Dave Winer links to a transcript and video of Ahmadinejad’s visit to Columbia University.

Bollinger’s totally disrespectful introduction of President Ahmadinejad was unbelievable. Ahmadinejad even goes on to say “I know there’s time limits, but I need time. I mean, a lot of time was taken from me.” He should have just taken the time he needed and said “Don’t taze me, bro” if they continued to pressure him.

If you haven’t yet, go and read the transcript. I would love to see the sources people keep quoting where he calls for the violent destruction of Israel, where he denies the Holocaust, or any of those things. From what he said most recently at Columbia University, I’m starting to suspect that those faulty interpretations were more the fault of our crack journalists and media wankers.

My take-aways from his speech:

• Iran has complied with IAEA. Iran refuses to be bullied into giving other countries money for nuclear power technologies that are never delivered. Legally, Iran has every right to pursue peaceful nuclear power and has been doing so.
• Ahmadinejad believes there is still opportunity to research Holocaust-related events. This does not equate to denial of the Holocaust. Anyone who interprets his position as such is simply wrong.
• Iran, just like the US, employs capital punishment. Iran, just like the US, has laws. Women are highly respected in Iran. Criminals aren’t, even if they’re women.
• Ahmadinejad does not see science in conflict with religion, quite unlike our own President. He sees the human desire and ability to grow our knowledge as a gift by God. Regardless of your position on God’s existence, not holding science at odds with religion is a healthy mindset.

I hope Americans can listen to his message–I don’t think it was offensive or inciteful or provocative–and learn from it. We are all on this ball of dirt called Earth together. Perhaps we should learn to make the best of our time on it together?

Tags: politics, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran, Columbia University, speech

I read this article and cringed. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is to come to New York and speak. Americans are pissed off that he’s coming. Right now, I’m actually embarassed to be an American–I don’t want to be lumped in with those fools.

Fortunately, Scott Adams cleverly expresses why I feel this way–anything I could have come up with would have probably been labeled anti-Semitic ranting. Whatever I would have written about the irony of the situation wouldn’t have been as effective as how Scott expressed it.

My kids, who are 7 and 4, stick their fingers in their ears and go “la la la” when they don’t want to listen to someone. America, can we grow up, please? President Amadinejad wants to come and tell us his side of the story, first-hand, instead of all that rubbish that the pop media spoonfeeds you through the idiot box. I have no proof, but my hunch is that Iranians aren’t the puppy-murdering evil people that they’ve been made out to be.

Our own President has waged a war against a small group of people who he can’t clearly identify and locate. He controls a known arsenal of weapons of mass destruction. Americans are terrified to travel–not because of “the terrorists”–but because we stand a good chance of losing our rights and being detained at the airport because of what we look like, how we dress, what we have in our suitcases, or where we’re going. Our children bring guns to school and shoot each other. We don’t feel safe leaving our kids playing in our own backyard any more.

As ego-centric Americans, we act as self-appointed stewards of freedom (doesn’t that just make you laugh out loud?). Therefore, we have an obligation to recognize that President Ahmadinejad represents his people and by sharing his story–that of the people he is responsible for–we might have a chance to learn that they are not so very different from us. Perhaps we can even help each other, somehow. But, as long as we keep believing the rhetoric of our own government and media and act like immature children and refuse to listen to what we don’t like to hear, how will we learn? And if we don’t learn, how will we ever improve?

I beg you all to show the world why America truly is the greatest nation in the world–stop being fools and start being part of the larger world as one nation out of many. Let us listen to what President Ahmadinejad is trying to tell us about the conditions of his people–their fears, their angers, their hatred–and try to understand how what we are doing here, affects them, half-way around the world. It is time to see past the end of your cable television from your little trailer park and know that the reason why Americans can’t locate America on a world map isn’t just because “we don’t have maps.”

Tags: America, patriotism, Iran, President Ahmadinejad

A week or so ago, it got down to 20F here in Butler, NJ, and I was complaining it was cold. This morning, it’s 8F (-13.3C). I’m sorry, this is downright ridiculous. Last I checked, New Jersey was still south of the Arctic Circle!

Where the hell is my global warming, damnit?!

