Slashdot Mirror

The universe may grow like a giant brain, according to a new computer simulation. The results, published Nov. 16 in the journal Nature's Scientific Reports, suggest that some undiscovered, fundamental laws may govern the growth of systems large and small, from the electrical firing between brain cells and growth of social networks to the expansion of galaxies. "Natural growth dynamics are the same for different real networks, like the Internet or the brain or social networks," said study co-author Dmitri Krioukov, a physicist at the University of California San Diego. The new study suggests a single fundamental law of nature may govern these networks, said physicist Kevin Bassler of the University of Houston, who was not involved in the study. [What's That? Your Physics Questions Answered] "At first blush they seem to be quite different systems, the question is, is there some kind of controlling laws can describe them?" he told LiveScience. By raising this question, "their work really makes a pretty important contribution," he said. Similar Networks Past studies showed brain circuits and the Internet look a lot alike. But despite finding this functional similarity, nobody had developed equations to perfectly predict how computer networks, brain circuits or social networks grow over time, Krioukov said. Using Einstein's equations of relativity, which explain how matter warps the fabric of space-time, physicists can retrace the universe's explosive birth in the Big Bang roughly 14 billion years ago and how it has expanded outward in the eons since. So Krioukov's team wondered whether the universe's accelerating growth could provide insight into the ways social networks or brain circuits expand. Brain cells and galaxies The team created a computer simulation that broke the early universe into the tiniest possible units -- quanta of space-time more miniscule than subatomic particles. The simulation linked any quanta, or nodes in a massive celestial network, that were causally related. (Nothing travels faster than light, so if a person hits a baseball on Earth, the ripple effects of that event could never reach an alien in a distant galaxy in a reasonable amount of time, meaning those two regions of space-time aren't causally related.) As the simulation progressed, it added more and more space-time to the history of the universe, and so its "network" connections between matter in galaxies, grew as well, Krioukov said. When the team compared the universe's history with growth of social networks and brain circuits, they found all the networks expanded in similar ways: They balanced links between similar nodes with ones that already had many connections. For instance, a cat lover surfing the Internet may visit mega-sites such as Google or Yahoo, but will also browse cat fancier websites or YouTube kitten videos. In the same way, neighboring brain cells like to connect, but neurons also link to such "Google brain cells" that are hooked up to loads of other brain cells. The eerie similarity between networks large and small is unlikely to be a coincidence, Krioukov said. "For a physicist it's an immediate signal that there is some missing understanding of how nature works," Krioukov said. It's more likely that some unknown law governs the way networks grow and change, from the smallest brain cells to the growth of mega-galaxies, Krioukov said. "This result suggests that maybe we should start looking for it," Krioukov told LiveScience.

. http://m.cbsnews.com/fullstory.rbml?catid=57554473&feed_id=null&videofeed=null

Well, upper management may have gotten off with a slap on the wrist and a fine, but a couple middle management guys were charged with manslaughter.

OTOH, maybe people who are into blowing up planes for religious reasons are those who would never stick something up their arse, let alone a bomb.

That whould leave us with
a) people blowing up planes for non-religious reasons
b) people with bombs not hidden in their anus

People about to blow up saudi princes on ground seem not so sqeamish though:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-5347847.html

No it's not a wake up call. Only if one of these games is successful like the "500 million US Dollar on the first day" latest Call of Duty sequel http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57551285/call-of-duty-black-ops-2-earns-$500-million-in-24-hours/

If one of these games, or better several, are huge hits, then the publishers will howl. Not before.

That only happens because of hype and a large player base of your previous games. Plus lots of advertising.

No it's not a wake up call. Only if one of these games is successful like the "500 million US Dollar on the first day" latest Call of Duty sequel http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57551285/call-of-duty-black-ops-2-earns-$500-million-in-24-hours/

If one of these games, or better several, are huge hits, then the publishers will howl. Not before.

So, I am not an expert on politics, but in the current congress, there 51 democratic senators, 47 republican senators, and 2 independents (both of whom caucus with the democrats). By my count, if every single senate republican voted against this, that still only comes to 47 votes. That means that the other 4 would have had to break ranks with the democratic party. So, just who is at fault here?

Uhm... the party that supplied MOST OF 51 against vote is largely responsible. Certainly if it is 47 Republicans + 4 Democrats are voting against, then it is Republicans who are actually blocking the bill? How else can you interpret it?

