NC Media Watch

Terminated

This Blog is no longer active

New Blog is The Next Grand Minimum

I have add another blog: Is it 2012 in Nevada County Yet?

  Before I end up like this little fellow, who has spent too much time in the “middle of the road,” it is time to move on and focus my passion on the coming global cooling. While our left leaning bloggers and political leaders are promoting anthropogenic global warming, it is clear to me that what we are really seeing is global cooling that will accelerate in the coming years. Yes, we will see warm years and cooler years but the overall trend will be a cooler and a colder planet.

Why do I believe this?  The sun is going quiet, the sunspots are declining, as are the magnetic fields which are the driving force in sunspot generation. This has been verified by multiple peer reviewed studies and supported my own investigations into past historical climate cycles. More details here. 

We are on the cusp of the next Grand Minimum and the general public is not prepared for the coming climate changes. The public is being distracted by the global warmers  and a compliant main stream media.  Billions of our tax dollars are being spent on global warming studies and the reduction of CO2, which only has a minor influence on the climate. We are being misled.

The Next Grand Minimum blog will examine the climate trends, look at the past history of grand minimums and the social and political consequences of these minimums. During past minimums, millions starved when the agriculture infrastructure was unable to feed the population and the farmers and their families perished from crop failures. While it is true that we have more modern food storage facilities, we also have billions of more mouths to feed.  Any significant reduction in the production of wheat, corn and other food gain by the bread basket nations in both hemispheres, and millions will starve every year.

This is my last post on this blog. Please join me at the Next Grand Minimum and join the discussion.  However, be warned that I am going to use the more powerful moderation tools in Wordpress to maintain more control over the comments. If a comment does not directly apply to the issues under discussion, it will never be posted. If one gets by my moderation, it will vanish with out comment. Since there will be some moderation, there may be delays in post of a comment. My apology in advance, but strict control of the comments makes the blog more readable for the majority of readers.

My other reason from moving to Wordpress is they are much more smartphone and PDA friendly. It will be much easier to read my blog on your smartphone.

Again, please join me at The Next Grand Minimum.

  H/T to Dixon for the photo.

Local Commentary: Blogs challenge local newspaper on major story

Russ Steele

Notice: All court docments referenced in this blog post are public documents and have been redacted appropriately by counsel, according to the provider.

Our local lefty blogger, who is a former editor at The Union, never misses an opportunity to bash his former employer by posting mini-scoop that an understaffed newspaper could not ferret out as timely as local blogger who has time to wander about town, or spending hours in front of the TV watching city council and board of supervisor meetings.  The Union latest offense is publishing old news that Weaver Auto owes government agencies about $700.000, facts that appeared on his blog a month ago here.  Regardless of his motivation, he makes an important point, local blogs are having an impact on how local’s get their news and commentary. 

Local blogs broke the news, and have been following, the on going corruption in the Clerk Recorders Office at the County Rood Center. However, The Union has yet to publish any of the Federal Courts findings against the County for failing to provide requested evidence, and then for destroying the very evidence that was requested. You can read the sequence of events here. This is a clear case where our local newspaper is not keeping the community informed.  Citizens are turning to local blogs here for up news dates and debate of local issues. 

While The Union is promoting it’s Town Talk open forum and the ability of reader’s to comment, they are censoring the questions submitted to Town Talk they are uncomfortable answering.  The Union is also now limiting how long readers can now comment on a column, letters to editor, or news stories to 48 hours after an item is published.  On the other hand , local blogs are discussing local issues and providing open forums for the discussion of local and national issues that have an impact on our community. Blogs are filling the gaps left by the newspaper.

My concern that this corruption story has been on KNCO and in the blogs, but The Union seems to be ignoring this important story.  How could The Union have missed this story about how the county willfully destroyed evidence in the AdPac case? Or, do they have a selective news policy that lets them pick and choose the news.  If they get to pick and choose what they report on Rood Center activities, this casts doubt on the other news in The Union about local government actions.  What other local government corruption might The Union be ignoring? Losing the trust of readers can result in a damaging economic blow to any newspaper, or even a blog that pretends to write about the news.

I guess the other surprise in this story, with a mission to scoop The Union, why has our lefty blogger has not written about this troubling situation in the Clerk/Recorders Office that the newspaper is ignoring?   Could it be because he was one of Diaz’s very vocal political supporters?  When is government corruption not news?

Note: This not a news blog it is a commentary blog, as is Rebane’s Ruminations.

Nevada City loses Google Fiber to Kansas City

Russ Steele

Nevada City competed for the Google Broadband Award, and many of us participated in the 959595 Googlebit parade and video.  CNet has the story: Kansas City, Kan., to be Google's broadband test bed

There's some rough news for Topeka, Kan., the city that courted Google's ultra-high-speed municipal broadband project by changing its name to Google. The Mountain View, Calif., tech giant announced Wednesday that the lucky city that gets to be its broadband guinea pig not only isn't Topeka, but it's Kansas City, Kansas--just an hour's drive away. Ouch.

