In this blog post, I will take a look at Open Web Interface for .NET (OWIN) and will also demonstrate how to deploy ASP.NET Web API app on Windows Azure Worker Role ...
Official blog from the product group. Administrator, developer and end-user information, and announcements of new supporting products, updates and tooling.
In case you are capable of the German language, Christian Binder has posted an interview with me taken during TechED 2009 in Berlin, and we augmented it with an ...
To follow up on our announcement of releasing Rx 2.1 , we'd like to let you know what changed in this release. We have updated the Reactive Extensions for .NET ...
Server & Tools Blogs > Business Intelligence Blogs. Business Intelligence Blogs. All About Business Intelligence. Microsoft Business Intelligence; Power BI.
In addition to being a scripting language, Windows PowerShell is also used as a platform in many applications. This is possible because the Windows PowerShell engine ...
You want to use the TAB key to navigate through a non-dialog, so you call IsDialogMessage in your message loop, but it doesn't work! // code in italics is wrong ...
My name is Jeff Cardon. I'm a member of the Microsoft OneNote team and I'd like to share some of the tips and tricks that are available in this fantastic product.
Server & Tools Blogs > Data Platform Blogs. Data Platform Blogs. Data Development. ADO.NET (Managed Providers, DataSet & EF) WCF Data Services; SQL Server Customer ...
You are subscribed to email updates from Search Msdn To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
(NC) – Limited by time and resources, Canadian small business owners often view having a presence on social media channels as a daunting task. However, with over 18 million Canadians on Facebook alone, setting up a page for your business is a simple and cost effective way to be more discoverable, build relationships with new and existing customers, and drive in-store or online sales.
Here are five easy steps to amplify your social presence and help grow your business:
• Say more with less: When posting Facebook content, keep updates to 90 characters or less. People are more likely to browse short updates, so it’s no surprise that posts following this rule see 60 per cent more engagement.
• A picture says a thousand words: Engage fans visually by using photos. If you’re stuck on a subject, try snapping pictures of your latest products or personalize the page with pictures of yourself and your workplace. Posts with images receive more engagement than those without.
• Be searchable: Make sure your company’s address, phone number and hours are up to date on social media. As more Canadians start using Graph Search, a product that enables people to find information through the filter of their friends, having relevant and up-to-date information on your page will help your business be more discoverable.
• Find the right audience: When sharing a post, make sure you’re targeting the right people. Select the target on the right side of your post to determine the audience. You will be able to target the post according to several criteria including age, gender and location. Do you own a local floral shop? Use Facebook’s targeting option to drive increased traffic around Valentine’s Day by targeting people who are in a relationship in your city.
• Timing is everything: Schedule your posts for the time of day and day of the week when the majority of your users are on social media. The time will vary depending on your business, and you can test to find out what works best for your customers. If your business tends to be busier on the weekends, try scheduling a post on Thursday or Friday to promote your weekend sales.
Apple has a long history of using impressive displays most of its products. This is particularly true for the devices that use high-resolution Retina displays. Sources within Apple’s supply chain have tipped that Apple is set to revamp the displays for most of its product lines within the next year. This tip comes from NPD […]
Best Buy has announced a new smartphone trade-in program that will let people wanting a new iPhone 5S or 5C get one at a big discount. The new smartphone trade-in program is offering at least $100 towards either of the new iPhone models for any working smartphone. The new trade-in program is set to launch […]
Sony has officially unveiled its latest smartphone that is headed to the NTT DoCoMo network in Japan. The smartphone is called the Xperia Z1 f SO-02F and it has already been nicknamed Honami mini. This is the smartphone that leaked late last month via an image that turned up online. That leak had a number […]
It’s obviously a week for Chromebooks, with Acer’s new C720 Chromebook joining HP’s Chromebook11 offering cloud-centric mobile computing, this time at the even lower price of $249.99. Sticking with Intel’s x86 chips rather than the ARM-based processor in the HP machine revealed on Tuesday, the Acer C720 steps up to a Haswell-generation Celeron 2955U for […]
The folks at doubleTwist have introduced an updated doubleTwist Sync for Windows, bringing with it some new functionality shrouded in a redesigned user interface. With the change comes what doubleTwist says are “highly requested features,” taking the app closer to what it says is its ultimate goal of giving users access to music delivery “without […]
It has been more than a year since the original Final Fantasy arrived on Android, and soon mobile gamers will be able to enjoy the sixth installment of the game on their iOS and Android devices. This information comes from Square Enix’s director and producer Takashi Tokita, who spoke to the folks over at Kotaku […]
The PC shipment numbers have rolled in for the third quarter of the year, tallying up the number of units shipped globally over the last quarter. Not surprisingly given the gradually declining nature of the market, shipment numbers again decreased, but not as much as analysts had expected. The numbers vary a bit depending on […]
The Samsung Galaxy Gear is a nifty — if not limited — little gadget, supplementing one’s smartphone with a bit of wearable convenience. The folks over at ars technica have given it a spin in a different way, however, sideloading regular Android apps onto it and finding it fairly capable of running them. Not all […]
Following the latest Grand Theft Auto Online update that Rockstar Games pushed out, another has followed, again for the PlayStation 3 with a promise that Xbox 360 owners will get it by tomorrow. This latest update fixes the problem gamers have had with progress loss, and brings with it some “technical fixes, tweaks and enhancements.” […]
Mozilla is pushing out an update for its Firefox OS users, with version 1.1 bringing a host of new features, some improvements and enhancements, and additional language support. The company says both developer phones and users will be seeing the update become available soon, so those who aren’t seeing it yet will have to wait […]
Back in June, Microsoft announced a bug bounty program, offering a variety of awards for those who found bugs and exploitations for its software. While the Internet Explorer 11 portion of the bounty has come to a close, Microsoft is continuing the “Mitigation Bypass” bounty and has shelled out an award to one industrious individual […]
LaCie and Porsche Design have jointly created a sleek new thumb drive aptly named the LaCie Porsche Design USB Key. Unlike many USB drives, the Porsche Design USB Key eschews colorful designs and plastics, aiming more for a sleek, subtle design that blends in on the average key ring and looks professional in a business […]
Sonos‘s entry-level Play:1 speaker surprise was spoiled by Target, and now we can see what’s going on inside the box, too. Target isn’t processing any sales until October 13th, but SlashGear reader Steve managed to pick up a Play:1 ahead of time through eBay, and has shared some photos of the $199.99 streaming speaker with […]
Earlier today, a Shakira fan Page on Facebook posted an image of the singer on a T-Mobile advertisement, which included a teaser that the carrier would be offering free global data in more than 100 countries. At the time, a link was included with the image that redirected to a “Coming Soon” page, but that […]
With some features rolling out the Maps Preview and some appearing only in the USA version of Google Maps, the team responsible for this navigation experience have ushered in a new set of features long-awaited by Maps users the world over. The first and most significant of these additions is the push for multiple destinations. […]
Biometric Fingerprint Authentication solutions group Validity have been announced this afternoon to have been acquired by human interface solutions group Synaptics. This acquisition will have the two growing companies aim for a new more solid goal in creating a full, top-to-bottom experience for tablets, smartphones, and notebook PCs. Technology developed by Validity will soon be […]
There’s a new Android-based notebook in town, and it goes by the name Lenovo IdeaPad A10. This device – while not appearing officially via the company itself quite yet – has made its debut on Amazon in Europe. Here we’ve got a look at a mid-range gallery of specifications for the machine as it heads […]
The real-deal Iron Patriot may be closer to reality than we think. In a revelation that somehow escaped the eyes of the press (including ours) for months, a May 28th release from the United States Army suggests that their researchers are working on a request from SOCOM – the U.S. Special Operations Command for technologies. […]
I love odd gadgets and weird technology. I like manufacturers that think at right-angles when it comes to designs and functionality. Yet Samsung’s newly announced Galaxy Round, the Android smartphone with a curved AMOLED display like a techie taco, for all its new screen technology, leaves me cold. “Samsung’s Galaxy Round is the epitome of […]
So you’re not satisfied with the five colors offered up with the iPhone 5c in the Apple Store? There’s one company that’s ready to jump up on that opportunity as quick as possible – the customization group known as ColorWare. This group is known for their high-end colorization of smartphones, tablets, accessories, and even high-end […]
Both the Android version (since recently) and the iOS version (since today) of Foursquare now work with the real-time recommendations engine introduced this year by the developers behind the project. You’ll find that the team behind this project have been waiting for some time to put it in the hands of Apple device users while […]
Yahoo appears to finally have gotten with the program with the Flickr app for iOS, allowing this newest update to carry the all-important automatic upload for iOS devices. The iPhone and the iPad can now set Flickr to automatically pull photos from their Camera Roll, uploading on mobile networks or Wi-fi depending on the users […]
BlackBerry 10‘s designers The Astonishing Tribe (TAT), acquired by BlackBerry in late 2010 and renamed BlackBerry Sweden, have quietly abandoned the struggling Canadian company, with seven of the top talent founding a new company, TOPP. The startup studio will “craft new products and breathe life into innovative ideas through design, prototyping, and technology”, across mobile, […]
The ARCHOS GamePad 2 has appeared officially as the Archos team behind the original GamePad return for a more refined experience. You’ll find this machine appearing with a quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 chip under the hood – unknown at this point as far as manufacturer goes – with a 7-inch 1280 x 800 pixel display up […]
DreamWorks Animation offered $75m for three more Breaking Bad episodes that would have been delivered in six-minute downloadable mobile chunks, studio boss Jeffrey Katzenberg has revealed, with the rejected offer part of the outspoken exec’s attempt to evolve media content to suit smartphone and tablet consumption. “My idea was literally that you’d pay 50 cents […]
In a move that’s sure to make the folks at Splashtop less than pleased, the team at Microsoft behind the native Remote Desktop functionality inside Windows have announced extensions to iOS and Android. This means that there will be apps from Microsoft for your iPhone, iPad, Android phone, and Android tablet that allow you to […]
Google didn’t spill much on Calico, the Google Ventures founded biotech company that made headlines last month by taking on human mortality and challenging aging, but that hasn’t stopped new tidbits about the well-financed health startup from leaking out. Described as the brainchild of Google Ventures’ managing partner Bill Maris, Calico’s pitch to investors was […]
The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 works with a variety of next-generation abilities, most of them based in its unique S Pen technology – one thing it doesn’t have (but almost did) is a fingerprint scanner. Currently rolling out with the iPhone 5s with Touch ID and quite likely appearing on the HTC One Max, the […]
This this Fall 2013 season the Piper Jaffray analyst known as Gene Munster has released a report that spans several seasons into the past, covering the USA-based teen device wants and ownership in tablets and smartphones. What you’ll find here is a collection of results very much centered on the Apple universe – with just […]
Twitter and Comcast have inked a deal that will add a “See It” button to Xfinity TV, allowing live or DVR access to new TV show and movie content mentioned on Twitter right on the TV in their living room. The new button will show up for Comcast Xfinity TV subscribers around NBCUniversal content, and […]
Sonos‘ upcoming – and currently unannounced – Play:1 speaker, the $199.99 entry-level model to the streaming media range, has been caught on sale early. A Target shopper flagged up the prematurely stocked speaker to The Verge, having spotted it in their local store already on the shelves in black and white. Full details of the […]
There’s little doubt at this point whether or not there will be an October 22nd event held by Apple that will, in turn, be the first official home for the 5th generation iPad. Seeing an original leak from AllThingsD then a simple “Yep” from the likes of The Loop‘s Jim Dalrymple, this event will almost […]
Most Star Wars fans will admit the George Lucas hasn’t always made the best decisions for the franchise. The original trilogy were some the most popular science fiction films ever made but the later three films in the franchise left a lot of fans angry. When George Lucas made the decision to step away from […]
Apple officially announced today that the iPhone 5S and 5C smartphones will be heading to more than 25 new countries on Friday, October 25. The major countries that will be getting the device include Italy, Russia, and Spain. Apple also announced the rollout of the new smartphones to a dozen additional countries in early November. […]
Fujitsu has unveiled several new notebook computers this week including the Lifebook T904 two-in-one convertible. The ultrabook features a 13.3-inch display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440. The high-resolution screen has a contrast ratio of 1000:1 and a brightness rating of 350 cd/m2. The ultrabook is a two in one machine meaning that the […]
Researchers at Disney have created something very interesting that could have significant practical impact for the world of electronics. The researchers have created a generator that creates electricity using pieces of paper. Project researcher Ivan Poupyrev says that creating power supplies such as this is a key step in enabling interactivity everywhere at any time. […]
Wicked Lasers has been offering up all sorts of laser pointers that can be used for performing all sorts of interesting stunts. Some lasers the company makes are incredibly powerful and can be used to melt, pop, and burn all sorts of stuff including iPhones. Wicked Lasers has announced what it claims to be the […]
Back in late September AMD went official with its new Radeon R9 and R7 video cards. Yesterday AMD offered up specifications on several R7 GPUs including pricing and more. Since AMD has multiple card partners and most partners use the same basic hardware, a lot of companies try to set themselves apart with various clock […]
The MMO videogame EverQuest isn’t as popular as it once was, but it still boasts a large number of players. Sony Online Entertainment has announced the launch of the new expansion pack for EverQuest that is available as of today. The new expansion pack is called EverQuest: Call of the Forsaken and it’s the 20th […]
Back in August of 2011, NASA launched a spacecraft called Juno on a mission to study Jupiter. With the vast distance between the Earth and Jupiter, NASA scientists had to devise a way to get the spacecraft up to an incredible rate of speed. To achieve the high velocity required scientists used the gravity of […]
You are subscribed to email updates from SlashGear To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Social Media — tracks feedback from leading marketers about social media practices and issues.
This week, we asked: Does your company have a position solely dedicated to social media management?
No — 58%
Yes — 42%
This past week, HootSuite’s Ryan Holmes wrote that a “sea change” in business social media use has resulted in social tools becoming “everyone’s responsibility.” This week’s poll certainly reflects that trend. Even if social media is a big part of your job, the (short) era of it being the only part of your job is clearly on the way out.
But this also could be an issues of size. If you’re a company as large as Procter and Gamble or SAP, for example, having a dedicated social media manager, or even team, makes sense. After all, if social is everyone’s responsibility, who’s making sure that “everyone” is staying on the right track? Managing social media may turn out to be more about managing people than various accounts.
But as Holmes writes, even if the social media manager completely disappears, social is here to stay. There will still be those who are confused by it, those who can do it and those who can do it well. Being in that latter category is likely to bring all kinds of advantages, for yourself and your present and future employers.
When you put the words without pants in the title of a book people ask interesting questions. Some love the title. Some hate it. Here are some answers.
Like always, early on I invited you blog readers to suggest and vote on the book title. The working title for the project all along was The Automattic Year, (Automattic is the company that runs WordPress.com) but as the project moved closer to publication I didn’t think that title would work (you can read my general theory for choosing book titles). I asked my former coworkers for suggestions too.