Also, everything needs a supermajority nowdays. Republicans block things with less-than-50 votes just fine. Democrats had 58 votes for veterans jobs bill and that amounted to nothing.

...The TSA?
http://us.gizmodo.com/5947330/yep-the-tsa-is-definitely-stealing-ipads
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/convicted-tsa-officer-reveals-secrets-thefts-airports/story?id=17339513#.UKXz-hLJCPc
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505124_162-57523230/beware-your-gadgets-at-risk-of-theft-from-tsa/
http://www.businessinsider.com/tsa-agents-steal-from-passengers-2012-10
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2012/10/06/tsa-agent-accused-of-stealing-100-from-passengers-wallet/
Yeah, I know some of you are wondering WTF all the links, and "does he have a grudge" and so on. Well, suffice it to say my encounter with the scoundrels was double plus ungood.

It''s about national security

No, its not. They interviewed a correspondent with FBI sources this morning (link). He stated that, other then resolving the purpose behind some suspicious e-mails, the FBI had no issue with the affair from a security standpoint. It was Petraeus that made a personal decision to resign. Because, as they surmised, he hadn't lived up to the same code of conduct that he expected of his employees.

Now there's the blackmail issue: If the boss gets his panties in a bunch over your personal life, it creates an opportunity for coercion by blackmail through the threat to your job. For all anyone else knows, this could be nothing more than a minor bump in your personal life (look at Clinton, for example). So this makes a good argument to keep people out of supervision roles who have codes of moral conduct that go beyond the basic requirements of the job. Petraeus' embarrassment over his own behavior and the subsequent risk this could put subordinates at carer-wise is the threat. Not the behavior itself. I say the Pentagon and all defense contractors need to clean the bible-thumpers out of management ASAP.

That is nonsense.
Trees are not considred biofuel, how retarded is that?
However there is a booming market for wood heating in houses, either simply with wooden logs, ore modern pellet bases central house heating.
Trees are not burned in 'coal plants' ... perhaps you shouldmonce visit a coal plant to get a clue how they work? If you had you did not come to such braindead ideas.

Those are not ideas, those are facts. EU coal powerplants get "clean energy" subsidies (ridiculous amounts, same as for wind and solar) when they burn wood. It is economically feasible right now to import expensive wood from America just to pretend old coal plant is now Eco.

Germany might look good on paper, but in reality they didnt build any new infrastructure, they just changed legal wording to save face while closing down Nuclear.

Example google link
http://sunshinehours.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/save-the-coal-kill-and-burn-trees-instead/
http://www.resource-media.org/guest-post-biomass-is-the-new-coal/
http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-205_162-6572461.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15756074

a) the requests for security were for a different embassy

August 2, 2012: Ambassador Stevens sends a cable to D.C. requesting "protective detail bodyguard postions" -- saying the added guards "will fill the vaccum of security personnel currently at post... who will be leaving with the next month and will not be replaced." He called "the security condition in Libya ... unpredictable, volatile and violent."

Ambassador Stevens was referring to Benghazi, not "a different embassy" as you claim.

September 11, 2012: 9:43 a.m. Benghazi time (3:43 ET): Amb. Stevens sent cables to D.C., including a Benghazi weekly report of security incidents reflecting Libyans' "growing frustration with police and security forces who were too weak to keep the country secure."

Again, Benghazi, not "a different embassy", as you claim.

9:40 p.m. (3:40 p.m. ET): Gunfire and an explosion are heard. A TOC agent sees dozens of armed people over security camera flowing through a pedestrian gate at the compound's main entrance. It is not clear how the gate was opened.

The agent hits the alarm and alerts the CIA security team in the nearby annex and the Libyan 17th of February Brigade, one of several powerful militias serving as a de facto security presence in Benghazi. The embassy in Tripoli and the State Dept. command center were also alerted.

State Dept. Diplomatic Security follows events in real time on a listen-only, audio-only feed, according to testimony of Charlene Lamb, the deputy assistant director for international programs, given before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Oct 10.

This is, once again, at the Benghazi embassy, not someplace else. A real-time feed of the audio was being monitored in DC. They knew what was happening. It wasn't a reaction to someone using their right of free speech, and shouldn't have been apologized for.

10:25 p.m. (4:25 p.m. ET): A six-member CIA team arrives from the annex with 40 to 60 members of 17th of February Brigade. The team removes Smith's body.

