Zennie's ZeitgeistZennie's ZeitgeistZennie Abraham's Look at Pop Culture, Current Events, and His Life 
Articles
Sitting At Gate B56 At Denver International Airport - Flight Delayed
2008-12-24 02:09:00 If you're on Twitter you may have noticed - or may not have seen -- that I just landed in Denver . But here I am after having caught a flight from Oakland to this hub with the intent of catching another flight to Atlanta. That flight, UAL 7515, which was to leave at about 7 PM, was delayed to 9:19 PM, giving me time to catch up on stuff like blogging. I think this is the fourth time I've been at DIA this year, the other three trips courtesy of my work at the Democratic National Convention. But regardless of the city -- Denver, New York, Chicago, Atlanta -- I love to fly. To me, since air travel became so accessible to so many people due to low fares, one can gain the measure of America in an airport: fashion, concerns, and overall mood. The mood I would describe as "mellow". It certainly feels like the holiday season but it's almost like people are going through the motion of traveling but don't have a lot of gifts to give. I do... More About: Gate , International , Airport , Flight
Obama's Choie Of Rick Warren Caused Warren To Move To Center
2008-12-23 22:56:00 Contrary to Blogger and Internet Guru Dave Winder, I think President-Elect Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren was brilliant in that it's forced a dialog America's not had, and will cause Warren to move to the center on the matter of Gays and gay marriage. More About: Move , Center , Rick Warren
STAR TREK MOVIE TO FINISH NEXT WEEK - AN OFFICIAL MESSAGE FROM JJ ABRAMS
2008-12-23 10:33:00 This is from the Star Trek Movie Page on Facebook : AN OFFICIAL MESSAGE FROM JJ ABRAMSShareYesterday at 3:51pmDear All Those Who Checked Out the Trek Trailer on Facebook: THANK YOU! We're just making final tweaks to the movie -- we should be totally locked next week. Then we're going to flash-freeze it so it's totally fresh for you in May. I can't wait for you to see the movie. The cast is awesome. The action and effects pushed the stunt team and ILM beyond their limits. I'm so grateful to this cast and crew -- and to all of you for your interest and patience. We'll continue to update this page with new info and exclusives, so check back when you think of it. In the meantime, have a happy, healthy, fun holiday! From the last days of the sound mix, JJ More About: Message , Week
Zennie62 On Seesmic.com
2008-12-23 06:39:00 Happy Holidays! I'm Zennie Just saying 'hello' to the Seesmic Community! After months of thinking about doing it, I finally did it: contributed a video on Seesmic.com , Loic Lemur's video conversation venture, featuring my friend Cathy Brooks, who was one of his first staffers. I remember when Cathy was totting around a laptop showing Seesmic at work; that was last year, 2007 at a STIRR Founder Hacks Meetup! Wow, how time flies!
YouTube Partners - THE FACTS !
2008-12-23 05:30:00 "TheFatAussieBastard" gives a great set of reasons why it's good to be a YouTube Partner, like myself. His take is laced with f-bombs but he has a way of making a good case with them. Oh, YouTube Partners are paid for their vidoes via views versus ad buys. It's a worthwhile effort. More About: Youtube , Facts
Ecuador v. Chevron And The Associated Press' Bad Coverage
2008-12-23 05:10:00 I saw the Associated Press ' report on the Ecuador / Chevron case and was shocked at the lack of mention of Ecuador's responsibility to it's poorest people. Here' I take on Ecuador for its poor economic development record. More About: Coverage , Associated Press
Toyota predicts first ever loss as sales drop - Dec. 22, 2008
2008-12-22 23:10:00 More at CNN.com - Dec. 22, 2008 : “NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Japanese auto giant Toyota said Monday that it would suffer an operating loss due to plummeting auto sales and a strong local currency.About 30 minutes after the market closed in Tokyo, Toyota said it expected to lose approximately $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion this fiscal year. Toyota reports earnings on a fiscal calendar beginning in April.This would be Toyota's first operating loss since 1950, Toyota spokesman Steve Curtis said.Despite the likely operating loss, Toyota expects to post a $557 million net profit for the fiscal year. The profit stems, in large part, from joint ventures whose revenues are not included in the automakers' accounting for its operating profits.”--- This should show others that it's not just American car companies that are hurt by this economy. More About: Sales , Loss , Drop
More At The Denver Post
