Disqus - Latest Comments for Ling

Re: Sam Israel Arrested

Ling — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 01:05:44 -0000

I read that the Court is cancelling his bail and ordering him to start a 20 year jail sentence immediately. Kinda hard on Israel, but I guess he deserves it...

Re: Daily Update - July 7, 2008

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:16:09 -0000

Not looking for a free lesson, but just out of curiosity, could you explain what 'heavily negative delta' and 'hedging against a bounce with some index calls' means. I was reading some of your back posts, and I figure if I hang around here long enuf I could learn something useful.

Re: Daily Update - July 8-9, 2008

Ling — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 12:26:20 -0000

You seem to know what you're doing, so hopefully, you will make it to 10K before the year end. BTW, thanks for the lesson in the previous post. I think I understand hedging better now. You do this full time?

Re: Waiting to Board…

Ling — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:00:32 -0000

Look on the bright side. At least the airlines are still alive and kicking. From the way their financial condition is going down the tube, you'll be lucky to get a plane after six months or so.

Re: Getting Close…

Ling — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:54:37 -0000

LOL! If you're that eager for home food, then your wife must be one heck of a cook.

Re: SEC Emergency Order Extended

Ling — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 02:03:24 -0000

They're stating clearly that it won't be extended beyond Aug 12. Why would they do that? Kinda like cops announcing they won't be on the streets after midnight... And what the rulemaking part? I mean, does the SEC intend to come out with some kind of a permanent rule barring naked shorts against institutions which are borrowing from the Fed's emergency window?

Re: FOMC Leaves Rates Unchanged

Ling — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:30:57 -0000

So basically, Bernanke and Co. are fiddling while Wall Street and Main Street burn. I mean, they reduced rates like there was no tomorrow earlier this year. And now they're twiddling their thumbs. Maybe this is a bit harsh, but it is true.

Re: Another New Design

Ling — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:32:23 -0000

Career first. You can always blog for the rest of your life. Hope you ace whatever it is you're working on with the PhD.

Re: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Taken over by Regulators

Ling — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:13:30 -0000

I'm pretty sure the day when student loans will be written off ain't far off, judging by the way things are going. :)

Re: 2008/04/10/orkut-pedophilia/

Ling — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 22:47:19 -0000

Not that I condone those jerks on Orkut, but generally speaking, why is Google's flexibity on censorsip and privacy a bad thing? I remember last year, (or was it the year before?) the DOJ asked for search data based on queries from all 3 of the big search engines - Google, Yahoo and MSN. The other two voluntarily turned over the data, and noboby would even have found out if Google hadn't gone to court over the issue. I'd say that Google's policy on privacy reflects a pretty good balance between pragmatism and safety of users' privacy.

Re: 2008/04/13/google-surveils-amazon/

Ling — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 12:58:50 -0000

Maybe you should read the Washington Post article on this by Monte Reel, published sometime in July, I think, last year. Although the Surui are an exception since they recieved electricity (and laptops) last year, most of these tribes in the Amazon don't have running water, electricty or computers as yet.

Re: 2008/04/15/mypunchbowl-kayak/

Ling — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 20:56:30 -0000

Trip planner sites and travel search engines seem to be getting more and more sophisticated. Most of the time, they're all just one big blur of cheap deals. What I'd like to see is a travel search engine which is simple, has uptodate information and works wicked fast.

Re: 2008/04/16/afterlife-google/

Ling — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:37:06 -0000

Best line was the last one. It would be nice to think that people are still visiting your pages after you're gone, but I'd rather I was still around to feel good about it.

Re: 2008/04/17/apple-nbcu-feud/

Ling — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 07:15:49 -0000

Pushing around customers to give up on piracy never worked for any media company. Isn't going to now. The only way this works is if they reduce prices and make it so cheap that it isn't worthwhile to go to the trouble of bootlegging it. Or better yet, give it away for free. :)

Re: 2008/04/19/send-text-messages/

Ling — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 00:41:20 -0000

I think Yahoo also allows you to connect Messenger chats with SMS. I mean, like you can set up your Yahoo IM to forward messages to your mobile while you're offline.

Re: 2008/04/20/wsj-vs-nyt/

Ling — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 02:22:10 -0000

Real question, I think, is whether or not Murdoch will move the WSJ from subscription to free. If he does, the NYT is toast.

Re: 2008/04/21/d-link-veoh/

Ling — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 01:54:05 -0000

Been hearing about this integration between the web and television for a long time. Every other year soemthing hot and new comes up, but just does not catch on. I guess its some sort of minset, where you want both seperate. Would be kinda boring to stare at the same screen for both televsion and browsing.

Re: 2008/04/23/news-corp-hires-worlds-second-best-hacker-for-corporate-espionage/

Ling — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:44:15 -0000

Wow. This is big news. How come I haven't seen it anywhere in the mainstream media? Even Google News has no mention of it.

Re: 2008/04/26/websites-food-online/

Ling — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:59:47 -0000

It would be almost impossible to keep a single city updated with new restaurant openings, let alone a whole country. Don't see how this can be kept uptodate, unless you have an army of foodie bloggers constantly updating the database.

Re: 2008/04/28/yahoo-microsoft-stalemate/

Ling — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:18:40 -0000

Next move, MS nominates a slate of candidates to the Yahoo Board sometime this week. After that, Yahoo announces the date of its Annual meeting, which has to be held before August. Sometime in between now and August, Yahoo shareholders force the board to agree to the MS offer. Then everyone goes to Washington DC to fight an antitrust battle. Should be fun.

Re: 2008/04/28/you-should-hide-your-babies-from-prince-just-to-be-safe/

Ling — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:52:14 -0000

Hold on. Are you telling me Prince filed suit aginst the little baby? If he did, he's nuts and so is anyone who took him seriously.

Re: 2008/04/30/daily-poll-is-a-good-browser-worth-money/

Ling — Thu, 01 May 2008 07:18:16 -0000

I think you're missing the point. Paying for your browser is what got you into this mess. If it had been free, instead of being bundled with Windows, you would by now had a lot of options, with open source browsers competing with each other and things getting progressively better.

Re: 2008/05/01/next-week-sf-green/

Ling — Fri, 02 May 2008 03:35:16 -0000

Is there a list of companies who are bringing displays? There doesn't seem to be one on the SFGreen page. If I knew a bit more about it, I could have written something bout it on my blog.

Re: 2008/05/02/dogood-channel-launches-with-grand-ambitions/

Ling — Sat, 03 May 2008 01:58:31 -0000

This philanthropic stuff online seems to be picking up quite a bit. I just read about an auction site which allows non-profits to auction the 'gifts in kind' that donors give them and convert them to money. There's some great deals on it too. Like Disneyland theme park tickets at 1/4th price and ball game tickets, and a lot of other ridiculously cheap stuff.

Re: 2008/05/03/breaking-microsoft-corporation-rescinds-offer-for-yahoo-inc/

Ling — Sun, 04 May 2008 10:25:40 -0000

Actually, I don't think you've seen the end of this as yet. What happens now is that Yahoo shares drop, and then share holders force Yahoo to renegotiate with Microsoft. This is going to go on until July or early August, when Yahoo has their next share holder meet. Be decided one way or another by then. one thing is for sure - Microsoft will takeover Yahoo, like it or not.

Re: 2008/05/04/poll-what-is-yahoo%e2%80%99s-next-move/

Ling — Mon, 05 May 2008 03:50:30 -0000

@ Craig - This is where the name thing gets complicated. See, if Yahoo ties up Google for the ads and then MS takes over Yahoo, the new company has a Yahoo portal under Microsoft management with ads being served by Google. Now you name it. :)

Re: 2008/05/06/google-news-now-shows-related-searches/

Ling — Tue, 06 May 2008 10:50:42 -0000

Shouldn't the word 'merger' or 'takeover' or 'bid' or something like that have come up, accoring to that reasoning?

Re: 2008/05/07/bill-gates-were-not-interested-in-other-deals/

Ling — Wed, 07 May 2008 07:18:55 -0000

The only way MS is going to learn any new tricks is if they seperate their search division from the rest of the behemoth, hire some new people to run it and then just leave them alone for a few years.

Re: 2008/05/09/amazon-texas-taxes/

Ling — Sat, 10 May 2008 04:00:47 -0000

They'll have to pay a heck of a lot in back taxes and fines if they do indeed have a 'physical presence' in TX. And if it becomes a multi-state affair like the Wal-mart tax evasion scheme a couple of months back, Amazon is going to pay dearly.

Re: 2008/05/11/google-earth-cyclone-layers/

Ling — Mon, 12 May 2008 09:58:26 -0000

I heard they took UN relief supplies under their custody, stamped them with their own names and then distributed it out. How crazy are these nutty Generals, anyway?

Re: 2008/05/14/timothy-berners-lee/

Ling — Thu, 15 May 2008 00:26:48 -0000

Very interesting concept, actually. If it works, it could mean a huge new shift in the kind of articles that get importance. I mean, as of now, only the big MSM articles get more weight, but if the importance is based on autheticity, well...That'll sure promote original journalism, and cut down on the practise of putting together articles based on other people's leg work.

Re: 2008/05/15/yahoo-responds-to-icahn/

Ling — Fri, 16 May 2008 05:05:27 -0000

Actually, Icahn is being very smart about this. He's got 50 million shares purchased at about $25 or $1.3 billion. And he's planning to purchase more shares worth $2.5 billion. In the first week of July, Yahoo shares are going to be worth about $35. At around $9 to $10 per share, how much does Icahn stand to make in a couple of months? About $1 billion.

Re: 2008/05/16/yang-icahn/

Ling — Sat, 17 May 2008 10:28:12 -0000

Um...The new ad between Yahoo & Google? I hear there's some problems at Google about allowing Yahoo access to the way Google displays its ads, and that Google might not be in a mood to entertain Yahoo any longer.

Re: 2008/05/18/yahoo-responds-to-microsoft-alternative/

Ling — Mon, 19 May 2008 04:50:15 -0000

Microsoft can't possibly drop their bid price now. If anything, I figure they'll up the price to either $34 or $35 a few days before the board meeting. At worst, they'll just keep the price at $33.

Re: 2008/05/19/new-media-pwn-old-media/

Ling — Tue, 20 May 2008 12:16:09 -0000

You have a point there. Youtube is the baby python which all the news networks have been feeding. I've even heard some rumors about Google being interested in buying out the New York Times. Point is, that's the way this is going. New media will buy out the MSM, and use the content to feed the online audience.

Re: 2008/05/21/daily-show-video/

Ling — Thu, 22 May 2008 01:18:11 -0000

Didn't Comedy Central ban youtube vids of the Daily Show sometime back? I remember reading that they didn't want the shows to be seen online. Guess they just didn't want to show them for free...

Re: 2008/05/23/yahoo-board-member-leaves-first-signs-of-disintegration/

Ling — Fri, 23 May 2008 07:27:01 -0000

I'm not so sure delaying the AGM was such a good idea on yahoo's part. I mean, it just gives Icahn and his supporters more time to buy up more Yahoo stock, and also to gather around more shareholders. Guess Jerry Yang just doesn't have the nerve to risk it right now...