Chapter 15 of the book offers one explanation for why the book is called The Year Without Pants: the title is an inside joke, referencing how WordPress.com lets all employees work remotely. The internal blog for my team often said at the top “Do you know where your pants are?” reflecting the irreverent humor that ran through my team and runs through the book.
But there are many serious reasons I chose the title. The book is a direct challenge of our biggest assumptions about work:
Can an organization be productive without email? WordPress.com claimed to be.
What work traditions no longer serve us? Do we need dress codes? 9 to 5 working hours? Are hour long commutes worth it?
Are teams and managers necessary? Why? Until I arrived, WordPress.com had neither.
Can I, as a “management expert”, successfully manage a team again?
What new fangled things are younger companies doing and do they matter?
How much of my own advice from my books and this blog do I actually practice?
I think the business world takes itself far too seriously and it’s a problem. It’s only when we strip away some of our assumptions that we can figure out what works and why.
Being naked means you have nothing to hide. I did this project to challenge our biggest assumptions about work, management and what the future will be like.
The title has fulfilled that ambition, as it has ruffled feathers and raised questions about everything on the list above and more. And I hope you’ll check out the book if you haven’t yet: it’s the most honest insider account and perspectives you’re likely to ever find in a business book.
My latest post for Harvard Business is about why consultants should return to traditional full-time work now and then:
I challenge all consultants to spend some time — at least a year — back in a "real" job, working shoulder to shoulder with the same kinds of people who pay for their advice. So few authors and experts are willing to do this, because they're afraid. They know it's much harder to be accountable for a real team, in a real company, for a real project, than it is to critique and advise from the safety of the sidelines.
In 2010, I decided I was guilty of this shortcoming myself. Though I had written three books, a decade had gone by since I'd managed a team or built a product. I had reached the point where no matter how many companies I visited or books I wrote, I couldn't be sure how much of my advice was good anymore.
Surprisingly, office meetings are always long. You hardly ever hear of anyone complaining that the meetings were too short.
Every company has its own culture when it comes to meetings and how they are conducted. The general sentiments surrounding office meetings however make them appear boring and ineffective.
But why should it be this way? Is there an alternative to making meetings productive?
The fact remains that every meeting usually has an agenda that is communicated either before or during the meeting.
What makes meetings seem like they are ‘going nowhere’ has to do with the set up and the premise for which these meetings are held and how the content is passed on.
Below are some reasons behind the failure of company meetings.
Objectives Aren’t Clear
Every meeting started must have clear objectives.
Lack of tangible and well-structured objectives not only wastes time but also confuse the attendees who may be left to guess what the meeting is all about. Be sure of what you are trying to achieve by holding the meeting and bring that objective out clearly.
To help you on this, a pre-meeting review and rehearsal would be appropriate just to ensure that the agenda is in order and the points are well arranged, this enhances and streamlines the objectives of the meetings. Unless you convince yourself, you may not be able to convince the rest of the attendees.
Unregulated Number of Attendees
Before holding any meeting, the number of people to attend these meetings needs to be checked and ascertained.
Not everyone should attend the office meetings. In fact that is one of the reasons that make these meetings fail in making an impact. The more the people attending the meeting, the higher the likelihood that such a meeting will consume so much time compared to the set time limits.
Instead of each person attending the meeting, only a few should be picked and the rest served with a brief summary of the discussions later on.
Time Blown
A meeting is ‘elastic’ in nature; it tends to stretch out to fill whatever time it has been allocated.
Meetings which take longer than necessary tend to eat into the company’s time and still end up being counterproductive. Part of the time allocated will normally be used for conversations that are not even company related or if they are then not on the agenda.
To make such meetings successful, you can reduce the time so that only the relevant things get time to be discussed.
The ‘Latecomer’ Factor
Meetings tend to spend too much time on arrivals. Late arrivals in particular can waste time for the entire group.
The solution to this is to start the meeting on time so that latecomers will find ways to catch up on their own. People will soon shape up and arrive in time because latecomers are embarrassed walking in when others are embroiled in deep discussions. This will save time for the whole group and the meeting will achieve its purpose.
Conducting Sitting Instead Of Stand-Up Meetings
Research shows that stand-up meetings take lesser time that those where people are seated.
This is because stand-up meetings tend to make people less comfortable, meaning decisions are arrived faster, deliberations made in record times and only pertinent issues get airtime. So far these meetings have been ranked among those that are productive and efficient.
Remember time saved in the course of a meeting is always equated to productive time given back to the company.
Discuss more with less time; you will find meetings meaningful and effective.
So, you go through the long, arduous task of an agency selection process. “We’re not looking for just a great agency,” you say. “We’re looking for someone that will truly partner with us.” The agencies go through a rigorous request-for-information (RFI) and request-for-proposal (RFP) process that involves lots of important people who have little time for this kind of thing, but “this will affect the future of our organization and our brands!” Then each agency is brought in to demonstrate how it is different, answer questions with all the right answers, and put on a show. Finally, you’ve found them—the agency you’ve been searching for. Great people, incredible talent, the right experience, and, thanks to procurement, a great price! You’re excited and they’re excited, too. "We love these guys! GREAT! (pause) Now, we can't stand them."
Unfortunately, those quickly changing feelings are common. Why?
Let's look at how a partnership between an agency and a client compares to other partnerships in our lives.
1. Money Matters
Most people don't have to pay someone to be their friend, mate, or partner. Money makes a relationship awkward. But here's the truth: The creative folks aren't in it for the money. The money is a necessary means for people to be creative for a living. Creative people are motivated by the opportunity to do great work. We want the work to be great, not for our clients, but for us. Why is this important? Because to get the best work out of a creative agency, you have to get past any misconception that they're out to get you. They're not. A creative agency's work is its calling card. The more successful the work, the better we look. The better we look, the better we feel.
2. Expertise and Experience Means Something
Think about other relationships where your expectation is that the person you're paying has specific expertise or experience—doctors, lawyers, mechanics, accountants, etc. These people "work for you," but you're likely to want to work with them because they're trying to help you. You don't usually tell a doctor or lawyer how to do their job because they're experts. Are the folks in your agency experts in what they do? They should be. And didn't you just go through a very rigorous process in hiring them?
3. Your Partner Wants to Help You
How is your relationship with your doctor different than your relationship with your gardener? You have a much more respectful relationship with someone who's trying to help you solve bigger problems. There's a lot more on the line when you're dealing with your health or legal matters, than if your grass is cut too short. Your agency is trying to help you solve brand problems—that's pretty important.
4. Respect One Another
There are also relationships where you're paying someone to do something that you know how to do, but don't really want to do, like cutting your lawn. Unfortunately, you're not likely to show these people the same respect you would your doctor. (Truth.) But these people are likely to want to do a better job for you. Whether you’re asking your agency to help you with highly strategic, creative work, or maintenance work, you want them to feel like everyone's on the same side. Because ultimately, you're all working towards the same objective: great work.
We agency people are like puppy dogs; we want you to love us and we want to please you more than anything. Tell us you love us, treat us with love and respect, and we'll bend over backwards for you. Hell, we'll even give you extra work for free! Treat us like we're on opposing sides and… well, we're less likely to want to please you.
You don't need to show your agency "who's boss." Trust me, we already know. Because without our clients, we have no business.
5. Good Partnerships Are Fair
In any partnership, there's give and take. Each partner needs to feel like they're getting something in return for what they're giving. Like in any business partnership, there's a value associated with time. If something requires a lot of time or needs to be done in a really short amount of time, it generally costs more. But being fair isn't just about money. One of the most important factors in making either scenario work is the amount of your time you invest in setting your agency up to succeed. Your time in planning, preparing, organizing, gathering, and explaining will directly impact their performance.
Being fair also means being loyal. When you're loyal in a relationship, it can prosper. Play the field, and the relationships become less meaningful. It's common for clients to require their agencies to sign contracts that prohibit them from working with their direct competitors. But is that a commitment from both partners? Just like a person who dates too many people at the same time, gets a reputation, so can business partners. Just like in a good personal relationship, with commitment comes trust.
6. Trust Is Everything
The best partnerships are founded on trust. Trust is earned over time and demonstrated by actions. We typically enter a partnership cautiously—that's natural. But just as agency needs to earn a client's trust, clients can do things to earn an agency's trust, whether by helping them communicate their perspective to senior leadership, working with them to secure more time for the project, or just truly listening to what they're saying. Trust is what makes each partner feel like they're on the same side.
7. Don't Forget to Appreciate Your Partner
I really appreciate great clients who exemplify the word "partnership," and I let them know how much we appreciate their support. I tell them and I show them by treating their business like our business. Saying thanks, dropping a little love note, and showing your partner how much you appreciate them goes a long way. Don't worry—you don't need to remember birthdays or buy flowers. But like a good marriage, a good business partnership does take effort.
So in the end, the client and agency partnership is actually quite a lot like the other relationships in one's life. There will be bumps in the road, walks in the park, celebrations, and sometimes tears along the way. But with the right partner, the work is worth it.
With the Republican-controlled House of Representatives engaged in a tense, government-shuttering budgetary standoff against a Democratic president and Senate, the Republican Party is now viewed favorably by 28% of Americans, down from 38% in September. This is the lowest favorable rating measured for either party since Gallup began asking this question in 1992. [...]
More than six in 10 Americans (62%) now view the GOP unfavorably, a record high.
At this point I think the Republicans are taking it as a challenge.
Meanwhile, the wider press is taking notice of the shifting Republican rationales as to why they shut down the government in the first place. First it was Obamacare; now it ain't.
Many Senate Republicans' demands do not include changes to Obamacare, but rather cuts to Medicare, Social Security and changes to the Tax Code. House Republicans are also considering a short-term debt hike, but no one expects that it will be accompanied by changes to Obamacare.
Couple this with vague Republican demands that Obama give Republicans an abstract something before the government will reopen—no word on what, just a something—and it seems clear that the ideological underpinnings of the shutdown are scattered, at best. Republicans seem to have staged a rebellion without a cause.
Or perhaps there is a cause; the federal shutdown might be seen as part and parcel of the nullification movements convulsing their way through the farthest-right state legislatures, which can be tied to the same undercurrents that made Texas Governor Rick Perry and other party favorites grumble about secession over supposed federal injustices, which can be tied to a political movement that formed at the precise movement Barack Obama took office, one promoted originally as an anti-tax movement but which quickly devolved into a movement of conspiracy theorists, Birchers, the border-obsessed, and outright racists. The central theme is the same throughout; the federal gubbermint is imposing too much upon us, and the complaints (again, see Cantor as example of the genre) are commonly banalities of government that met no similar outrage before the current president was sworn in. The government has always bought ammunition for its agents. The taxes were no more crippling in January of 2009 then they were the previous month. The president has always signed executive orders on things. Obamacare was Romneycare once, and was a conservative think-tank formulation of what an unapologetically conservative solution to America's healthcare crisis might look like before that. Cantor's assertion that the president is utilizing illegitimate powers of rule-making is not all that far removed from the overarching far-right premise that the current president is illegitimate not just in governance, but even in birthright; it is not so much the individual decisions the president might make that offend as the premise that the president has legitimacy to make those decisions at all. A far cry, that, from the previous theories of a unitary executive. We went from flag-waving assertions of presidential infallibility to multistate nullification movements in the span of an historical blink.
So no, those that decided on fiscal nullification of the entire government are still not quite sure what their demands actually are. They know that there should be some, and that the current president is a tyrant if he does not defer to those demands once they have thought of them, but after a week of shutdown that is as far as the plan has progressed. Those suspecting that the shutdown was born purely out of spite, rather than ideology, would seem to have a stronger case by the day.
No—I think Republican party favorability can sink lower. I am sure they are still getting fine marks among the conspiracy theorists, the Birchers, the secessionists, the nullification-obsessed and the outright racists, but even all of those people will be pissed off when the government checks stop coming.
Blast from the Past. At Daily Kos on this date in 2006—Giving 'til it hurts (them:
Hotline:
Sen. Hillary Clinton transferred $2.1 million from her Senate re-election account to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on 10/5. She also gave $250K to the DCCC and $150K to the New York State Democratic Party. (Hotline sources)
[I]s this in addition to the $1 million she was supposed to give earlier? It's unclear, but either way, it shows that Clinton realizes the importance of this November's elections. She had over $22 million CoH at the end of Q3, so she can afford it.
I'm struck at the sacrifices so many of us are making to help out the party and its various candidates. People are seriously dipping into their living expenses to try and make a difference this fall. So I get pissed seeing Dems without serious challengers, with fat campaign accounts, who aren't contributing to the cause. If they expect the party rank and file to help fund its efforts, they need to lead by example.
There is no "political gridlock." There is one party using threats of economic ruin to pass an agenda the voters already rejected. #shutdown — @FooteSteppes
On today's Kagro in the Morning show: The "default might be awesome" infection is spreading. Greg Dworkin joins us in rolling our eyes at the craziness, but he brings AP-GfK and Gallup data, so he's allowed. Random intermission: local gun shops are closing for lack of ammo inventory. Joan McCarter previews coverage of: default "truthers"; going "nuclear" over a debt ceiling filibuster; Paul Ryan pivots to entitlement & tax code reforms; discharge petition rules; the House & Senate gyms; Janet Yellen to the Fed, and; the NSA meltdown. Then, Josh Eidelson's Salon story on the new "company towns" that keep workers trapped in indentured servitude. Yay, modernity!
Roosevelt Institute Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz writes that five years after the financial crises that set off the recession, the economy is still in limbo. It's true that some problems have been addressed, but no one can call our current economy a success.
What Should Democrats Demand in the Budget Showdown? (The Nation)
Bryce Covert thinks it's time for Democrats to go on the offensive and put in some budget demands of their own. She draws on Roosevelt Institute Fellow Mike Konczal's work for one of her suggestions: free public colleges and universities.
Roosevelt Take: Mike explains how the tax code contains enough higher education subsidies that we could just cover the costs of public colleges and universities instead.
This Graph Explains Why Obama Rejected the Piecemeal Approach to Funding Government (The Atlantic)
Derek Thompson agrees with the president's decision to veto any piecemeal funding bills, because that will only drag out the crisis. If the most visible effects of the shutdown disappear, then the Republicans risk less in the public eye.
Amid Big Salmonella Outbreak, USDA Says It's On The Job (NPR)
Allison Aubrey reports that the USDA inspectors and investigators were working through the shutdown, and the current salmonella outbreak back in July. The CDC unit that tracks these outbreaks has called in some furloughed workers, who are suddenly essential too.
Obama to Pick Yellen as Leader of Fed, Officials Say (NYT
Jackie Calmes reports that the President has chosen the next chair of the Federal Reserve. His choice of Janet Yellen is somewhat expected and welcomed by many, but we'll have to wait a while for confirmation since the Senate is a little busy with the shutdown.