Hmm. 9:40PM to 10:25 PM. I do the math and get 45 minutes, not the 28 minutes you claim. An nearby annex with military forces that takes 45 minutes to show up.

But these are all lies from "Fox News", right? Try again. CBS

There is even precedent.

It seems Americans will vote pretty much anyone into office. Really, I've heard worse ideas. Zombie Feynman 2016, anyone?

And the advisers are in to confirm what I'm saying: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57547239/adviser-romney-shellshocked-by-loss/?tag=socsh

The unemployment rate for those majors would like to disagree with you: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57324669/25-college-majors-with-lowest-unemployment-rates/ It's different with the S (especially if you're going into academics), but if you can't find a decent paying TEM job, then you either need to move to a different area, or you're not very good. The unemployment rate for Computer Scientists, Mathematicians, and Engineers of all fields is below 5% nation wide, and significantly lower than that in most major metro areas.

Syrian Rebels ^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H Al Qaeda.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57531618/rebels-ally-with-al-qaeda-group-to-take-syrian-base/

But the Libyan "rebels" were Al Qaeda imports, too. Just the distortion field of western corporate media makes this "Arab Spring" bullshit.

I think the Swiss have been using online voting for a while now: http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-202_162-645615.html

Well, given that folks are already drawing firearms in gas lines, http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57544187/new-yorker-sean-bailey-accused-of-pulling-gun-in-gas-line/ , part of the plan had better be to contract Mad Max to bring in a tanker of precious juice past The Humungous, Wez, and their pals.

Well the good news is that few drivers in the USA can use the diesel that's needed to feed datacenter generators in their cars, so hopefully the trucks will get through.

Well, given that folks are already drawing firearms in gas lines, http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57544187/new-yorker-sean-bailey-accused-of-pulling-gun-in-gas-line/ , part of the plan had better be to contract Mad Max to bring in a tanker of precious juice past The Humungous, Wez, and their pals.

http://m.cbsnews.com/storysynopsis.rbml?pageType=national&url=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57541911/hurricane-sandy-14-rescued-after-abandoning-hms-bounty-off-n.c-coast-2-still-missing/&feed_id=1&videoid=37&catid=57541911

Yeah, the laziness of the average American is why we work longer hours than most developed nations and have higher productivity. Try again.

Citation. You can find dozens more if you were not too lazy to look ;)

...aand the ones asking for it are the ones gaming the elections...

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57539706/congressmans-son-resigns-after-voter-fraud-video/
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/09/23/voter-fraud-houston-tea-party-truethevote-texas/
http://capoliticalnews.com/2012/01/08/seiu-voter-fraud-caught-in-wisconsin/
(There's quite a bit more...all you need do is do your own looking for it via Google...)

So...you're going to get a fair election by these people observing it?

So yes, there are lots of things in the "free-market" that are unethical/illegal because of information asymmetry.

They should have just told the truth: That they didn't have enough data to predict anything.

That is exactly what they did say, but the politicians didn't understand them.

http://www.lagazzettadelmezzogiorno.it/GdM_english_NOTIZIA_01.php?IDNotizia=340440&IDCategoria=2694

"There is no reason to suggest that the sequence of low-magnitude tremors are a precursor to a major event," said the committee's deputy chair Franco Barberi, according to minutes of the meeting published by prosecutors.
INGV President Enzo Boschi said "just because a small series of quakes has been observed" does not point to a large quake, which he described as "improbable, although not impossible".

It was a politician who proclaimed that there was no danger.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57537303/italian-scientists-get-6-years-for-laquila-earthquake-statements/

In a post-meeting press conference, however, Department of Civil Protection official Bernardo De Bernardinis, also a defendant, told citizens there was "no danger."

The failure here was one of communication and conclusions. Politicians want answers and will not tolerate "we don't know". The problem is, science is really short on answers and long on probability. That is doubly so with a science like seismology. Scientists like to be precise about all of the shades of nuance. So when the politicians ask, "will there be an earthquake" and the seismologists say "probably no", all the politicians hear is "no".

look at this article:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57535804/confrontation-may-loom-in-waters-off-israel/

and check how many American news sites report on it via Google:
http://www.google.com/news?q=Ship+to+Gaza+Estelle&lr=English&hl=en

Very very few. So, maybe the Brazilian news sites have something to hide? Filtered news is this news?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57506856-10391704/nyc-school-lunches-fall-below-minimum-calorie-requirement/

Frankly, New York City can do more to improve its citizens' health than banning certain sizes of HFCS drinks (because calling them "sugary" simply ignores the fact that soda can be made using real sugar).

