Monthly Archives: April 2015

Scammers

We received a call tonight from (646) 595-4784. Caller ID said BLOGTALKRADIO. I answered. It was someone saying he was from Microsoft and my Windows computer was downloading malicious software.

I told him we were IT professionals and that we weren’t downloading any malicious software, thank you very much, good bye. Click.

He tried to keep me on the line. Didn’t work.

Microsoft will NOT call you to help you with malicious software downloads. They don’t do customer service like that for free. And they don’t call YOU.

Our Day At C2E2

Oh so much fun. The Little Guy and I dressed up for it. The Little Guy was Foxy the Pirate Fox from Five Nights at Freddy’s – a video game. He was recognized all over the con. Lots of kids wanted to take their pictures with him.2015-04-26_11.05.39 2015-04-26_11.05.49 Continue reading

Nine Years Smoke Free

Nine years ago I quite smoking. I went to have laser acupuncture done and it was like a miracle. Halfway through the treatment I tossed the few cigarettes I had left in a pack and the lighter in the trash. And I’ve never gone back. That was a very worthwhile investment. Today cartons are costing almost what I paid for three cartons when I was smoking.

Campaign Cash and Citizens United

Barack Obama turned down the public funding for presidential campaigns and raked in billions of dollars (and some donations were questionable (Fictitious Donors Found in Obama Finance Records)  – more was completely opaque.)

The group Citizens United wanted to air a movie critical of Hillary Clinton and air commercials advertising it. They came up against McCain-Feingold and sued the Federal Election Commission to be able to air the movie and advertise for it near an election. The Supreme Court eventually ruled in their favor.

Hillary Clinton and the Left are very much against the ruling in Citizens United. They want to undo the decision by passing a bill through both houses of Congress and having the President sign it into law. So she rails against money in politics, all the while raking in money hand over fist.

They act as if the Citizens United decision helps only conservatives. Just like they act as if the Religious Freedom Restoration Acts in various states help only Christians. But the Citizens United decision can help people on all sides, as the RFRAs can help more than just Christians. Remember the first RFRA signed by Bill Clinton was enacted to help Native American Indians who wanted to use Peyote in religious ceremonies.

Of course, Hillary has more reason to loathe Citizens United. They made a film that didn’t show her in best of lights.

rakes in campaign cash hand over fist, bitterly complains about money in politics

$15 Minimum Wage

Apparently yesterday there were some protests demanding the minimum wage be increased to $15 per hour. For a full time job, that’s $30,000 a year (2000 hours x the wage.)  SEIU was involved in arranging some of these protests. Unions like the minimum wage increased because many other their contracts are based on some multiple of the minimum wage. Paying an employee $15 an hour costs the employer more than that. The employer has to pay his portions of the payroll taxes (Social Security and Medicaid) equal to the employee’s portion that’s withheld from his paycheck. The employer also has higher Unemployment Insurance rates. And that’s just the start. The people who were previously already getting $15 will want a raise too. Why should their pay suddenly be the same as the lowest paid employees? They worked to get above minimum, and now they’re just at minimum. Some employers’ payrolls are pretty tight in their budgets. They just can’t afford to raise everyone’s pay. People aren’t in business to provide jobs to other people. Jobs are a beneficial side effect of having a business. Employees with the job skills that employers want are more valuable. Employees can get training at a job, but if the come in fully trained they save the company the costs of training and can garner a higher wage. So, it’s time to bring this photo out again:

It's not an employer's responsibility to pay a "living" wage. It's the employee's responsibility to learn the skills necessary to earn one.

He is risen, He is risen indeed.

John 3:16

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Happy Easter!

Rice Krispie Treats When Allergic to Eggs and Butter

Passover starts Friday (on Good Friday) 3 April, 2015. Over on Facebook a friend a asked (for a friend) if Rice Krispie treats were Kosher.

They can be, if you use vegan marshmallows and use a butter substitute so you don’t have to worry about a butter and beef issue.

For me, with my egg, milk, and wheat allergies, if I use coconut oil and the vegan marshmallows, I can eat Rice Krispie Treats!

The vegan marshmallows are available at Whole Foods and can also be ordered online from Chicago Vegan Foods. They’re Dandies Vegan Marshmallows. They make mini marshmallows too.

mm-5