Roosevelt Take: Roosevelt Institute Senior Fellow and Director of the Bernard L. Schwartz Rediscovering Government Initiative Jeff Madrick and Roosevelt Institute Fellow Mike Konczal wrote about their reasons for supporting Yellen for this position.
Strong Enough for a Man, Effective Enough For A Woman (In These Times)
Sarah Jaffe looks at Senator Gillibrand's five point plan for families and the economy, which demonstrates just how closely these two policy areas are tied. Jaffe applauds the senator for taking such an aggressive stance on labor issues, which remain distinctly unpopular in Congress.
Bryce Stucki argues that while women are holding a number of jobs equal to or exceeding pre-recession numbers, that doesn't mean policymakers can stop worrying about women in the workforce. Too many of these jobs are low paying and low quality.
Roosevelt Institute | Campus Network Senior Fellow for Energy and Environment Melia Ungson sees environmental regulations as key for Millennials looking for a healthy future. That doesn't mean those regulations need to stand in opposition to economic development.
Two articles in today's New York Times make clear the meaning of the headline above. First up, we have Republicans. On the front page is an article titled: "Many in G.O.P. Offer Theory: Default Wouldn't Be That Bad":
"We always have enough money to pay our debt service," said [Senator Richard] Burr [R-NC], who pointed to a stream of tax revenue flowing into the Treasury as he shrugged off fears of a cascading financial crisis. "You've had the federal government out of work for close to two weeks; that's about $24 billion a month. Every month, you have enough saved in salaries alone that you're covering three-fifths, four-fifths of the total debt service, about $35 billion a month. That's manageable for some time."
Then there's Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY):
"If you don't raise your debt ceiling, all you're saying is, 'We're going to be balancing our budget.' So if you put it in those terms, all these scary terms of, 'Oh my goodness, the world's going to end' — if we balance the budget, the world's going to end? Why don't we spend what comes in?"
"If you propose it that way," he said of not raising the debt limit, "the American public will say that sounds like a pretty reasonable idea."
Fine. Republicans say defaulting on our debt, which means the government not paying at least some of our bills, is no big deal. It's no big deal to put uncertainty into whether we mean what we say when we make a financial obligation. Doing that won't have any effect on our creditworthiness at all.
Then there's reality, discoverable below the fold.
Sales at several gourmet trucks are down 50 percent or more; another has had to lay off employees; and others have decided not to operate, or operate less frequently, until the shutdown is over. [...]
The proprietors of the Stix truck have already cut loose their prep and grill cooks "because we're unable to pay them," co-owner Leah Perez said. "It's just pretty sad out there."
Josh Saltzman, co-owner of the PORC truck, has decided to take his vehicle off the streets. It took just one day of vending for Saltzman to make the call. On Tuesday, his barbecue truck stopped at Franklin Square, a normally reliable sales location not dependent on federal workers. His sales were off by 50 percent.
Granted, Republicans talk about valuing small businesses a lot more than they actually value them. Nonetheless, it's striking how many small businesses, so praised by Republicans, are being hit hard and quickly by the shutdown. What's a relatively small blip (so far) for giant corporations can be fatal for entrepreneurs trying to build a business with little cushion against the kind of big drop-offs the food trucks are seeing. Will the government reopen and food truck business pick back up before the slow winter season hits? That's up to House Republicans. But it's clear that they care less about promoting small business than they do about hurting federal workers and poor people.
The anarchy gang is quick to malign government, but when was the last time anyone called for regulators to go easier on companies that put lead in children's toys or for food inspectors to stop checking whether the meat in our grocery stores is crawling with deadly bacteria or for the FDA to ignore whether morning sickness drugs will cause horrible deformities in little babies? [...]
So Mr. President, to those who have forced us to the brink, to those who rail against a make-believe government, to those who seem to rejoice in anarchy, to those who salivate at the chance to shut down our government because of their extremist views have left them disconnected from the experiences of the American people, it is time to hear a simple message.
You can do your best to make government look like it doesn't work when you stop it from working. You can do your best to make government look paralyzed when you paralyze it. You can do your best to make government look incompetent and ineffective through your incompetence, and ineffective through your ineffectiveness. But sooner or later, the government will reopen. Because this is a democracy, and this democracy has already rejected your views.
We have already chosen to do these things together because we all know that we are stronger when we come together. When this government reopens, when our markets are safe again, when our scientists can return to their research, when our small businesses can borrow, when our veterans can be respected for their service, when our flu shots resume and our Head Start programs get back to teaching our kids, we will have rejected your views once again.
We are not a country of anarchists. We are not a country of pessimists and ideologues whose motto is "I've got mine, the rest of you are on your own. We are not a country that tolerates dangerous drugs, unsafe meat, dirty air or toxic mortgages. We are not that nation. We have never been that nation and we will never be that nation.
The leaf is on the fig tree, the squirrel is in the woodshed, the nuts are in the Congress.
There is a new conspiracy theory circulating among the far-right proclaiming that the president of the United States is secretly arming al-Qaeda-linked terrorists in Syria. The precise reasoning by this theory is, as usual, a bit vague, but seems to have something to do with the presumption of all far-right conservatives that all brown people everywhere are secret members of al Qaeda, and that Barack Obama is secretly a Muslim and therefore secretly a member of al Qaeda, and all those drones killing people across the world for so much as drawing "I heart al Qaeda" on napkin is a false flag to distract us all from how the president of the United States secretly wants the terrorists to win. It may also be a delayed reaction to John McCain going to Syria and demanding in very stern tones that we give people he barely knew those very weapons, or a general confusion as to which of the 20 or so existing far-right gun conspiracy theories ought to be linked to brown people at any given time, or—you know what, parsing this out is impossible. Suffice it to say that they now believe Barack Obama is funneling arms to al Qaeda because of fucking course they do.
Leave it to Michele Bachmann, who I will remind all of America is still an actual member of Congress and not a crazy person with 20 cats who calls C-SPAN every evening to inform the hosts as to what legislative ideas her cats have given her today, to take this new theory to its only logical conclusion: the End Times are upon us.
"This happened and as of today the United States is willingly, knowingly, intentionally sending arms to terrorists," she said. "Now what this says to me, I'm a believer in Jesus Christ, as I look at the End Times scripture, this says to me that the leaf is on the fig tree and we are to understand the signs of the times, which is your ministry, we are to understand where we are in God's End Times history."
"Rather than seeing this as a negative, we need to rejoice, Maranatha Come Lord Jesus, His day is at hand," Bachmann added. "When we see up is down and right is called wrong, when this is happening, we were told this; these days would be as the days of Noah."
So it's the best of all possible news, America: it's the apocalypse! Praise the secret Muslim Barack Obama for unleashing it!
Again, Rep. Michele Bachmann is a member of Congress. She's one of the people currently celebrating the shutdown of the American government as being a fine thing. She is on—and I am not making this up—the House Intelligence Committee. She, along with Rep. Biff and the various Texas gas leak victims that state has elevated into positions of national responsibility, decides the mundanities of whether we need to bother with government at all or need to abandon it all and dedicate ourselves instead to writing WELCOME BACK JESUS in gigantic, burning oil-fueled letters written across the middle of the North American continent.
What's shutting down the national government or defaulting on the national debt when Jesus himself is on His way down to officially give your ideological enemies the final what-for? I'm beginning to suspect the only reason Michele Bachmann was so keen on becoming president was that she wanted to give the ol' nuclear football a nice, hard kick.
The Brennan Center for Justice has taken on the herculean task of explaining all of the ways that surveillance agencies are collecting, storing and sharing the private data on U.S. citizens. It's all in a new report, and it's disquieting, to say the least. The report focuses on the "misses"—all of the information that is collected that is completely innocuous, that shows no nefarious activity at all. What happens with that information is particularly problematic.
One might expect that this information would NOT be retained, let alone extensively shared among agencies. To the contrary, there are a multitude of laws and directives encouraging broader retention and sharing of information—not only within the federal government, but with state and local agencies, foreign governments, and even private parties. [...]
Against this backdrop, this report analyzes the retention, sharing, and use by federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies of information about Americans not suspected of criminal activity. It examines five distinct categories of information. The categories are Suspicious Activity Reports, assessments, National Security Letters, searches of electronics at the border, and information acquired by the National Security Agency.
Among these data sets, this report finds that in many cases, information carrying no apparent investigative value is treated no differently from information that does give rise to reasonable suspicion of criminal or terrorist activity. Basically, the chaff is treated the same as the wheat. In other cases, while the governing policies do set certain standards limiting the retention or sharing of non-criminal information about Americans, the restrictions are weakened by exceptions for vaguely-described law enforcement or national security purposes. Depending on the data set, presumptively innocuous information may be retained for periods ranging from two weeks to five years to 75 years or more.
The reports' authors conclude that the "widescale collection and retention of personal information about Americans not suspected of criminal activity invites abuse without any significant demonstrated benefit." How can it benefit when there's no differentiation in how innocuous information is treated from how potentially useful information is treated? When the NSA is collecting so much data and not, as the report says, sifting the wheat from the chaff, can all these mountains of data really hold the key to protecting the nation? One technology expert, Bruce Schneier, suggests it's the opposite: "If you're looking for a needle in a haystack, a bigger haystack doesn't help. [...] In general, if you look at all the successes we have against the 'bad guys,' they come from following the leads ... you don't need to surveil every American." The firehose of information—with no apparent mechanism in place to sort it—could be obscuring any real threats the NSA might be picking up.
Brennan doesn't suggest ending the surveillance program wholesale, but does have solutions that lawmakers working to reform surveillance programs should carefully consider: 1) make the policies and decisions about how citizens are surveilled accessible and transparent; 2) prohibit the retention and sharing of information that does not provide reasonable suspicion of criminal activity; 3) reform the outdated 1974 Privacy Act to bring it up to date with technology; 4) increase public oversight over the National Counterterrorism Center, the massive data center that is the hub for the sharing of our personal information; and 5) real oversight that includes "regular and robust audits of federal agencies' retention and sharing of non-criminal information about Americans."
It turns out (surprise!) that even if death benefits for the families of troops killed in action are restored, there are still plenty of effects of the Republican shutdown that people don't like so much. Now, an ad campaign will be reminding voters in Republican-held swing districts of that fact and of their representatives' role in that. As the sample ad above puts it,
Jeff Denham joined with tea party Republicans in Congress and shut down our government, putting hundreds of thousands of Americans out of work; putting critical benefits for veterans, seniors, and the disabled at risk; denying cancer treatment for kids; and halting food inspections. Economists say Jeff Denham's tea party shutdown could weaken the economy and devastate middle-class families.
Even if you don't work for the government or rely on assistance yourself, food inspection is something that quite literally hits you where you live. This is the kind of reminder that could be scary for the Republicans targeted by the ads:
The spots by Democratic-aligned Americans United for Change will hit 10 members: Tom Latham (R-Iowa), Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.), Dan Benishek (R-Mich.), Lou Barletta (R-Pa.), Jeff Denham (R-Calif.), Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), Sean Duffy (R-Wis.), Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), Andy Barr (R-Ky.) and Rodney Davis (R-Ill.).
Several of the targeted members of Congress are among the two dozen who were identified in a poll done for the activist MoveOn.org as being at risk because of the shutdown.
It wouldn't take too many House Republicans coming forward and demanding a vote on a clean continuing resolution to reopen the government. Just 17 of them, to be specific. Right now, Republicans who know a clean CR is the right thing to do are more afraid of the tea party and John Boehner than they are of losing to a Democrat in 2014. But the shutdown's unpopularity, combined with reminders to voters of these Republicans' role in it, could change that equation.
If there are two things that I want everyone reading this site to internalize, it's that 1) there are more base Democrats than base Republicans, and that gap is growing larger by the day, and 2) the only way we lose is if our people don't vote or are prevented from voting. After all, the very people fueling our demographic advantages (young people, single women, people of color) are also the least likely to turn out and vote.
And it is that voter participation that makes the difference between a 2006 or 2012, and a 2010. If we vote, we win. If we don't, they win. It's pretty much that simple.
Which is why local elections in the Raleigh area are so encouraging. Sure, we can be happy that Democrats retook the school board and swept city council races and the mayor's race. Go team! But that's not the best news from these results. It's this:
In the school board races overall, turnout was about 21 percent of registered voters, which doesn't sound like a lot but is twice the turnout of the 2009 elections, in which the Republicans seized their 5-4 board majority.
Our people turned out, and we won. They didn't turn out in 2009, and we lost. And lost big in 2010. So is this increased Democratic performance a harbinger for 2014? It's hard to say with a historical sample size of one. But it's certainly a good sign. Our people are fired up against GOP extremism. The countryis sick of that GOP extremism.
As long as Democrats don't capitulate to those extremists, our 2014 chances look better every day.
The tea leaf readers say Responsible Republicans like Mitt Romney sidekick Paul Ryan are trying to walk their colleagues away from the brink:
Leading Republicans in the House appeared to be trying to move the stalemate away from efforts to defund President Obama's health care law to a broader discussion of fiscal policy.
In an opinion piece in Wednesday's Wall Street Journal, Representative Paul D. Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin and chairman of the House Budget Committee, proposed negotiating a continuing resolution to reopen the government with a focus on changes to entitlement programs like Medicare and a reshaping of the federal tax code. He did not mention the Affordable Care Act, which Republicans had said must be defunded, delayed or damaged before the full government is to be reopened.
But after angry tea partiers voiced their displeasure in a flurry of tweets, Ryan decided that he meant something a little different:
"Are you putting Obamacare to the side?" Bennett asked Ryan on his show Wednesday morning.
"No," the congressman replied. "Obamacare's an entitlement just like any other entitlement. So that, as far as we're concerned, is in this conversation. Medicare, Medicaid, Obamacare, those are the big drivers of our debt. If you look in the op-ed, I say we have to — ultimately we have to rethink all of our nation's healthcare laws."
So far from taking Obamacare off the table, Ryan says he was expanding the playing field to include Medicare and Medicaid as well. Sure, he acknowledged that Obamacare can't be fully repealed through through the shutdown threat, but:
"We're not saying stop going after Obamacare," he said. "We're saying add these other things to this list because we think they're in this country's interest, and by the way, in some of these instances, entitlement reform, I think the president might be willing to do this."
When he wrote the op-ed, Ryan might have been trying to limit the scope of the GOP's demands. But faced with little more than Twitter backlash and a question from Antonin Scalia's favorite news source, he's now written an even bigger check for the GOP leadership to cash.
Government assistance will be slow in coming for South Dakota ranchers who may have lost as many as 60,000 head of cattle in the weekend's blizzard that broke a century-old record. If the loss is that great, it would be five percent of the cattle in the western third of the state. South Dakota is the nation's sixth-largest cattle producer.