2008-12-22 23:07:00 Banks not saying where bailout money is going - The Denver Post : “WASHINGTON — It's something any bank would demand to know before handing out a loan: Where's the money going? But after receiving billions in aid from U.S. taxpayers, the nation's largest banks say they can't track exactly how they're spending the money or they simply refuse to discuss it."We've lent some of it. We've not lent some of it. We've not given any accounting of, 'Here's how we're doing it,"' said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in emergency bailout money. "We have not disclosed that to the public. We're declining to." The Associated Press contacted 21 banks that received at least $1 billion in government money and asked four questions: How much has been spent? What was it spent on? How much is being held in savings, and what's the plan for the rest? None of the banks provided specific answers.”-- This is an outrage! One of President Obama's firs... More About: Denver Post
Continental Flight 1404 a Boeing 737-500 Crashed at Denver Airport during t
2008-12-22 23:02:00 This is the account of the accident from MSNBC.com:"It was a miracle that no one was killed when Continental flight 1404 veered sharply off a runway of Denver airport during takeoff, which burst into flames and nearly broke apart. The 110 passengers and five crew members escaped miraculously. However, thirty-eight people suffered injuries including broken bones. The plane veered off course about 2,000 feet from the end of the runway and did not appear to have gotten airborne.It was Houston-bound Continental Flight 1404 from Denver airport. The accident happened Saturday evening(12/20/08. The entire right side of the Boeing 737-500 was burned and melted plastic from overhead compartments dripped onto the seats. -Courtesy: MSNBC.com" More About: Airport
Airline Passengers recount the terrifying DIA crash - The Denver Post”
2008-12-22 23:01:00 More At The Denver Post”: “In the seconds after Continental Flight 1404 came to a shuddering halt in a ravine after skidding off the airport runway, chaos erupted inside the plane's cabin.Luggage tumbled down from overhead bins, smoke filled the cabin, seats collapsed into one another, and passengers and flight attendants yelled: "Get out quick. The plane is going to explode," said Gabriel Trejos, who was traveling with his 13-month-old son and pregnant wife to Houston to visit his father and sister for Christmas.Trejos, who is from Pueblo, was one of 110 passengers on the Boeing 737-500 that skidded off the runway and slid down a 40-foot drop Saturday night.There were no fatalities in the first major accident in Denver International Airport's 14-year” More About: Crash , Airline , Passengers
Continental Airlines 737 path off runway traced - The Denver Post
2008-12-22 22:59:00 More At The Denver Post : “The Continental Airlines 737 jet that departed a DIA runway Saturday night traveled nearly a half mile through fields, then up and over a taxiway and airport service road like a 4-wheeling Jeep before coming to rest on its belly a short distance from an airport fire station, a site visit for news media revealed today.The National Transportation Safety Board took a pool of reporters and photographers to the crash scene for a 20-minute visit shortly after noon today.The tracks made by the plane's wheels were clearly visible where they veered off runway 34Right and traveled over a field, crossed taxiway WC, then dropped down a steep embankment and traveled through a depressed area before bouncing over Kewaunee Street, an airport service road.One of the plane's main landing gears rested on the other side of Kewaunee, so it appeared that the jolt of hitting the raised roadway sheared off the main gears. The other main gear sat about 75 yards from the roadway... More About: Runway
L.A. can use race as factor in magnet schools
2008-12-22 13:17:00 More at SFGate: “(12-21) 17:43 PST -- Los Angeles can continue to seek racial balance in assigning tens of thousands of students to specialized magnet schools despite California's voter-approved ban on race preferences in government programs, a state appeals court has ruled.Friday's decision by the Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles preserves the long-standing desegregation program in the state's largest school district in the face of a challenge by backers of Proposition 209, the 1996 ballot measure. Lawyers in the case disagreed on whether the ruling could also affect a lawsuit against the use of race in Berkeley school enrollments.” More About: Schools , Race , Factor , Magnet
Hangar One Vodka Macy's San Francisco Cocktail Event
2008-12-22 12:53:00 I was a special guest of of Liza "The Wine Chic" Zimmerman at this Hangar One Holiday Cocktail Mixing event at Macy's SF and which introduced Hangar One Vodka and Mixologist Scott Beattie. Hangar One is made in Alameda, California More About: Event , San Francisco , Francisco