Moreover, Saddam would still be funding suicide bombers in the Gaza Strip:

http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-202_162-543981.html

How is one going to have any sort of peace process there w/ that kind of outside influence?

...it's just a matter of time before a major ingredients scandal hits.

Waddya mean 'before'?

Last June, about nine months into the ATF operation known as "Fast and Furious," suspects had "purchased 1,608 firearms for over $1 million in cash transactions at various Phoenix-area gun shops," according to internal documents obtained by CBS News. The documents indicate ATF already knew that 179 of those very weapons had turned up at crime scenes in Mexico, and 130 in the U.S.

Another fact they missed is that the firearms had neither a means for being tracked (a previous program had RFID chips planted in the firearms). And they never informed the Mexican authorities. So the claim

Quite simply, there's a fundamental misconception at the heart of the Fast and Furious scandal. Nobody disputes that suspected straw purchasers under surveillance by the ATF repeatedly bought guns that eventually fell into criminal hands. Issa and others charge that the ATF intentionally allowed guns to walk as an operational tactic. But five law-enforcement agents directly involved in Fast and Furious tell Fortune that the ATF had no such tactic. They insist they never purposefully allowed guns to be illegally trafficked. Just the opposite: They say they seized weapons whenever they could but were hamstrung by prosecutors and weak laws, which stymied them at every turn.

sounds like bullshit to me. The evidence that came out in June 2010 pretty much indicates that these weapons were directly arming criminals in Mexico and the US. A fifth of their "walked guns" quickly showed up at crime scenes.

And it looks like I'm not alone.

Surveillance video in the interview shows straw purchasers leaving gun shops with boxes of weapons. Documents showed these guns were showing up at crime scenes in Mexico and ATF supervisors actually keeping track of this information. Agent Dodson and other senior agents confronted their supervisors over and over about this horrible operation.

Their answer? "If you're going to make an omlette, you've got to break some eggs."

Ms. Eban tries to downplay an email, now known as the "schism" email, sent by Mr. Voth to the team. While many say the email was about gunwalking Ms. Eban insists it was about everything but that. I'd like Mr. Voth to explain these parts (emphasis mine):

"Whether you care or not people of rank and authority at HQ are paying close attention to this case and they also believe we [Phoenix Group VII] are doing what they envisioned the Southwest Border Groups doing."

"We need to resolve our issues at this meeting. I will be damned if this case is going to suffer due to petty arguing, rumors, or other adolescent behavior."

"I don't know what all the issues are but we are all adults, we are all professionals, and we have a (sp) exciting opportunity to use the biggest tool in our law enforcement tool box. If you don't think this is fun you're in the wrong line of work -- period!"

Mr. Voth also needs to explain why they let go of their top suspect when they had him in custody. This is the man who purchased the guns found at Agent Terry's death scene. The guns that have been recovered have been ones found at crime scenes. 1,400 guns are still missing. Mr. Voth and the ATF never made an effort to interdict the weapons. None. The t

60 Minutes covered this story on Sunday night. The House Intelligence Committee is right to have suspicions of Huawei.

I believe the video is the same that aired on TV.

95 percent of my assets drive out the front gate every evening. It's my job to bring them back.

Jim Goodnight, SAS Institute CEO, in: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-550102.html

One hundred fifty years of research proves that shorter work hours actually raise productivity and profits - and overtime destroys them.
So why do we still do this?

Sara Robinson, http://www.alternet.org/visions/154518/why_we_have_to_go_back_to_a_40-hour_work_week_to_keep_our_sanity/?page=entire

"Management Summary": It's not Karl Marx ;-) who figured it out, but Henry Ford.

It's not just iOS6. The iPhone5 is seriously substandard. Purple photos, Apple Maps, iPhone5's inability to handle LTE and data concurrently, easily scratched paint, and the new docking port with $30 adaptor makes iPhone5 a real lemon...

Nevermind the actual specs. iPhone5 is slower than Samsung Galaxy S3 despite the fact that the S3 is three months older. iPhone5 doesn't have NFC. iPhone5 still has a tiny screen. iOS market share has been sliding for a while, but after a few million get burned with this device, I think iPhone6 will be a very tough sell.

Good point.