Someone please turn the “nice weather machine” back on. Thanks!

Tags:
weather

Dear Canadians,

Please take your awful weather back. I don’t want it. Thanks.

Good god. It’s 20F (-6.6C) and windy out. It’s even too cold to enjoy smoking a cigarette outside. Argh!

Tags:
weather

caias posted on his LJ about people getting angry over not being able to pump their own gas in NJ. As he’s locked his LJ so only those on his friends list can comment (and I’m not on it), I’m blogging my response here:

I wonder if it’s just jealousy, that not only does New Jersey have some of the cheapest gas in the country (!) but we get full-service, too! (Apparently, outside of New Jersey, gas stations charge extra for full-service.)

People who insist on pumping their own gas are fools. The same kind of fools that smoke light cigarettes. Pay the same price as regular cigarettes, but get less nicotine and tar? Idiots. I get my money’s worth, thankyouverymuch.

At what point does the counterintuitiveness of the decision become evident? Such extreme examples as “pay the same price, get only half a cheeseburger?” I’m guessing people would see why that’s a ludicrous decision to make, right? So, why do people feel so strongly about “pay the same price for gas, but pump it yourself” when it’s already cheaper in New Jersey to let someone else pump it than it is to self-serve yourself in other states?

If gas in New Jersey were more expensive than other states, and someone could reasonably argue that the increase is directly due to the state mandated full-service, then I’d agree: it should be optional. But, I’ve seen no such argument …

Tags:
Caias Ward,
New Jersey,
gasoline,
self-serve

I’ve been a member of the New Jersey Young Professionals (NJYP) Yahoo! Group for a while, and now and then some interesting conversations get started. However, the mailing list is heavily moderated and sometimes my posts get rejected or overlooked by the moderators, I assume, since when they’re rejected I usually get a courtesy email telling me so. I’m not a huge fan of moderated discussion lists, but it’s not my group and I don’t set its policies. But, that’s not the point … this is the point:

There was a post recently by Vee suggesting that since employers request salary requirements or salary histories as part of the candidate selection process, that companies should tell candidates what salary they are offering for the position. I wrote this as my response, which as far as I can tell, never made it out to the NJYP list:

I don’t think it’s necessary for employers to disclose a salary figure when
posting a position. What good would that do?

In my experience, I’ve always worried about negotiating salary last, regardless of what the posted salary for a position is, if it is at all. Business is all about negotiation, and if you’re not prepared to negotiate for your salary, then you probably don’t deserve it anyway.

If I do well in the interview, I feel totally comfortable “naming my price” for what I’d like to get paid to work there. If it’s outside the range for the position I was originally interviewing for, if they really like me as a candidate, I know they’ll work it out with HR to open a new position with the appropriate job title and grade level to pay me the salary I’m asking for, if I’ve made the necessary impression on them that makes them want to hire me. If the employer isn’t impressed with me, then it’s a bad fit and I shouldn’t work there regardless of how much or little salary I’m willing to accept.

I also realized: what’s stopping a candidate from asking the employer what salary range the position offers? At worst, they’ll refuse to tell you which is no different than when you started. At best, they’ll share the information with you and you can decide whether you want to continue pursuing the opportunity or not. I’d be afraid of hiring someone who doesn’t have the necessary spine to ask a simple question like, “So, what’s the salary range for this position?” It’s not like asking for someone’s hand in marriage, you know.

Employment is a lot like matchmaking. Exchanging salary requirements and ranges up front might serve to optimize the search a bit, but it’s how companies miss out on some good talent and also some good talent missing out on some opportunities. But, with so many companies to choose from and so many candidates to choose from, perhaps it’s not statistically significant. Maybe someone needs to launch an eHarmony-like matchmaking site for job seekers and employers. Someone want to form a start-up with me? :-)

While reading this thread at Slashdot about the state of North Carolina wanting to eliminate Solitaire and other games from state employees’ computers, I came across this comment:

It’s Welfare (Score:2)
by Art Tatum (6890) on Sunday March 20, @11:16PM (#11995417)

It has for some time been obvious to me that government bureaucracy is the *real* welfare program in America. It’s a jobs program for people who can’t get work in the private sector.

Wow. How true that is …