Re: Miley’s MySpace: A Wake-Up Call for Parents?

Ling — Sat, 24 May 2008 03:47:19 -0000

Best way to deal with it is to keep tabs on what your kids are doing. No amount of control or censorship is going to stop them, if they wanna go wild. Just makes it worse if you don't even know about it. Have to say, though, that the problem on Myspace is worse than most anywhere else on the net. So maybe, Rupert Murdoch could do a bit more.

Re: The IPL Fan Club: A Social Network For Indian Cricket Fans

Ling — Sun, 25 May 2008 11:10:29 -0000

That's actually a pretty smart idea, isn't it? Up till now, I haven't seen any 'regional' social networks take off in a big way. If this one works, you could end up with a dozen big social networks in India alone, focused on things like Cricket, Bollywood, and so on.

Re: 2008/05/25/microsoft-yahoo-google/

Ling — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:43:32 -0000

You geeks need to be a little more realistic, I think (with all due respect). Real world situation is that Yahoo shareholders make more money if MS buys Yahoo. So it's going to happen, regardless of whether its good or bad for Yahoo, Microsoft, Google, the future of search and the future of all mankind. Wall Street still wins out over Silicon Valley idealism, any time, any day.

Re: 2008/05/27/improving-blog-comments/

Ling — Wed, 28 May 2008 04:59:28 -0000

Is it really that important? I mean, Wordpress with a few additional plug-ins seems to work fine. As for community building, well, if your content is good, people will come. And good people commenting brings in more good people, so...

Re: 2008/05/28/cbs-acquisitions/

Ling — Thu, 29 May 2008 03:08:05 -0000

With all these acquisitions and mergers, it's darn hard to tell who owns what.

Re: 2008/05/30/adsense-for-rss/

Ling — Sat, 31 May 2008 02:13:09 -0000

RSS never has lived up to the hype actually. Been hearing for years about how much potential its got. Well, that's about all its got, even now.

Re: 2008/06/01/adobe-acrobat/

Ling — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 04:17:14 -0000

You know, sometimes I wonder if this move to internet computing is going to kill off these companies, much like what's happening to the traditional print media, as more and more news moves online. I mean, Windows is Microsoft's biggest cashcow. Adobe makes all its money by selling Photoshop. And once these things go online, they'll probably end up competing with other packages which offer the same - for free.

Re: 2008/06/02/garfield-minus-garfield-the-new-mash-is-to-un-mash/

Ling — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 01:52:40 -0000

Funny it may be, but Garfield is Garfiled. If you can't see the world weary cynical expression on that tub of lard's face, then you ain't got nothing.

Re: 2008/06/03/celebuzz-celebrity-focused-social-network/

Ling — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:24:11 -0000

Brad Pitt being himself? I read on some blog that he's going to help design a hotel in the middle east. Maybe he can play one in the movies, but actually design a hotel?

Re: 2008/06/04/icahn-yang-yahoo/

Ling — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 02:02:13 -0000

If you read Yahoo's SEC filing about the severance package, you'd understand how big a con job it really is. It only kicks in if someone takes over control of Yahoo from the present board. What the heck does that have to do with individual employees? And even if it does, the amount of compensation offered is ridiculous and way out of range of a realistic severance package.

Re: 2008/06/05/truth-and-consequences/

Ling — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 03:03:43 -0000

I'd think twice before jumping to hasty conclusions. I don't know teh background of this case, but did this lawyer guy have any past history of using his blog for inflammatory comments and/or making controversial public statements? If not, maybe he had provocation for saying something so obviously wrong?

Re: 2008/06/06/tenantwiz/

Ling — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 04:55:27 -0000

I just read an article which says 1 out of 10 Americans are aving problems with mortgage payments. Foreclosures are booming, and teh real estate industry is in the worst slump ever. And in the middle of all this carnage, who exactly is going to pay for software which helps you manage the paperwork for a second home?

Re: 2008/06/07/google-favicon/

Ling — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 10:09:07 -0000

I think maybe they should opt for the one where it says Google in full. Just G could also stand for God, which is what the all knowing all seeing Google is accused of being.

Re: 2008/06/09/asshats/

Ling — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:23:45 -0000

Any law is only as good, or as bad, as its implementation. Point is, the internet is a bad, bad place, but if you your kid can't take the heat on the net, then you have a problem child. No amount of lawmaking is going to correct that.

Re: 2008/06/10/colbert-report-hulu/

Ling — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:36:30 -0000

LOL! Who invented the word 'georetarded'? That's original.

Re: 2008/06/11/travelmuse/

Ling — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:45:11 -0000

It's a good concept all right. I keep track of travel startups quite throughly, and the only two I liked in the last couple of months is Travelmuse and Offbeat Guides.

Re: 2008/06/12/social-media-delusions-of-grandeur/

Ling — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 01:31:12 -0000

The net can and is making a difference. For starters, it informs people and involves them, to a much greater degree than any other medium. Which is a good starting point. Second, the print and broadcast media are taking their cues about what's newsworthy from the internet chatter. This translates into a lot of 'indirect credit' for new media.

Re: 2008/06/13/dead-newspaper/

Ling — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 02:52:20 -0000

Maybe there should be a change in curriculum - For the educators. When they're training to be teachers, they should be taught the value of new media and transparency. I'd say that most teachers today live in their own little ivory tower, cut off from the internet chatter. A little exposure would go a long way into helping them understand what its all about.

Re: 2008/06/14/google-isp-monitors/

Ling — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 00:59:08 -0000

Much as I'd like to say that Google is doing this out of the kindness of their hearts, it ain't so. They see their own plan to control everything up and down the internet food chain being threatened, and they'd like to see the net neutrality debate killed before it crimps their style.

Re: 2008/06/15/pew-internet-politics/

Ling — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 07:41:52 -0000

Or maybe its the fact that boomers are heading for the exits, and the number of people who actively use the internet for everything is increasing. And the increase in online politics is just one of the effects of that increased ratio.

Re: 2008/06/16/onespot/

Ling — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:21:38 -0000

Doesn't Sphere already do something like this? I've seen 'Related content from Sphere' on sites like WashingtonPost.

Re: 2008/06/17/tools-for-cheap-air-travel/

Ling — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 02:37:35 -0000

I've never quite understood this timing strategy for airline bookings. Is there some logic behind it, or is it just like you keep watch and if you bump into a good deal, you book it.

Re: Republicans Choose ShadowTV for RNC Streaming (Who?)

Ling — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 02:44:15 -0000

Nothing to get sad about. Its a cyclic thing. Time was when Rush Limbaugh was a trailblazer in using the media to influence politics. Pretty sure social networking will be obsolete by 2016. And like as not, it'll be the Republican nominee using some new-flanged thing to take control of the media.

Re: 2008/06/20/sponsorship/

Ling — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 02:15:44 -0000

Sponsorship for small to medium blogs would mean finding sponsors who want to build a brand, as opposed to calculating hits and clicks. Precious few sponsors like that around...

Re: 2008/06/21/microsoft-bill-gates-departing/

Ling — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 00:15:34 -0000

You know, even for a giant like MSFT, direction is often very important, more so than nuts and bolts management. Bill Gates had/has an uncanny ability to produce winners. From what Ballmer has shown, especially with regards to taking on Google, I just don't see it happening. Call me biased, but I reckon Microsoft is going to be in big trouble heading forward without Gates.

Re: 2008/06/23/cheap-travel-accomodations/

Ling — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:16:06 -0000

You might want to try Map Channels Hotel. Lists hotels, availability and prices.

Re: 2008/06/24/google-government-teet/

Ling — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:15:34 -0000

Please replace that picture with something else. It's gross and to equate that with Google suckling some teat makes want to throw up.

Re: 2008/06/25/katie-does-youtube/

Ling — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:26:11 -0000

Too right. If Hillary Clinbton had understood how the net demands and promotes authenticity, she would have understood how staged those townhall chats looked.

Re: 2008/06/26/dont-treat-web-20-like-web-10/

Ling — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:16:56 -0000

Mark Hopkins has a valid point here. You can't precisely measure the benefits of 'good' social media marketing. Its more like people start listening to someone who has a good rep, and that counts in the long run, cause people remember that so-and-so person recommended this product.

How many people actually take some action immediately is a different matter, but opinion about a product, or branding, has a quite noticable effect.

Re: 2008/06/28/primospot/

Ling — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 22:29:45 -0000

I get notifications of at least a couple of new mashups in my inbox every week. Kinda difficult to decide which one is going to be a hit. Only one I really liked so far was one which listed out hotels and rates and availability, based on the search query. I forget the name, but it was darn useful.

Re: 2008/06/30/top-10-how-to-sites/

Ling — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 11:58:54 -0000

Actually, I've been an About.com guide, and its a bit overrated. The traffic, and the fact that the Mining Company has been acquired by the NYT makes it look very big, but most of the content goes directly from links to other sites within a frame. The articles and so-called expert guides are simply not as expert as they seem. Course this is a generalization, and there some good guides in there.

Re: 2008/07/01/political-advertising-online/

Ling — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:07:16 -0000

I'm wondering how much Barack Obama would make if he sold ads on his campaign websites... Probably won't need to ask for contributions if he put in ads...

Re: 2008/07/02/google-pagerank/

Ling — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:12:51 -0000

Interesting. Social media is simply a way of letting the people decide which page is more important. They're already doing that. Why would you need to add one more layer on top of that?

Re: 2008/07/04/politician-bloggers/

Ling — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 21:58:39 -0000

You forgot President Bush. He's got a blog too, although he doesn't seem to post anymore. Guess he found it kinda difficult to moetize the blog...

http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/mideast/notes...

Re: 2008/07/05/youtube-viacom/

Ling — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:55:56 -0000

Why can't Viacom explain to Google exactly what kind of information or results it hopes to get out of the data, and then ask Google to supply it with the results, rather than asking for the raw data? End of the day, if they think Google is lying or trying to cover up, they can still go after the raw data again.

Re: Quick Poll: Which Social Network Has The Best Ads?

Ling — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 10:18:18 -0000

You seen those T-shirt ads on Digg? I don't clik on them, but I do see them...

Re: 2008/07/07/could-your-google-search-indict-you/

Ling — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:36:22 -0000

This post needs a picture of a tin-foil hat. While its true that internet chatter is monitored to a certain level, its also true that if 'they' go around crashing doors, they're going to end up in a heap of trouble from groups like ACLU.

Re: 2008/07/08/congress-censor-twitter-qik/

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:14:52 -0000

I think Congressman John Culberson is right. When I read the entire post by Mark, it didn't seem like a big deal. But when I read the Congressman's comment above, it does look bad, if they can't post stuff like this on any website they want. I mean, I've seen everyone from Obama to John Kerry make posts on Dailykos. What would they have to say if they found they were not allowed to do that?

