My musings about life, happiness, technology, and what ever else comes along.
After looking for quite some time for an add-on to Firefox or IE to ease blog posting, I finally found one — and I like it.
ScribeFire is an add-on for Firefox 2.0 newer. It provides a collapsed, hidden panel at the bottom of the browser. It has various options and allows you to post to more than one blog. Plus, it performs rich text editing i.e. HTML.
You can find it on https://addons.mozilla.org.
My Rating: [5 out of 5]
My PC is running Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit with NOD32 antivirus/anti-spyware and Windows Defender.
Windows Defender is not the best anti-spyware however it does have it’s place. NOD32 from ESET does a decent job on spyware and it is one of the best for antivirus so I was happy.
Part of my normal security procedures verifies everything is updating itself properly. Windows Defender had not updated in quite some time so I opened it and manually ran an update. I promptly got the following error:
Arrgh say I!
After a little googling, I found a procedure that fixes the problem. Apparently the definitions have something wrong with them (corruption maybe?) that causes the update to fail.
Here is the procedure that worked for me:
That is it. It worked for me. Here is a screen shot of an example run of those commands once you have a command window open:
The War Powers Act
What a load of crock!
The act of going to war, whether it is an actual declaration of war against another sovereign nation, to answer the call of an ally, or a “border action”, is the realm of congressional power only. The presidency can certainly request it of congress however the decision must be with congress only.
The unconstitutional law called the War Powers Act or the War Powers Resolution must be repealed to return balance to our checks and balances system.
The framers of our constitution well understood that there needed to be clear, concise lines of power with each branch of government in charge of its sphere with no legal way to use power from one of the other spheres. Allowing the president to send troops into war situations with out congress approving is, in my mind, tantamount to treason.
Congress is complicit in allowing this unconstitutional law to remain on the books. Yes, I have read the arguments of why it has not been overturned in the courts. It is still a load of crock!
This is part 2 of my proposal for changes in the USA government. Based on my previous post, we would have a new election system. Congress would be aligned along two lines - states’ rights and public representation. Congress would also be more diverse.
The presidency would be elected more along the lines the people’s wishes without removing the electoral college — which has functions even in today’s world.
Let’s talk about internal congressional procedures and how one item, bill riders, has skewed our governmental system of checks and balances.
One of the major issues with congress is the rider system. It needs to be outlawed or the president needs a form of line item veto to kill the riders. I favor both methods.
First, congress should not be allowed to add riders that do not directly relate to the pending legislation within the bill. This would kill the “pork” that congress likes to add to bills so that the president won’t veto due to the importance or political environment of the proposed law. Riders should still be allowed however they would need to relate to the bill. For example, a bill dealing with specific types of taxes would only have tax riders of the same type of taxes. A bill dealing with child welfare could only have riders dealing directly with child welfare.
Second, if the president can veto the bill or the riders or a combination, then this gives the power originally given to the presidency by the constitution back to the president. Riders are an effective way for congress to ram rod through items by attaching them to bills the president can’t or won’t veto. It would not be right for the president to veto parts of a bill. With this proposal, the president would only be able to veto the riders or the bill itself. And if the bill is vetoed, then the riders would be vetoed automatically as well. But if the president vetoes a rider and signs the bill, the bill becomes law without the rider.
Congress would still be allowed to override a veto on a rider or bill in the same manner currently used. Namely, a two thirds vote in congress to override the veto.
By restricting riders and allowing the president limited veto rights on those riders, the intent of the constitution is reinstated. Right now, presidential power is partially usurped by congress with the current rider system.
My next post on this subject will deal with war and war powers. Stay tuned…
Revolution is a big word. It’s scary and denotes fearful change for many.
Well, my last post was on my birthday — November 20, 2007. I have been ill off and on since then and on a huge project at work that was taking up so much of my time.
My employer has graciously reduced my workload due to my illness.
For anyone reading, regular posts have started. I hope to log at least once every other day.
So, here it is:
| Category | Part | Company Site |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel E6750 overclocked to 3.2 GHz | Intel |
| Main/Motherboard | Abit IP35 Pro | Abit |
| Video card | Leadtek WinFast PX8800 GTS TDH GeForce 8800GTS 640 MB | LeadTek |
| Memory | 2 sets of G.Skill 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) DDR2-800 F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ (8 GB total) | G.Skill |
| Hard Drives | Several 750 GB Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD7500AAKS | Western Digital |
| Operating System | Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit | Microsoft Windows |
| Keyboard and Mouse | Microsoft Wireless keyboard and mouse | Microsoft Hardware |
| CPU Cooler | Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro | Arctic Cooling |
| Case | Antec Nine Hundred | Antec |
Over the years, I have used many a program on Windows. NoteTab Light is one such beastie.
NoteTab Light is a free text editor with a tabbed interface. Each tab represents one open text file. It can also be configured to open all files opened at the time of applications closure. The application has a myriad of settings.
At work, I use it to keep various common pieces of text for email in a convenient location. It is configured to minimize and close to the notification area of the task bar so it is only a click away.
Over all, I give NoteTab Light 4 our of 5.
System Requirements (as taken from their web site):
Site: http://www.notetab.com
I have been so busy that my BLOG has suffered. For any one reading, I apologize.
Work has been a real big headache. More postings will follow this and hopefully more often.
First, read this: Global Warming Alarmism Reaches A Tipping Point
There is no doubt Earth has warmed. More and more evidence, however, is indicating that warming of our Earth is well within expected variability.
I don’t have much more to say about this. We do need to reduce pollution output. We do need to be kinder to the environment. We need to think of the consequences of our actions (and no, not the “Precautionary Principle” on steroids please).
As a race living on the planet together, lets move on to study the climate and environment in a politically neutral manner. Politics has no place in the scientific debate itself (and that especially means you Al Gore)!
For shame on the scientists that are being alarmist.
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