Here's another story that didn't hit the front page:

Apple stock spanked for low iPhone 5 sales
Only days after Apple (AAPL) began to put its new iPhone 5 into customers' hands, the company's stock has taken a beating. The reason doesn't have to do with Apple's disappointing mapping software, or even the reports of new iPhones being damaged right out of the box.

Instead, investors have expressed disappointment in how many iPhone 5 units sold in the first weekend.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505124_162-57521414/apple-stock-spanked-for-low-iphone-5-sales/

You mean because it didn't sell twice as many as the iPhone 4S as they expected after they heard of the record pre-orders (as opposed to after the introduction where they predicted it would be a huge flop - just like they said about the 4S)? While being confused how to count those pre-orders not yet shipped?

Just shows that if there's something dumber than a Fandroid, it's a stock market analyst.

Well, Obesity.

Good point.

Here's another story that didn't hit the front page:

Apple stock spanked for low iPhone 5 sales
Only days after Apple (AAPL) began to put its new iPhone 5 into customers' hands, the company's stock has taken a beating. The reason doesn't have to do with Apple's disappointing mapping software, or even the reports of new iPhones being damaged right out of the box.

Instead, investors have expressed disappointment in how many iPhone 5 units sold in the first weekend.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505124_162-57521414/apple-stock-spanked-for-low-iphone-5-sales/

The idea that Steve Jobs never apologized for anything seems to be starting to become a common Slashdot misconception.

• http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-20008991-501465.html
• http://www.apple.com/hotnews/openiphoneletter/

I'm sure people can think of times when they wish he did apologize for something, but to say he never did would be inaccurate.

lmgtfy
lmgtfy
lmgtfy

ABC: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/09/dnc-apologizes-for-showing-russian-warships-in-tribute-to-us-veterans/

CBS: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57511365-503544/dems-apologize-for-russian-ship-imagery-at-convention/

New York Times: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/12/democrats-apologize-for-image-of-russian-ships-at-convention/

You see one of these stories every few months. Behold, these people are homeless and seek out non-emergent care for their children. Wouldn't you rather these people be paying for this through insurance premiums, rather than having to rely on charity? No other country in the developed world has this.

I don't think that counts for much any more. Pretty much all mainstream and big media is conservative on Economics any more. Some are liberal on a few social issues (Gay Marriage, Abortion, etc), but on economics they don't stray too far from Supply Side Economics. I attribute this to the fact that the owners (Rupport Murdoch et al) are very conservative, and if you want to stay employed you don't tick off the boss man...

That said, it's tough to say. But I think it's been pointed out that electronic billing gives the pencil pushers enough data to figure out where they could be billing but aren't. But in 2010 alone $4 billion was recovered. But was that due to better tracking, a strong willingness on the part of the current Administration to stop fraud, or blind dumb luck?

So Sue Lowden was just ahead her time and they laughed at her. Who is laughing now? WHO I ASK YOU, IS LAUGHING?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20013286-10391704.html.

Comes down to horney stupid women. More women's education! Better than goats in 2035!

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57459357/grass-linked-to-texas-cattle-deaths/

http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/May99/Butterflies.bpf.html

When in doubt I guess I'd side with not eating the stuff, just to be sure.

This was also passed by the FDA.
So was this .

I converted to a permanent standing desk a few months ago and I really like it. The first week was pretty tough to get through, but after that it has been great. I recommend an anti-fatigue mat to stand on and some decent insoles like PowerSteps. Some co-workers also have a high stool for when they get tired. I do admit that I look forward to sitting during lunch and after work, but I would never go back. I haven't seen a single co-worker go back to sitting, and more are converting to standing.

At my company HQ (different office) all desks are motorized and can raise or lower with a button. These are awesome and are the ideal (albeit expensive) solution. Most of the HQ employees both stand and sit for a few hours per day, as do I when visiting.

The extra calories burned while standing is pretty compelling. Also there are recent studies that advise against sitting all day.

Of course YMMV based on your physical health and body type. FWIW I am 6'4" 185lb software developer in decent shape...work for 8-9 hours / day 90% of the time at my desk.

Yeah, the PACs you listed are not the "Super PACs" that the Supreme Court made possible when it said corporations are people. The total outlay of the PACs you list won't pay for the flight budgets of the monied interests pouring over a billion dollars into the Super PACs, and worse, because they skirt the laws governing traditional PACs we'll never know exactly who or what is being spent. The tip of the iceberg however suggests the monied interests are pouring money into the Republican campaigns at a rate that may exceed 10 to 1. Here's a site that was updated the middle of August. Hope that clears things up for you.