Re: 2008/07/09/microhoo-chapter-428/

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:52:06 -0000

You know something, I think I'm gonna miss writing and reading about Microhoo. Its become something like a daily fix. Have to read up on the latest twist. Hopefully, they'll continue the show well into the year end.

Re: 2008/07/11/take-back-the-internet/

Ling — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 08:44:58 -0000

I'm all for leveling the playing field, but unless the piracy and misuse part of it is brought under control, its a bit futile to talk about privacy. Torrent downloads are double edged swords, and you can't just agree to have all the fun, and not be willing to accept the responsibility.

Re: 2008/07/11/online-interaction/

Ling — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 04:20:59 -0000

Actually, you should be more worried about the destruction of the learning process, rather than social skills. I mean, if you don't know something, all you do is Google it up and make use of the ready information without really understanding it. Time was when people actually had to buy a book, read things (like learning programming) and understand them. Now, you just google it up, find a script or a widget and you're good to go.

Re: 2008/07/13/iphone-porn/

Ling — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 06:50:51 -0000

Not to put too fine a point on it, but your article sounds kinda supportive of the fact that porn might help save web based apps.

Re: 2008/07/14/sojer/

Ling — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 03:54:53 -0000

And on the mid-night hour of 2010, Sojern became self-aware and decided to force all air travelers to eat In-N-Out Burgers...

Re: 2008/07/15/social-media-doomed/

Ling — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:18:37 -0000

I won't get into the politics of it, but this I will say - there's no such thing as pure democracy on sites like wikipedia and on social networks. There are people who sell their 'street creds' on Wikipedia, and will get your stuff into the pages for a fee.

Re: 2008/07/16/evil-social-media/

Ling — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 02:54:08 -0000

Talking about race isn't the problem, per se. The problem comes when you mix race with a partisan tinge and passions really heat up. Nothing much you can do about that, except shut up and stop talking about it, as Bill Clinton found out in South Carolina, and I'm sure McCain supporters will find out soon.

Re: 2008/07/17/free-streaming-movies/

Ling — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 00:15:26 -0000

Wat's going to happen, sooner or later, is that the studios will come together and offer a place to watch streaming movies online. And they'll keep a tight lid on it, but the movies offered will probably be much betetr than what anything a third party could offer.

Re: 2008/07/18/google-lively-another-what-if/

Ling — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 02:22:55 -0000

I did think Google Checkout wasn't really living up to its potential. It could easily give Paypal a run for its money, but they seem to not want to open it up and push people to use it.

Re: Mygazines Offers a Look at the Future While Testing Copyright Law

Ling — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:16:39 -0000

Can others read your collection? So you can basically collect the best articles from all the mags and put together your own best mag - Which would be the best of the best. :)

Re: 2008/07/20/nyt-wsj-business-war/

Ling — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 04:53:04 -0000

The WSJ has one big advantage, and that is Murdoch's deep pockets. No way the NYT can fight that. If Murdoch decides to make the WSJ free online, the game is as good as over for the NYT. Don't see that happening soon, though.

Re: 2008/07/21/the-dark-knight-batman-movie/

Ling — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:14:05 -0000

Did you know the movie stars at least 5 Chicago hotels. The climax is at the Trump Chicago.

Re: 2008/07/22/free-gas/

Ling — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 23:17:39 -0000

Well, regardless of whether its old or new, the idea is brilliant, especially given the rising cost of filling up a tank.

Re: 2008/07/24/live-blogging/

Ling — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 23:00:16 -0000

Fact is that anyone with a keyboard can be a good journalist, with everything being streamed live on the net. I watched a congressional hearing and wrote about it, and before I know it, I'm being quoted by the Financial Times as someone who was there live. Being fast on the draw has its advantages. :)

Re: 2008/07/25/custom-digg/

Ling — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 00:22:51 -0000

Isn't that kinda 'undemocratic' to create a bypass and showcase stuff which a few selected people think is newsworthy. I mean, I understand the fact that lots of junk clutters up the fronty pages, but still, I don't think creating power users is in line with the basic concept of Digg.

Re: 2008/07/26/web-giants-stretched/

Ling — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:17:16 -0000

One thing more - Their actual worth. These companies have now gone well above and beyond their base worth. Brick & Mortar comapnies have physical assets to back their share value. The only thing internet companies have are intellectual assets and visitors. Its all in the mind, and on Wall Street. If they make a mistake, like Yahoo as done, then they, and shareholders, end up with squat.

Re: 2008/07/27/blogging-journalism/

Ling — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 21:45:56 -0000

Thing is, very few blogs feature 'original reporting'. Most simply rehash material they collect from the MSM. Which kindof makes the MSM indispensable. So, if you take a long term viewpoint, blogs might go away some day and be replaced by something more stable, but news organizations will still be there.

Re: 2008/07/28/googles-knol-evil-and-doomed/

Ling — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:54:30 -0000

I think you're jumping the gun here. The key issue, when it comes to whether Google will be able to match Wikipedia with Knol, is the number of people actively working on it. I simply don't see so many people devoting time to it, or shifting over from Wikipedia. So Knol will be just one more site, liek Mahalo. Nothing earth-shattering there.

Re: 2008/07/31/airbedandbreakfast-obama/

Ling — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 00:15:08 -0000

It is a neat idea. I remember all the chaos and bedlam in New York in 2004. And that was for the Republican Convention, when Dem supporters came flying in with no clue where to stay and total strangers took them all into their homes.

Re: 2008/08/03/social-bookmarking-3/

Ling — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 09:58:36 -0000

If I was interested in knowing how to write an article which makes the reader's head spin and their eyes glaze over, I would definitely bookmark this page. If its any consolation, I read it entirely, right down to the last word. :)

Re: 2008/08/04/time-warner-aol/

Ling — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:43:39 -0000

That's a hoot. Now that we're done with Microhoo, they roll out AOLhoo. Two losers like Yahoo & AOL coming togther can only mean one thing for Yahoo shareholders - A big loss instead of a small one. That's ironic when you think about the $33 they could have had...

Re: 2008/08/04/social-media-jobs/

Ling — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 02:29:33 -0000

Its important right now, but whether these jobs will remain so depends on how technology changes. Few years back, the online element was just one part of a company's strategy to reach customers. Now it's 'the' part. 5 years from now, websites may be obsolete, if customers and companies find a way to reach other without having to go through webpages.

Re: 2008/08/05/what-google-should-learn-from-startups/

Ling — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 00:59:20 -0000

This is exactly the kind of thing that makes people hate companies like Paypal. They've grown so comfortable in their supremacy that they'd rather lose paying customers than be bothered to try and provide customer service.

Re: 2008/08/06/2011-trendspotting-for-the-next-decade-video/

Ling — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 04:34:17 -0000

Uh... Why do you need a publisher if you're going to release your book online for free?

Re: 2008/08/08/is-it-spamming-or-savvy-marketing/

Ling — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 07:47:42 -0000

First of all, when you're putting something out in the public domain, one should assume that its going to be used to the extreme, and be prepared for that.

Secondly, by airing this issue on Mashable, you now give more free publicity to this company you're trying to get back at. If I was you, I'd drop the subject, and be more discreet in future. Sucks, but that's the way it is.

Re: 2008/08/08/astroturfing-social-media-ok-only-for-liberal-agendas/

Ling — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 01:03:10 -0000

What I've seen is that the media (both MSM and bloggers) on the right are pretty much in lockstep with talking points. The comments usually echo and follow the posts. The left, on the other hand, is more free-wheeling (but that could be cause its way bigger than what the right has). Point is, the McCain really has no need to do this, since most commenters on the right are going to be following along anyway. And like you say, liberals aren't going to suddenly wakeup and start posting for McCain in return for free goodies.

Re: 2008/08/09/target-me-please/

Ling — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 00:34:06 -0000

I dunno about Google, but I always get this creepy feeling when I see a Yahoo ad. Seems like its scarily matched to whatever I was just browsing about, even in windows other than the Yahoo page. Course, I could be (probably am) crazy.

Re: 2008/08/10/case-of-accidental-success/

Ling — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 02:43:00 -0000

It also gives him enormous power to put a hit on a company he doesn't fancy. Start a task force and give every nut who has a gripe an outlet to unleash the frustrations. I'm sure the PR guys for any company he starts a taskforce for will be thrilled.

Re: 2008/08/11/russia-georgia-cyberattacks/

Ling — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 23:40:52 -0000

Maybe we should have a one day internet-wide holiday. You know, just to find out what it feels like, so we'll be prepared for down time.

Re: 2008/08/12/google-search-us-milestone/

Ling — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 22:44:15 -0000

Most important thing is that results in Google are uptodate, literally. Google seems to be able to index new pages and show them up in search results much faster than the rest. Kinda big achivement this, and very necessary, considering how fast the meaning of a search term changes.

Re: 2008/08/13/georgia-google-maps/

Ling — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 23:46:29 -0000

First of all, Google Earth does have some data wich allows users to see individual buildings, so there's no reason why Google Maps shouldn't have the same data.

Secondly, this little flap should be seen in the wider context of the problems faced by Georgia related websites just before the conflict began. I think Google's name was dragged in just to give more publicity to the issue.

Re: 2008/08/14/cbs-online-political-convention-coverage/

Ling — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 22:53:42 -0000

Considering there's going to be over 70,000 people at the Dem Convention, there's going to be a lot of buzz online. Smart move by CBS.

Re: 2008/08/15/irony-alert-social-media-introverts/

Ling — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 23:21:06 -0000

You could write a book on social skills needed to succeed and build a following on social media networks. This is a whole new ballgame compared to in=person meet-ups.

Re: 2008/08/16/youtube-ads-4/

Ling — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 08:49:49 -0000

Advertising on Youtube is a massive sleeping dragon. Once Google gets really serious about it, you'll see advertisers lining up and pouring free content on Youtube. Big media, as usual, are a bit behind the curve.

Re: In a Boring Turn of Events, Google Gets Sued for Patent Infringement Again

Ling — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:30:17 -0000

I have a question. Who has had more lawsuits filed against them - Google or Microsoft? This could be one more area where Google beats Microsoft. :)

Re: 2008/08/18/google-wont-search-startups-grow/

Ling — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:45:34 -0000

I think you're forgetting the power of open source. Granted, no small startup has the power to go toe-to-toe with the Big G. But once an open source search engine gets a bit popular with the tech elite, you can bet your boots a lot of people will tag along and dump Google. Open source has a momentum all its own, which no corporate company can challenge.

Re: 2008/08/20/google-insights-social-networking-trends/

Ling — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:29:16 -0000

It does have mind-boggling possibilities. Especially for politics. Great idea to get online microtrends. Like, what happens in which state or city after a specific speech or debate or event by Obama or McCain. No need for the campaigns to do polling.

Re: Tiger Woods’ Jesus Walk Not a Glitch

Ling — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 22:50:15 -0000

I think maybe either Obama or McCain needs to steal some people from EA's rapid response team.