The state's ranchers could apply for disaster relief under the Livestock Indemnity Program that would pay them a portion of the animal's market value. But the program is part of the 2008 farm bill extension that expired Oct 1 - the first day of the U.S. government shutdown over a budget impasse.
And with the U.S. Agriculture Department shuttered, livestock producers also are unable to file paperwork detailing their losses with USDA's Farm Service Agency.
In House Speaker John Boehner's back yard, the Ohio Association of Foodbanks is already struggling to cover administrative costs that the U.S. Department of Agriculture usually takes care of.
OASHF isn't alone. Across the country, food banks are grappling with reduced resources, while at the same time trying to feed a growing population of poor, hungry families. For America's food bank infrastructure, the shutdown could not have come at a worse time.
"The hits keep coming," Alan Briggs, executive director of the North Carolina Association for Feeding America Food Banks, told MSNBC.com. Just a few weeks ago, North Carolina food banks were still adjusting to the increased demand caused by state-level cuts to unemployment benefits and problems with the state's food stamp benefits system.
As Barb Morrill has reported, veterans could lose their disability pay. Laura Clawson has pointed out that the protection of workers' rights are on hold.
These are just a few of the many troubles the tea party-led partial government shutdown is causing nationwide. For a look at an assortment of 10 more, please follow me below the fold.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, along with Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) introduced a "clean" debt ceiling increase bill that would allow the government to borrow money through the end of 2014 on Tuesday, setting up a vote in the Senate by the end of the week. The presumption is that all 46 Republican Senators can't be so enthralled with Ted Cruz that they'd actually block a vote protecting the full faith and credit of the United States.
Silly presumption, as it turns out. So far only two Republicans—Mark Kirk (IL) and Thad Cochran (MS)—have said they'd maybe vote for a clean debt ceiling hike. Then there's John McCain, who is giving "reasonable" Republicans cover by saying he'd be a no vote on cloture—he'll filibuster—because the House wouldn't deal with it anyway (excuses, excuses).
We're back in filibuster land, but this time with the possibility of national default hanging over all our heads. What could be more critical, some Senate Democrats are asking, to go nuclear over?
"The rules will have to change," Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin said when asked how Democrats should respond if the GOP blocks the debt ceiling bill. "If we don't [have the votes to break a filibuster], then I think it's time to recognize the new realities that I have been talking about for a number of years. And the reality is that this ain't your grandma's Senate." [...]
"Every instance of obstruction, exploiting and abusing the 60-vote threshold is additional evidence in favor of changing the Senate rules," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). "The more that is at stake … the more the abuse of the rule argues in favor of changing it."
"I'm certainly an advocate for ending the paralysis of the Senate," said Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), a longtime proponent of gutting the filibuster. "I think we have to continue to look at how the lurching from crisis to crisis is doing deep damage to the economy."
"If it comes to that, it comes to that," said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.). "And we won't be the same country again for several generations."
The reality is that we're not the same country any more, not when Congress actually contains a sizable and insanely influential bunch of default deniers, who don't think default is a big deal. That's the new Congress, and that's the Congress that Reid and company have to deal with.
Reid could go narrow enough to not blow the filibuster away for all legislation, but just for debt ceiling increases, and that might be an option that would attract 51 Democratic votes, the number he needs. Saving the U.S. economy might just be worth it, and should be the one cause that would bring reluctant reformers along. Talk is bubbling within the caucus, so while Reid wouldn't comment on it for the Politico story quoted above, it has to be under discussion among Democrats, and it has to be a real option for them.
Terminal tea party patient Rep. Ted Yoho left the latest meeting of the Republican Study Committee unimpressed:
Rep. Ted Yoho: "I need to be schooled, or somebody needs to convince me, why we need to raise the debt ceiling." — @MEPFuller
Oh, I think much of America would agree that Rep. Yoho needs to be schooled.
Rep. Yoho is the one who also mused recently that defaulting on the national debt would probably be a good thing:
"I think, personally, it would bring stability to the world markets," since they would be assured that the United States had moved decisively to curb its debt.
I suppose it all hinges on what you mean by stable; roving bands of pelt-wearing gasoline hoarders bickering over individual rubble piles in an economic wasteland could be considered stable too, so long as they made the kitten-powered trains run on time.
The problem here is not really that Mr. Yoho needs to be, as he so republicanly puts it, schooled. The problem is not that Mr. Yoho has not had the realities of our planet explained to him properly, but that Mr. Yoho, who believes defaulting on the debt would bring "stability" because he "personally" thinks so, has no interest in listening.
Shorter Rep. Eric Cantor op-ed: The black man in the large house is not showing proper deference to our southern white gentlemen. There, I just saved you from having to read his embarrassing little public pout-fest.
President Obama has led us here by continually thwarting the will of Congress and dismissing its role in our constitutional republic. This must end.
The president not only has refused to negotiate on issues of debt and spending but also has mocked the very idea of engaging with Congress. President Obama has repeatedly made clear that he feels it is beneath the office of the presidency to work in a bipartisan way with the legislative branch.
Whereas Paul Ryan's foray into the op-ed market was notable for completely omitting the purported reason the Republicans had shut down the government—to defeat Obamacare—and instead replacing it with a litany of other demands, Eric Cantor's rhetorical device is to pretend the United States Senate does not exist. At all. Cantor is quite convinced that the problem is entirely about the president not sufficiently bending to the will of the legislative branch, absentmindedly forgetting that the legislative branch itself is not bending to the will of the legislative branch, and that in fact there is nothing for the cruel and uncompromising president to even sign until the legislative branch Mr. Cantor helps lead comes to some agreement with the legislative body that Mr. Cantor refuses to acknowledge as actual entity. There is more than a hint of sociopathy in statements like:
As James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 48, "It is equally evident, that none of [the branches of the federal government] ought to possess, directly or indirectly, an overruling influence over the others, in the administration of their respective powers."
I have it on good authority that James Madison is crawling out of his grave right now, looking to give you a good throttling for invoking his name in this mess. Much, much more below the fold:
And the hits to the GOP keep on coming, this time from Gallup:
With the Republican-controlled House of Representatives engaged in a tense, government-shuttering budgetary standoff against a Democratic president and Senate, the Republican Party is now viewed favorably by 28% of Americans, down from 38% in September. This is the lowest favorable rating measured for either party since Gallup began asking this question in 1992.
You know that little kid at the mall, on the floor, kicking and screaming because he can't get the toy that he wants? You notice how little he cares that people are staring at him with open disgust? That's the modern GOP.
And if it leads to losing the House in 2014, well, they're fine with that too! Because there is nothing more important to them than throwing a temper tantrum over a law they can't change by democratic (or even terroristic) means.
President Barack Obama nominated Federal Reserve Board vice chair Janet Yellen Wednesday to replace chairman Ben Bernanke on the board when his term expires January 31. Yellen was appointed as one of the seven FRB members and as vice chair simultaneously in 2010. Her term as a member of the board runs to 2024. If she is confirmed by the Senate, she would serve as chairwoman for four years.
In making his announcement, Obama praised Bernanke for his "strong leadership" and "wisdom" in guiding the Fed in rough times over the past eight years. He called Yellen "exceptionally well-qualified for this role" and "renowned for her good judgment." She "knows how to build consensus." America's workers and their families will have a "champion" in her.
The 67-year-old Yellen is professor emeritus of business and economics at the University of California, Berkeley, where she has been on the faculty for 33 years. For two years, she was an economist with the Fed, and for six years was president and CEO of the Twelfth District Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. She served on President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers. She has economics degrees from Brown and Yale universities and has written widely on macroeconomics with a focus on the implications of unemployment.
Her nomination culminates a conflict between the White House and liberals in the Senate and in the grassroots over who would chair the central bank. When, starting in May, report after report pointed to the abrasive, arrogant, sexist, deregulation-happy, my-way-or-the-highway Larry Summers as the president's favored choice for the post, opposition swiftly grew.
Twenty senators wrote a letter to Obama urging him to nominate Yellen, and various progressive organizations, including Daily Kos, joined in a petition drive urging the president not to appoint Summers. Not all Summers' foes endorsed Yellen.
The president, reportedly angered by much of the criticism of Summers, offered a vigorous defense of him in July. But when it became clear that his chances of being confirmed were slim at best, Summers withdrew his nomination. Shortly thereafter, Obama urged Democratic senators to unite behind Yellen.
She can expect some tough questioning at her confirmation hearings in the Senate. That's partly a function of Republican desires to mess with anything President Obama tries to do and partly GOP disaffection with Federal Reserve policy in general. There will be calls for a deep audit of the Fed, first pushed by libertarian-when-it-suits-him Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, but now the general Republican perspective. That's "audit" in the loosest meaning of the word. More like a fishing expedition and general attack, which a few on the left also support.
Patrick Reis at the National Journal expects she will be confirmed but the "path will neither be quick nor painless." You can read more analysis of the nomination below the fold.
Apparently Boehner didn't want to let these guys near the White House
So here's the story: President Obama is inviting members of the House and Senate from both parties to meetings at the White House this week. His goal: To encourage Congress to end the government shutdown and avoid a debt limit default.
The president is starting his meetings today, meeting with the full House Democratic caucus. But when he invited House Republicans they couldn't bring themselves to accept his offer without twisting themselves into a knot:
Boehner's office said Wednesday that the GOP leader would send a small group to Obama's meeting Thursday, but not the full invited caucus.
Boehner spokesman Brendan Buck said the meeting was only worthwhile if it was focused on finding a solution. So Buck said only the elected leadership and select committee chairmen will attend - 18 lawmakers out of the 232 invited
If you're like most people, you're probably shaking your head at the fact that Boehner rejected a full conference meeting just one day after claiming that the GOP had only shut the government down because Obama won't even talk to them.
But you should really try tearing a page from the "Both sides do it" playbook and hail Boehner for agreeing to give Obama a substantial portion of what Obama requested: 18 of the 232 invited member of Congress. That's almost 8 percent of what Obama had asked—7.7 percent, to be precise. In non-numerical terms, that's an unprecedented concession. Surely, the president should reciprocate by accepting House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's plan to end Medicare as we know it, right?
Conservatives gathered at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan Monday night to roast the former vice president at an event where many of the biggest laugh lines touched on the most controversial policies of a key architect of his administration's war on terror. At the gathering, hosted by Commentary, figures including former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and former Attorney General Michael Mukasey drew a mix of chuckles and winces with jokes that left few lines uncrossed, according to three guests.
Senator Joe Lieberman "said something to the effect that it's nice that we're all here at the Plaza instead of in cages after some war crimes trial," recalled one person who was there.
Cheney himself told a water-boarding joke, giving credit for it to Jay Leno. It centered on Wyoming's one-shot antelope in which the loser had to dance with an Indian "squaw."
Ryan Loflin's 55-acre crop in southeastern Colorado's Baca County won't yield large amounts of hemp-seed oil and other by-products but is "quite significant symbolically," said Tom Murphy, national outreach coordinator for advocacy group Vote Hemp.
The sale of hemp products in the U.S. reached an estimated $500 million last year, according to the Hemp Industries Association. Yet all of the hemp used for the products was imported because federal law prohibits its cultivation in the U.S. under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. The last known commercial crop was harvested in Wisconsin in 1957.
Scientists have captured video of a Sumatran rhino, once thought to have been wiped out, in the Kalimantan forest in Indonesia. In footage captured by the WWF, the animal can be seen bathing in a puddle and scurrying among trees.
The National Science Foundation announced Tuesday that it is putting its three Antarctic scientific stations in deep freeze just as scientists are starting to arrive for the start of a new research season. [...]
"This is absurd, just absurd," said Alan Leshner, chief executive officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the nation's largest science organization. "It's a very big logistical enterprise and this could jeopardize the entire research season for hundreds of important projects."
On today's Kagro in the Morning show: The "default might be awesome" infection is spreading. Greg Dworkin joins us in rolling our eyes at the craziness, but he brings AP-GfK and Gallup data, so he's allowed. Random intermission: local gun shops are closing for lack of ammo inventory. Joan McCarter previews coverage of: default "truthers"; going "nuclear" over a debt ceiling filibuster; Paul Ryan pivots to entitlement & tax code reforms; discharge petition rules; the House & Senate gyms; Janet Yellen to the Fed, and; the NSA meltdown. Then, Josh Eidelson's Salon story on the new "company towns" that keep workers trapped in indentured servitude. Yay, modernity!
According to what Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky told Fox viewers on Wednesday morning, it's up to the president to decide whether or the United States defaults on its debt:
We've got plenty of money to keep paying our interest. The president should cut it out, quit trying to scare the markets, and scare investors, and come forward, if he's a leader, and say "We will not default, we have never defaulted. America is proud compan— country, we will not default."
Starting to call America a company was a lovely Freudian slip, but the point Paul was trying to make is ridiculous. First, payments to bond holders are only part of what's at stake here—Rand Paul might not care whether things like Social Security checks get sent out, but the people who depend on them probably do. Second, even if debt holders were the only issue, and the government were willing to prioritize them over its other obligations, there's no guarantee that it would actually be able to carry out such a prioritization scheme.
Rand Paul, however, ignores these facts to support his conclusion that raising it would be a terrible idea:
I think [Republicans] are actually very, very united on this. The idea that we have to do something, we can't keep piling on this debt, and that raising the debt ceiling is bad.
Nonetheless, Paul says Republicans would be willing to raise the debt ceiling in exchange for a ransom:
The only way we'll support raising the debt ceiling is if there's significant reforms to spending, significant reform to the budget.
So in Rand Paul's world, raising the debt ceiling is bad policy that has nothing to do with avoiding a default ... but:
The only way you get concessions out of [President Obama] is unfortunately you have to negotiate around this deadline. [...] The only way they'll negotiate is if they're forced to negotiate, so we can't give in.
To recap Rand Paul's logic:
Raising the debt limit is a bad idea.
It doesn't matter whether Congress raises the debt limit because it's entirely up to President Obama whether or not we default on our obligations.
Therefore, Republicans should use the debt limit as leverage to force President Obama to make concessions to them.
Obviously, that doesn't compute. If President Obama doesn't need Congress to raise the debt limit, and if raising the debt limit would be a bad idea, how can Rand Paul say with a straight face that he believes threatening to not raise it will force the president to make concessions?
The answer is obvious: Rand Paul is a pretty good liar.
For the second day in a row, Harry Reid resorted to the rarely used live quorum call to force every senator to the floor to talk about the economy and the budget. Fat lot of good it's done, either time. In each instance, Sen. Patty Murray has attempted to get unanimous consent to appoint budget conferees. It didn't work yesterday, and today for the 21st time, Republicans blocked it.
Murray offered "a path forward" Wednesday and asked for unanimous consent that once the House passes a "clean" CR, a conference committee on the budget would be formed between the House and Senate. That was the 21st time Senate Democrats have requested a budget conference only to be denied by Republicans. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) objected.
