Hey, why not raise the gas tax to $3 per gallon? We could fund all kinds of useless crap with that kind of money. All those lies the Republicans tell about market forces are BS. We have those CO2 spewing bastards over a barrel. If they want to drive on roads that were built by and belong to the government, make them pay! Taxes like this also have the charm of regressivity, affecting lower wage earners far more than those in higher income brackets. Who doesn't like that?

The Congress should provide a list of all IRS employees under suspicion so that the IRS can lose all their emails and documents from the relevant period. Then, the Democrats will declare the investigation closed and we can move to the next scandal. P.S.: I got this plan from Harry Reid, Thanks, Harry!

I spec'ed, installed and managed mail servers for several organizations and this never happened on my watch. We had this magical power called "backups" that insulated us from user ineptitude and malfeasance. Another item is the "ten million dollars" to retrieve emails and documents. I was asked to provide several years of emails and documents involving eleven employees and specific criteria for a lawsuit. Legal had it in their hands within two days and that involved pulling and selectively restoring the identified tapes and burning to DVD. I call bullshit.

These folks simply do not understand that the underlying goal is to drive U.S. wages to third world levels by introducing large labor surpluses. Not just unskilled/low skill labor, either. They want to greatly expand work visas for skilled and highly skilled workers to reduce labor costs and increase profits. Anyone who does not understand this needs to take some J.C. basic Economics courses. And, for those who talk about expanding the economy to accommodate millions of new workers; how's that working for you?

Outsource out whatever you can and cover the rest with H1B imports. The stock price will go up, for a while, and everyone will live crappily ever after.

Maybe they're just taking better pictures.

Not true. We have "Santa Anas" every Christmas in San Diego. They can happen any time of the year. I've been here more than a while and seen years range from ~5" of rain to ~29". Weather and climate both vary. The problem is that some folks are abusing temperature data and statistical models to blame a specific cause, and, make money in the bargain.

Yes, and I remember some really strong "Santa Ana" conditions (like the one in which these recent human-set fires occurred) in the late seventies when we were said to be slipping into a new Ice Age. Global Warming / Climate Change / Climate Disruption is terribly convenient. You can blame or explain everything within its context.

This is about the likely future value of such investments in face of regulatory hostility. If their fund managers thought the investments were long-term viable, they would keep them. They really should have quietly divested in early 2011, as did most hedge funds.

Yes, it's those awful Republicans that hold 60%+ majorities in both California legislatures, the governorship, both US Senate seats and a majority of the Congressional seats.

...but don't dismiss Oracle's arguments without examination. It may be that Oracle is trying to shift the blame, or their part of it. But, that is also the default position for governmental organizations when shit hits the fan. Is it a coincidence that almost all of the exchanges that failed or are in deep trouble chose government as the SI? Regardless how you view government, it must be conceded that there are few incentives for efficiency or success. Sadly, this also extends to contracts let by said organizations.

I subscribed to Byte when discharged from the Navy in 1977 and maintained the subscription until the day it was killed. They offered to transfer my subscription balance to one of their other publications. None of them interested me because they weren't Byte. A huge hole was left in computer technology reporting that was never filled. Dr. Dobbs persists, at least digitally. For that, we should be grateful.

...ahhhh, you know the rest.

The U.S. government's track record on security, efficiency and effectiveness is unmatched. This is sure to succeed!