Re: 2008/08/23/obiden/

Ling — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 10:01:57 -0000

Smart choice. Biden will take all the incoming fire, leaving the moral high ground to Obama. Besides, it staisfies all the Dems who were saying Obama didn't have enuf experience. Plus, McCain won't trash Biden directly. As for Biden running his mouth off, I think the Obama campaign wil be able to put a lid on it. All said and done, nice choice.

Re: 2008/08/23/obama-sms/

Ling — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 00:10:46 -0000

There's only question that seems relevant to me here. Did or did not the Obama campaign anticipate that their media embargo would be broken? If they knew it was going to happen, then it was just a game to them, as opposed to idealistic notions of putting the people ahead of the media.

I mean, I'm pretty sure they were well on top of the situation. The minute they thought it was going to break in the media, they could have sent out the text messages. They didn't.

Re: 2008/08/24/olympics-closing/

Ling — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 03:33:02 -0000

Color me biased, but the whole thing was shockingly extravagant - The giant billboards, the hundreds of performers, the lights, the fireworks... Sure, it was good to watch, but the only thing I could think of was carbon consumption.

Re: 2008/08/25/startup-summer-weekends/

Ling — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 00:21:50 -0000

Or, you could do let loose your press release on the weekend, and then again tweak it a bit and let it loose again on Monday.

Re: 2008/08/26/government-20-being-individually-empowerful/

Ling — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 23:02:54 -0000

Maybe you could teach the Pentagon how to put on a more personal and public face. They seem to think that media interaction means paying people to put out friendly articles, and cutting off access for their personnel to media outlets which don't 'conform' to thei view.

Re: 2008/08/28/google-yahoo-search-ad-deal/

Ling — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:49:16 -0000

Doesn't matter to Google. Either way they make money. If the agreement doesn't go thru, Yahoo has to pay them $250 million.

Re: 2008/08/29/7-more-facts-about-sarah-palin/

Ling — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:05:13 -0000

The Dems are going to be poking around her 'fashion statements'. Do a Google image search for 'Vogue Sarah Palin', and you'll see what I mean.

Re: 2008/08/31/twitter-awards/

Ling — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:02:05 -0000

Blogs were hailed as a way to roundup what your cat did during the day. Twitter is a neat way to do that every half hour.

Re: 2008/09/01/when-bloggers-arent-bloggers/

Ling — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 01:40:05 -0000

True that there should be some kind of grading for bloggers, but you have to look at it from the other side - The powers-that-be use incidents like this to keep all of the new media out of the loop. I mean, who decides what a blogger's intent is? You say you have a 'journalistic' intent. You think someone is going to come and check everything you've written before giving you acess? If the guy who decides doesn't like mashable or the streaming radio station you worked for, then you're out - good intent or not.

Re: 2008/09/02/chrome-windows/

Ling — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:23:40 -0000

Microsoft may have the lead in infrastructure and tools and existing products, but they're not really pushing hard to blur the line between the desktop and the wide area network - Not without the sizeable online audience needed, which is at present firmly in Google's grip.

So you can provide as many examples as you want of Microsoft's initiatives in this regard, but end of the day, they're not going to really push hard to change the status quo. Google will, and is pushing. And sooner or later, something's gotta give. :)

Re: 2008/09/03/facebook-beta-adoption/

Ling — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:56:58 -0000

Took one look and switched back to the old one. Its bad enuf to have to learn how to use all the new sites and tools that keep coming up every week. Just don't have the energy to re-learn facebook.

Re: 2008/09/04/hot-startup-jobs/

Ling — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 08:28:03 -0000

Cool. A startup which helps others find jobs with startups. Anyone know what's Diep's background?

Re: 2008/09/05/finding-parking-spots-online/

Ling — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 01:27:43 -0000

And how many of these have iPhone apps to help find parking spots on the move?

Re: 2008/09/07/400-advertisers-tell-us-justice-dept-they-feel-bad-about-google-yahoo-play/

Ling — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 04:58:42 -0000

Doesn't look like the ad deal is ever going to actually be implemented. In fact, I don't think Google even wants to do it. They just didn't want Yahoo going to MSFt, so they threw a bone to Yahoo to stop it.

Re: 2008/09/08/the-new-mashable/

Ling — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:33:53 -0000

Way better than the old one, primarily because its new and we need 'change'. :) Seriously, loads faster too, and pleasing on the eye. I don't focus much on the other stuff, so its hard to say if its better or worse for the rest of it, but far as I'm concerned, new mashable rocks. Keep rockin'.

Re: 2008/09/09/chrome-is-getting-more-attractive-all-the-time/

Ling — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 03:05:54 -0000

I can't help but think what this will do to Firefox. Google even retired the referrals they were offering under Adsense. I think Firefox now knows what it feels to be Yahoo - Stuck between Microsoft and Google. :)

Re: 2008/09/10/internet-politics/

Ling — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:14:59 -0000

The only thing I got out of that was 'we need to think about this going forward'. Not a debate going to end anytime soon. Internet accountability is a very hazy concept.

Re: 2008/09/21/google-yahoo-again/

Ling — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 04:49:32 -0000

How is the no.1 & no. 2 in a field - any field - coming together, a good thing for consumers? In fact, they shouldn't even be friends. Yahoo should be fighting hard to bring down Google's share. Actually, this is all Microsoft's fault. If they hadn't had that boneheaded idea of taking over Yahoo, then Yahoo would be helping them fight Google now.

Re: Should You Start a Blog?

Ling — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 13:19:22 -0000

A blogger needs to have two things, which are of paramount importance - A sense of humor and real life experience about the subject matter. The reason why almost every blog is a failure is because it's either boring or the blogger has no idea what he's talking about. And anyone interested in the subject can tell whether or not thew writer is an expert.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:23:00 -0000

I've been waiting for some sign of movement in municipal bonds. Seems like they're grossly undervalued, given the strong basics and the fact that they just got caught in some subprime cross-fire. Any thoughts on how munis are going to react going forward?

Re: People Choose To Pay Credit Cards, Default on Mortgage

Ling — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 01:03:17 -0000

Heck, I know some guys in Florida who stopped making payments more than a year ago, and the bank still hasn't got to them. They also say they're not the only ones who're doing the same thing in their neighbourhood.

Re: As much as we thirst for approval, we dread condemnation

Ling — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 02:27:10 -0000

You know what's worse than complaining or arguing about something? Doing the same thing after the fact. I mean, you argue about something hoping to change minds and get a result you want, then that could be at least tolerable. But just griping about it after its all over is the worst way to tick off people on the other side of the argument.

Re: Blogging Pitfalls: STEALING other people’s photos.

Ling — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 07:05:44 -0000

This post is absolutely on the mark. If you look at Creative Commons licenses carefully and follow the instructions, you'll find virtually nothing worth using on a commerical site. Best way is to plan a couple of days in advance for every article, and contact the owners of the photos. Most times they're quite happy to allow you to use them.

Re: Good article on how the credit rating agencies affected the current liquidity environment

Ling — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:38:26 -0000

Roger Lowenstein's articles really carry a lot of weight. I read his last one on Ben Bernanke, and it made it so plain the difference between a textbook view and a practical approach to economics.

This one about mortgage backed securities is as good also. Explains very clearly how the mortgages are bundled and end up on Wall Street. Only thing is, there's not much point to it now, except maybe to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Thu, 01 May 2008 07:22:16 -0000

Well, the Fed did cut rates by .25%, but the dollar went up and oil went down. That's probably because the Fed indicated there won't be any more rate cuts in the near future.

Re: I’d Rather Sell Used Cars….

Ling — Sat, 03 May 2008 02:15:29 -0000

I'm not sure if this is the same as the CARD Act bill introduced by Sen Chris Dodd, because that's the one that's going to become law, considering that Dodd is Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.

Re: I believe

Ling — Mon, 05 May 2008 03:33:03 -0000

Whoa. Not so fast. The banks haven't finished their MBS writedowns yet. There's billions more to come. The credit crunch could strike again anytime. Lot of pain in store, that's for sure. I just read an article which says we're probably in the eye of the storm. You might want to hold off on the celebrations a bit longer.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Wed, 07 May 2008 07:22:13 -0000

I reckon the only thing of importance happening this week is the price of oil. Just keeps going up, and I think there's an article being bandied about on the net which says $150 oil could soon become reality.

Re: H.R. 5830 - The federal government’s power grab, disguised as a bail out.

Ling — Thu, 08 May 2008 08:48:52 -0000

You know, sometime back, Bernanke asked lenders to writedown Principals, in a speech he gave in Florida. I can't remember exactly where or when, but I'm pretty sure he did. If the Federal Reserve Chairman can ask lenders to forget about money owed to them, then politicians are of course going to go one better.

Re: The Investors Are Suing

Ling — Sat, 10 May 2008 03:54:14 -0000

The Bloomberg story says that State Street's asset values fell from $13.9 billion to $7.8 billion. No way you can get that kind of fall if the investments are conservative.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 13 May 2008 02:04:09 -0000

All the movement in oil and the dollar in the last two days has been sparked by the Chinese earthquake. Short term fall in oil demand is what it is, I guess. I'm going out on a limb here, but I'd say that as soon as the Chinese situation stabilizes, oil will start climbing again.

Re: back-up loans and double-locks

Ling — Thu, 15 May 2008 07:30:04 -0000

LOL! Todd scared me too. After reading his post, I've been spending more time on flickr than on writing blog posts...Tell you the truth, it's darn hard to find images on Flickr which you can publish on commercial sites...

Re: I’d normally never do this…..

Ling — Sat, 17 May 2008 10:42:46 -0000

Let me help you add some value to this post. One of the links mentioned in the article you linked to praises Bernanke for his brilliance and farsightedness. I think that's a bit of a stretch actually. The whole thing was about to go down the loo, when Tim Geithner, of the NY Fed, stepped in and set the Federal reserve on the current path - Which includes the TAF and hadling the Bear Stearns crisis. Bernanke was just a passenger on the boat.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Wed, 21 May 2008 11:37:32 -0000

Not much going on this week. Maybe Congress might provoke some movement - Foreclosure bill, or hearings on commodity investment limits, but other than that, pretty slow week. Doesn't look like Fed is going to drop any news about interst rates for now.

Re: It’s Still a Pig…..

Ling — Fri, 23 May 2008 07:48:05 -0000

Loosening down payment requirements in areas where home prices are expected to fall would be foollishness even in normal times. It's a virtual deathblow for Fannie May under today's conditions, and you're right - It shows why the federal govt. should not be allowed to own companies, even in part. A privately owned company would never risk shareholders' money like this.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Thu, 29 May 2008 04:06:34 -0000

Dallas Fed's Fisher is saying the Fed could raise rates pretty soon. The news hasn't spread out yet, but I guess that would be cause for some real movement in the next two days, and maybe even extending to next week.

