Carefull!

Wiimotes as multitouch whiteboard sensors

Johnny Lee's description of "Low-Cost Multi-point Interactive Whiteboards Using the Wiimote" may sound boring, but it's actually a very cool and very innovative use of the Wiimote. Since you can hook the controller up to your computer and accept inputs using the Wiimote library interface, you can use its infrared sensors to detect and track infrared light on any kind of surface.

Awesome commercial!

AOL News Presents… Where Are They Now? - Funny blooper videos are here

This Generation of Students

I came across this video while playing with youtube on my ipod. It has a pretty powerful message. I recommend you watch it and leave a comment.

Poli(ticks)

Poli-ticks : from the greek root Poly, meaning many and ticks, meaning blood suckers.

I just wanted to make known that posting the Ron Paul thing on my page does NOT necessarily mean I am voting for him or support him. I just really like the idea that a libertarian has infiltrated the Republican party and is really pissing people off like Hannity!

I have some reservations on some of the things he supports (like how the hell do you have a monetary standard in an economy when 0s and 1s are the primary tender?) But I think he can refresh (or scare) the republican party quite a bit.

Also, on the local side.. after looking into school vouchers, I decided to support the opposition. I don't like the idea that public taxes could potentially benefit a private religious school.

Ron Paul - The R[EVOL]UTION

~~~ UPDATE ~~~

Remember remember the 5th of november....

iPod touch

I have been thinking of getting an iPod touch but they seem expensive! So I am playing with a demo to see how useful it is in browser mode. So, to impress you with the features I wrote this whole post on one.

The worst part of Halloween.

The very worst part of Halloween is:


Once its over, people think its okay to start playing CHRISTMAS MUSIC!!
People! Its CHRISTMAS MUSIC! Not FALL/WINTER music!!

If they start playing that stuff in my store earlier than two weeks before Christmas, I am deciding its time to have some very loud game or movie demos playing in my department.

There, I said it.

Church ordered to pay $10.9 million for funeral protest

Original Text http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/law/10/31/funeral.protests.ap/index.html

BALTIMORE, Maryland (AP) -- A grieving father won a nearly $11 million verdict Wednesday against a fundamentalist Kansas church that pickets military funerals in the belief that the war in Iraq is a punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.

A member of Westboro Baptist Church protests outside a veteran's hospital in Maywood, Illinois, in April 2006.

Albert Snyder of York, Pennsylvania, sued the Westboro Baptist Church for unspecified damages after members demonstrated at the March 2006 funeral of his son, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq.

The jury first awarded $2.9 million in compensatory damages. It returned later in the afternoon with its decision to award $6 million in punitive damages for invasion of privacy and $2 million for causing emotional distress.

U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett noted the size of the award for compensating damages "far exceeds the net worth of the defendants," according to financial statements filed with the court.

Church members routinely picket funerals of military personnel killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, carrying signs such as "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "God hates fags."

A number of states have passed laws regarding funeral protests, and Congress has passed a law prohibiting such protests at federal cemeteries.

But the Maryland lawsuit is believed to be the first filed by the family of a fallen serviceman.

The church and three of its leaders -- the Rev. Fred Phelps and his two daughters, Shirley Phelps-Roper and Rebecca Phelps-Davis, 46 -- were found liable for invasion of privacy and intent to inflict emotional distress.

Snyder claimed the protests intruded upon what should have been a private ceremony and sullied his memory of the event.

The church members testified they are following their religious beliefs by spreading the message that the deaths of soldiers are due to the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.

Their attorneys argued in closing statements Tuesday that the burial was a public event and that even abhorrent points of view are protected by the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and religion.

The judge said the church's financial statements, sealed earlier, could be released to the plaintiffs.

Earlier, church members staged a demonstration outside the federal courthouse.

Church founder Fred Phelps held a sign reading "God is your enemy," while Shirley Phelps-Roper stood on an American flag and carried a sign that read "God hates fag enablers."

Members of the group sang "God Hates America" to the tune of "God Bless America."

Snyder sobbed when he heard the verdict, while members of the church greeted the news with tightlipped smiles. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

1 out of 10

I got a text yesterday as I was leaving work that said I was one of ten people who, in a drawing, were selected as finalists for a campus wide contest. It is being sponsored by the Ken Garff dealership, the University of Utah School of Business, and Spring Wireless. I went to a meeting downtown today to go over the rules and sign a release to have my likeness used in promotions. Its kinda scary, I've helped out on many campus events that have included drawings and prizes, but I've never BEEN in one.

So Thursday October 18 around 10:30 I will be in a group of 9 other students with a key. One of the keys will alarm a 2007 Saab sports coup (Its for a 1 year lease not too keep the car). The second prize will be a $2,500 Scholarship. I told the other participants if I win the car I will trade them for the scholarship haha.

20% of the group will walk away with some pretty valuable prizes, but we were all told we will get some trinkets and consolidation prizes for our time. I'm already excited just to be a part of it, and I'm totally alright seeing any of the other cool students I met win.