about Hillary confusion on issues… She defends a system that does not work, a system that is corrupt.”

Clinton responds to Edwards -”We’re democrats and we are trying to elect the best person – but when somebody starts throwing mud it should be accurate and not out of the Republican play book…. We need to put forth a positive agenda for America.”

Wolf addresses Biden – Biden -”The American people don’t care about us – they care about their mortgage, child care, jobs, and their son in the National Guard. This is not about experience, it is about action… Who among us know what they are doing and can take action.”

John King addresses John Edwards – “If Hillary flip flops, it is ok for you to do the same.” Edwards “this is not about us – this is about the American people.”

Wolf to Chris Dodd, “How has Senator Edwards changed?” Dodd “It is going to take more than just people in our party to elect one of us… People are wondering if anyone is paying attention… If we yell at each other we turn the people off.”

Governor Richardson “It seems that John Edwards wants to start a class war, Barack want to start a generation war, All I want is to get peace for our country. Are we resolving the real problems, let’s stop this mudslinging.”

The debate is cooling off. The mudslinging has subsided. The candidates are just talking about issues – just when I was getting fired up and ready to open a soda and pop some popcorn. Hillary is churning up yards with her running game. Obama kicked a field goal. Edwards threw for seventy-seven yards and an interception. Governor Richardson, Senator Biden, and Senator Dodd are running the field as referees. Denis Kucinich, is storming the sidelines like Buddy Ryan.

They have stopped playing smash mouth football and are now dressed in white to finish a game of badminton. They are back to the country club brunch.

Dad

Source:  eWorldVu

The more the federal government passes laws to insure my security, the more insecure I feel. Let’s take the government’s proposed use of RFID technology as an example of my concern.

RFID stands for radio frequency identification. The RFID chip is a minature device that has a very small chip attached to a tiny antenna. When the chip hears a specific radio signal, it responds with information, usually a long identification number. The chips, also called tags, are used in the private sector for many information tracking functions including inventory management, EKG carts in hospitals, cash-free toll booths, the movement of shipping containers, library books, credit cards, and even tires. The military currently uses these chips in Iraq and has used RFID technology since World War II.

The United States government has become more involved in the technology for security purposes. The Real ID Act was passed by Congress in 2005. The law requires standardized driver’s licenses, passports, and identification cards with machine readable data to be in place throughout the country by December 2009. The technology being used is RFID.

The problem with this proposed timeframe is that the Federal Government has not finalized the laws requirements and has not indicated how much it will pay of the estimated 11 billion dollar cost of the program over the next 5 years. There are logistical issues involved in the implementation as well. An analysis by the National Governors Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures cast doubt about the viability of getting every licensed driver to the Department Of Motor Vehicles to verify identification documents within a five-year time period.

The Real ID Act has its opponents. Maine, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, Montana, Maine, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington have passed legislation opposing Real ID. These states worry about an individual’s loss of privacy and liberty.

The states worry that personal privacy may be violated because RFID technology could be subject to both virus and information theft. This is because the chips work similar to a smart card. The problem is that they can be read from a distance. A receiving device can “talk” to the chip remotely, without any need for physical contact, and get whatever information is on it.

Passport officials envision being able to download the information on the chip simply by bringing it within a few centimeters of an electronic reader. Unfortunately, RFID chips can be read by any reader, not just the ones at passport control. The dubious result of this is that travelers carrying around RFID passports (and eventually drivers licenses) are broadcasting their identity. In tests, RFID chips have been read by receivers 20 meters away.

However, there are even bigger concerns about RFID technology than its use in drivers licenses or passports. For years, RFID chips have been implanted in the bodies of pets to keep track of stray animals. There is a company called Verichip that has received FDA approval and manufactures a chip for the human being to store emergency medical information. The chip can be implanted in the thumb or arm of a person. Verichip has implanted the chip in about 50 people. The company also markets an implant chip in South America as a way to track potential kidnap victims.

Further, consider the use of RFID chips by Cincinnati based Citywatch.com. The private video surveillance company has embedded Verichip silicon RFID chips in two of its employees. The company is using the technology to control an employee’s access to physical locations in order to keep classified information secure. This is the first instance in which workers have been chipped as a way of identification.

RFID chips have been used in humans in other countries. Chips have been implanted in more than 2000 nightclub patrons in Barcelona, Spain, and Rotterdam, Netherlands for access to the club’s amenities and an easy way to pay for the club’s services. Credit card companies have been closely following the technology for several years as a potential way for chip-implanted customers to make secure purchases through their credit cards.

Former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson is now on the Board of Directors of Verichip. Thompson is excited about the company’s technology and sees a big future for the implant of the chip in humans for all their medical data storage.

Verichip’s (Human implant RFID) chip has raised concerns from civil libertarians and state governments. Last month, Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation banning employers from requiring employees to be implanted with RFID tags. The bill’s sponsor State Senator Joe Simitian (D- Palo Alto), condemned human tagging as the “ultimate invasion of privacy.”

If you are interested in the storage of your health records in a chip in your body, the VeriChip implant procedure costs about $200 in your doctor’s office. As for me, call me old fashioned, since I will continue to use the health card in my wallet. However, due to the passage of the Real ID act, to insure my personal security, my next passport and drivers license may have to be wrapped in aluminum foil.

Source:  Ed Gruberman

This is pretty typical. Racism against white people just sloffed off as humor.

4618 King St, Alexandria – (703) 931-8900 (Feel Free To Call)

www.casafurniture.com

A Casa Furniture and Bedding store in Alexandria has been advertising easy credit with a twist: “no gringo papers” necessary.

A sign outside the store at the intersection of North Beauregard and King streets reads, “Credito sin papeles de gringo.” In English, that could be translated to say “Credit without gringo papers.”

Blanca Granados, the store’s assistant manager, translated the message to mean “just ‘without white papers,’ like Social Security or like that.”

Miss Granados said the store requires customers who purchase furniture on credit to fill out an application and provide personal documentation. The store will accept a passport as identification.

“Some people say, ‘You know, I don’t have a Social Security,’ ” Miss Granados said. “They can show their passport if they don’t have any other papers.”

The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word gringo as “a disparaging term for a foreigner in Latin America, especially an American or English person.”

But the word “gringo” in the store’s sign is not intended to offend anyone, Miss Granados said.

Casa Furniture and Bedding operates 10 stores in the region. Miss Granados said she was not sure how long the sign has been displayed at the store in the 4600 block of King Street.

“I didn’t put it up,” she said. “My boss put it up.”

The other side of the sign advertises low prices and states it is hiring salesmen.A woman Miss Granados identified as a store manager declined to comment. Another manager did not return a phone call.

Michael Barrera, president of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, said he was aware of the sign but said the way “gringo” was used is not necessarily an insult.

“I think it’s more for marketing,” he said. “Gringo is not always a pejorative term.”The sign has been up for years, he said, but might strike a nerve now as the debate over illegal immigration intensifies in the local political arena.”Because of this immigration debate, everybody’s become more sensitized to that,” Mr. Barrera said. “There have been some Hispanic businesses who have felt the brunt of non-Hispanics. They’ve made this immigration debate more about Hispanics than immigration itself.”