Re: Goggle is experimenting with mortgage lead generation

Ling — Sat, 31 May 2008 13:34:26 -0000

I suppose real estate search wouldn't be too far offbase for them, what with google Earth and all. I mean, some time back, there was a lot of hype about Google entering the real estate biz with virtual tours of listed properties.

Re: Blogging For Nonbloggers: Where To Start (If At All)

Ling — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 02:10:33 -0000

The linking to good stuff part is the most important thing. Blogs can't provide as much value as mainstream media outlets, but you can still link to them, and others, while adding your own voice to it.

Re: New Rule: Your Blog MUST Contain a Contact Us Page and Link

Ling — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 04:26:01 -0000

True that. I usually avoid doing business, or even contacting, any firm which does not have a full contact address and phone number on site. Simple fact is that putting your contact details on the site fosters authenticity and trust.

Re: The Misery Index

Ling — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 12:29:34 -0000

Sudden spurts up and down in the unemployment rate should always be taken with a grain of salt. Especially when it flies against conventional wisdom and sentiment regarding the state of the economy. Besides, nobody remembers these reports the next morning.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 10:33:08 -0000

I heard Bernanke is about to give a speech on inflation at a Boston Fed conerence. You think that might have some impact?

Re: Ibis Group blogging seminar notes.

Ling — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 12:10:00 -0000

I don't read much of the others, but I'll endorse reading whatever Robert Ashby writes. His mortgage market updates here are really on the spot and he knows what he's talking about.

Re: Florida’s New Foreclosure Law – Ooops!

Ling — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 03:11:32 -0000

Gina has a point. Florida is a haven for people who have stopped making mortgage payments and are still living in multi million dollar mansions. This could be a kind of backlash to evict these sqautters.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:24:19 -0000

Robert Novak, from the Chicago Sun Times, has an article where he says a 'source' close to Bernanke told him that rates are not going to be raised. And oil's been going down on reports of Saudi Arabia increasing production. So do these two cancel each other out, as far as bonds are concerned?

Re: Senator Dodd, a “Friend of Angelo”

Ling — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 10:02:19 -0000

For the record, Dodd says that he didn't know he got an interest rate reduction. I don't know which is worse - That the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee is a crook, or that he's so naive that he didn't know he was being bribed...

Re: Please welcome Luke Helm and Daniel Martin to lenderama.

Ling — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 01:55:42 -0000

Welcome both. Looking forward to your perspectives, wisdom and opinions. Hope you can mix in some fun along with the posts. Things are bleak enough as it is, and we badly need some humor here.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 03:03:16 -0000

Well, you're right - the Fed isn't going to raise rates, and although oil is dropping a bit, Citibank layoffs are big news, driving stocks down. Don't see bonds going down this week.

Re: Let’s Get the Fun Back Into The Business!

Ling — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:07:49 -0000

Absolutely correct. There's oppurtunity in the middle of the carnage, if you can keep your eyes open. As for the fun, if you hate getting up in the morning and going to work, well, then, you probably need to find a new career.

Re: Negative Press About Reverse Mortgages Persists

Ling — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 02:45:22 -0000

Sorry to go a bit off-topic, but I've been reading about Down Payment Assistance programs in the Wall Street Journal, and its pretty bad, from what I read. Is it really bad, or is it just a temporary problem created by the subprime crisis?

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:03:54 -0000

True that the stimulus checks are propping up the data. In fact, there seem to be some people out there saying that one more stimulus is required. I'm thinking that's a meme that's going to be picked up by a lot more people.

Re: The Last Day of Countrywide

Ling — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 02:08:19 -0000

Reality on Wall Street is pretty cruel. Doesn't take into consideration past good deeds. Fact is that Angeloz Mozilo, for all the good he's done, is also one the main characters in the subprime mortgage drama. Besides, he's pocketed a big chunk in exchange for his efforts, while his shareholders were left holding the sack. Can't say that arouses much sympathy from me.

Re: Hello Lenderama!

Ling — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:04:23 -0000

Looking forward to hearing from you about consumer credit. If there's any still left...

Re: Indymac Bank Closes!

Ling — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:29:47 -0000

From what I read, the Indymac thing is going to get a lot more uglier. They have deep legal issues to face, and the drip-drip of bad news is really going to make it difficult for them to even survive the next few months.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:27:29 -0000

Guess Bernanke's FDIC speech will push stocks up a bit, considering the extension of lending facilities and requirements for investment banks to increase liquidity.

Re: Hey LO’s, why aren’t you marketing to me?

Ling — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:04:14 -0000

I was watching this live telecast of Treasury Secretary Paulson's testimony to Congress, and he says they're going to come up with some sort of new 'Mortgage Origination Commission'. Said if they had had it before, predatory lending would have been a lot less. I don't know how relevant this is here, but I just wanted to know what you think about it.

Re: FDIC shuts down Indymac

Ling — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:29:23 -0000

That was pretty fast. Just last week they were re-structuring and cutting jobs. I read the OTS made a statement that Sen Schumer's letter was responsible for the run on the bank. All those people who lost their jobs should be writing letters to Schumer and run him out of Congress.

As for the picture, why is that surprising? I mean, IndyMac was part of Countrywide before.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:12:54 -0000

Well, Monday was a rout for banks. Indymac fever seems to be spreading to other banks. Dunno if the Fed boosting Fannie & Freddie is going to be enough.

Re: Fannie Mae Keys to Recovery?

Ling — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 02:44:23 -0000

From what I know of this, only thing you can do is to sign a quitclaim deed, but leave both names on the mortgage.

Re: Matthew Bowe joins Lenderama

Ling — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 07:45:02 -0000

Welcome Matt. Hope we gain some valuable insights from your experience.

Re: Hello Lenderama! And, THE QUESTION nobody wants asked!

Ling — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:31:52 -0000

Hold on, now. I read the entire post thinking the 'question' was about to be asked. And end of it you say 'stay tuned'... You sure know how to build hype (that's a compliment).

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:05:28 -0000

True that they should just bite the bullet and get past it. Rather than finding ways to fight from getting into a recession, better if the Fed and Congress and the Treasury would just focus on finding ways to rebound 'after' the problem.

Re: Mortgage Rescue: Image Is Everything

Ling — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 23:03:53 -0000

And then they ask why Fannie & Freddie are in so much trouble. Simple fact is that mixing politics and subsidies with private enterprise is a surefire way to go bankrupt.

Re: Ghost Review - TwitterFlex

Ling — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 09:00:24 -0000

Heck, I didn't even know you had something like LenderFlex mortgage pricing. Have to try it out soon.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 11:14:51 -0000

Despite the size of the aid in the housing bill, doesn't seem like its going to have any immediate impact. They're now squabbling over how long it'll take to implement the aid. I'd say the effects of the housing bill should be entirely discounted for now.

Re: The Question (nobody wants to ask)… and the Answer (everyone wants to have)

Ling — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:49:19 -0000

Well, for starters, thanks for asking the question. My curiousity is satisfied. :)

Worst thing, far as I am concerned, is that the Govt is making it easier to keep and buy homes, while the market keeps getting tighter. This crisis is stretching because of this. If they could just get out of the way, and let the market do its work, we could hit bottom in less than six months and then start rebounding.

Re: Mercury Companies closing offices

Ling — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 22:23:04 -0000

Just read it in the news. Guess the crisis is going to the next stage now, filtering down below the big companies. This is really going to hurt, if it spreads to more companies.

Re: Why Credit Repair is Absolutely Positively, and Indisputably An Utter Waste of Time.

Ling — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 04:06:57 -0000

Quote - "Nothing will drive you out of the business faster than staking your income on people with crap credit."

As subprime lenders are finding, that will indeed drive you out of business. And it will take down a whole lot of people along with you...

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 02:13:15 -0000

There's a Fed policy meeting about to happen, and news reports say they won't be raising rates, but what they say after the meeting may trigger some change. You think?

Re: Fed Watching

Ling — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 01:09:59 -0000

"Why do I spend time watching and waiting for the Fed’s decision?"

Cause you didn't have anything better to do? If its any consolation, I watch hearings on C-Span...

Re: Credit Score Components

Ling — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 01:07:35 -0000

Neat post. One of the best credit score explanations I've seen. Usually you have to pay, or at the very least, register as a free guest, to read this kind of detailed information.

Re: Option ARMs suck because people DON’T make the minimum payment

Ling — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 00:45:58 -0000

Worst part is that most of the lenders who conned people into unmanageable loans are now themselves in trouble, and they've bringing down a lot of people who did make right choices, but since equity values have fallen so badly, they're left high and dry.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 01:38:18 -0000

If the Georgia conflict escalates, that's bound to push up oil. And auction rate securities are creating immediate problems for a lot of banks. If financials go down, and oil goes up, I'd say that just about ends the stocks rally.

Re: Peter Thompson Joins Lenderama

Ling — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 23:49:46 -0000

Welcome to Lenderama, Peter. Hope to se some great posts from you which can clear up the air on all the bad publicity LO's have recived as of late.

Re: Lenderama gets some new digs, and there’s more on tap.

Ling — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:08:25 -0000

Neat look. Much more professional, and easy on the eyes, than the old one. Needed a change anyway.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:41:10 -0000

Russia says they've started the withdrawal, the U.S. is still ahead in the overall medal count, the dollar is surging, and commodities are going down. I'd say this week's news will be mostly positive.

Re: Checking the Crystal Ball – Where are interest Rates Heading?

Ling — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:28:13 -0000

Looks like the volatality is subsiding a bit, and the markets are reacting more to basic fundamentals, than the daily news. That sounds good, regardless of which way it trends.

Re: Lenderama, now at lenderama.com

Ling — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 10:11:52 -0000

Well, that's new. I suppose its good this way, with the name of the blog matching the domain name.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 07:33:06 -0000

Looks like we're reaching a stage of normalcy, where individual sectors are reacting to basics, instead of following the overall trends. I mean, MBS were never even discussed in terms of Bank writedowns and stuff like that before the subprime crisis. Hopefully, all that is behind us, and bonds will be reacting to the usual indicators, instead of to some corporate company's quarterly results, or a bail-out package from Congress.

Re: Lenderama on your iPhone

Ling — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:05:23 -0000

Oh Man! You explain it so nice and those snapshots look so great, I feel like getting an iPhone now.

Re: The FDIC … How Safe Is Your Money, Anyway?

Ling — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 06:09:51 -0000

Heck, at least ordinary people now know what kind of boat they're in. Before IndyMac collapsed, no one even knew what kind of cover the FDIC provides.

Re: Should I refi?

Ling — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 03:43:47 -0000

Damn right its too late. Very few people are going to make any decision at this stage. I'm thinking if they set up some kind of live helpline where people can get answers to questions based on their own specific situation, that might be very hellpful.

Re: Are We Looking at a New Savings and Loan Crisis?

Ling — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 14:02:40 -0000

Sen. McCain will start weeping if he sees this post. I don't think he'd enjoy being reminded of the good old days of the savings & loan crisis.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 01:50:59 -0000

I'm getting the same feeling, that housing could now be on its way to a sustained recovery. Could take time, but the general trend indicates a recovery.

