Zennie's ZeitgeistZennie's ZeitgeistZennie Abraham's Look at Pop Culture, Current Events, and His Life 
Articles
Andrew Baron's Back With Magma, A Video Tracking Website
2009-05-25 07:02:00 Remember Andrew Baron who created the first huge vide-blog show Rocketboom.com, is back with an exciting new startup called Magma. The site, which is in beta stage, is a kind of video-aggregation system where one can track the most popular videos even as they're uploaded and drawing interest. From what I read at TechCrunch, it's far from complete, his system, but worth waiting for! More About: Video , Website , Back , Tracking
Memorial Day in Texas: secession wasn't Perry's point at all
2009-05-25 06:51:00 By raising states' rights at a tea bag event, then backing away ASAP assuring everybody it’s just really, really just a discussion about federalism and the role of local vs national government, has Governor Rick Perry sent his signal to those who hear it another way? It didn't stay off the radar, but if the message was received does he care? Some of us still vividly recall George Wallace flanked by Alabama State Troopers, and an era when states' rights was just the PC way to say "segregation is our vision."Try surveying Texans on Memorial Day , or the 4th of July, and I guarantee they won't be talking about seceding, they're proud to be Americans. If you ask them about Bush cutting taxes on the rich while shorting armor for Americans in Iraq they won't defend him much more than anybody else in the GOP, either.You might think it was just a ploy for exposure by their current Governor - Perry's back-walking the rhetoric as hard and fast as he can, certainly. But was it really ... More About: Texas , Point , Secession
Happy Memorial Day! Thank A Soldier Today
2009-05-25 05:25:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! YouTube, Yahoo, MySpace, Metacafe, DailyMotion, Blip.tv, StupidVideos, Sclipo and Viddler I went to my stepfather's burial place today. Even though I was really ill, I forced myself to go and place flowers at his grave site as I've made it a habit to visit him on Memorial Day each year. He fought in World War II. But this time, I took my biological father's burial flag with me. Both my father and stepfather died in 2005. To some who are anti-war, the title of this video-blog will upset them. It should not. I'm against war and always have been, but the reality of my life is that both my late father and stepfather fought in World War II, and in my father's case, Zenophon Abraham of is his name (he lives in Chicago), I am the proud owner of his neatly folded burial flag and two bullets wrapped in them. I've never unraveled it. Chester Harding Yerger III of Oakland is my late stepfather and h... More About: Today , Happy , Soldier
Susan Boyle, "Diversity", Win Sunday's "Britain's Got Talent" Finals Round
2009-05-24 23:53:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! Susan Boyle, who electrified audiences around the Internet world with her audition on the UK show "Britain's Got Talent " won the first of five finals rounds today, featuring 40 contestants who made "the cut" on Saturday. This round featured Boyle, violinist Sue Son, the daring Darth Jackson (a combination of Michael Jackson and Darth Vader), young Natalie Okri , belly dancer Julia Naidenko, (who Telegraph.uk blogger Anna Pickard refered to as "Julia Havalottaconstanants", I'm serious), chainsaw artist Kevin James, and a dance duo called "Faces of Disco", as well as a 67-person dance group called "Diversity ." According to Pickard, who live-blogged tonight's event, Boyle sang at 9:33 PM in London and picked an Andrew Lloyd Webber song that Pickard described as "a musical that begins 'midnight ... doo doo dee doo doo evening'" which reads that it must be the song "Memory". Pickard explains Boyle had a ne... More About: Finals , Round
Blue DOUBLE Cross - you call that a plan?
