Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in machiavelli_f's LiveJournal:

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Monday, November 2nd, 2009
12:03 pm	I took this picture in a restaurant bathroom, and submitted it to Fail Blog. A mural that says "Ladies Room" above the urinals in the Men's room. Please give me a good vote on the pic if you think it's worth it! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, October 14th, 2009
10:47 am	Comon baby take a chance with us and meet me at the back of the blue bus... Reposted from a comment I made to skwidly: I read my first Wheel of Time book in Basic Training in June of 1990. I wasn't particularly attracted to the title or the cover, but a guy had "smuggled" it in - his parents had sent it to him concealed in some packages of new underwear - and it was the only access I had to fiction literature. I had smuggled two canteens full of root beer out of the permanent party chow hall where I was doing KP (We weren't allowed soda of ANY kind), and traded one of the canteens to the guy in exchange for the loan of the book. I started reading it while late-night barracks watch out of pure desperation, and ended up hopelessly addicted. Today, I've read the entire series every time a new book comes out, and several more times in between. I've probably read The Eye of the World, that first book, over 15 times. (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009
10:48 am	It doesn't matter who's wrong or right... Poll #1464078 Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 18 Eating Gravy. Just Gravy. View Answers Bleeeagh! 3 (16.7%) Not for me. 2 (11.1%) Meh. 3 (16.7%) Could be ok. 7 (38.9%) Om nom nom! 4 (22.2%) Only if I want to die young. 2 (11.1%) WTF is wrong with you, anyway? 1 (5.6%) (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, September 28th, 2009
12:38 pm	I'll hide behind a smile and understanding eyes... I always hear this ad on the radio for "Consumer Credit Card Services", a company that promises to settle your credit card debt for "pennies on the dollar, without the hassle of bankruptcy". Now, for anyone who doesn't know, what these companies do is go to the credit card companies and negotiate on your behalf, saying you can't pay, and ask the company to settle. They take a fee for doing so. The big issues are that they aren't doing anything you couldn't do on your own, and that the resulting ding to your credit report is as bad or worse than a bankruptcy. But what gets my goat about this commercial is how deceptive it is. They say things like "The federal government has given credit card companies billions of dollars of money, and these companies need to clear their books of debt!" Notice that they don't say WHY the government has given credit card companies (also know as "banks") money, nor does it mention that the bailout money, the need to remove debt from the books, and the service that this company provides are all completely unrelated. It is never stated but heavily implied that this company is going to use bail-out funds to help consumers alleviate their credit card debt. It's a highly deceptive practice for a highly dodgy industry, and I'm not really sure how they are able to get away with it. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, June 11th, 2009
8:49 pm	The New Hampshire driving test: 1> Do you want a drivers license? YES NO (Circle one) ((Note: Applicants that circle YES will immediately be issued a drivers license. Applications that circle NO will still be issued a drivers license. Applicants that refuse to circle YES or NO will praised for their free spirit, and then issued a drivers license)) (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, May 1st, 2009
1:52 pm	A simple test to determine if have been exposed to Swine flu: http://doihaveswineflu.org/ (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
4:00 pm	Hit me baby one more time... http://www.japantoday.com/category/c...son-cell-phone A 21-year-old man was arrested for assault on Wednesday, accused of punching a 50-year-old woman several times in her face, breaking her jaw, while on a Saikyo line train and in a train station office Wednesday morning, police said Thursday. Police said Jun Ando, a computer programmer and resident of Toda City, became angry on the train bound for Shinkiba at around 8 a.m., after the woman asked him to stop playing games on his cell phone as the train was so crowded. Ando told her to shut up and sprayed her with some colorful language, before punching her several times. He was restrained by several passengers until the train stopped at Toda Park station, where they escorted him off the train. They took him to the station office, but while in there with the woman and station staff, he punched the woman again, police said. Hardcore. (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 24th, 2009
3:07 pm	Oh great. A post from one of my team members at school: I have updated the charter.William and Krista I do not know if both of you seen that there are other question to answer on that form. So I thought I would let you two know that there is other questions, because I didn't know until I was told about the other questions before. Sorry if i sound boses, I am not just wanted to let you know. Edit: Gah, her second post is almost as bad: I really don't cares either one will be ok with me. Just let me know which one everyone besides on. Me fail English? That's unpossible! (7 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, January 5th, 2009
1:08 pm	Will they read of us with sadness for the seeds that we let grow? The other day, I saw an "Obama For President" sticker on a car. Apart from thinking it was vaguely inappropriate, in the same sense that "Christmas decorations still up in February" is inappropriate, I was struck by a thought: This sticker is giving me permission to steal this car. I mean, if someone is the kind of person that advocates taking others belongings without their consent... then that person would have to be a giant hypocrite to be upset when someone takes their belongings, right? (14 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, December 22nd, 2008
