We Need Nicer Medicine

Posted on 06-10-2009 by Apreche

Anyone who knows me knows that snake oil peddlers rank close to the top on the list of things I despise. When someone is suffering from an illness, taking their money in exchange for false hope is among the worst things one human can possibly do to another. Evidence based medicine is the best medicine we have, and I wouldn’t let myself, or anyone I care about, receive any other kind of treatment. However, evidence based medicine has one major problem in that is is very unpleasant for the patient.

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A Way to Save Local Business?

Posted on 05-01-2009 by Apreche

In recent years, people have been trying to “save” local businesses. It’s just that when you actually look at the practicality of keeping things local, it often becomes difficult if not impossible to get what you want, and also keep things local. It’s another one of those chicken and egg problems. Let’s see if we can figure a way out of it. I think a good way to go about this is to examine the pros and cons of local vs. big businesses, and try to solve them one at a time.

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How Badly Do You Want It?

Posted on 04-30-2009 by Apreche

Over all the decades that piracy has been a hot topic the point often comes up that piracy isn’t stealing because those pirates would not have paid money if piracy were not an option. This point, while often brought up, is often ignored. There is no response to it, and yet it is perhaps the most central and crucial point in the entire discussion. I think one major problem is that there has been little actual investigation into the truth of this, at least that I have heard of. Allow me to begin that investigation with some common sense logic.

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Almost Everything is a Miracle

Posted on 04-29-2009 by Apreche

Look around yourself right now, and pick any physical object. Pick any normal every-day sort of thing that happens to come to mind. Now think of that thing not just in the context of itself, but in the context of all human history. Now go beyond and think of it in the context of the history of the universe. In the proper context, even some crummy YouTube video becomes absolutely miraculous.

To demonstrate what I’m talking about, I will use the example of this cute YouTube video.

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The Florida Shuffle

Posted on 04-28-2009 by Apreche

Being unmployed, I took some time to visit my grandmoter in Florida. While there, I had a lot of time to observe and think about the state of things in the sunshine state. I came to a realization that things are probably going to get very bad down there in the coming years. Continue reading →

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Unusable Open Source

Posted on 04-17-2009 by Apreche

Still unemployed, I have begun working on a new web site that will at least enhance my resume if it doesn’t make me any money. Since I’ve got no boss telling me what to do, I can use the latest and greatest open source tools. This site will be up in no time at all because no wheels will have to be reinvented. If only that where the case. As I really started to get my hands dirty, I began to realize just how many of the great tools out there are in an unusable state. Continue reading →

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Domino’s Doesn’t Get It

Posted on 04-16-2009 by Apreche

If you haven’t been sleeping under a rock, you noticed the craziness that ensued due to a video posted on YouTube by some Domino’s Pizza employees. The video is taken down now, but you can find it if you search hard enough. In the video some employees pretended to put snot on food for customers. They’re in trouble now, and they deserve it for being so stupid. But it has also become a public relations nightmare for the company. This is just yet another example of how marketers and public relations people simply don’t understand the new media world.

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