Senate Republicans have expressed concern that if raising the debt ceiling was part of a budget conference report, Democrats would be able to pass it with a simple majority rather than requiring 60 votes.
God forbid a majority of the Senate be able to do something like save the nation's economy, or anything else that actually matters. Republicans are really pushing the limits of the filibuster with this one.
Congressional Republicans have once again discovered an effect of the shutdown that they don't like, so they're once again springing into action. This time, the shutdown effect about to be reversed is the delay in death benefits for troops killed in action. The House is expected to pass a bill Wednesday afternoon restoring the speed with which the $100,000 death gratuity arrives, with a Senate vote and President Obama's signature to quickly follow:
That is because many members of Congress were surprised by reports that families of fallen soldiers had not been receiving the death gratuity benefit considering they had passed legislation, which President Obama signed into law the night before the shutdown began, that authorized "pay and allowances" to be distributed to troops and their families during the shutdown. Some said the decision to not distribute these benefits was a misinterpretation of that law by the Pentagon.
This follows the established pattern that if the shutdown (or sequester, or whatever else) has an effect Republicans don't like, it comes as a surprise to them and is doubtless the fault of whichever part of the administration was tasked with reading Republican minds and then carrying out their intentions with sharply limited resources. Apparently congressional Republicans never learned the classic childhood lesson that actions have consequences, sometimes unintended ones. But really, guys, you shut down the government and it won't only be the poor people and government workers you're trying to hurt who get hurt. This is not something to be constantly blaming others for.
And as horrible as it is to contemplate what it must be like for military families to suffer the loss of a loved one and financial stress at the same time, don't you think Republicans could show, say, 10 percent of the concern for the 9 million women and babies who stand to lose nutrition assistance, women who need domestic violence shelters, and so many others being hurt by the shutdown that they're showing for the few families affected by the death benefits delay? Just 10 percent!
At long last! Veteran Republican Rep. Bill Young, who has served the Tampa area in the House since 1971 and has been the subject of retirement speculation for many cycles, has decided to step down at the end of this term. Young, 82 years old, said simply that "it's my time."
What makes Young's departure so intriguing is that he's one of just a handful of Republicans who represents a district Barack Obama won in 2012, in this case by a 50.1 to 48.6 margin. That makes Florida's 13th District the first truly competitive open seat of the 2014 midterms, and you can bet Democrats will fight hard to try to pick it up.
Right now, the only candidate in the race is attorney and former congressional aide Jessica Ehrlich, who ran against Young last year. While Young prevailed 58-42, that actually represented his weakest performance in 20 years. Ehrlich deserves credit for her willingness to take on a longtime office-holder no one else wanted to challenge, but with Young gone, there's a very good chance that better-known Democratic contenders will enter the race. (One perhaps slim possibility whose name came up a while back: ex-Gov. Charlie Crist, widely thought to be considering a gubernatorial comeback.)
Republicans, meanwhile, are losing an incumbent who was well-regarded and had successfully carved out a profile as a moderate. Given the state of the modern GOP, the party is likely to nominate someone more conservative, perhaps much more vocally so. The Tampa Bay Times suggests a few possible options, including former St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker, former Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard, Pinellas County Commissioners Karen Seel and John Morroni, and perhaps even Young's son, Bill Young II, who is just 29.
Regardless of who steps forward, this is going to be a serious contest, and as always, we'll be tracking it closely from now through Election Day.
Rand Paul wants the crazy spotlight back from Ted Cruz
Great news everybody! As long as we keep the government shut down, Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina thinks the debt limit deadline doesn't really matter:
"We always have enough money to pay our debt service," said Mr. Burr, who pointed to a stream of tax revenue flowing into the Treasury as he shrugged off fears of a cascading financial crisis. "You've had the federal government out of work for close to two weeks; that's about $24 billion a month. Every month, you have enough saved in salaries alone that you're covering three-fifths, four-fifths of the total debt service, about $35 billion a month. That's manageable for some time."
And Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky thinks it's actually a political winner:
"It really is irresponsible of the president to try to scare the markets," said Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky. "If you don't raise your debt ceiling, all you're saying is, 'We're going to be balancing our budget.' So if you put it in those terms, all these scary terms of, 'Oh my goodness, the world's going to end' — if we balance the budget, the world's going to end? Why don't we spend what comes in?"
"If you propose it that way," he said of not raising the debt limit, "the American public will say that sounds like a pretty reasonable idea."
"We have 10 times as much tax revenue as we've got annual interest on the debt obligations," Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) said in an interview, offering the key talking point of the debt limit denial caucus. "So if the president does not want us to default on our credit or obligations, we won't."
Other members say they based entire campaigns on not boosting the borrowing limit. "I ran on not raising the debt ceiling," said Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.). "We will not default. And I think it's a lot of hype that gets spun in the media."
From a political perspective, the strange thing about them is that these Republicans are trying to simultaneously dismiss the debt limit while demanding concessions from President Obama in exchange for raising it.
The thing is, this doesn't make any sense. If Republicans actually believe raising the debt limit isn't a big deal, then how can they make the argument that they have the leverage to force President Obama to offer up concessions in exchange for raising it? If the debt limit isn't that big a deal, surely it doesn't give them much leverage, right?
At least the hostage-taker position makes some sense. Sure, it might be hard to defend the virtue of threatening to force a disastrous default unless President Obama agrees to implement Mitt Romney's economic program, but at least there's some logic to that strategy. But if these guys really believe what they are saying, then they really can't argue that the debt limit gives them leverage, because in their own words, it's essentially irrelevant.
Of course, it's possible they don't believe what they are saying and are attempting to scare President Obama into negotiating with them by posing as lunatics. But even that is a bad strategy, because whether they are genuine lunatics or just bluffing, it doesn't make sense to try to appease them.
Gingrey said Republicans were "absolutely" prepared to lose the House to extract concessions on the CR and the debt limit, and he said the White House is "missing the determination of the Republican Party."
Gingrey is in luck! The polling the last several days suggests that Republicans are in real trouble, and today's polling isn't offering better results:
Independents blame Congress over Obama for the shutdown 57/41, and GOP in general over Dems 51/37: http://t.co/... — @ppppolls
So if Republicans are eager to surrender control of the House over a battle they are destined to lose anyway, then there's nothing we can do except stock up on anvils. It looks like Republican demand for self-immolating devices is at its peak.
Update:
In July independents said they'd vote GOP for the House 39/27. 21 pt shift since then, and now Dems lead 42/33: http://t.co/... — @ppppolls
What's more important in a shutdown, that workers are protected from illegal firing and harassment, or that Sen. Tom Coburn have the continued service of each and every member of his staff? If you're Tom Coburn, the answer is obvious. The Oklahoma Republican is one of seven Republicans and three Democrats in the Senate who have kept all of their staff working through the shutdown. Meanwhile, the National Labor Relations Board has just 11 people on the job. The outcome? Stories like this times we don't know how many:
On Monday, The Sentinel, of Hanford, Calif., reported that the shutdown has indefinitely delayed the re-certification vote for a cheese plant unionized by the Teamsters last year. The management at Marquez Brothers stopped recognizing the union last month after a group of workers petitioned to have the Teamsters dropped, according to the Sentinel. "NLRB employees who would have been [sic] supervised the voting have been furloughed," the paper reported.
The Ohio News-Messenger also reported that the shutdown has stayed a union election in Cleveland, where workers at a trash-hauling company were set to vote on whether or not to join the Teamsters. A local union official told the paper the vote had been pushed back but no new date had been set. In that case, four workers had filed complaints with the labor board, claiming they were fired because of their pro-union stances.
And according to the Communications Workers of America, the NLRB was in the midst of hearing unfair labor practice charges against Cablevision in New York when the government shutdown began.
But apparently all the lawyers and other workers at the NLRB who'd be moving those cases forward are less important than Coburn having his whole staff available to help him come up with compelling political theater like this:
Sen. Tom Coburn took out his frustrations about the nation's burgeoning debt on a Senate poster on Tuesday, cutting it with scissors and then just ripping in half.
The Oklahoma Republican, one of the Senate's most outspoken fiscal conservatives, had a poster made to resemble a massive credit card with the nation's debt written on it as of Tuesday morning. Coburn asked for unanimous consent at one point to bring scissors on the floor "to make a point."
And my goodness what an original point it was. Of course, while Coburn is claiming to care about debt, the shutdown's costs are growing rapidly. Not to mention that Republicans are ostensibly doing this whole thing to try to kill Obamacare, and killing Obamacare would increase the deficit. Ignore those men behind the curtain, though, while Coburn postures next to a poster of a credit card.
Here's one thing the Washington Media Establishment needs to remember as John Boehner calls for negotiations with the White House and the Senate: Boehner doesn't have a majority constituency in the House.
President Obama leads a Democratic Party that is fully behind him. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has the full, united support of the Democratic Senate Caucus. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has the near unanimous support of House Democrats.
And now John Boehner. Who does he represent? The Tea Party caucus, a minority of the GOP caucus, a minority of the House, and supported by tiny minority among the electorate, can veto any deal he negotiates. He can't even get a Farm bill passed without their approval. Time and time again he's brought legislation to the floor only having to pull it at the last minute because he can't get his own caucus to follow him. We also saw this during the infamous Grand Bargain negotiations in 2011. President Obama gave just about everything in the house to Boehner except that one vase and couple of beat up barkaloungers. Even with all that Boehner still couldn't close the deal with his own people.
So when Boehner calls for negotiations, the first thing that should be asked of him is 'if you get a deal, how do we know you can pass it?' The track record indicates he can't. In which case, what is the point of negotiating with him?
The GOP needs to decide who is in charge of their party before they start calling for talks. From my view, that person isn't the highest Republican elected official in the nation, third in line to the Presidency. Apparently its a freshman junior Senator from Texas.
Earlier this week, we saw a pair of post-shutdown polls, each of which showing Americans placed more blame on Republicans than Democrats for the government shutdown, and today we have a third:
The Associated Press-GfK survey, out Wednesday, affirms expectations by many in Washington — Republicans among them — that the GOP may end up taking the biggest hit in public opinion from the fiscal paralysis, just as that party did when much of the government closed 17 years ago. But the situation is fluid nine days into the shutdown and there's plenty of disdain to go around.
Overall, 62 percent mainly blamed Republicans for the shutdown. About half said Obama or the Democrats in Congress bear much responsibility.
63 percent of the public believes Republicans are not doing enough to negotiate compared with 52 percent who believe President Obama isn't doing enough. Sen. Ted Cruz, credited by many as being the driving force behind the GOP's shutdown strategy, is only known by half the public, but among those who do know him, twice as many view him unfavorably as favorably.
The hits from the Republican shutdown just keep on coming:
About 3.8 million veterans will not receive disability compensation next month if the partial government shutdown continues into late October, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki says. Some 315,000 veterans and 202,000 surviving spouses and dependents will see pension payments stopped. [...]
In all, more than $6 billion in payments would be halted with an extended shutdown.
Yesterday we learned that the Republican shutdown is delaying death benefits to the families of those killed in Afghanistan, and now this. And the only thing needed to stop the madness is an up-or-down vote in the House of Representatives that Speaker of the House John Boehner refuses to allow because he's more concerned about supporting the tea party than he is about supporting the troops. What a coward.
Want the scoop on hot races around the country? Get the digest emailed to you each weekday morning. Sign up here.
Leading Off:
• House: Good news! Sam Wang does some extrapolation work on those PPP polls of 24 GOP-held districts that MoveOn released over the weekend. He finds that the average swing in those seats projects to a 12-point Democratic advantage on the overall House ballot next year, which he says would be good for a 30-seat pickup—and the majority. (That's based on an average 10.9-point swing in these polls, added to Dems' 1.5 percent advantage in total House votes in 2012... though that runs into the problem of expecting a 2012 turnout model in a midterm.)
Bad news! Mark Blumenthal points out that there is a problem with making any sort of dramatic leap based on "generic Dem" polling, and he demonstrates that by looking back at two similar rounds of PPP polling on behalf of House Majority PAC in Oct. 2011 and Jan. 2012. In 18 of those 20 races, most of which were based on testing incumbents against "someone else" rather than a named opponent or even a generic Democrat, the results were overly favorable for Team Blue, based on the Democrats' actual performances in Nov. 2012. It's worth noting, though, that Democrats nevertheless won 9 of those 20 races, just mostly by margins smaller than those predicted a year earlier.
Doesn't matter! As Harry Enten observes, regardless of whether or not you think the PPP results have any generalizability to what happens in Nov. 2014, MoveOn succeeded, in that they got large media outlets suddenly talking about the possibility of Dems flipping the House. The real victory, in fact, is that these polls may have spurred more interest among potential Democratic recruits, as reported Tuesday by Greg Sargent. (And see our NE-02 bullet below.) So far, the lack of more than, say, a dozen imposing recruits has been the main problem with Democratic plans to capture 17 House seats, but coverage of better Dem House odds creates something of a virtuous circle where better odds means better recruits and better recruits mean better odds. (David Jarman)
[I like big butts and I cannot lie! You other brothers can't de…]
"Boehner here." "Mr. Speaker. It's the President." "Hello, Mr. President. What can I do for ya?" "I heard you wanted me to pick up the phone and call so we could have a conversation." "Thank you for calling, Mr. President. But it's too late to have a conversation. That offer expired about 20 seconds ago." "How about a dialogue, then?" "No, sir. The deadline for a dialogue passed on Monday." "A chat?" "That offer died in August, Mr. President." "I don't think so, Mr. Speaker. August was supposed to be a heart-to-heart." "Well, whatever. The time for all that is in the past. The American people want us to put aside our differences and have a real, honest back-'n-forth."
"No can do. The back-'n-forth deadline passed two weeks ago. You know that." "Negotiation?" "No." "Meeting of the minds?" "No." "Encounter? Kaffeeklatsch? Pillow talk?"
"Parley, Mr. Speaker. I looked it up and this week it's a parley." "Well, then, let's have a parley." "I don't parley with hostage takers. Call me when you're ready to surrender. Oh, and Mr. Speaker?" "Yes, Mr. Pesident?" "Ditch the Camels. Nasty habit."
[Click.]
Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Daily Kos Radio's Kagro in the Morning show podcasts are now available through iTunes.
I turn my back for a second, and the Republicans are proposing a new Super Committee?
Hmm. Maybe I should take more time off!
Joan McCarter and Greg Dworkin will be on hand to help catch me up on the real news. Because that committee thing has got to be a fake.
We're LIVE at 9:00 a.m. ET with Kagro in the Morning, thanks to NetrootsRadio.com.
Listen LIVE here:The Daily Kos Radio Player
Click this Link to Listen on your iTunes, Winamp or Windows Media Player
Can't see the live stream and/or podcast players in these posts? Do you use NoScript or something similar to control Javascript? Want to? Remember to enable Libsyn and Shoutcastplayer, and you'll see our players every morning!