9:55 am	I have six buddy keys for a free 7 day trial of Warhammer Online. If you want one, I need an email address and a first name. Comments are screened to keep email addresses private. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008
12:27 pm	I'm playing hockey this afternoon at the American Airlines Center. This is the same ice where the Dallas Stars play their NHL games. It's about as close to playing in the NHL as I'm ever likely to get. I'm stoaked! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, December 5th, 2008
9:24 am	The Eighteenth Amendment was repealed with ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment, signaling the end of prohibition, on December 5, 1933. Yay, 75th Anniversary of the end of prohibition! Hoist one in honor! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, November 17th, 2008
1:40 pm	I tried my hand at writing a test. It's much more of a "How much do you know?" rather than a "What color dog would you be?" kind of test. Great Books of Literature Test (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 30th, 2008
9:40 am	How did we get where we are today? This video sums it up nicely. It is one of the best explanations I've seen to date. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, July 29th, 2008
10:32 am	Slight of hand and quick exchange, the old tricks have been rearranged.... Ok, it's bad enough that the government has decided to bail out Fanny Mae, Freddy Mac, and all the other quasi-government agencies that decided to try to maximize their profits by making poor loan decisions. Removing tax dollars from people who did NOT make poor decisions in order to assist those who did. That's the American way. I mean, no one, not even billion dollar companies, should have to live with the consequences of their poor decisions, right? But even worse is the rider to the bill: Payment Card and Third Party Network Information Reporting: The proposal requires information reporting on payment card and third party network transactions. Payment settlement entities, including merchant acquiring banks and third party settlement organizations, or third party payment facilitators acting on their behalf, will be required to report the annual gross amount of reportable transactions to the IRS and to the participating payee. Reportable transactions include any payment card transaction and any third party network transaction. Participating payees include persons who accept a payment card as payment and third party networks who accept payment from a third party settlement organization in settlement of transactions. A payment card means any card issued pursuant to an agreement or arrangement which provides for standards and mechanisms for settling the transactions. Use of an account number or other indicia associated with a payment card will be treated in the same manner as a payment card. A de minimis exception for transactions of $10,000 or less and 200 transactions or less applies to payments by third party settlement organizations. The proposal applies to returns for calendar years beginning after December 31, 2010. Back-up withholding provisions apply to amounts paid after December 31, 2011. This proposal is estimated to raise $9.802 billion over ten years. Why are people not up in arms about this?!? It essentially requires credit card companies to report your spending habits to the IRS. Not someone else's habits. YOURS. Why? So the IRS can decide if you are spending more money than you should be, and audit you accordingly. And now, I'm placed in the wonderful position of figuring out "How do we, as a credit card company, Comply with this requirement?" You see, there are a couple problems, the biggest of which is that I don't know who you are. Oh, sure, you swipe your card, and I see that "Fred Smith" swiped his card. Which Fred Smith? No idea. Just... "Fred Smith". Even worse, I'm required not to store that information. Once Fred Smith's purchase is approved, I delete all reference to "Fred Smith". All I know is that a card number made a purchase for X dollars at Y merchant. I keep that information to settle disputes or chargebacks made later on, and because I'm required to for tax purposes. The rest, I'm required to throw away. So, nevermind how impossibly hard this is on the big evil credit card company. Do you really want the Government tracking your spending habits? They can wiretap you without so much as a warrant. How is this NOT a fourth amendment violation? "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated" IRS: Mr. Smith, you spent $30,000 last year, but you only made $20,000. Do you mind telling me where that extra money came from? Smith: It was in my bank account from previous years. IRS: Do you have proof of that? Smith: Here is my bank statement. IRS: Great, lets get all your bank statements, purchases, and any other transactions you made for the previous five years, and decide how much more money you owe us. Someone else bought a house they couldn't afford, and we need you to pay for it. GAH! I'm furious! (10 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008
3:01 pm	Obama visits 57 States! Fifty-Seven! He's the new Dan Quayle. (14 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 4th, 2008
3:19 pm	Gary Gygax goes to -10. And so passes another great mind. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, February 11th, 2008
10:51 am	This is awesome, and had to be shared. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, February 7th, 2008
10:29 am	27 (10 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, January 29th, 2008
10:20 am	How in the hell does a song like "Rock Lobster" (B-52s) get on the radio? (13 Comments |Comment on this)