Washington Post Poll Shows Likely Voters Backing Obama By Wide Margin
2008-09-24 15:00:00 As I've written in the recent past, when likely voters tend to be Republican. What does it say when the majority tilt toward the Democratic Candidate? Well that's what's happening in today's Washington Post poll. See below: Turmoil in the financial industry and growing pessimism about the economy have altered the shape of the presidential race, giving Democratic nominee Barack Obama the first clear lead of the general-election campaign over Republican John McCain, according to the latest Washington Post -ABC News national poll. Just 9 percent of those surveyed rated the economy as good or excellent, the first time that number has been in single digits since the days just before the 1992 election. Just 14 percent said the country is heading in the right direction, equaling the record low on that question in polls dating back to 1973. More voters trust Obama to deal with the economy, and he currently has a big edge as the candidate who is more in tune with the economic pr... More About: Poll
McCain Campaign Manager's Firm Paid By Freddie Mac Even As McCain Claims No
2008-09-24 05:58:00 Wow, how the connections line up. According to the New York Times and Newsweek, as Senator John McCain claimed that his campaign manager has has no business with or didn't benefit from Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae, we have this new news: Rick Davis' firm had a contract with Freddie Mac as recently as last month. Here's the NYT account: WASHINGTON ? One of the giant mortgage companies at the heart of the credit crisis paid $15,000 a month from the end of 2005 through last month to a firm owned by Senator John McCain?s campaign manager, according to two people with direct knowledge of the arrangement. The disclosure undercuts a statement by Mr. McCain on Sunday night that the campaign manager, Rick Davis, had had no involvement with the company for the last several years. Mr. Davis?s firm received the payments from the company, Freddie Mac, until it was taken over by the government this month along with Fannie Mae, the other big mortgage lender whose deteriorating finances help... More About: Campaign , Paid , Claims
The problem with deregulation: Where do we go from here?
2008-09-24 05:31:00 In case you wonder if deregulation is the pivotal policy that led to the collapse on Wall Street, here's a quick, easily-grasped explanation that should help you grasp why that lofty "ideal" has failed in our never-quite-ideal real world. Are you surprised that some have tried to use the crisis for their own political or financial gain?In what other industry would you have confidence enough to let the people with the most to gain act without regulation? Would car companies be so concerned with passenger safety without regulation? Would you want doctors to practice unregulated- no assurance they?d act with YOUR best interest in mind? Lawyers? Accountants? Toy Manufacturers? Food processors? I?m not suggesting there?s nothing good about a free-market economy, nor am I suggesting every insurance company or investment firm is run by greedy executives, but there have been snake-oil salesmen preying upon the unwary since before the dawn of history as nearly as I can determine.We left fox... More About: Problem
Richard Cabrera Files Fraudulent Report: Chevron Claim
2008-09-24 05:10:00 The "Richard Cabrera Report " is the basis for the much-used number "$16 billion" as the cost of Ecuador's lawsuit against Chevron . Now, Chevron representatives hammered this claim for the following reasons: 1. Cabrera manipulated and altered findings to justify false conclusions, including backdating photos; 2. He presented no evidence of pollution by Texaco Petroleum, erroneously assigning $1.4 billion in remediation costs to pits he did not visit and do not exist; 3. He presented no evidence to support cancer claims - neither identifying a single individual nor including a single medical report; 4. He did not take a single drinking water sample to establish contamination, yet he assigned $428 million in damages to be paid to improve Ecuador's potable water system; 5. Plaintiffs helped Cabrera compile the report, accompanying and assisting him on field trips, influencing the content of his report by providing him methodological tools such as questionable surveys and pre-wri... More About: Files
Ecuador Lawyer Pablo Fajardo Says Chevron Ecuador Case Could End In 2011