Re: Be Careful Who You Link To

Ling — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:28:58 -0000

So, we need to go around poking into the six degrees of seperation of the site you want to link to and any possible bad apples that he might be linking to? That's unfair. I mean, you like a page, or a site, you provide a link to it, so your readers can enjoy it too. As simple as that. Why think about what the search engines want?

Re: When You’re Hot, You’re Hot

Ling — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:10:30 -0000

The key issue is in identifying how you can use the adverse conditions to hit your targets. There are people making tons of money out of foreclosed properties. There are investors who are millionares now because they were short-selling subprime-credit at the right time.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:42:46 -0000

I can't help but think this isn't good news. Rally it may be, but heaping another pile of debt on the public, and the fact that Fannie & Freddie will now be switfly overtaken with bureaucratic inertia means that the mortgage mess is going to get even worse. Am I too pessimistic here?

Re: What happens if a title company fails?

Ling — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 02:56:30 -0000

I'm not a fan of regulation, but seems like most of the problems being faced right now are due to the sustained de-regulation and mergers in the last decade or so. Tighter regulations, and a splitup of big companies into local entities, would help ease the pain a lot in future.

Re: wicked

Ling — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 04:05:34 -0000

I don't think I can blame the buyer, notwithstanding the restaurant example. Buyers are pretty much confused as it is, and have no idea what's going on behind the scenes. There's bound to be miscommunication. Taking money upfront for expenses while the buyer is interested would be a good idea, I think, rather than squabble about it after a person decides he wants to have nothing to do with you.

Re: Markets in Turmoil – A New Refinance Boom

Ling — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 02:00:06 -0000

That's assuming this is the bottom, and the Fed cuts rates, and things remain relatively stable from hereon. What happens if there's more pain in the near future?

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:03:07 -0000

You think the Treasury is going to use the $700 billion as a new weapon, replacing the Fed's rate cuts? I mean, everytime there's a hiccup, they pump out some 50 odd billion and try to douse the flames a bit? That would explain why Paulson wants so much freedom to do whatever they want with the money.

Re: there’s that hyper-localized blog in the news again!

Ling — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 04:40:57 -0000

Heh! That's one lively blog you have there. What's a Vomit Comet anyway?

Re: The House kills it. Capitalism survives for one more day.

Ling — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 09:34:23 -0000

Far as I'm concerned, this isn't a debate about capitalsim or a welfare state. Its an issue of facing reality, competence (or lack of it) and a fundamental flaw in financial products.

Todd is right that we should let the whole thing burn down, but the reason I say so is because the whole thing is flawed (cheap imports, debts and deficits, subprime borrowing) and needs to be replaced with a more realistic system which reflects the actual financial buying power of the nation. Unless that happens, the markets will keep falling, again and again.

Re: This has nothing to do with the mortgage industry…

Ling — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:22:50 -0000

Well, you could start by doing all you can yourself (meaning everyone) to not use or buy anything which is a sweatshop product. Every major company which is still using products made in third world sweatshops has had articles written about it, which you can easily find with a simple search.

Re: Feeling Nervous?

Ling — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 11:29:14 -0000

Well, it'll take them some time to chew on that $700 billion, so I'd say you get about a couple of months to forget the worry, what with the elections and all. Early next year, the bottom caves out, and won't be any bailout coming then.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 01:18:09 -0000

Why exactly is Wall Street unhappy with the bailout bill? I mean, they were literally begging for it, and everyone and his aunt was predicting doom if the bill wasn't passed. If $700 billion isn't enough for them, then what is?

Re: Sometimes Economic Predictions Come True

Ling — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 04:55:15 -0000

Nice thought, but every pundit on the news has a different opinion, and if you watch it long enough, you'll probably end up more confused than before. BTW, the hedge fund manager was John Paulson, of Paulson & Co., who made a heck of a lot for his clients (and for his hedge fund) betting short on mortgage backed securities. You can't go wrong if you follow him (or the Yale endowment's David Swensen) closely, but its a bit hard to know what these guys are doing, unless you're a client. :)

Re: Little White Lies: Your Stated Income Mortgage Borrowers

Ling — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:27:29 -0000

I understand the need for stated income loans, but seems to me this is a recipe or disaster. How can you trust the goodness of human nature while lending money? You can trust, but you have to verify. And that comes only from solid proof of income.

Re: It’s A Secret!

Ling — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 09:42:47 -0000

Well, I don't know what he's said on other forums, or how good teh courses are, but his site seems decent enough. He's put in a lot of effort in the site, and that shows.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 01:31:30 -0000

Taking a vacation is just about the ebst thing you can do now. Read an article in Bloomberg which says that people need to step back and let things happen. Even had some nice suggestions for where to go and hide. :)

Re: Mortgage Backed Securities… here’s a pretty good explanation

Ling — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 00:09:44 -0000

Neat explanation. Kinda like sitting in a class room. And I almost fell asleep during the introduction. :)

Re: Loan Officers UNLEASHED!

Ling — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 07:55:19 -0000

Heh! You do have a live one there. Humor is a very effective weapon on a blog, and you're making pretty good use of it.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 11:05:04 -0000

I think maybe the next big trigger for the markets is probably going to be election day. If the Democrats sweep Congress and Obama wins, there's a lot of pain in store for the banks.

Re: Congrats Mike!

Ling — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 03:00:31 -0000

Congrats to Mike. So will he still be contributing here? Or are we too low tech for him now? :)

Re: If I were NAR’s Social Media Manager

Ling — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:19:03 -0000

If I were the one hiring you, I'd hire you just for this - "This has not exactly been a positive time. But here I am. I’m as bullish as Lawrence Yun. I don’t care if the whole world is going up in flames. I know how to move forward."

Qualifications and experience being equal, I'd select the candidate who has this kind of attitude.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:48:33 -0000

Sentiment is pretty weak, and looks like its heading south well into the near future. You gotta do some explaining about the correlation between the movements of stocks and bonds. I've been grasp the finer details, but with the markets so wild, its kinda hard to understand it.

Re: Jumbo Reverse Mortgage Dead

Ling — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:38:02 -0000

Don't think so. Take till at least 2010 to get things back to where they were before. And even then, I doubt how much risk lenders will be willing to take on.

Re: I talk to over 700 real estate agents. Tell me again why I’m waisting my time screwing around on Twitter?

Ling — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 02:08:46 -0000

From a business point of view, a combination of LinkedIn and twitter works pretty good. But as Jay says, twitter isn't for everyone. You have to be pretty transparent and open. From a fun point of view, it sa heck of a lot of fun. Twitter personas of people are way different than what they are in real life, or even at other places on the internet.

Re: Wahoo! I can’t wait to start blaming Obama for all my problems!

Ling — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:54:46 -0000

True that. Not much point in worrying about what Obama is going to do, or waiting for a free handout. And once Bush goes out of office, hardly anyone will even remember why they were so angry with him. Its just election fever. Doesn't really make a big difference in day-to-day life.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 11:59:57 -0000

I think this is pretty much the first time I've seen you take a firm stand. Otherwise, you're usually sitting on the fence about long term prospects.

Re: Mortgage Marketing - 11 things you can do right now…

Ling — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 09:20:42 -0000

Develop relations with journalists from nearby papers and magazines. One article with a quote from you (and nowadays scribes do need a lot of info on mortgages) and all your problems will be over.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:07:11 -0000

No big deal that you're a bit late in posting, Robert. Worth waiting.

Re: Goodbye Cash-out. Hello Debt Settlement. Part 1 of 3

Ling — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:42:42 -0000

This is very interesting. Wish you could go into some more detail about how consumers can pull off debt settlement without the help of a third party debt settlement company.

Re: Understanding Inflation - Part 2 of 6

Ling — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 08:24:37 -0000

A coupla months back, there was a lot of chatter about inflation, and deflation, and stagflation and which one the FED should focus on. What exactly is stagflation?

Re: Goodbye Cash-out. Hello Debt Settlement. Part 2 of 3

Ling — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:13:01 -0000

I've heard of specific strategies, like the Debt Snowball method. Can things like this be done without the help of a debt settlement agency? I read a little bit about it, but the calculations are a bit complicated.

Re: You Had to Know This Was Coming!

Ling — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 22:01:16 -0000

45 million turkeys are a lotta turkeys to be eaten up in a day. Must make those two turkeys being pardoned by the President feel even more lucky.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 01:44:08 -0000

Interesting week, all right. Somebody came out with a paper which says we've been in a recession since Dec 07. Totally wiped out all the gains from a better than expected Black Friday. It takes them a year to figure out we've been in a recession? And they panic about it now, after 1 year. And when do we find out we're out of the recession?

Re: Mortgage Direct Marketing - What would I do?

Ling — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 23:16:25 -0000

True that you have to make things happen. Especially in a tough market. Instead of cutting back, you need to work twice as hard to ensure that you get at least what you used to, when times were good.

Re: Mortgage Market Update

Ling — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:33:54 -0000

Problem is that Paulson is as much of a lame duck as President Bush. Nobody really wants any major decisions until after Jan 20. Best Paulson can hope for is that he doesn't screw up any more for the next month and a half.

Re: 365 Days Left! The End of the Bush Reign is Only a Year Away!!!

Ling — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 21:38:21 -0000

Good riddance and lots of luck for the new POTUS. But he or she has the work really cutout. I mean, best the new President can hope for is to manage a humiliating retreat out of Iraq, try to keep the economy from falling into a recession (if it ain't already in one) and bang heads in Congress to get something done. Not much of a chance to build a legacy...

Re: Internet Relay Chat (IRC) adventure!

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:38:15 -0000

Oh yeah. Fond memories. I used to play Counter-Strike all night long. Best part of the game is when you chat with the others in between games after you get owned.

Re: New Beverly Hills 90210???!!!????!!??????

Ling — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:46:30 -0000

I been watching all 10 years of Friends for the last month or so, and I'd like to see them come up with a spinoff. Not like 'Joey', though. That sucked.

Re: Best place to take Mom in LA?

Ling — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:02:21 -0000

I'm thinking some vintage shopping in Sherman Oaks could help a bit.

Re: My Valley to LAX Commute sucks

Ling — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 07:08:07 -0000

Exactly what I was going to say. You need to get a hybrid, or better yet, get a bike. That'll keep you fit in addition to saving on the gas bill.

Re: Top Notch Legal Advertising in Westwood

Ling — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 11:03:46 -0000

C'mon. I've seen a lot worse than this guy. Give him a neat haricut and take out a few lines, and he'll almost resemble Matt LeBlanc.

Re: EMT Strike- they get paid $9.50 an hour to save your life!

Ling — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:43:01 -0000

I didn't know EMT's make so little. I mean, with all that training and all, how come they earn less than unskilled workers?

Re: LA wins title of most polluted city in US

Ling — Thu, 01 May 2008 07:41:00 -0000

What do you think is going to happen to Fargo if everyone in LA moves there?