Or if you prefer, why not download the Stitcher app on your favorite mobile device, and search for the Netroots Radio live stream? And hey, when you do, be sure to sign up with the promo code DAILYKOS, and earn Daily Kos Radio $1 in the Stitcher affiliate program!
Please do remember to "favorite" us while you're at Stitcher. We're bouncing up and down in the rankings these days, and the more of you who help us, the more listeners out there who'll find us on the Stitcher network.
Miss yesterday's replay of our October 8, 2012 "classic" show? You can catch it here:
Need more info on how to listen? Find it below the fold.
Repeating this, but what's truly extraordinary is that losing side from last election is demanding concessions http://t.co/... — @mmurraypolitics
Many conservative pundits are saying: don't pay attention to what Boehner says, watch what he does. Ok, because what he says is idiotic. And speaking of blindingly stupid, many in the GOP are apparently blithering idiots:
A surprisingly broad section of the Republican Party is convinced that a threat once taken as economic fact may not exist — or at least may not be so serious. Some question the Treasury's drop-dead deadline of Oct. 17. Some government services might have to be curtailed, they concede. "But I think the real date, candidly, the date that's highly problematic for our nation, is Nov. 1," said Senator Bob Corker, Republican of Tennessee.
Others say there is no deadline at all — that daily tax receipts would be more than enough to pay off Treasury bonds as they come due.
Obama should have been arguing against the law of gravity. Everyone knows the House can repeal it with little consequence. That's what they do with laws. And while we're at it don't worry about landing on the sun. We'll do it at night when it's cooler.
With stocks tanking and the world watching, President Obama tore into House Republicans Tuesday, warning they were risking economic catastrophe by refusing to hike the nation's debt limit without strings attached.
But in a sign of just how far apart the sides are, several leading Republicans downplayed the potential fallout of an unprecedented national default that's edging ever closer.
Did [Ron Suskind quoting Karl Rove] "we create our own reality" lead to: Many in G.O.P. Offer Theory: Default Wouldn't Be That Bad? — @DemFromCT
"Ransom." "Extortion." "Deadbeat." "Hostage-taking." "Blow the whole thing up." "Insane."
Those are just a few of the words and phrases that President Obama used to describe (and deride) what he believes is the Republicans' strategic approach on the government shutdown and debt ceiling during a news conference Tuesday. (Full transcript here.)
David Frum has a great piece on the dysfunctional GOP entitled
Seven Habits of Highly Ineffective Political Parties
This looks fantastic: @popsci launches a new blog network w/too many great names to list. http://t.co/.... — @sethmnookin
More politics and policy below the fold.
You are subscribed to email updates from Daily Kos To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
Webmasters tend to think in black and white when it comes to their websites. Build a great website, follow proper SEO guidelines, and hope for the best. While on-site optimization and social media engagement are both important, site owners can benefit greatly from off-site promotion.
The best way to get your name out there is to constantly push your brand. When I launch a new website I like to order simple products that will place my websites name in front of influencing people. Pens, koozies and chip clips are all great products because they are cheap and constantly used. I also like to incorporate my time as a service.
Websites that offer promotional products like these provide a cheap advertising solution that won’t break the bank while letting users know they care.
The trick with off-site branding it to get your products into the right hands. Here are a few simple solutions.
Reward Your Best Readers
You would be surprised how much a loyal commenter on your website will appreciate a small gift. A pack of pens with your websites logo can go a long way in showing readers that you care. Remember this isn’t about breaking the bank, it’s making readers realize that you take the time to engage on a more intimate level. I have found that people who receive small thank you’s tend to share stories more and engaging in the sites discussion section more often.
Leave Promotion Products With Business Partners
Engaging with business partners to grow your brands advertising, third-party solutions, and other options is a smart plan for the future. If you’re a serious blogger you probably attend conferences and those are often the perfect places to leave behind a few goodies.
I avoid offering pens to partners in person during meeting because it seems a bit needy.
At trade shows and other events leaving a few pens behind on desks is simple and typically a helpful solution for visitors.
Offer Your Time And Expertise Instead Of Physical Goods
I personally offer a lot of advice to other webmasters, business clients, and even my readers. Sometimes your brand is best served by becoming a good steward of the community you operate within.
Visit forums and web communities that discuss the products or services you cover. Answer questions for newbies and veterans, and always include your signature or website URL in your posts.
Sometimes the best “Gift” you can give is your time.
Use your branded Twitter, Facebook, and other accounts as much as possible in order to improve engagement with potential website users.
Whether you want to hand out physical goods as a reward to your websites visitors or provide your time and expertise, off-site branding is simple, effective, and a great way to say thank you to internet users who most often you will never meet.
Google's oft-quoted advice for getting your blog articles ranked is that you should write rich, high-quality, and valuable content. That's great advice and, without good content everything else you do to improve your SERP position is largely a wasted effort. However, there are many things you can do in addition to creating high-quality content that will give your articles a boost. We're going to look at 10 basic SEO techniques that every blogger, writer, and editor should be aware of when they are creating content for the web.
Keywords Matter, But Don't Overdo It
Google's algorithms have come on leaps and bounds, and they can do all sorts of clever semantic analysis to figure out what your content is about, but that doesn't mean you can neglect keywords. Keywords in the text correspond to search queries, and although Google will match queries with synonyms and other variations, you're more than likely to rank higher if you include exact match keywords in your text, so make sure you do your research beforehand and have a clear idea of what people are searching for.
On the other hand, don't go overboard and stuff as many keywords as you can into your content. It makes for awkward reading and the days when keyword stuffing would guarantee a place in the SERPs are well in the past.
Don't Neglect Long-Tail Keywords
While you definitely want to hit the most prominent keywords in the niche you're targeting, the long-tail is actually far larger than you'd expect. If you neglect the long tail, you're throwing away valuable traffic that is likely to be less hotly competed for.
Pay Attention To Titles And Subtitles
It's particularly important that you put keywords in a prominent position in H1 and H2 tags. Again, don't overdo it, but make sure that your target keywords find a place in your article's titles and subtitles.
Some parts of the page are given more weight by Google than others, and among the most important areas for optimization are meta tags that don't appear in the page content at all. Two that you should definitely be aware of are the title tag and the description meta tag.
Technically, the title tag isn't actually a meta tag; it's an HTML element, but we'll deal with it here rather than in a separate section. The title tag determines the text that appears in the blue link on the search engine entry and is intended to be succinct summary of the content. It should be no longer than approximately 70 characters, and should contain the article's primary keyword, plus other keywords. Don't just make it a list of keywords, because that looks bad in the SERPs.
The description meta tag is a true meta tag. It looks like:
meta name=”description” content=”A short summary of the contents of this page.”>
It occurs in the page's head section along with the title tag. The description meta tag is usually used by the search engines to populate the snippet that appears underneath the blue link in the SERPs. The description tag probably isn't as heavily weighted as the title tag, but it's good practice to ensure that it contains a succinct summary of the article that is no more than 160 characters long and contains the relevant keywords.
If you're using WordPress, an SEO plugin like the one from Yoast make both of these tags easily editable.
Grammar And Spelling
It may seem like common sense, but there's plenty of content out there that throws caution to the wind and makes no effort to conform to the grammatical norms and the preferred spelling of the market it's aimed at. Grammar and spelling matter: Google doesn't want to send its users to sites where the articles look like they've been written for a lolcat meme. That said, an incorrect use of the subjunctive or the occasional split infinitive aren't going to matter at all, but insofar as is reasonable, stick to standard grammar and run a spell checker over your content before publishing it.
Use Relevant Categories And Tags
Tags and categories may be a fairly minor signal for the search engines, but it's worth making sure that your content is organized properly.
Link To Your Sources
Publishers tend to exert a lot of effort when it comes to incoming links, but proper citations with links to high quality sources of information are a signal to Google that your content is more likely to be high-quality as well.
Optimize Your Images
Images present a good opportunity for making further use of your keywords, which can be placed in:
Filenames
Alt text
Captions
Image titles
But again, don't go overboard and stuff irrelevant keywords into your image's metadata just because you can.
Use Google Authorship
While Google Authorship isn't currently used a ranking signal, it does have an effect on click-through rates because it provides the information Google needs to display rich snippets, including author names and images. This plugin will help you set up Google Authorship on your WordPress site.
WordPress is a fairly solid platform for SEO out-of-the-box, and while there are endless tweaks and optimizations you can make to a site in order to improve its SEO performance, these basic steps will ensure that your articles will make a good showing when they are published and into the future.
Graeme Caldwell works as an inbound marketer for Nexcess, a leading provider of Magento and WordPress hosting. Follow Nexcess on Twitter at @nexcess, Like them on Facebook and check out their tech/hosting blog, http://blog.nexcess.net/.
By Hamish McKenzie On October 7, 2013Bad news, journalists. Tech companies likely aren't going to save you from your low-paying, high-drudgery jobs at newspapers, magazines, TV channels, radio stations, or blogs. If you're looking for the easy way…
As companies mature and gain an installed user base, it can become easy to continue forward with incremental and iterative updates that bring features that improve customer satisfaction, but much more challenging to step outside the comfort zone and try something new. Usually, with rare exceptions, to create a new idea and marketplace, it takes new people and a new company with a new goal.
In Silicon Valley, it's more accepted that you will challenge the status quo and take a higher level of risk. Companies' ability to innovate is often measured by how much they spend on research and development, but new products that haven't yet debuted often take attention away from users on the products that are bringing in revenue today. How you manage this balancing act of preparing for a future, while managing the present, can have dramatic impact on your quarterly earnings sheet, and how you're perceived by your customer base.
One of the most well-known quotes bandied about in front offices comes from sports legend Wayne Gretzky, who said, "I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been," which can be boiled down to preparing your company and product line for future years, not for what's already happened. Companies like Google (where I work), Apple, Tesla and others are well known for creating new product lines for future customers and helping convince new audiences that their inventions will have an impact on their lives.
But to create new services best categorized as potential can come as risk if you take your eye off the ball and discard existing customers and their interests. I remember having a discussion with Apple's Ellen Hancock way back in 1997, when she was speaking at Berkeley's Macintosh Users' Group (BMUG). To hear her story, Apple, deep in a mess of trouble at that time, had big plans to revamp their operating system to a next-generation OS called Copland, but hadn't planned any updates to their existing product for more than a year.
Her quote, from my story in the Daily Cal that day: "I said, 'What do we have planned between July 1996 and December 1997?' and they said, 'Nothing...' I said, 'I think that's strange -- we have 25 million users; don't you think they want anything?'" Somehow, in the excitement over Copland, Apple had asked their 25 million user installed base to wait around and be patient for them to get their act together. Hancock, who no doubt painted her role as a glowing benefactor, pushed the company to make improvements to the aging Mac OS in parallel, bringing value to that installed base, while the company continued efforts on the future product that never did quite make it out the door. (Postscript: Hancock was later demoted by Apple CEO Gil Amelio and had run-ins with Steve Jobs, according to the Wall Street Journal)
In my own career, I've seen this push/pull relationship between future product lines and enhancements to existing lines rear up regularly.
In my eight years working in Marketing at BlueArc, a network storage provider, from 2001-09, I often found we would put practically all our engineering resources on one product line instead of another, instead of assigning some product leads to one task and a second group to the other. We would go "all in" on the high end product, launch it, and then turn around and go full bore on the low end product, and then repeat. There was no balance at all - the result of having a scarcity of people available and trying to compete with market heavyweights with significant resources.
In the meantime, while working on the successor to the current generation of hardware, our existing users practically served to annoy us with their problems which we hoped to eliminate once the new new thing came out. There always came a point in the support chain when we would find them an upgrade path to the next generation - if simply to alleviate the problems with the existing one.
Even earlier, when I was at 3Cube from 1999-2001, we had two product lines. One was a Web faxing service that wasn't sexy, but brought in practically all our revenue, especially from broadcast faxing customers. The second was a conference call and early stage Web meeting service. As I highlighted way back in 2006, our meeting platform was the first volley into building an online office suite called OfficeCube. Our small engineering resources were all focused on this future product - to promote the next stage in our growth, even while our existing customers saw innovation in our core service stall. I remember aggressive and frustrating discussions from our business development and sales lead who begged for us to do something to promote the product we were getting our money from, going so far to call our future suite vaporware - which eventually turned out correct.
For smaller companies, especially startups, where revenue has not materialized, a change in course to a future product is well-known as a pivot. It's easier to pivot when you're not walking away from an installed base and needing to have revenue each quarter than it is to tell an established company to change course. Apple's pivot from PC maker to lifestyle device maker took years and incredible effort - and their success is so well-known in part because it's so challenging. Other companies previously well-known for their hardware and software leadership turn, like product managers going the VC route, in companies that live off service and consulting revenue instead.
The topic of branding and marketing is a long one, with libraries full of books on what defines a company's personality and culture. When I see brand extensions from companies I know, I'm always curious what they're trying -- if this new product is a move to evolve their story, a grab at a growing market, a desire for an increased balance sheet, or if they can solve an issue for customers that nobody else can. When you start to tell your own customers that you represent something new now, and that what they've known you as and expected from you is changing, you had better know you're making the right move, and not abandoning what's concrete for something grounded mostly in potential.
Usual Disclosures: I work at Google, which is in a variety of businesses. This isn't intended as a commentary on any of those projects. I don't currently own any stock in Apple or Tesla, but have before and might again if the price is right.
One of the chapters of Think Bayes is based on a class project two of my students worked on last semester. It presents “The Red Line Problem,” which is the problem of predicting the time until the next train arrives, …
My recent post, How I Failed, drew a huge amount of reader interest, andI wasn’t surprised. In fact, as we’ve been organizing thefirst Cultivate event—our new conference on how to build and sustain greatcompanies by building a great culture—we’ve realized …
Last week, I wrote in some detail about some of the specifics of how the Federal healthcare portal seems to have violated basic principles of good software delivery. Now I want to talk a bit about the more general factor …
Now that more companies have basic mobile strategies in place, they are turning their attention to the issue of performance. Mobile developers are thinking about how fast their apps and mobile webpages load and—more importantly—what they can do to make …
Android Malware Numbers — (Quartz) less than an estimated 0.001% of app installations on Android are able to evade the system’s multi-layered defenses and cause harm to users, based on Google’s analysis of 1.5B downloads and installs. Facebook Operations Chief …
If you need a technical position filled you look for someone with coding or math. If you need a sales person you look for that outgoing type and so on.
While an aptitude for the job is an obvious consideration, there are so many other harder to find skills that are perhaps more important.
I had a coworker years ago that was painfully shy, very quite and almost non existent in many discussions. But then, towards the end of a long, drawn out meeting she would say something and the entire room would change.
She would usually start off with, "I don't know, but seems like we should just . . . " More times than not, it was the profound solution to what we had all been wrestling with.
On the surface this individual seemed to lack some of the skills many people look for, but what she possessed was an incredible knack of leadership and strategic thinking. These are skills that are hard to teach and even harder to find.