Education majors enter college with the worst scores and leave with the highest grades. And we are listening to them? http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-37245744/heres-the-nations-easiest-college-major/ From personal experience in the an undergrad Math department, the Math education crew were largely though of as do gooders along for the ride. They were conspicuously absent form upper level Math and CS courses, but the History of Math elective I took was filled with them. It is sad so few choose to get into teaching for the right reasons, but understandable. More links ... http://www.campusexplorer.com/college-advice-tips/7DF05979/Easiest-College-Majors/ http://www.thebestcolleges.org/top-10-easiest-and-hardest-college-degree-majors/ http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/06/education/edlife/why-science-majors-change-their-mind-its-just-so-darn-hard.html?pagewanted=all

https://blogs.law.harvard.edu/infolaw/2008/07/10/custom-textbooks/ http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-18563_162-585832.html http://lubbockonline.com/stories/021700/loc_021700103.shtml http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/former-college-it-director-sentenced-in-kickback-scheme/27153

It's all explained here:

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7420278n&tag=contentBody;storyMediaBox

Not sure about the Telegraph's sources, but the entire story is fake: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-57505248-501465/bruce-willis-is-not-suing-apple-over-itunes-inheritance-wife-tweets/ some great flamebait though....

It works a lot better than Lariam/Mefloquine.

http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-500164_162-538144.html

100 trillion dollars isn't exactly a lot of money these days, dr. evil.

Thanks to our recent Government for the fact that numbers previously almost incomprehensible are now simply part of our daily cultural consciousness...

From the May 19, 2012 - (CBS News) (emphasis mine):

The National Debt has now increased more during President Obama's three years and two months in office than it did during 8 years of the George W. Bush presidency.The Debt rose $4.899 trillion during the two terms of the Bush presidency. It has now gone up $4.939 trillion since President Obama took office.

The latest posting from the Bureau of Public Debt at the Treasury Department shows the National Debt now stands at $15.566 trillion. It was $10.626 trillion on President Bush's last day in office, which coincided with President Obama's first day.

Of course, Obama blames it on Bush {roll_eyes}, but that's a little disingenuous, given that at his rate until now he will have eclipsed the Bush spending by well over a factor of 2.5 by the time he leaves office if, Deity forbid, he gets reelected.

Not much Hope, and less Change, is what I've seen out of him and his administration/cabinet during his term in Office. Not that I expected it - politicians of the two parties just tell a different set of lies to get elected.

"The government consists of a gang of men exactly like you and me. They have, taking one with another, no special talent for the business of government; they have only a talent for getting and holding office." - H.L. Mencken

Let's get the current incompetent boob out of Office and try a new one to see if it can do any better. Maybe things will work better with someone in charge who understands making money, not just taking money...

According to him, Obama has a 69% chance of winning, but will only barely get a majority (not even 51%).

NY Times? Isn't that the paper that the last two ombudsmen have called biased? BWA HAHAHAHA!

Try this

Obama has HUGE problems there - after four years in office, he only gets 41% of independents while Romney gets 40%. If you call yourself "independent", and you won't go for Obama after four years, you ain't going for him in November in the polling booth.

Gender gap? Yeah, Obama has a huge problem there - he's down 9% among men.

Likeability? Both Obama and Romney are a bit under water, but Obama has no upside - 32% are undecided about Romney's likeability. Obama's stuck underwater and he ain't surfacing. Romney has just weathered Obama's negative "But what about Bain Capital" crap.

Kind of a shallow poll, too. Wonder what the results would be if they asked who'd you vote for after asking about real-world concerns like gas prices or unemployment.

Oh, yeah, there's one more major issue Obama's going to have to overcome.

Joe Biden.

Universal service provisions allowed telephone service to reach every single person in the entire country back in the day. The same thing should happen for broadband internet access today.

Yes and no. You might be surprised that "back in the day" includes the very recent past. There are some areas that just recently got telephone service.http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-205_162-670748.html Hopefully some kind of time frame would be added to the language.

And that the Universal Service Fund (USF) is going to transition over

On October 27, 2011, the FCC approved a six-year transfer process that would transition money from the Universal Service Fund High-Cost Program to a new $4.5 billion a year Connect America Fund for broadband Internet expansion, effectively putting an end to the USF High-Cost Fund by 2018

Lets hope it doesn't take as long as it did for telephony.