2008-09-24 04:51:00 This is new and extraordinary news, considering that both sides expected a ruling this year. Well, someone's going to have to finance Steve Donziger for another three years! By Mercedes Alvaro - Dow Jones Newswires, September 16, 2008: 5:47 PM QUITO - (Dow Jones)- A five-year-old environmental-damage trial in Ecuador against U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. (CVX) could take at least two or three more years, lawyers said Tuesday. The delay is expected after objections to an April report from a court- appointed expert were received by a court in Lago Agrio. The report prepared by Richard Cabrera, a geologist and environmental consultant, recommended that Chevron pay at least $8.3 billion, and maybe as much as $16 billion, in compensation for environmental damage in Ecuador. Chevron is facing the lawsuit in Ecuador for alleged contamination by its Texaco unit in the Amazon region of Lago Agrio. The company is accused of having used out-of-date technology that led to environmenta... More About: Lawyer , Case , Pablo
Ecuador Lawyer Pablo Fajardo Says Chevron Ecuador Case Could End In 2011
2008-09-24 04:51:00 This is new and extraordinary news, considering that both sides expected a ruling this year. Well, someone's going to have to finance Steve Donziger for another three years! By Mercedes Alvaro - Dow Jones Newswires, September 16, 2008: 5:47 PM QUITO - (Dow Jones)- A five-year-old environmental-damage trial in Ecuador against U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. (CVX) could take at least two or three more years, lawyers said Tuesday. The delay is expected after objections to an April report from a court- appointed expert were received by a court in Lago Agrio. The report prepared by Richard Cabrera, a geologist and environmental consultant, recommended that Chevron pay at least $8.3 billion, and maybe as much as $16 billion, in compensation for environmental damage in Ecuador. Chevron is facing the lawsuit in Ecuador for alleged contamination by its Texaco unit in the Amazon region of Lago Agrio. The company is accused of having used out-of-date technology that led to environmenta... More About: Lawyer , Case , Pablo
Omhari Sengstacke Charged WIth Bringing A Gun To Obama's Home
2008-09-24 01:14:00 What's stunning about this election is the degree to wish there are people who seem invested in maintaing a kind of racial status quo where someone in America has to be on "top" if their White, and on the "bottom" if they're Black. It reminds me of what my Mom told me when I tried to bring the 2005 Super Bowl to Oakland: Between Black's who are jealous and Whites who think someone White should be doing what you're doing, you've got a problem. Some of those people want you killed. People like Omhari Sengstacke for example. This guy came to the security perimeter of Barack's home, was told to leave, then came back and had a gun in his car. Plus, he's a convicted felon. Yikes. Here's the rest of the story... More About: Home
McCain Accused of Covering Up Vietnam POW Information
2008-09-23 19:53:00 I just received an email which points to a website page article accusing -- in a ton of detail -- Senator John McCain of covering up information on Vietnam POW's still in that country. I personally remember the clamor for information on what happened to POWs who never made it out of Vietnam. But here's the text of what I was sent: Senator McCain and the Vietnam War Prisoner of War Cover Up Sydney H. Schanberg September 18, 2008 - John McCain, who has risen to political prominence on his image as a Vietnam POW war hero, has, inexplicably, worked very hard to hide from the public stunning information about American prisoners in Vietnam who, unlike him, didn't return home. Throughout his Senate career, McCain has quietly sponsored and pushed into federal law a set of prohibitions that keep the most revealing information about these men buried as classified documents. Thus the war hero who people would logically imagine as a determined crusader for the interests of POWs and th... More About: Information
McCain's Camp Whines and Complains about Media
2008-09-23 19:44:00 McCain adviser Steve Schmidt in the midst of a whiny, irritating temper tantrum during a conference call with the Media . read more | digg story More About: Camp
John McCain's Racist and Sexist Comments and Actions
2008-09-23 05:14:00 Senator John McCain has been known for making racist and sexist comments. So many, one wonders why they've not been reported by the mainstrea media. Well, here's a video report on just some of what McCain has said, as well as his agreement with Bill O 'Reilly that he's part of a "White Male Power Structure." The foundation for my video was the work on Doug Thompson, who's the main author of the blog "Capital Hill Blue" I happened to find his work on the matter of McCain's racism while conducting this search "john mccain racism" on Goggle, and scrolling down. Doug's work is perhaps the most comprehensive collection of comments and actions that McCain has made and taken that have been identified as racist and sexist. Doug says that he was a Capital Hill Chief of Staff in his blog, but I checked via search and did find a more detailed information set on his other website about himself, and which read: Thompson took a sabbatical from newspapers in 1981 and moved to Washin... More About: Comments , Racist
