Tim Hawkins Things you don't say to your wife

A hilarious video. So true...

Movie: The Hamburg Cell

Image by lakerae via FlickrThe Hamburg Cell is about how one group of the 9/11 hijackers/terrorists moved from 'regular students' to murderers.

It goes through their recruitment, indoctrination, and training and tells a fascinating story about the personal lives of some of these individuals. The challenges that they face, the relationship that they have.

The director said he wanted to show that they were "regular" people with normal issues. I think he did this, in the sense that they had wives, families, and angst. No question about that.

But I don't think he was morally equivocating. He showed a violent side of Islam that will rest at nothing to destroy America and the West.  I walked away saddened by the existence of this threat and still shocked that there are those who, in my estimation, minimize its severity.

Much like in Munich, I did not feel that the "humanization" of the terrorists by the telling of "their story" made me sympathetic or empathetic to their cause. There may be some who have that reaction, but not many.

If you are looking to get a better understanding of radical Islam, this is a good movie to watch. Plus, as an alum of the German university system, it accurately represented elements of German student life, to which I could relate.

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More on the MPAA and future of movies...

I posted a while back on the problems that I foresaw for the MPAA.

Enjoy Mark Cuban's post (he's got a bit more $ than I) on the futility of trying to police illegal downloads. As usual, well written.   

Thank You Note Bankruptcy...In My Face!

Gotta love the fierceness (is that a word? Oh yeah, ferocity) with which the community has pushed back on the issue of "Thank You Note Bankruptcy."

First, they come after me online

Now, they are coming after me offline.

Jamie sent me this note, 2 weeks post-partem.

That is hard core.

All I'll say is "Jamie, you are still only on number 1!"

Nevertheless, I do appreciate the intensity of the gesture! ;-)

Entrepreneurs Need You to Respect Their Time...

Image via WikipediaIt's common, perhaps even fashionable, for corporate America to say they want their employees to act as "entrepreneurs."

You will often find MBA's who talk about an 'entrepreneurial mindset.'

This is great and I'm all for more people who take calculated risks.

But, there's one critical element to the entrepreneurial experience that I forgot during my time at MSFT. I've seen (and heard from others) that it is often neglected by corporate employees in dealing with entrepreneurs.

The recognition that TIME is an entrepreneur's most valuable asset.


My friend and blogging maestro, Jimmy, calls this the "No B.S. Disclaimer."

Just promise me that you won't give me any B.S.

If you don't want to work with an entrepreneur (buy his/her product or service), that's fine, but the absolute best thing you can do is to say No and say it quickly.

It's easy to keep pushing people off and avoid the confrontation of saying No, but if you really respect entrepreneurs, if you have really no intention of buying and are just avoiding the conflict, just say so.  That's the ultimate sign of respect.

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End Oil Dependence in 10 words

Ok, not quite, but the Minifesto community efforts at BetterPlace - Ten Words is worth investigating.

Better Place is a noble  effort to make electric cars. They are using Israel and Denmark as proving grounds.

It's fascinating and possible. Check it out. This is going to be big, IMHO.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

End Oil Dependence in 10 words

Ok, not quite, but the Minifesto community efforts at BetterPlace - Ten Words is worth investigating.

Better Place is a noble  effort to make electric cars. They are using Israel and Denmark as proving grounds.

It's fascinating and possible. Check it out. This is going to be big, IMHO.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Movie Review: Adaptation

Image via WikipediaWhen you have 3 kids, it is not uncommon to have not even heard of an Academy Award winning movie. 

That is the case with Adaptation.

I suppose between the kids, NFO, and dedication to career, I missed it.

Which is both a shame and a relief. Had I missed it entirely, it would have been a shame, because as I watched this film, I said, "THIS Is what movies are supposed to be. A story that envelops you, transports you, brings you in."

A relief, because I did see it and it is one of the best films I've seen in a long time.

Super simple plot, a writer is struggling to write a screenplay for the movie you are watching.

Got it?

I didn't. Well, I did, but figuring out how to say it took a while.  Or better this: You are watching a movie about a writer struggling to write the screenplay for the movie you are watching.

And, the story that he is struggling (Nick Cage playing TWO roles, btw) is just a great one. It's got intrigue, drama, great acting (Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper) and a nice subtext of NYC high society vs. 'real people' as well.