2009-05-23 00:12:00 That didn’t take long. Less than two weeks have passed since much of the medical-industrial complex made a big show of working with President Obama on health care reform — and the double-crossing is already well under way. Krugman's May 21 OpEd points out just how two-faced big insurance is. They will fight reform. PERIOD.The insurance company plan turns out to be "protect the status quo."Their "plan" is to let costs go on rising! Their plan is corporate bureaucrats and HMOs getting between you and your doctor to protect their profits - accountants deciding your doctor doesn't know what should be prescribed. If we address two things, 1) people who lose or can't get insurance, and 2) the totally out-of-control cost spiral, while we sensibly challenge insurance companies by creating a new public health insurance option to let the free market work its magic, everybody will be able to afford good health care.Their plan is to keep cherry-picking the healthy and the wealthy and du... More About: Double , Cross , Blue , Call , Plan
Bay To Breakers Rauchy Party Solution: Concerts
2009-05-22 18:16:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! In my last Bay to Breakers post we looked at an amazing race of top talent from around the World. Some of you thought "Well, who's interested in that part of The Bay to Breakers; it's all about the parties in the streets and the booze." Well, I've not forgot that perspective. Here it is. Overall, the event was a success and the people in my video said so. Moreover the new regulations didn't pose the huge roadblock to a day of fun that the Citizens for The Preservation of The Bay to Breakers feared would happen. Still, something was missing: concerts. The problem with the 2009 Bay to Breakers was "Footstock", the annual giant gathering place and party held in San Francisco's Polo Grounds, was closed at 2 PM. That's too early and the halting of the event midway through the Bay to Breakers caused a bottleneck that pushed people out into Golden Gate Park and led to massive parties in the streets ... More About: Concerts , Party , Solution
Bay to Breakers - A Race To Remember
2009-05-21 09:15:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! My Bay to Breakers Sunday started unlike any in the past 19 or more years and it was even better than the "KGO coolness" of the last seven years. From 2002 to 2007, I'd get up at 4:30 in the morning to meet my friend Beth at the KGO Radio "Morning Stretch" held in the lobby of One Market Street before the start of the run. The basic advantage of being with KGO Radio was the free coffee and orange juice in the morning, plus we were at the start of the line, right where I could get hit by flying tortillas and giant beach balls. Sadly, in 2008 KGO Radio pulled its sponsorship of the event but we still managed a front-line position. This year was just plain different. My constant trips between California and Georgia where my Mom lives made planning for the B2B difficult this time around. I'm not complaining, it's just the fact of family life right through here. But just by asking I managed to score a p... More About: Race
Michael Jackson Postpones London Concert; Skin Cancer?
2009-05-20 23:59:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! YouTube, Metacafe, Blip.tv and Sclipo In a surprising turn of events, Michael Jackson , the self-described "King of Pop" has postponed his much-anticipated London concert series. While the official reason is not known, The Telegraph of London is reporting that Jackson is secretly fighting skin cancer. (UPDATE): The Telegraph is now reporting - as of 5:25 PM PST - that Jackson's doctor's deny he has skin cancer. The first concert of the "This Is It" tour that was set for July 8th is being moved back five nights to July 13th. The other concerts that were to be held this year, are now set for 2010 according to Billboard: 10th July will be moved to 1st March 2010 12th July will be moved to 3rd March 2010 14th July will be moved to 6th March 2010 Those who have purchased tickets and can't make the show will be refunded in full. While some news outlets have reported no official cause of the concert delays, and others ... More About: Skin , Cancer , Concert
Get The Zennie62 Widget Made By Steve Kloft!
2009-05-20 09:29:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! Right out of the blue, I get this email from my friend Steve Kloft, who's an established Internet marketing guru, announcing he's created a widget containing links to my SFGate.com postings, my main blog Zennie62.com, my Twitter tweets, and my YouTube videos! Steve, thanks a million! That makes up for the 600 mb Bay to Breakers videos I'm still uploading, the nutso cyberstalkers , and all the crap I've had to deal with that comes with just expressing my opinion! But as I've said before, there are good people out there, fortunately I know them and they have away of just appearing when you need a boost: Steve's an example. Here's the widget: Get the Zennie Abraham widget and many other great free widgets at Widget box! You can get your own copy at this link: http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/zennie-ab raham And thanks again, Steve! That was a bolt out of the blue! More About: Made
Michael Vick, PETA Wants Your Brain Scanned, What About The Rooneys?