More than 1,100 communities had applied since the call for applicants was announced about a year ago. Kansas City will first see the new developments next year, and Google is already looking for additional communities to join the test.

Read the rest of the story here.  A link to 959595 Google which was Nevada City’s application web site is here.

 

It is time to dump Google

Russ Steele

For years Google was my start up page. My day starts with a quest for information on what is happening in the world.  I was looking for unbiased information, but now Google has decided to take sides on an undecided scientific debate.  They have decided to fund 21 supporters of the CO2 global warming hypothesis to promote and communicate that unproven hypothsis.  More details here.

Willis Eschenbach has posted an open letter to the folks at Google at Watts Up With That on this issue.

Dear Googlefolk;

Recently, you have decided to take sides in a scientific debate. That in itself is very foolish. Why would Google want to take either side when there is a disagreement between scientists? I thought your motto was “Do No Evil.” For the 900-pound gorilla to take sides in any tempestuous politically charged scientific discussion is an extremely stupid thing to do, and in this case definitely verges on the E-word.

In fact, that’s why up until now I trusted Google, because I always felt that I was being given the unvarnished truth. I always felt that Google could be trusted, because you didn’t have a dog in the fight. I believed you weren’t trying to slant your results, that you were neutral, because you had nothing to prove.

So what did you guys do? You’re now providing money to 21 supporters of the CO2 hypothesis, funding them as “Google Fellows” to go and flog their scientific claims in the marketplace of ideas. Is this the new face of Google, advocating for a partisan idea?

You have chosen to fund policy people as Google Fellows. You have a specialist in “strategic communication in policymaking and public affairs” among them. You have a bunch of scientists whose careers depend on the validity of the CO2 hypothesis. And you are paying them all to push your ideas. In other words, Google has put into place a public relations campaign for the CO2 hypothesis … and people in your organization actually consider this a good idea?

Read the rest of the letter here.

Well, I do not think Google's action was such a great idea and as of this morning , Microsoft Bing is my new home start up page, that is unless they do something as stupid as Google.

Worried about the State Budget - See State Finances 101

Russ Steele

The State Controller, John Chiang has a new web site: State Finances 101.  It has lots of charts to explain State finances.   As a visual learner, I am quicker grasp a visual image than a column of numbers.  Check it out here, if you are interested in state finances.

Did the Supervisors pay $90K for a relic? (updated)

Russ Steele

I was watching the demonstration of the new Nevada County Tourism Web site on TV and it did not appear to be very mobile ready. Smartphone use is gathering steam in the U.S. Forty percent of American adults use their cell phones to surf the Web, e-mail, or use instant messaging, according to a study from Pew Research Center. That's up from 32 percent a year ago, based on Pew's survey of 2,252 adults ages 18 and older.  "The smartphone has really penetrated the mainstream of American society," says Aaron Smith, a Pew research specialist. In the first quarter, smartphones accounted for 34 percent of all mobile handsets sold in the U.S., up from 31 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to consultant NPD Group.

Reviewing the power point presented to the Board of Supervisors it appears to me that the current web site design is not mobile friendly with drop down menues, small dense text and mouse oriented subject selection.  Here are some things that Switchback might want to consider in the redesign from Web Design Trends in 2011

3. Mobile Ready
Smartphones, iPads, netbooks, oh my! There’s a dizzying amount of mobile products available to the consumer in 2011. This means your web design must be responsive to multiple viewports.

Creating a mobile ready website is not simply removing the bells and whistles from your design. This can create a vacant and impersonal design. Although not impossible, distilling the magic from your original design into a pure representation of your brand is tough! Fortunately, technology is quickly removing this burden.

It may be tempting to just create a dedicated mobile site, but that may no longer satisfy your audience. Increasingly, mobile sites include the option to visit the original site. If you do not offer this option or if your original site is not optimized to mobile standards, you are simply not ready for 2011. Forecasters predict that smartphones will outsell personal computers this year. Bulletproof your design to meet this demand.

5. Designing for Touch Screens, Not Mice
Technology has become much more tactile. Usability is shifting from abstract to tangible. This means that instead of navigating your mouse to remotely connect, your destination is literally at your fingertips. Tablets, most smartphones and some desktops use touchscreens. Does your design accommodate fingertip navigation?

How much of your design is mouse-oriented? As designers, we worship mice. Our links light up when the mouse hovers over. However, there’s no hovering in touchscreen. How will your design indicate links to your visitors? What about drop-down menus? That’s also a no-go in touchscreen design.

Similarly, how will visitors peruse your site? As controversial as it may be for standard web browsing, horizontal scrolling may be more appropriate for touchscreens. Fitting nicely into this niche is a magazine-like layout where visitors virtually flip through your site.