Great, just great. If you haven't seen it, please do.

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The 7 Species-Shtetl Fusion Cholent

Trying to expand the Top-Chef inspired cooking repertoire from the Mediterranean-Shtetl Fusion

There are  7 traditional species of Israel, so tomorrow's cholent has the following ingredients. We'll see how it goes

• Rib steak (which I seared beforehand)
  
• grilled onions
• olive oil
• pomegranate juice
• dates
• grapes
  
• figs
• barley
• bread crumbs (wheat)
• mayonnaise (for texture)
• turmeric
• cinnamon
• pepper
• sauteed garlic cloves
• saffron
• a few apricots
• pinch of ginger
• 2 sweet potatoes
  

It'll either be great...or a disaster.

Updated: ok, it was neither great, but not a disaster. It smelled great, but the taste lacked punch or "kick."  There's potential, but needs works

Take me out to Nationals Park!

A big call out to Washington Nationals 'superfan' Dave Sobel of Evolve Technologies whose generosity led to my first visit to the new Nationals Park.

Baseball is not my favorite sport (bonus points if you guess what is), but from a 'hang out' perspective, there are few better than a lazy summer evening (not too humid), in a beautiful setting only 2 blocks from the Metro, with some good friends and highly overpriced beer.

The Nats, to no one's suprise, dropped the game to the Phillies, but I didn't really care.

Felt like a kid again, enjoyed seeing "Take me out to the ballgame" and visiting with Conrad and Jesse.

I grew up an Orioles' fan and I think that is where my allegiance lies, but between driving 50 minutes, parking and having to come back and sitting in an air conditioned Metro car w/no parking hassle, not much of a contest.

Go Nats!!

PS (this guy on 2nd base by himself got caught overruning the basepath and essentially cost the Nats the game).

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20 years...

Don’t know about you, but I remember 8/8/88 because the Washington Post made a big deal about it. And there was a picture or two of kids who were born that day.

 

Happy 20^th birthday

Iceberg Theory of Change

A few years ago, I saw a documentary about oil rigs in the North Atlantic.

The biggest enemy of oil rigs are icebergs. In a confrontation between the two, the iceberg is going to win.

So, oil rigs have an elaborate anti-iceberg defense mechanism that involves radars and tugboats. Once they detect an iceberg coming, they send out a tugboat interceptor, which has three options.

One is to try and blow the iceberg to smithereens.

The other two (literally lassoing the iceberg or throwing the engines in reverse in front of the iceberg to create wake) are designed to alter the course of the iceberg by a miniscule amount.

However, at a distance of 300 miles, a deviation of a few degrees or so will make the iceberg miss the rig by 200 miles or something ridiculous like that (the mathematicians out there can give you the exact numbers, but you get the idea.)

So, what’s the point?

Well, the sooner you see the need for change and the sooner you make the change, the easier it is going to be. It’s easier to change the course of an iceberg by 1 degree than 30 degrees, which is what you’d need to do as it gets closer to you.

Of course, my sister accuses me of having complex theories for simple ideas. This is also known as "ounce of prevention, pound of cure," but I like the visuals here better.

Guess the organization...

Major props to the reader who can successfully guess the organization which sent me the following direct mail piece:

Do you know your lobbying organziations?

8 years ago today...

The nfo agreed to marry me.

It is even more unbelievable now.

I so married way above myself, not even funny.

Mediterranean-Shtetl Fusion Cholent…

There are some folks in my neighborhood that take Cholent very seriously.

There’s a Cholent committee at the synagogue.

So, when the NFO told me to “take this piece of meat and make a cholent,” like any good marketer, I decided to change the playing field.

Traditionally, the cholent is made with foods common to Eastern Europe; meat, potatoes, barley, etc.

Now, maybe I’ve been watching too much Top Chef, but I decided on a different route.

So, the shtetl component had:

• meat (breast deckel, it was called)
• sweet potatoes
• barley

and then I went Mediterranean

• marinara sauce
• basil
• oregano
• garlic (cloves and powder)
• onions (sauteed first, by the way)
• balsamic vinegar
• red cooking wine
• campari tomatoes
• portobello mushrooms

The result?

I thought it was pretty good, but one guest said it was “one of the best cholents” she’d ever  had.