2009-05-20 08:44:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! Michael Vick , you've spent two years in the slammer for running a business that revolved around dog-fighting and harming our furry friends. Now, you're confined to your home and reportedly a $10-per-hour construction job. Think you're going to be forgiven? Ha! Michael, you're going into a harsh United States of America, with far less religious people than there used to be. Think I'm kidding; just check out the Pew study that reports more people than ever don't declare a religion. That's a bad thing because it means they don't subscribe to the concept of forgiveness, Michael. I don't care what anyone tells you, a person who has no religious background or interest is a person to be feared because they don't have a moral compass to guide them. (And if they tell you otherwise, run, don't walk, to the nearest exit!) So forget winning 20 percent of America over, they're long gone. That group has to hav... More About: Michael Vick , Brain , Peta
"Never is a man so tall..." A young man wondered if his haircut felt like t
2009-05-20 04:09:00 [cross-posted by the author]I believe most political decisions are made on the basis of an emotional affiliation to one or the other major political party, even if we're all very good at rationalizing about this or that issue to justify it "logically." I believe, too, that there are all too many elected to serve in Washington who lose their way and become more interested in lining their pockets than in working on behalf of the voters.I believe I have seldom seen a more decent gesture by any sitting President than the one pictured above. I wonder what Steven Colbert, the man who promised to feel the truthiness of the news at his viewers, will feel when he considers this image from May 8th, making its rounds now on the internet.There's nothing here about federal intervention in state's rights; there's no judicial activism on display; there's nothing about unfair executive compensation, overpriced health insurance, CIA briefings, weapons of mass destruction, or environmental prote... More About: Young , Tall , Felt , Haircut
The on-going confusion over "single-payer" health care
2009-05-18 15:53:00 Single-payer isn't a synonym for "universal health insurance coverage." The two are separate issues - although many who support one support the other, as well. Single-payer is only about who administers the payment. It could be the government, it might not be. In either case single-payer doesn't solve the question of "universal" coverage. The President has expressed his belief that while single-payer is an ideal, it is not a practical short-term goal due to the well-established (some would say entrenched) model already in force. Universal health insurance coverage is one way to insure coverage for those who can't/don't get it through their employer - the unemployed, the self-employed, those who have been denied coverage for any number of reasons, etc. A "public option" isn't either of those; a public option would mean setting up the government as one possible insurance plan provider among many, each responsible for their own paperwork. It is touted as a possible... More About: Health , Health Care , Care , Confusion , Single
98th ING Bay to Breakers Has Interesting Race Battle
2009-05-17 07:06:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! The 98th running of what is now called the ING Bay to Breakers (I have to admit I was used to "The San Francisco Examiner Bay To Breakers" because the name "San Francisco" was in it) kicks off tomorrow (Sunday, May 17th) and for the first time, I'm not running it; I'm covering it. It's a weird feeling but a totally new experience. As media you get to attend a very cool press conference, as I did on Friday at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. You also get to talk to the main celebrity runners and the race organizers and sponsors. You also get a lot of great food and drink. But back to the race itself. I've ran 19th of these events - yes, 19 straight times with my best time 1:04.30 - so I feel qualified to talk about how crazy the day is. In fact, the day's gotten so out of hand in the recent past, that earlier this year ING's race organizers tried to put a break on some activities by floating the policy of a b... More About: Interesting , Race , Battle
The Blog Report TV Show: Josh Wolf; Parkway Theater's Last Day
2009-05-16 20:07:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! YouTube, Blip.tv and Sclipo Wow, sorry I was away, but I spent all of Thursday traveling from Atlanta to San Francisco, then covering Bay to Breakers events, and finally just taking time off. Pretty fried, frankly. But the World turns on. Each Saturday, my new television show is on. It's called The Blog Report With Zennie62 and features the use of my video blogs in a weekly 30-minute format broadcast and co-produced by CoLoursTV in Denver. The start time is 3:30 PM Pacific Time, 6:30 PM Eastern Time and the show is replayed at 11:30 PM and 2:30 PM respecfully. Then it is replayed on Sunday at 12 noon pacific and 3 PM eastern. The third installment of The Blog Report with Zennie62 features the introduction of a new documentary film made by Sierra Choi and about SF Bay Area journalist Josh Wolf . I met Josh and Sierra in 2006 when both was working for The Peralta Community College District's "Peralta TV" network in differ... More About: Show
Health care isn't the problem - health insurance costs are
2009-05-16 06:15:00 Some people who say the government "can't do anything efficiently" also now say a public insurance system competes with private insurers unfairly – these fear it will out-compete big business? CEOs earning tens of millions of dollars per year fear free market competition?The cost control problem is that the idea of controlling health care costs is contrary to earning insurance company profits - what incentive there is only applies to their own costs of operation. When the cost of health services go up the big insurance companies just make a cut of a larger price-tag. That's why U.S. health care costs have tripled the rate of inflation for three decades. Insurers have no incentive to moderate health care costs, only how much they profit -- so naturally they insure the healthiest, and make it hard to get help with pre-existing and/or expensive conditions.Sometimes they even countermand medical decisions. Bureaucrats worrying about their bottom line can over-rule a licensed docto... More About: Health , Insurance , Health Care , Health Insurance , Care
$100 billion in green investment = $160 billion PER YEAR!