These, what some might call soft skills, are what makes an employee valuable to your organization and they are the skills you need to look for in those you hire.
In Re-Imagine, Tom Peters famously coined the term "hire freaks" to highlight the notion of finding people with the kind of innate skills that bring much more to a situation than the traditional profile of, say, a salesperson or customer service person.
My coworker certainly fit the notion of freak – she was socially awkward, seemingly misplaced and completely full of the kind of insight sorely lacking in most organizations.
You need leaders, people who can make the right decisions on their own, people who can communicate complex ideas in simple ways and people who can build relationships.
For this week's episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast I visited with Dan Schawbel, author of Promote Yourself, The New Rules For Career Success. Dan has made a name for himself helping his generation (Gen Y) understand how to get ahead in their careers.
At the same time he's established himself as an expert on the generation for those business leaders seeking to understand how to work with and retain workers under 30. In Promote Yourself, he spends a great deal of time outlining the virtues of soft skills for those who want to get noticed and promoted.
Obviously the book is written for the person looking to boost their career, but employers would be wise to read it for the lessons it contains in hiring people with the right stuff.
Non-traditional behavior of freaks
Want to hire someone with the skills needed to add value in today's business world. Look for individuals who:
Come with customer service backgrounds and a demonstrated desire to create better customer experiences
Come with social media strategy backgrounds and get how to engage customers with content
Come with an analytics background and revel in the role of playing mad scientist with the reams of data every business can produce and uncover
You must look for, test for and screen for these natural behaviors in the quest to find your best salespeople, service people and project people no matter if you are hiring consultants or plumbers.
Related posts:
Your Next Hire It's become pretty standard business advice these days to suggest...
Living in the digital age, your customers and prospects are subjected to an endless sea of information each and every second of every day. Cutting through all of this noise can be a tough challenge for any brand marketer. One effective solution is the use of infographics. Just about everywhere we look these days we [...]
You are subscribed to email updates from Sparks To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
Register by Oct. 10 and use the promo code BUZZ to save $129 when registering.
Bend WebCAM 2013
Bend WebCAM is an annual conference that marries the technical and the personal aspects of marketing, resulting in an intimate summit unlike any other. The conference takes place in Bend, Oregon Oct. 14-15. Oct. 10 is the final day to save $129 when registering — use the promo code BUZZ. BCI will be on the Bend WebCAM scene, with Bruce presenting and Virginia liveblogging for the WebCAM blog. Check out the full session schedule of events.
Keynote Lineup
The keynote presentations at Bend WebCAM 2013 are not to be missed:
Our Future: The Web of Things Duane Forrester, Sr. Product Marketing Manager at Bing
Top 10 Things You Need to Know About People (video preview) Susan Weinshenk, Founder of The Weinshenk Institute Everything I Needed to Know About Marketing I Learned from Playing Dungeons and Dragons (video preview) Ian Lurie, CEO at Portent
Mad Women: A Herstory of Advertising Christian Knight, Creative Director at INGO-Ogilvy & Grey
The Importance of Building a Community Marshall Simmonds, CEO and Founder of Define Media Group.
There are many other sessions, with presenters including Luke Alley, Theresa Baicocco, Jon Ball, Alan Bonine, Ben Cook, Stephen Hindley, Michael King, David Mihm, Chris MisMash, Conrad Saam, Janet Thaeler and, of course, Bruce Clay.
Bruce – SEO for the Non-SEO: What YOU Need to Know
In this three-hour workshop, Bruce lays a foundation of how SEO works and why it benefits business, a crash course on SEO if you won’t be doing SEO yourself but need to know the language so you can make informed key business decisions. Learn:
The point of of SEO
How Google ranks websites
How to measure SEO efforts
What constitutes spam
How to avoid spam penalties
How SEO initiatives affect site content
How SEO initiatives affect the IT department
Virginia Liveblogs
BCI Content and Media Manager Virginia Nussey will liveblog the following Bend WebCAM sessions so you can keep up on the conference happenings from your own screen:
Oct. 14
8:30 a.m. Mad Women: A Herstory of Advertising
9:35 a.m. The Importance of Building a Community for Your Brand, Website, Customer Base and General Well Being
1:45 p.m. Our Future: The Web of Things
2:50 p.m. Everything I Need to Know About Marketing I Learned Playing Dungeons and Dragons
4 p.m. Top 10 Things You Need to Know About People
Oct. 15
9 a.m. How to Get People to Do Stuff
1 p.m. 10 Tips for Marketing Your Business on Pinterest
3 p.m. Scaling Quality and How to Create Immortal Content
Going to Bend WebCAM? What are you hoping to learn at this year’s conference? Share with us in the comments.
At a recent gathering of marketing professionals and people interested in learning about Internet marketing, I was surprised by the number of people asking me to confirm that their understanding of "SEM" was accurate.
While the term itself seems basic, this question isn't a bad one as the definition has in fact changed in the dozen or so years since its coining.
SEM is often used to describe paid search marketing initiatives and yet you'll often see uses that suggest it's an overarching term for all search marketing efforts, begging the question I've heard more than once, "Isn't SEO a part of 'search engine marketing,' too?"
Ah. That question.
My answer?
Here's the full story in detail.
What Is SEM?
Short for "Search Engine Marketing," SEM is usually used to describe the immediate, money-backed portion of search engine marketing that commonly takes the shape of PPC (pay-per-click)/CPC (cost-per-click) search engine results page ads in one form or another.
For example, when you enter the SEM track at an online marketing conference like SMX, for instance, you can expect to learn about Google AdWords, Bing Ads, PPC and CPC advertising, and other more specific factions of paid search advertising like retargeting, geotargeting and Enhanced Campaigns.
Does "Search Engine Marketing" Include SEO?
When the term "Search Engine Marketing" and the acronym SEM were popularized by Search Engine Land Editor-in-Chief, Danny Sullivan, in 2001 they were purposefully used as umbrella terms to describe all efforts that encouraged traffic gain via search engine results pages – including paid and organic initiatives. In other words, when the term was created in 2001 "SEM" referred to – and included – both paid search engine advertising and organic search engine optimization (SEO).
In the 12 years since its 2001 inception, the common use of the term SEM has shifted, and accordingly what the term communicates and essentially means has shifted, as well. While SEMPO (the Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization) still defines SEM as an all-encompassing term that includes both SEO and paid placement efforts, today Search Engine Land defines SEM as paid-exclusive ("the process of gaining traffic by purchasing ads on search engines"), Google defines SEMas "the use of online advertising on search engine results pages to help visitors find your website," and SMX – the search marketing conference run by Third Door Media and Danny Sullivan – clearly draws a line in the sand with an agenda that labels organic optimization sessions SEO-focused, and paid advertising sessions SEM-focused.
So, does SEM include SEO? It really depends on who you talk to, but I feel based on my experience speaking with others in the industry – and based on the definitions of industry leaders like Google, SMX, and Search Engine Land – that in 2013 the industry at large commonly defines SEM as a paid search-specific faction of online marketing, as outlined in the definition above.
My recent post, How I Failed, drew a huge amount of reader interest, and I wasn’t surprised. In fact, as we’ve been organizing the first Cultivate event—our new conference on how to build and sustain great companies by building a great culture—we’ve realized that people can learn more from what leaders have done wrong, and learned from, than from their successes. (In fact, what inspired me to frame my talk around failure was the series of successful sessions on that subject that Joshua Schachter has led at Foo Camp over the past few years. They are always a great hit.)
We asked some of Cultivate’s speakers if they had their own failure stories they’d be willing to share. Not surprisingly, their answers were widely varied. It’s clear that even the people we see as most successful have lessons to learn. And these stories show that wisdom often comes from mistakes, not necessarily the vision that sets you on fire or the goals you’re aiming for.
At 24, I assumed I would be a good manager. I was smart, hard-working, creative, and had lots of leadership bullet points on my high school and college resume. But I quickly discovered that I had a ton to learn.
I had one direct report on my team. We’d worked together for a few weeks but because it was just the two of us, it was a little awkward. I felt like I was either too hands-on or too hands-off. I wanted to be her buddy but because I was her manager, there was a necessary professional distance. We hadn’t found a rhythm yet. My rude awakening came when she led a group meeting for the first time and I sat in as an observer. Afterwards, she asked me how it went and I said, "Oh, on a scale of 1-10, probably a 7."
In my head, a 7 wasn't bad. A 7 for your first attempt was pretty good. I thought I was being honest and supportive. But looking back, it was obviously the wrong thing to say.The tears welled immediately. I didn't even have a chance to back pedal. She fled and locked herself in another conference room. I tried to awkwardly talk through the door a few times, hoping no one else picked up on the unfolding crisis, but I didn't see her until the next day when we both pretended nothing happened. Obviously the group meeting and my analysis meant more to her than I’d realized. And in that context, I can’t imagine a more insensitive word of encouragement than "7."
People Are an Important Part of the Equation Hiten Shah, CrazyEgg / KISSmetrics
My co-founder and I spent two years and over $1,000,000 trying to start a web hosting company that never ended up launching. We communicated with our team poorly, managed our money irresponsibly and aimed for perfection before we were willing to release something to customers. Our partners were also not aligned with the values that we had both personally and professionally.
In the end, we learned that the people whom you partner with when starting a business is one of the critical factors to its success.
The “Win” That Was a Failure Patty McCord, Patty McCord Consulting
Over the years, I’ve developed a fairly accurate intuition for reading people and situations. It’s not magic really, it’s a kind of pattern recognition that comes from closely observing people, teams, and situations. Much like the how the engineer or mathematician can see trends in data, I can often spot people issues in the making.
But, my skill isn’t obvious and it isn’t always measurable so with every leader I work with I must build credibility over time. I must be able to directly correlate what I see with what matters to the business or the team and be able to suggest improvements or solutions or alternatives.
When I first began to realize that it mattered that I thought the new VP was going to fail or that morale in a particular team was waning, I boldly (and often bravely) said so. Very often I was dismissed or ignored. Without concrete data, it was perceived to be only my opinion.
That is, until I was right. Oh, the joy and satisfaction getting that late night email that read, “I was wrong and you were right.” How I savored the thought that I had bested some of the smartest people I know!
Then, one day I got one of those messages and instead of making me feel smug and superior, I simply felt bad. Why hadn’t I been able to more effectively influence this person in the first place? How could I learn to articulate what I saw into consequences to the business or to the team in a way that made logical sense? How could I learn to teach this clueless person how to learn to read the behavioral clues in front of them?
I learned that “I told you so” isn’t nearly as satisfying as “let me tell you.”
My experience as a manager has changed my approach to feedback several times over the last few years. When I first became a manager, I was overseeing the work of my peers, so when I wanted something done differently (or more likely my manager wanted something done differently) I would hint at a change. Suggestions often formed statements like "Have you thought about trying it this way instead?" or "Maybe we could change the format so that section is at the top." Sometimes they worked, and other times they had no effect. I was struggling at making change.
So after quite a while of "hinting" without success I moved into a more direct approach: "Please change the format to have a summary at the top." You could not mistake what I was asking, and all of sudden changes started happening. People were listening and I was getting results. However, I was also coming off bossy, and well, who would want to receive feedback like that? I know I wouldn't.
Therefore it was time to make a change again. Learning to give better feedback in a way that was helpful and direct, but also kind and thoughtful.
Here are some of the tips that helped me get there: • Ask first. Before giving someone feedback on something they need to change ask them if they are open to feedback. • Be timely. Feedback is most effective when it is delivered at the time of the event. • Make it about the task, not the person. • Give suggestions on how to improve. • Provide a personal example. • Identify the motive or reason for the changes. • Allow the person to defend/vent/explain. Of course critical feedback is still something I struggle with (and make mistakes in my delivery) but I honestly believe my quest to be better at it has made me a much stronger teammate and leader.
For more on the lessons of leadership, join us at Cultivate next Monday in New York City. We think that you’ll come away inspired to build companies that make a difference, and you’ll have the knowledge to make it happen.
Android Malware Numbers — (Quartz) less than an estimated 0.001% of app installations on Android are able to evade the system's multi-layered defenses and cause harm to users, based on Google’s analysis of 1.5B downloads and installs.
Facebook Operations Chief Reveals Open Networking Plan — long interview about OCP’s network project. The specification that we are working on is essentially a switch that behaves like compute. It starts up, it has a BIOS environment to do its diagnostics and testing, and then it will look for an executable and go find an operating system. You point it to an operating system and that tells it how it will behave and what it is going to run. In that model, you can run traditional network operating systems, or you can run Linux-style implementations, you can run OpenFlow if you want. And on top of that, you can build your protocol sets and applications.
A few years ago, I was doing some sort of public speaking thing and in the Q&A, a young man asked me for advice for founders who aren't technical. I said, "If you aren't technical, I suggest you get technical" And I meant it. I learned to code when I was a teenager. It wasn't that hard. I think anyone who has the motivation to start a company can find the motivation to learn to code.
Fast forward a few years and I read this story today. Sam Fellig wanted to build a marketplace where folks could buy products that were succesfully funded on Kickstarter and other crowdfunding sites. His wife, who was tired of hearing all his crazy startup ideas, told him to just do it.
So he went to Codecademy (one of USV's portfolio companies) and started taking classes. Soon enough he knew enough to get started. It wasn't enough to finish though. He had to learn more (I bet from our portfolio company StackOverflow or my partner Albert's Tech Tuesdays), but he kept going. And he did it. He built Outgrow.me into one of Time Inc's Top 50 Sites of 2013.
So to all you people out there who are sitting on your big idea and just can't figure out how to get it built, I would suggest you build it yourself. It can be done. It is done. Every day. By someone who takes the initiative to just do it.
You are subscribed to email updates from A VC To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
For the first few years of my solo PR life, I spent a lot of time working out of coffee shops and other common spaces. I also spent a fair amount of time at client spaces. I also joined CoCo Minneapolis when it opened a couple years ago.
This past year-plus, I spent an inordinate amount of time working from home. Why? I had to keep my head down and crank on the client work front. Heavy workload forced me to hibernate–even in the lovely summer months.
The drawback for me in working from home is simple: When am I NOT working? When the wife and kids come home, things still feel like work as I never really leave the home environment all day.
On the upside, that means working in your jammies and slippers. It means saving a TON of time. It means being uber-effiicient. All good things.
But, it also means I lose my connection with the outside world.
I miss people.
So, last week I signed up to be a part of the local CoCo community again (that’s coworking for those not in the Minneapolis area) as they just opened a great new space in the Uptown area (which is a bit closer for me). I believe this will be a great win for a number of reasons:
* Gets me out of the house and interacting with humans again (not that I wasn’t before but not on a scheduled basis)
* Increases client opportunities (that’s part of the CoCo brand–they aim to make connections)
* Reconnecting with old friends (I’ve been a big supporter of the CoCo gang–Kyle and Don–from the beginning, so it’s nice to see a lot of familiar faces already)
* Being a part of something bigger than just me (there’s also an inherent coolness about CoCo–something about being a part of something bigger than just yourself; that’s a huge, but underlying, benefit).