Sports Business Networking? Join Women In Sports And Events
2008-09-23 01:05:00 If you're in the sports industry or in a sport management program, this video explains my experience in finding the right program to be a part of. After some good experiences and some terrible ones, I joined Women In Sports And Events (WISE). Regardless of gender, it's an excellent grassroots style program and they treat their members as welcomed guests. IF you're in a college, then you're already in a networking group, but you still can't go wrong with WISE. But there's one organization I recommend you not join and it's the National Sports Marketing Network. The National Sports Marketing Network does not have -- in my experience -- a good customer service track record. My story is personal in that I recently was sent an email to come to a member's only event, but then when i RSVPed -- after some hestiation because of the NSMN's terrible reputation in the SF Bay Area and after a friend encouraged me to do so -- I got the weird rebuff email. When I enquired and expressed... More About: Business , San Francisco
"The Blog Report With Zennie Abraham" Coming To CoLours TV
2008-09-22 22:44:00 http://zennie2005.blogspot.com - This is my presentation of our new show "The Blog Report with Zennie Abraham " coming to the CoLours TV network soon. CoLours TV is at 9407 on the DISH Network, so if you have Comcast, dump it and get the DISH Network so you can tune in. The show is in three basic segments: politics, pop-culture, and sports. More About: San Francisco , Colours
When they own the information they can bend it how they want
2008-09-22 09:29:00 "Me and all my friends," says John Mayer, "We?re all misunderstood.They say we stand for nothing and there?s no way we ever could." That sort of cynicism needs debunking, as Mayer knows. There's nothing false about hope, and what the future brings us depends largely on what we dare to believe - and do - in the present.Barack Obama inspires that hope.Here's a new video tribute, set to Mayer's music.read more | digg story More About: Information , Bend
"Help Is On The Way" REAF Benefit San Francisco - American Idol Stars Featu
2008-09-22 08:03:00 More About: Stars , American Idol , San Francisco , Tube , American
Obama Voting Ground Game Produces HUGE Results In Virginia
2008-09-21 04:05:00 The photo above shows the long line of people that has formed just under the awning of this shopping center. One thing the polls don't take into account is the massive voter registration drive and "get-out-the-vote" effort the campaign as developed. Here's an example. I saw this by Todd Smyth on the Obama listserv: Just another day of canvassing and churning out good numbers for Barack Obama? Uh.... Not quite. It's Saturday morning and I went to the Mt Vernon and Lee District Obama office (Rout 1, Fairfax, VA) to drop off and pick up stuff for today's canvass. We had 7 satellite staging areas in addition to the campaign office and my crappy cell phone camera doesn't do it justice but as I was leaving to head to my assigned canvass location, I snapped the picture below of dozens and dozens of people lining up along the strip mall to sign in, pick up a canvass pack and knock on doors for Barack Obama. I stored the picture, closed my camera and headed for ... More About: Ground , Results , Virginia , Game
John McCain: A Man You Can't Trust With The Economy
2008-09-21 00:59:00 This is a "video by a concerned private citizen" that get to the heart of the matter of the problems of Senator John McCain. More About: Economy , Trust , John McCain
Inexperienced Sarah Palin Protected By McCain Staff - Gets Easier Debate Fo
More articles from this author:2008-09-21 00:44:00 The whiners that the McCain staff is comprised of got a wish from their grossing and hand-wringing over the upcoming debate GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Gov. Sarah Palin has with Democratic VP Candidate Senator Joe Biden. Concerned that a "free-wheeling" debate format would allow the far more experienced Joe Biden to chew the very inexperienced Palin, the McCain staffers whined for and got an easier format for her. More About: Debate , Staff 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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