2009-05-15 04:56:00 The Economic Policy Institute recently showed that a $100 billion in green investment annually would yield $160 billion in additional output for each of the next two years, creating approximately 1.1 million new jobs and resulting in an increase of approximately 100,000 in the number of unionized jobs in the United States.EPI points out that this would lead to rising median incomes, a reduction in inequality and more access to job-training and mentorship programs.At a time when outsourcing undermines the middle class, and deregulation has wounded our entire economy, we have a chance to be creating millions of new jobs right here in the U.S.A.It's time for our leaders to take charge of the economy. Deregulation has helped the wealthy long enough: it's time to reward those who WORK for a living by insuring there are jobs for anybody in the U.S.A. willing to be productive.Investing in energy independence isn't simply a national defense priority, it makes sense for the environment an... More About: Investment , Green , Year , Billion
American Idol Adam Lambert, Britney Spears Attacked On Stage. Why?
2009-05-14 07:31:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! Not too long ago in Western culture it seemed we had this mostly unwritten rule that when a performer was at work, we didn't rush the stage to be with them or follow them around, unless of course they asked us to. Well, in this Internet age the act of rushing the stage and stalking has become all too commonplace, with the latest victim being American Idol star Adam Lambert; pop culture icon Britney Spears faced the same incident just two weeks before. And the act of stage rushing isn't limited to popular singers on television; a duo named Matt & Kim from Brooklyn were rushed at the annual multimedia event "South by Southwest" (or SXSW) in March. Who's next, Susan Boyle? In Spears' case the stage crasher, 20 year-old Kyle King, was a man who was whisked off and arrested by security after Britney let out a scream. By contrast, Lambert laughed the whole deal off - you can hear him - as authorities carried the shirtl...
Boxer Demands Obama Pick A Woman For Supreme Court
2009-05-13 15:14:00 More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! Like other supporters, I received this email letter from U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, but this one was pointed right at one of my favorite subjects: "Who should be Justice David Souter's replacement on the Supreme Court ?" After not much stewing on the matter, I would guess, Senator Boxer wants it officially known: President Obama 's choice must be a woman and she's taking to the Internets to make it known. I still favor Kathleen Sullivan for the job so no harm there; this is what Senator Boxer wrote: Dear Zenophon, Women make up 51% of our nation's population. Yet only 17% of the seats in Congress are held by women. Only 3% of corporate CEOs are women. And just one out of nine Supreme Court justices is a woman. President Obama can change that. Send an email to the White House now — and urge President Obama to nominate a woman to the U.S. Supreme Court! Since Sandra Day O'Connor's retirement from the Supreme Court ... More About: Demands , Woman , Pick
NORAD Tracks Santa - Cape Canaveral, Florida
2008-12-25 05:26:00 As of this writing, NORAD tracked Santa in Baltimore! Check out http://www.noradsanta.org for the latest Santa siting! More About: Florida , Tracks , Cape , Norad
American Airlines plane incidents at Chicago's O'Hare airport - CNN.com
2008-12-25 05:10:00 More at CNN.com: “(CNN) -- A passenger jet preparing to take off from the airport skidded off the runway at Chicago, Illinois' O'Hare and another plane was forced to return there after engine problems were reported, officials said.American Airlines Flight 1544 -- an MD-80 carrying 54 passengers and a crew of five -- was taxiing into takeoff position on Runway 22-L when it hit an icy patch, said airline spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan.No one was hurt, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory said.The left tires and the nose tires slid onto the grass next to the taxiway, she said.”-- I can't remember a time when so many incidents of delays and accidents happened in such a small window of time. I wonder if this is tied to the poor maintainance spending of the airlines and the need for airport upgrades in general? More About: Airport , Plane , American Airlines
Denver Airport Three Hour Flight Delay - Christmas Eve
2008-12-25 03:33:00 This is the second day of my Denver flight delay story. After not making UAL 7515, I managed to get a free room at the Marriot Residents Inn in nearby Aurora, CO. The next morning, I got up to get back to Denver Airport . This is that portion of the ordeal. More About: Christmas , Flight , Hour
Denver Airport Three Hour Flight Delay - Day Two
2008-12-24 23:29:00 This is the second day of my Denver flight delay story. After not making UAL 7515, I managed to get a free room at the Marriot Residents Inn in nearby Aurora, CO. The next morning, I got up to get back to Denver Airport . More About: Flight , Hour
Denver Airport Three Hour Flight Delay - Not On Flight
2008-12-24 08:51:00 Well, after all that, the flight was so overbooked, and I was on standby, I did not get on. So, I've got to get a hotel room and stay in Denver for the night. More About: Airport , Flight , Hour
Denver Airport Three Hour Flight Delay - Bad Weather