Re: Americana at Brand- Initial Thoughts of the New Glendale Mall

Ling — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:10:56 -0000

Maybe they should start opening schools inside malls and make the mall people pay for the school, or something like that. That way, we can have our malls and not feel guilty about them. :)

Re: Crazy woman spotted on San Vincente in Brentwood

Ling — Mon, 12 May 2008 10:15:17 -0000

I gues Red Shorts guy got out of the way in the first place to avoid crazy lady. :)

Re: Announcing The Cupcake Challenge this Sunday in Hollywood

Ling — Thu, 15 May 2008 00:35:20 -0000

Neat. I didn't know about this contest. A bit late, but I guess I can still blog about it.

Re: Disappointing preliminary results for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Ling — Tue, 20 May 2008 04:26:06 -0000

Maybe Indiana Jones is too old to be revived with Harrison Ford. They should have casted someone new. And besides releasing it after a superhit like IronMan is like ensuring a dud...

Re: Velveteria: Velvet Painting Museum…why is this not in LA?

Ling — Sat, 24 May 2008 10:34:19 -0000

Interesting. Caren, are you guys really interested in opening another museum in Los Angeles? If so, I'd like to ask some questions for my blog. Reply back here, and if necessary, I'll get in touch with you.

Re: Memorial Day- War Memorial at the Santa Monica Pier

Ling — Wed, 28 May 2008 05:28:38 -0000

Eerie is an understatement. Each of those crosses represents a real person, cut down in their prime. I did a bit of calulating for my blog a couple of days ago, and about 1.25 million American soldiers have died todate in war zones, including both sides in the Civil War.

Re: Free Cupcakes tomorrow at Crumbs in Beverly Hills

Ling — Wed, 28 May 2008 22:45:33 -0000

Crumbs is what you'll get. Cupcake crumbs, instead of Crumbs' cupcakes.. :)

Re: My Favorite T-shirt Shop Threadless.com is Having a Summer Sale

Ling — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:32:35 -0000

That's a heck of a lot of t-shirts. Specially liked the one with the Unicorns humping. :)

Re: True Religion Jeans- 30-50% off!

Ling — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 04:40:52 -0000

Again? There was this flap a couple of years ago about True Religion Jeans being illegally diverted to Costco. It seems somebody at Costco is going to a lot of trouble to sell these jeans inspite of it not being legal...

Re: OMFG! WTF! Carrot Top is on Steroids!

Ling — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:42:51 -0000

That is one sick sorry SOB. He's got totally zapped out eyes. I don't even want to think about the rest.

Re: Worldwide wear a funny T-shirt day this Friday!

Ling — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 12:13:17 -0000

Friday the 13th? Isn't that asking for trouble?

Re: NBC’s Tim Russert dies at 58

Ling — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 03:07:07 -0000

RIP Tim Russert. From what I read, he just came back from Italy and kinda collapsed. I didn't see anything about past medical history. And pretty young to die of a first heart attack. Sad.

Re: Roadtrip!

Ling — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 02:28:16 -0000

Apparently Dick Cheney shot all the Buffalo in Wyoming by mistake. They were his friends.

Re: Oil rigs off the Santa Monica Coast? Could it happen as Bush asks Congress to approve offshore oil drilling

Ling — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 04:50:31 -0000

Hey, I thought this drilling thing was just off Florida. I don't want no rigs off California. Hope Congress will stall and kill off the proposal. Anyway, its not its going to have a long-lasting impact on oil prices. Its going to shoot up whether or not you start drilling offshore.

Re: West Hollywood gets married!

Ling — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 02:32:05 -0000

Lot of angst in other states over the same-sex marraiges in CA. They're talking about problems with medical benefits and such, when people travel across the state border. I'm thinking unless there's a federal policy in place from Washington, this ain't really gonna work.

Re: These horses..

Ling — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 03:11:13 -0000

What the heck is that gear type thing in the picture, on the fence?

Re: New Crayola Crayon Colors!

Ling — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:48:13 -0000

Ewww! That's gross. Especially the flu phlegm. On the other hand, you could use it to clean your runny nose, and no one would notice...

Re: Anyone miss the snow?

Ling — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:18:17 -0000

Ouch! Pegion poop mixed in with snow flakes must taste like.. I don't know, something horrible, probably.

Re: Thank you Verbal Cartoonist

Ling — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:20:52 -0000

LOL! Talk about the importance of the last word... Thanks for the laugh. I really needed that.

Re: New Terminator Movie- Terminator Salvation, will it suck like T3?

Ling — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:39:20 -0000

Sounds like a good story line. And sure the special effects will be treat to watch. Just hope they don't mess it up.

Re: Another Dose of Guy Humor

Ling — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:02:09 -0000

Heh. Heh. Somebody here has a thing for MILF's.

Re: United States is the 16th Happiest Country in the World! $4.60 a gallon gas? Slumping housing market? IRAQ war? How can this be?

Ling — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 01:00:45 -0000

Guess people in Columbia are all in a state of drug induced euphoria. What else would they be happy for?

Re: The Last Mistress movie review

Ling — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 13:17:04 -0000

All I have to say is that I read your full review, every last word of it. Which, by itself, was an achievement. And a bit of a turn-on... :)

Re: Jonathan Nail interviews Hancock viewers

Ling — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:22:06 -0000

The movie ain't all that good. not as good as Ironman anyway. Story doesn't really pull you in, and seems a bit disjointed. Only good part is when Will Smith find out about Theron being, you know...

Re: This Friday and Saturday: The Old Pasadena Film Festival

Ling — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 08:33:31 -0000

Lord of the Rings trilology from 8.30 pm till dawn? You'll end up as lord of red eyes and wrinkled eye bags...

Re: Hollywood Forever Cemetery Movie Screenings- Valley Girl this Sunday July 13th

Ling — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 01:53:05 -0000

That's neat. thanks. I think I'll write about this. Know any more places like this?

Re: Be there tomorrow: It’s a Small World Burlesque Show

Ling — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 11:05:05 -0000

I wanted to see Vanity Flair. But sadly, she doesn't want to be seen... How come the links don't work? Or is it just me?

Re: LASnark’s Movie Review Guy Greg Oguss launches novel

Ling — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:49:55 -0000

That's a hot script for the next chick flick. Name's perfect too - Monica. Hot!

Re: Photos from last weekend’s Vice Photo Show at the Scion Gallery

Ling — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 04:15:00 -0000

The first and third pics are nice, and the second one is, um.. interesting.

Re: Scott Peterson takes on LA Snark for the title of Greatest Blog Eva

Ling — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 02:40:24 -0000

He could call OJ in as a guest blogger...

Re: The Dark Knight Review

Ling — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:49:53 -0000

C'mon. Leaving aside the merits of the film, the least you could say is that he ensured the film would be a hit by dying before the release. You could give him an award for that, if not for the acting... End of the day, its all about making people pay for tickets.

Re: Lawrence of Arabia Starring Peter O’Toole at the Alex Theatre in Glendale Saturday July 26th

Ling — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 05:07:13 -0000

The film is an ad for road safety. Riding a motor-bike is more dangerous than facing murderous Arabs...

Re: Roger Ebert leaves At the Movies

Ling — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:55:17 -0000

I dunno which one is more irritating - The cactus or Borat...

Re: Robert Novak Plays Hardball with Environmentalists

Ling — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 23:26:58 -0000

You know, people like Novak and Ann Coulter feed off exactly this kind of reaction. They love it when they get piled on by liberals. Helps them sell books and improve circulation for their syndicated columns. Course, its not easy to ignore them, but that's what needs to be done.

Re: Natalie Portman’s Vegan Shoes

Ling — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:26:55 -0000

If Natalie Portman is selling shoes, they're going to be hot. Anything she touches gets hot. :)

Re: California Bans Trans Fats

Ling — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 00:16:53 -0000

This calls for coining some new terms. I think you'll be hearing more about 'Trans-fat withdrawal syndrome'.

Re: What’s going on at the Stoner Community Center Playground?

Ling — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:34:15 -0000

Take out the R from Stoner and replace with a D, and you have Pothead heaven.

Re: Venice Beach Hostel – Gross rip off?

Ling — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 21:56:52 -0000

I don't usually do negative reviews, but I think I'll write about this, cause its so darn negative. If anyone has any more info, please add to the comments.

Re: LA gets No Love- Princeton Review ranks the Top 20 party schools…UCSB gets 9th!

Ling — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:04:58 -0000

Have you been to an UCSB/IV party? Shouldn't even call it a party. More like a riot.

Re: Earthquake covers Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas

Ling — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:54:38 -0000

No injuries or damage reported so far although LA Times has a picture of an overturned garbage box in Santa Mmonica.

Re: LA Home for sale only $179,000

Ling — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 22:12:17 -0000

Either there's some problem with a mortgage or something, or the owner was plain drunk when he had this listed.

Lings last blog post..Q&A With Broke-Ass Stuart, Author of Guide to Living Cheaply in New York

Re: Myspace puts on Free “Secret” Offspring Show This Sunday In Anaheim

Ling — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 04:18:41 -0000

I could do with some free stuff. Does the 'shh' gal come for free too? :)

Re: Rami Perlman, son of Itzhak – at the Troubadour August 13

Ling — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 06:12:30 -0000

Great find. Love the video. Any more details about the Troubadour show?

Re: The Original King of Comedy – Bernie Mac

Ling — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 02:49:29 -0000

I'm sure Charlie's Angels will miss Bosley. They don't make em like that anymore in Chicago.

Re: IN YOUR FACE FRANCE!

Ling — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 04:32:38 -0000

This is exactly why the French hate America so much. :)

Re: Vanity Fair knuckles under to the Gawker crowd

Ling — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 06:22:46 -0000

To be fair, Vanity Fair did publish the first photos of superspy Valerie Plame.

Re: The “official” LA Snark review of Pineapple Express

Ling — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 06:30:49 -0000

I stopped reading at the comparison to Tarantino's films. Comparisons, even if negative, of these slapstick comedies to the brilliance of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction is appalling.

Re: “Greg who? I did it for Bill Bradley.”

Ling — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 03:15:30 -0000

I second Hush. I was trying to count the total number of obscenties in both posts put together, and I think I would have been better off trying to count the words in between the dirty stuff.

Re: Join the Bone Marrow Registry- it’s Easy and Saves Lives!

Ling — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:20:36 -0000

I read that article, and while all the efforts are admirable enuf, seems like they need to expand the scope of their search a bit further. I mean, outside of Los Angeles. Anyway, I hope that Krissy gets a match soon.

Re: Craig Robinson (Darryl from the Office) arrested for drug possession in Culver City

Ling — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 06:36:10 -0000

He could be getting a lot more chocolate love in a jail cell if he gets hit with intent to distribute.

Re: Hey LA Twitters, what’s the best Mexican Restaurant on the West Side?

Ling — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:47:26 -0000

You ever been to Beso? It was started some time back by Eva Longoria, and I heard they serve up some nice Tortilla soup.

