Things Smackie Thinks You Need to Know...

[sweetcell]

april fools!
 
 <hides>

[vansmack]

Originally posted by Brian Wallace:
    I haven't played six hours of video games in my LIFE.
 

Point-Counterpoint
 
 Video games: I'll never buy one
 
 What video game haters don't want you to know

[godsshoeshine]

Originally posted by vansmack:
  Smackie also wanted to let Shoeshine and Mankie know that he's not clicking on the Footie thread because he's about 30 minutes behind on the United match...will join the conversation shortly.

i had the first goal of a newcastle match spoiled for me a few weeks back by mank, and i didnt even click on the thread.  

[sweetcell]

for long-time concert-goers with hearing damage: New Therapies Fight Phantom Noises of Tinnitus
 
 (an alternative: wear  protection)

[vansmack]

Actually, Smackie never wears ear protection to concerts.  To me, it's akin to going to a fine arts museum and wearing sunglasses.
 
 As a wise boardie once said, ear plugs are for the weak.

[vansmack]

For anybody who's ever lived in LA, or even visited for a while, this an enjoyably frustrating read....
 
 There can be few cities the size of Los Angeles where the prospect of a nine-storey office complex would cause such a fuss. But this one comes with a weighty expectation. At least some people are expected to get to it by public transport, or even on foot.

[godsshoeshine]

i wore ear plugs once to a dinosaur jr show
 
 it was the most deaf i've ever been after a show

[sweetcell]

Originally posted by vansmack:
 ear plugs are for the weak

... and the non-deaf  
 
 along with the risk of tinnitus, repeated exposure to loud music accelerated the rate at which you lose to the ability to hear high-frequency sounds.  a friend who works in recording studios has a t-shirt that reads "don't trust anyone who can't hear over 15 kHz".  that's pretty much everyone who doesn't wear ear protection at concerts.
 
 foam earplugs are indeed horrible, but etymotics do a good job of providing flat attenuation.  and at some shows (re: stooges), protection made the show bearable, from a ear-pain perspective.

[vansmack]

I'm not saying it's the right choice, but then again, I'm not known for always making the right choice.

[vansmack]

I always assumed this, but I never thought it was so drastic in SF.  The numbers in Baltimore and DC were surprising as well.
 
 Renting a Home is Cheaper than Buying it
 
 Although owning a home is the middle-class dream, it's probably cheaper to rent than to own a home in major California cities, even with the recent decline in the housing market.
 
 That's the conclusion of a new study on differentials between ownership and rental costs in 20 American cities -- including Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco -- that found ownership to be comparable to renting in just one, Houston. And that's true, the study found, even when the equity gains from home ownership are placed into the equation.
 
 The full report can be found Here. (PDF)

[godsshoeshine]

what kind of place can you get in dc for $1185? our temporary place in reston was more than that

[Charlie Nakatestes, Japanese Golfer]

I dunno, I'd be hard pressed to find a four bedroom home in the burbs where the rental price would be less than my mortgage+property tax payment of my house in the burbs. And I've gotta think the net increase in rental rates will be  more in the next 26 years of payments than the net increase in property taxes.
 
  Sure, there's the cost of upkeep, but they seems a pretty cheap price for the equity gained.
 
   

Originally posted by vansmack:
  I always assumed this, but I never thought it was so drastic in SF.  The numbers in Baltimore and DC were surprising as well.
 
 Renting a Home is Cheaper than Buying it
 
 Although owning a home is the middle-class dream, it's probably cheaper to rent than to own a home in major California cities, even with the recent decline in the housing market.
 
 That's the conclusion of a new study on differentials between ownership and rental costs in 20 American cities -- including Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco -- that found ownership to be comparable to renting in just one, Houston. And that's true, the study found, even when the equity gains from home ownership are placed into the equation.
 
 The full report can be found Here. (PDF)

[vansmack]

CA Plan would tax music downloads
 
 STATE LAWMAKER MEETS CRITICISM IN EFFORT TO INCREASE REVENUE
 
 By Edwin Garcia
 Mercury News Sacramento Bureau
 Article Launched: 04/07/2008 01:30:50 AM PDT
 
 Apr 7:
 
 SACRAMENTO - Don't get too used to those 99-cent downloads from iTunes.
 
 A Los Angeles-area lawmaker trying to help raise money to delete the state government's $8 billion shortfall thinks consumers should pay sales tax when buying from online music stores.

[vansmack]

Pro-Tibet protesters climb Golden Gate Bridge tower
 Three people climb the suspension cables of the Golden Gate Bridge on Monday, April 7, 2008, in a protest aimed at drawing attention to Chinese human rights violations in Tibet. Chronicle photo by Frederic Larson
 
  <img src="http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/04/08/ba_protest_ggbridge_0150a_frl.jpg" alt=" - " />
 
  <img src="http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/04/07/ba_webcamprotestggbridge_040708kpix.jpg" alt=" - " />

[Julian, Alleged Computer F**kface]

There are lots of reasons to dislike China's government but the Tibet thing is such a ridiculous argument. Countries become part of other countries -- it happens. It's like going "FREE SOUTH VIETNAM".