The chairman of the cholent committee came over and tasted it (upon my request for authentication) and he said that the flavor was great, but it needed a bit more salt and probably a fattier piece of meat.

Anyway, I had fun and wanted to document.

Next up: Tropical Shtetl Fusion…

World Travel in 2008

So funny that Bethel sent this to me today. It's a must watch.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Last night, I was thinking "what would it have been like for me during my 3 years in Europe and Asia if the Internet had been then what it is now?"

I was concerned that "travellers" (which I differentiate from tourists) would go to a place, use their phone or a cybercafe and never really interact w/the locals.

Shows what I know. The spirit of meeting other folks is alive and well.

Well, to some extent, we have the answer. And by the way, this proves once again that you can't "make something viral." It is or it isn't because of what it offers.

Enjoy.

Ayn Rand, Healthcare, and some thoughts on Entrepreneurship

Image via WikipediaWhat is the driver of wealth creation within the American economy?

If you think it is the entrepreneur and private industry, read on. If not, this post may not be for you.

I may be too Ayn Rand in my outlook, but I've got to say, I'm pretty frustrated with the way that our system seems to be set up to make it difficult for the entrepreneur and small business owner.

I knew it was tough, but I didn't realize how (not sure if unfair is the right word) many barriers there are.

First, I blogged about Obama and his proposed self-employment tax. Frankly, there shouldn't even be a tax on self-employment. There should be a tax credit for it. How else do you stimulate it?

Now, I'm trying to get us off the ridiculously expensive COBRA family healthcare option and figure out a cost-effective way to get health insurance for the family.

Easy? Far from it.

Yes, it's easier than it was (I haven't purchased, but have worked through ehealthinsurance.com), but it seems like entrepreneurs are a group of people we want to keep healthy and, more importantly, make it as easy for them to go out and create wealth for others and for the country.

Anyway, just a bit demoralized at seeing, now that I am in the weeds, that the government doesn't seem to make it as easy as I would like for people to get their business off the ground.

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Book: Fooled By Randomness

Clearly the author has a bone to pick with his former colleagues on Wall St. and he obviously irritated some of them along the way with what is clearly a decent sized ego, but then again, sometimes when you're right, you're right.

Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets is how we delude ourselves into thinking we're good or that we understand situations more than we actually do.

He dives deep into statistics and philosophy (but in an understandable way) to educate you on how much luck actually plays into our daily lives...and how we should not delude ourselves into thinking that there are no "black swans."

I found the book very enjoyable and it has definitely already made its way into my mental vernacular.

I think it'll make you a smarter investor and potentially a more astute judge of context and situations. Never a bad thing.

And a big call out to my future brother-in-law, Eitan, for lending it to me. Way to get in with the family! ;-)

Movie: Talladega Nights

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it 100 times.

I’m a huge Will Ferrel fan. He’s just a comic genius.

Talladega Nights is no exception.

“What it says is ‘I’m formal, but I’m here to party.’”

Democracy vs. Capitalism…

There are some days when I really wonder if the two are incompatible.

Seriously.

I heard the news on the other night that Congress had passed a $3.9b package to help offset real estate foreclosures and possibly bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

This comes on the heels a few months ago of the bailout of Bear Stearns.

So, I guess the message is:

1. if you are a large corporation with a lot of political allies, you can take big risks, fail and then the Gov’t will provide you a parachute OR
2. you can be part of a mass of people who overextend themselves, fail, threaten to vote a representative out of office and the gov’t will bail you out as well

Perhaps I’m being cynical here and, perhaps it is Congress’ fault in the first place that both1 and 2 were happening (see Thomas Sowell’s article on Bankrupt Exploiters), but it seems to me that you want to let these companies fail. You want the market to correct itself naturally.

I may believe too much in Creative Destruction, but in a vote of something like 72-13 (where were the others?) only a few senators had the foresight to say, “we’re further leveraging our grandchildren’s money to pay for this…and it’s not a good investment.”

At first, I was frustrated. Then, I realized I’m an idiot. It’s an election year. This short-term pacification is what leads to re-election.

Give the lollipop to the 2 year old now to make him stop crying. Who cares if he is a spoiled brat later?

By then, it’s somebody else’s problem?

Am I making too much of this?