Re: Alicia Sacramone gets ripped off at the Olympics

Ling — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:54:37 -0000

Leaving aside the politics of it, China is winning a heck of a lot of golds. Not saying there's hanky-panky, but maybe an unconscious tilt in favor of the home crowd?

Re: Bring Back Donna Martin!

Ling — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 10:29:20 -0000

9021NO Without Donna

Re: Weezer’s ‘Troublemaker’ video shoot at the LA Forum in Inglewood

Ling — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 07:51:05 -0000

So how did it go? Hoping you got some pics. :)

Re: I love the Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Ling — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 08:17:25 -0000

Love Karen O's fashion statements, not to mention her sexual attraction for the microphone. :)

Re: For the record: Liquid Plumr beats Drano

Ling — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:03:00 -0000

Just a thought, but if people started shaving daily, both of them (Drano and Liquid Plumr) might go out of business. :)

Re: Who’s The Hottest Blogger?

Ling — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:13:19 -0000

Michelle Malkin headlining a girl-on-girl calender? This I gotta see...

Re: The Weezer Trouble Maker Video Shoot at the LA Forum in Inglewood

Ling — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:09:42 -0000

This should make for some fun youtubing, especially the pie-fight.

Re: Rent it: Lars and the Real Girl

Ling — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 07:45:45 -0000

Haven't seen it, but after reading this, I think I wanna see it.

Re: The El Torito in Santa Monica is OK by me.

Ling — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:28:48 -0000

Nice picture. Good contrast between the close-up of the pitcher and the lights behind.

Re: Braving the Sharks at Venice Beach

Ling — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 11:03:55 -0000

Lez just hope none of the sharks is short-sighted, and ends up thinking of you as giant juicy shrimp.

Re: The new 90210 Premier – We’re Not In Kansas Anymore and The Jet Set

Ling — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:51:28 -0000

Pretty watchable, but not enough to meet the hype.

Re: Red Lion Tavern in Silverlake – No more boots?!?!

Ling — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:19:44 -0000

That's one bigfoot you have there. :) Ever tried to drink the whole thing?

Re: Palin 451

Ling — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 01:31:49 -0000

LOL! This Palin obsession is crossing over into the mainstream. She's more of a celeb than Obama now.

Re: MTV’s Video Music Awards at Paramount Studios in Hollywood

Ling — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 05:39:31 -0000

Seems Britney had a pretty good time at the awards. Welcome change for her, after all the personal meltdown.

Re: Russell Brand saves the VMA’s

Ling — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 04:02:26 -0000

Last time the Brits tried to interfere in American politics, they got a bad shellacking. Remember how the Guardian sent letters to American voters and then published the responses? It was frickin hilarious.

Re: The Mondrian Hotel gets a facelift

Ling — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:03:23 -0000

It does look ornate, but I'm kinda sick of West Hollywood 'fantasies'. Is there even one sensible hotel anywhere in the area?

Re: Dunkin’ Donuts (finally) returning to California?

Ling — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 03:56:39 -0000

Darn! Now you have me craving for it. You should have warnings before posting food pictures. :)

Re: Britney rehearsal video leaked

Ling — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 01:03:03 -0000

Does look good. Seems like she really did shape up after K-Fed screwed her over and she lost the kids. Can't say I have much love lost for Britney, but her ex-hubby is not even worth spitting on.

Re: Holly Madison leaves Hugh Hefner for…. Chriss Angel??

Ling — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 08:37:59 -0000

Nice rabbit. And there's lots more where this one came from. He's got a harem going on there.

Re: Eddie Murphy(’s giant head) spotted on the 405!

Ling — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 07:33:45 -0000

I remember this Eddie Murphy movie where he's from another planet, and he's teh captain or something, and he and his crew are real tiny. Their ship is a walking talking giant Eddie Murphy. Maybe this head is something like that - An alien spaceship.

Re: Eddie Murphy(’s giant head) spotted on the 405!

Ling — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 23:43:47 -0000

Oh, C'mon. So I forgot the name of the frickin' movie. Big deal. It was a crap movie, btw. Highly forgettable.

Re: 1400 Alaska Women Protest against Palin

Ling — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 23:48:09 -0000

I think the writing on the back of that black t-shirt sums it up pretty well. These are all gals who want to be bad without anyone telling them they're bad. And they're ticked off that Palin, who's a good Christian, is getting all the rock star treatment.

Re: Bear visits Hurricane Ike

Ling — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 01:29:51 -0000

Bear sure knows a thing or two about hogging facetime on TV. :)

Re: Amy Poehler is leaving SNL

Ling — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 01:45:48 -0000

Aww... They're taking all the fun out of this election. First, Hillary Clinton loses to Obama. Now Poehler is quitting SNL? This is a conspiracy against the Sisterhood of the Pantsuits. :)

Re: Spider Stacy at the Knitting Factory Saturday 9/25

Ling — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 04:36:39 -0000

Spider Stacy still around? Last I heard him was six or seven years back. He still play that tin whistle?

Re: The Palin Debate Flow Chart

Ling — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 11:23:46 -0000

Ok, now whoever made this, has way too much free time on his hands. :) The whole thing comes together perfectly.

Re: Review of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist

Ling — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 09:50:56 -0000

I think I'll take a pass on this one. Never saw a great movie which appealed to one set, but didn't to another. Most good movies are good. Period.

Re: Laird Hamilton, Kelly Slater,… Dracula and other events at the Diesel Bookstore

Ling — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 08:17:21 -0000

Bram Stoker's Dracula was based on historical fact? Show me the fangs and the coffin, and I'll donate you a bottle of my best blood. :)

Re: Tonight: Art, Music, (oh.. and open bar) in Culver City

Ling — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:59:31 -0000

Suzanne Sattler’s work seems a bit too morbid for my taste, but the bunnies in striped sweaters predicting doom - now that's something I gotta see.

Re: Oct 15-17 Hollywood transforms into a giant cranberry bog

Ling — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 08:20:46 -0000

Darn! The New York one is over already. Now you post it. I coulda made a nice cranberry blog :) post out of it.

Re: Really bad phone photos of the Sexdrive premier

Ling — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 08:57:51 -0000

Got bright lights and a red carpet. What else do you need? Pic's good enough. :)

Re: Q&A Session with Ian MacKaye 10/26 at Hollywood High School

Ling — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:53:11 -0000

Is he being mobbed by fans or what? Looks like he's in pain. :)

Re: Sarah Palin to appear on SNL this week

Ling — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 07:31:37 -0000

This should be fun. Maybe McCain would like to do a swap and get Tina Fey to be the VP candidate instead.

Re: Slowride, take it easy

Ling — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 10:36:12 -0000

LOL! Love Biden's routine. And boy, is he getting a free ride to the White House. I'm sure he must be feeling good enough to fo a jig like that now.

Re: The Raveonettes at the Music Box

Ling — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:45:40 -0000

Is this what Sharin Foo looks like now? She looked fairly normal sometime back.

Re: LA’s Pink Floyd? Big Elf

Ling — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 01:25:38 -0000

He's got really intense eyes. Neat hat too. :)

Re: MySpace cops Facebook’s “People You May Know” feature

Ling — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:46:15 -0000

Lack of recommendations aside, unless Myspace learns to poke as well as Facebook, they're still not going to be cool.

Re: WeHo Starts Halloween Celebration Early this Year

Ling — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 09:05:05 -0000

Bad taste and foul humor, yes, but good fashion sense. :)

Re: Oh Snap – Obama Effigy in Redondo Beach

Ling — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 00:06:12 -0000

Let's just hope Obama wins. Otherwise there's gonna be huge problems.

Re: Kaiju Big Battel Ticket Giveaway – live at the Mayan Nov. 20 with Busdriver and Rocktapussy

Ling — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 01:55:03 -0000

3 comments so far. Is it Nov 15th already? :)

Re: Sarah Palin falls for Prank Call

Ling — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 06:12:44 -0000

This is ridiculous. The woman has wood between her ears. Are we sure McCain chose her for the VP slot? Or is that one big prank too? :)

Re: Review of Zach and Miri Make a Porno

Ling — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 03:11:17 -0000

Sounds more like punishment than entertainment. :)

Re: Obama and Pepsi employ same creative team?

Ling — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 02:04:45 -0000

For a second there, I thought the first one was Obama's logo. Does look awfully similar, but not so much that Pepsi is going to let loose their posse of lawyers.

Re: Yes we did

Ling — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 01:39:53 -0000

Total blowout. Obama won everything in question. All the swing states. Cleaned out McCain's clock. :)

Re: Discuss California’s Proposition Results

Ling — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 03:18:22 -0000

Probably means that California isn't as progressive as you thought it was... Some things take a bit of time. You can't ram it through.

Re: Butterfinger Comedy Showdown at the Laugh Factory – Ticket Giveaway!!!

Ling — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 09:14:42 -0000

If Ronnie Khalil is living in LA, how come it says both finalists will be flown to Hollywood? Sorry, just trying to be funny. :)

Re: Beck and Jenny Lewis – First show at Club Nokia

Ling — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:00:35 -0000

Looks like fun, but can't say it sounds like fun. No youtube video? :)

Re: Barak Obama is One Bad Ass MF

Ling — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:28:06 -0000

That's right. Michelle agreed to let him run for the Presidency only if he gave up smoking.

Not condoning smoking, but I prefer someone who smokes but knows to run a country than someone who is all righteous and a health freak, but ends up with New Orleans as a big bathtub.

Re: El Coyote gets pummeled in the LA blogosphere

Ling — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 01:44:10 -0000

Boycott and picket him. That's what happened to the Manchester Grand Hyatt hotel in San Diego. Got so much press that in the MSM that I'm sure the hotel must have lost a bucketload of money.

Re: United States Air Force plans fly over Los Angeles today

Ling — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 08:03:02 -0000

That's a good one - "These aircraft are loud...". I haven't yet met a low flying Airforce plane which wasn't loud. Do they have anything like that?

Re: I’ve finally chosen a doctor.

Ling — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 07:54:51 -0000

You got way too much time on yoru hands. Hope Li Tits is a gal...

Re: Gilbert’s El Indio in Santa Monica

Ling — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 03:22:33 -0000

Food looks delicious, and so does Heidi. :)

Re: No on 8 march in Downtown LA brings out a huge crowd

Ling — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:38:08 -0000

What's the point of these protests? Kinda late for it, isn't it? I mean, the proposition has already passed.

Re: LMFAO! My Colleague fell on his face this morning, resulting in the purchase of a wireless keyboard and mouse from Target

Ling — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:04:28 -0000

You should get one of those infra-red virtual keyboards. Course, you'd have to keep things dark, but if everyone agrees, you can all get one and switch off the lights.

Re: Mark Ruffalo’s brother dies a week after being shot in Beverly Hills

Ling — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:26:26 -0000

Isn't this the guy who was also in that movie with Reese Withserspoon? Can't remember the name, but Witherspoon is a kinda semi-ghost in it.