2008-12-24 04:53:00 As I upload this new video I am still at DIA - Denver International Airport - and Gate B56 where the flight to Atlanta, United 7515, was to have departed at 6:56, but will not leave until 10 PM. The reason: bad weather in Iowa More About: Weather , Flight , Hour
TasteBudPolitics.com - An Interesting Site Combining The Election and Eatin
2008-12-24 04:30:00 It's interesting who you meet at airports. A simple question I asked while at Denver Airport and to a person about a couple of buttons they had on their shoulder bag led me to this interesting site called "TasteBudPolitics.com." Developed by Denver-based "Motive" (thanks for the info Taylor Woodward!) as a promotional product for Odoba Mexican Grill, the website is a cleaverly designed survey that asks you to answer some wacky but logical questions. For example, who of a set of cartoon icons would you want to be stuck on a desert island with? I picked Captain Kangaroo because he's got a boat so I can get off the island! At any rate, the final outcome of the survey was that I was a "NACHO": an independent person who was most likely single! (Got that right!) I then cast my vote for Barack Obama, as did 55 percent of the people surveyed. But what's interesting is McCain won no state at all. What was also interesting is that the candidat... More About: Interesting , Site , Election
Murray Waas Exclusive: Dick Cheney’s admissions to the CIA leak prosecuto
2008-12-24 02:41:00 More at Murray Waas: “Vice President Dick Cheney, according to a still-highly confidential FBI report, admitted to federal investigators that he rewrote talking points for the press in July 2003 that made it much more likely that the role of then-covert CIA-officer Valerie Plame in sending her husband on a CIA-sponsored mission to Africa would come to light.Cheney conceded during his interview with federal investigators that in drawing attention to Plame’s role in arranging her husband’s Africa trip reporters might also unmask her role as CIA officer.Cheney denied to the investigators, however, that he had done anything on purpose that would lead to the outing of Plame as a covert CIA operative. But the investigators came away from their interview with Cheney believing that he had not given them a plausible explanation as to how he could focus attention on Plame’s role in arranging her husband’s trip without her CIA status also possibly publicly exposed. At the time, Plame... More About: Exclusive , Leak
Russia orders 70 new nuclear missiles | World news | guardian.co.uk
2008-12-24 02:36:00 More at the guardian.co.uk: “Russia is to increase sharply its production of strategic nuclear missiles, throwing down the gauntlet to the US president-elect, Barack Obama, who would have to deal with the Kremlin's response to US missile defence plans in Europe.A senior government official in Moscow said the Russian military would commission 70 strategic missiles over the next three years. It was unclear whether sea-launched ballistic missiles were included in this figure, but military experts said it could represent up to a fourfold increase on the rate of production of land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).”-- This is a frightening development. I do hope we don't get into a military spending contest with the Russians. We can't afford it and I'm not sure it's the best way to go. More About: News , World , Nuclear , Guardian , Missiles
Home Sales Drop To 18-Year Low
2008-12-24 02:30:00 More at Huff Post: “WASHINGTON — Sales of new homes fell in November to the slowest pace in nearly 18 years, while new home prices dropped by the biggest amount in eight months.The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that new home sales fell 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 407,000 units. That was a weaker performance than economists had expected and was the slowest sales pace since January 1991.The median price of a new home sold in November was $220,400, a drop of 11.5 percent from the sales price a year ago. That was the biggest year-over-year price decline since a 12.7 percent fall in March of this year. The median is the point where half the homes sold for more and half for less.” More About: Home , Year , Drop
Thierry de la Villehuchet: Madoff Investor Dies After $1.4 Billion Lost
2008-12-24 02:28:00 Did Thierry de la Villehuchet kill himself? - Huff Postt: “Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet was found sitting at his desk at about 8 a.m. with both wrists slashed, New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said. A box cutter was found on the floor along with a bottle of sleeping pills on his desk. No suicide note was found...” More About: Lost , Investor , Dies , Billion
Obama Blagojevich Report: Team Claims Exoneration
More articles from this author:2008-12-24 02:25:00 More at Huff Post: “Barack Obama 's chief counsel declared on Tuesday afternoon that only one member of the President-elect's staff -- incoming chief of staff Rahm Emanuel -- had any communications with embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his staff since Obama's election.Emanuel's interactions, moreover, were not in any way improper, Obama's aides stressed, and the transition team was fully compliant both with the law and the U.S. Attorney's investigation into Blagojevich's alleged pay-for-play scheme."No one in the Obama circle was aware of what was going on in the governor's office until he was arrested," said Greg Craig, Obama's counsel. "They found out what the Governor was doing the same time the American public found out about it."” More About: Report , Team , Claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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