Lastly, consider using liquid layouts as part of your commitment toward responsive design. In 2011, you are no longer dealing with screen resolution size. Visitors can change their viewing orientation from vertical to horizontal. Your design must be flexible to meet any challenge, or you will be a relic of 2010.

It appears that the current Switchback design is already a relic! The world in going mobile and this design is not mobile smartphone friendly!

Update (02-23-11, 09:35) A County observer points out the current design was intended as a planning tool and not for access to information once the tourist arrives in the community.  He points out that Switchback’s mobile strategy is focused more around the social media integration, where visitors will be able to get content and interact via Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube channels.  These are all smartphone friendly features.  It is also possible that Calendar function has mobile support.

I will have to wait until the sites goes live to test the Twitter/Facebook/YouTube/Calendar functions and usability features on my smartphone. 

Data visualization for a changing world

Russ Steele

Google has made their Public Data Explorer available to the general public.  C/Net had the story and links here.

The Google Public Data Explorer makes large datasets easy to explore, visualize and communicate. As the charts and maps animate over time, the changes in the world become easier to understand. You don't have to be a data expert to navigate between different views, make your own comparisons, and share your findings.


Above is a screen capture of an interactive graphic on Personal Income per capita for California form the Google visualizer. Page here.  Note where is Nevada County relative to other Counties. Personal income was highest was in 2002, and has slipped back since then. Moving the date slider at the bottom shows how Nevada County personal income has grown over the years. The Top Five Counties are in the Bay Area.  This is a fun tool to play with. 

Should President Obama have an Internet Kill Switch?

Russ Steele

As Egypt's government attempts to crackdown on street protests by shutting down internet and mobile phone services, the US is preparing to reintroduce a bill that could be used to shut down the internet.
Wired.com is reporting that the Senate will re-introduce legislation which would grant US President powers to seize control of and even shut down the internet.  Is this a power we want the President to have in the US?

Senator Susan Collins, a co-sponsor of the bill that last year that expired before any action, said that unlike in Egypt, where the government was using its powers to quell dissent by shutting down the internet, the US would not do that. Really? Do you believe that?

OK, then why does the President Need an Internet Kill Switch if he is not going to use it? 

Wired suggest that if the Kill Switch legislation is approved, you might want to find your old dialup modem and keep it handy.  It will be hard to shut down the whole telephone system. Before the Internet, we used dial up message forwarding systems to communicate, they would soon pop back up should the internet be shut down.

There is open source software available on the Internet that will enable local communities to create WiFi mesh net works that are independent of the Internet.  If it looks like this Kill Switch legislation will pass, we need to down load the mesh net software and start setting up and testing our own backup networks.

Ham radio user also have the capability to form digital networks using  currently available technology.  If you are concerned about the loss of connectivity, think about joining the amateur radio community.

If you would like more posts on alternative communication technologies, please post a comment.

OMG, 10 ideas down the County bit bucket

Russ Steele

The County is planning an upgrade to their MyNevadaCounty web site according to the CEO Weekly News Letter. They are asking for input to the process here. I went to the page and entered my ideas and then hit submit button.

The web page then informed me I had to be signed in before submitting. When I signed in 20 miutes  of work and 10 ideas disappeared into the bit bucket.  Gone!

I encourage you to submit your ideas, but please sign in first or your are wasting your time. No where on the page does it warn you to sign in first, it just provides a big welcomeing text bloc for your ideas. Do not be fooled. Sign in first.

I suggested:

• The site support all mobile devices, not just iPhone and iPad, including apps to specific functions. Move way brow a browser centric world.
• The Site support iPad and similar pad like devices in formatting and apps to specific functions.
• The Site must have the most powerful search engine possible so I can find what I am looking for in seconds, not minutes and hours. Yes, I have spent hours looking for stuff on the site.
• A blog provision for asking public question of our political leaders. Their e-mail seems to be a black hole, and public questions might bring faster answers.
• Set up a twitter net work to alert citizens to emergencies and then provide a scrolling display of messages for non twitter users, but need access to the information.
• Make provisions for FaceBook users to get emergency messages.
• The new design should not be browser centric, it needs to recognize more citizens are giving up laptops for mobile devices and ipad like devices.  These are apps driven devices, not browser driven.
• Consider drop down navigation buttons rather that sidebar navigation.
• Provide more links to community information sources including local blogs.
• More to follow when I remember what I lost on my first attempt.

 

Sac Connect Launches Special coverage of Arizona Shooting

Russ Steele

Lisa Howard send this message to all members of Sacramento Connect Extranet

Special Coverage of Arizona Shooting
We put together a special section featuring Sacramento Connect blog posts about the shooting Saturday in Arizona. It was impressive to see how responsive the Sacramento Connect community was (26 posts and counting). The posts are varied and thoughtful, and represent a wide range of opinions and perspectives. A link to this special section was featured on Sacbee.com’s homepage, as well as on Facebook. We will continue to add to this section for another day or so as posts come in.

Nevada County blogger's are major contributors to this discussion, see the details here.