Since so many people have already asked me what the place looks like, I thought I’d share a few pics:
The “commons” area where solos work.
The “campsites” that typically house smaller teams, agencies and firms.
Impromtu meeting space is very 70s…
More common area–this is probably where I’ll spend a lot of time.
Very cool, open conference space is available to all members (at a small price, for me)
Another of the larger, open conference room spaces.
The third, and final, conference room is a full-functioning movie-theater-style space. Perfect for pitches and client presentations.
Did I mention there’s a bar? Yeah, there’s a bar.
Did I mention there’s a billiards room? Yeah, there’s a billiards room.
There’s also a lovely patio that I’m sure will get some good use come next summer.
Penguin is back, and link spam cannot run and hide. With the 2.1 data refresh, G-Squared Interactive looked at factors that triggered 2.1,and said culprits included forum spam, blogroll spam and spammy directories, to name a few.
Bing has launched a new automated paid search program in 25 U.S. cities that makes it easier for local businesses to start PPC advertising. Claim your business, write an ad, select where you want it to run, and Bing's algorithms will do the rest.
Google is putting the kibosh on the controversial for-profit mug shot website industry through a recent algorithmic update that extracts such sites from the search results. However, some free speech advocates are questioning the move.
A typical small business advertiser spends $1,200 a month on PPC, but wastes 25 percent, on average, according to a new WordStream study of 500 small and medium business Google AdWords accounts. Here are five optimization tips to avoid wasted spend.
Google Carousel presents a new opportunity to appear at the top of the search results, but with it also comes some new best practices. Here's a look at how Google's Carousel works, its impact on industries, some tips on images, and how to optimize.
Everything you do won't necessarily lead directly to more rankings, traffic, or sales, but that doesn't mean it didn't work; it may simply be the first domino to fall. Here are three important reminders as you navigate today's convoluted SEO path.
Can we ever satisfy both the scientific and creative approach to content marketing? Yes! Content creators can follow this practical three-step process to combine creativity with metric-driven subjects and content. The result? Great content.
The higher the quality of the replacement content you suggest, the higher the likelihood that your pitch will succeed. By limiting your replacement strategy to just your own content, you reduce the chances of your pitch being successful. Here's why.
It's not news that Generation Y is raked over the coals from time to time. They have been labeled as self-centered, lazy and attention-deficit-disordered. In some cases, they have been bashed for having parents who dote on them so much that they have an inflated sense of self and entitlement.
The truth is, most of us are acquainted in our family and friendship circles with Gen Yers who defy this reputation by being ambitious, courteous, patient, kind and focused on their goals.
In the careers industry, we advise our new-grad clients to exhibit all of the traits of a caring, company-focused and hard-working employee. We suggest they be prepared to work their way up versus walking immediately into their dream job with the perfect work duties and salary. They must earn their stripes, if you will. At the same time, dreaming and aspiring to land a fulfilling entry-level job that will help bolster esteem, skills and career growth is encouraged.
Following are three actionable behaviors that Gen Yers should consider when applying for that first full-time job after graduation:
1. Take your time in building a focused resume message. Quality versus speed-to-market really does apply to this critical transition into the real world.
While you may want to keep your options open, you still should aim your message at certain types of opportunities; e.g., opportunities that require your specific skills in a) crunching numbers; b) analyzing finances; c) marketing a brand; d) handling difficult customers; d) influencing other people to make decisions; e) working on team projects; and so forth.
As well, research the types of companies you are both interested in and where you also feel your talent (and culture ideals) will fit. Glassdoor is a good place to start investigating companies and culture. Broaden that search by Googling and through word of mouth. Then, get an understanding of the problems you can solve for them. Write stories from your classroom projects, internships, extra-curricular activities, part-time jobs, fraternity/sorority activities, sports contributions and such that show you exhibit patience, diligence and even occasionally will walk through fire to achieve goals and results.
If you don't know how to do this, don't just expect your everything-but-the-kitchen sink resume to resonate with an employer looking to invest in you. Make it easy for them to know you will solve their problems. If your career services offers resume help, take it, but if that doesn't work, seek out or hire outside professional 'story-writing' help. Don't assume your resume is great, if after six months of looking you're still not getting interviews. Your resume is a marketing vehicle, plain and simple, and your words matter. It is not time to be humble, boring or dry. It is okay to reinvent and restart your job-search process if what you are doing isn't working.
2. Netweave.
While networking can be an uncomfortable word in some circles, 'netweaving,' which is about giving first and getting later, is an admirable way to build reputation and ultimately, organically land interviews.
It's best not to wait until months after graduation to start that process. Start considering whom you should be reaching out to, engaging in job-related conversations with and marketing your value to early, before you graduate, to set yourself up for a possible invitation into a company later. Join a professional organization, start attending meetings and volunteer as a committee member. Industry associations often offer student-member rates. Get to know people in the industry where you wish to be professionally employed, and start proving yourself by rolling up your sleeves as an active volunteer.
Join LinkedIn and post a meaty, meaningful profile, join a few groups, post informational, value-add updates and selectively connect to others in your target industry or those who may have connections or insights that would add value. Also connect to likeable, positive people who may not seem to offer anything but who may simply like and respect you and want to help. You never know whom someone knows; and/or you may be able to help them in some way. Reputations for providing value do get noticed.
While human nature is often to kvetch, cajole and console those in desperate need of inspiration and hope, protect your own attitude and psyche first. If your sails are lagging, then go find the wind! This may mean respectfully separating from people who are pulling you down, constantly complaining and are backward looking. Fuel your energy with positive, supportive and hopeful people who peer ahead with a certain pragmatic optimism. Giving of yourself is good, but only give what and when you can. Only by doing this can you keep moving forward, being productive and contribute to your career momentum.
Author:
Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter is a Glassdoor career and workplace expert, chief career writer and partner with CareerTrend, and is one of only 28 Master Resume Writers (MRW) globally. An intuitive researcher, she helps professionals unearth compelling career story details to help best present their unique experience, skillset and interests in resumes and other career positioning documents as well as through social media profiles. In addition to being interviewed for television and radio stories, Jacqui has written for the Career Management Alliance Connection monthly newsletter and blog, ExecuNet's Career Smart Advisor, The Kansas City Star, The Business Journal and The Wall Street Journal. In addition, she and her husband, "Sailor Rob," host a lively careers-focused blog over at http://careertrend.net/blog. Jacqui also is a power Twitter user listed on several “Best People to Follow" lists for job seekers.
Today, many consider a second job to be an economic necessity.
A second job can help you afford an occasional splurge on a fancy restaurant, as well as help you save money for further education, a down payment on a home, or an investment in setting up your own future business.
The big question you need to answer is this, Is your second job contributing to your personal brand building?
Pay now, or pay later
All second jobs involve a trade-off between immediate income and future income based on career development and building a strong personal brand. You have to balance additional income now with potential income and security.
This is especially true if you have chosen a second job on the basis of convenience or less stress.
In today’s stressful times, there’s a temptation to take a second job that may not engage all of your abilities and energies. You take the job because you have free time and you want to earn a little extra income. Part-time food, hospitality, or retail jobs come to mind.
These jobs, however, might not be in the best interests of your career development and future personal brand!
Make personal brand building your second job
Time is the reason to consider making personal brand building your second job.
Time spent building your personal brand is an investment in your future. Investing time in personal branding can earn you more in terms of career development, future income, and the freedom to live the life you want to live:
Personal brands are priceless! Time spent brand building, like an established blog, published book, or a reputation as a subject area expert, opens doors of opportunity that can take you anywhere you want to go.
Second jobs are finite! On the other hand, the extra hundred or hundred-and-fifty dollars a week you may earn from a second job, you may be sacrificing your brand and–hence–your future options.
In short, making personal branding your second job can be your passport out of the cubicle–even if you don’t visit the Caribbean this winter!
Best of all, time spent building your brand as an expert in your field may not take as many hours per week as most part-time evening or weekend jobs!
Evaluating your “second job”
Here are some questions to ask yourself as you evaluate the trade-off between a part-time “second job” versus investing in career development and personal branding:
Relevance. Is your second job relevant to the field where you want to be known as an expert? Are you laying the groundwork for where you want to be in 2, 5, or 10 years? There’s a huge difference between “starting at the bottom” as you enter a new field and just “putting in time” in a job that is unlikely to reward you in the future.
Opportunities. What are you learning in your second job? Does your second job offer opportunities to master new skills and develop abilities that will help you in your current career, or intended future career? What kind of career path does your second job typically offer those who excel?
Time and stress. Have you discovered any unanticipated costs associated with your second job? Have you accounted for travel time and costs to and from your second job, parking costs, or dues? Are you stressed at the end of your second job? Is it interfering with your relationships, eating, or sleeping habits? Will a second income complicate your taxes, requiring assistance filing your tax returns? Have you found there are other, unanticipated costs?
Relationships. What kind of people are you dealing with in your second-job? Are your co-workers, supervisors, and the people you’ve serving the kind of people you want to be in touch with in the future?
Image. Is there a chance your choice of a second career would be unfavorably viewed by your current superiors, clients, or co-workers? Moonlighting at Hooters, for example, might not be appropriate for financial advisers or medical professionals.
Time, energy, and personal branding
Most important, What happens when you come home after your second job? Do you still have time and energy to invest in your personal brand?
Personal brand building success isn’t just sharing casual, day-to-day updates, but coming up with helpful, relevant fresh content that becomes part of your brand equity.
Equity refers to ideas and information you can explore, develop, and reformat as core content for future brand building.
Equity also refers to mastering essential new skills, like online copywriting and design, creating podcasts and videos, improving your speaking abilities, and recognizing the often subtle differences between effective and ineffective titles.
Do you have a second job?
The stakes have never been higher for making the right decisions between immediate income and future benefits. How are you handling the trade-offs between immediate income and future career development and personal branding? Share your comments and questions below.
Once it is recognized where you may have erred, it is very easy to move forward on a positive path for future sales. Reviewing past experiences is the best way to learn how to improve. Recall conversations, client requests, and delivery follow-up as these will lend insight for future improvement.
Here are some additional tips for increasing your odds for gaining the sale:
1. Ask questions of your prospect; in particular, "What's your budget?"
Most salespeople and entrepreneurs are afraid to approach the subject of money with prospective clients. In fact, many hide from the subject until the last moment. It's a waste of time and energy when, in the end, you hear, "Oh I don't have that kind of money to spend!"
Early in the conversation, after the introduction and pleasantries are exchanged, be brave enough to state your service isn't the least expensive. Add you would like to comfortably work together so you need to know their budget. Understand, a smaller amount will be conveyed than might be truthful, but upon question and answer, it will all be revealed. Just as you are summing up your client-to-be, they are doing the same of you. Work to build the trust.
2. Get the entire list of needs, wants and deep down desires
You may have multiple complimentary services and products to offer. Through additional questioning you will gain insight as to which will be the most appropriate. Asking general questions such as, "Have you ever considered…" or, "How are you currently handling…?" This will lead to a deeper discussion and unveil new possibilities.
Key to making a sale is to take careful notes in your prospective client's vocabulary. Put those words in the proposal as they will be recognized and convey you were paying attention. Your proposal will be considered more seriously.
3. Reflect all of the above in your proposal
After spending much time with your prospective clients, they will want to see everything they shared in the proposal. Anything omitted will raise question, possibly concern, and potentially ruin the sale. The following true story reflects this:
A salesperson and manager were in a meeting with a client for close to an hour. In that time, the client relayed he was happy with the service the company provided and so their forthcoming proposal would be given first consideration. The sales representative believed he had a 75% chance for getting the sale.
But the manager made a giant error. He advised the representative to omit a requested item because it would significantly raise the price. The salesperson knew this was wrong but felt he had no choice. Upon presenting to the client, the salesperson saw the discontent. Simply put, omitting the item omitted the trust between the two. The proposal was folded up as if it would soon be tossed into a wastebasket. Next, the salesperson was told that competitive bids would be sought. The episode became a poor reflection on the salesperson's personal brand.
The lesson learned is every pursuit requires personal reflection from every angle. Doing so will lead you to the Smooth Sale!
Set aside for the moment the hilarity that Paul Ryan now wants to make entitlement reform the objective of the shutdown/default brinkmanship. Check out how conservatives are reacting to his failure to mention Obamacare in the same Wall Street Journal op-ed.
Man on San Francisco commuter train repeatedly brandishes gun, only to have no one notice because they were all too absorbed in their iPhones. People only noticed when he finally randomly shot and killed a college student on the train.
Graeber posits that the endless boom bust cycle, and ever mounting debt worldwide means that — at some point — there will have to be a massive debt jubilee, a worldwide writing off of debts. And then we might use that opportunity to sidestep the productivity trap, because otherwise we'll have to speed up the machine for ever, since debt is the promoise for future productivity.
""It's only when we reject the idea that such labor is virtuous in itself that we can start to ask what is virtuous about labor. To which the answer is obvious. Labor is virtuous if it helps others."
Myself, I am less interested in deciding what sort of economic system we should have in a free society than in creating the means by which people can make such decisions for themselves. What might a revolution in common sense actually look like? I don't know, but I can think of any number of pieces of conventional wisdom that surely need challenging if we are to create any sort of viable free society. I've already explored one—the nature of money and debt—in some detail in a recent book. I even suggested a debt jubilee, a general cancellation, in part just to bring home that money is really just a human product, a set of promises, that by its nature can always be renegotiated.
Labor, similarly, should be renegotiated. Submitting oneself to labor discipline—supervision, control, even the self-control of the ambitious self-employed—does not make one a better person. In most really important ways, it probably makes one worse. To undergo it is a misfortune that at best is sometimes necessary. Yet it's only when we reject the idea that such labor is virtuous in itself that we can start to ask what is virtuous about labor. To which the answer is obvious. Labor is virtuous if it helps others. A renegotiated definition of productivity should make it easier to reimagine the very nature of what work is, since, among other things, it will mean that technological development will be redirected less toward creating ever more consumer products and ever more disciplined labor, and more toward eliminating those forms of labor entirely.
"What is debt, after all, but the promise of future productivity? Saying that global debt levels keep rising is simply another way of saying that, as a collectivity, human beings are promising each other to produce an even greater volume of goods and services in the future than they are creating now. But even current levels are clearly unsustainable. They are precisely what's destroying the planet, at an ever-increasing pace."
What would remain is the kind of work only human beings will ever be able to do: those forms of caring and helping labor that are at the very center of the crisis that brought about Occupy Wall Street to begin with. What would happen if we stopped acting as if the primordial form of work is laboring at a production line, or wheat field, or iron foundry, or even in an office cubicle, and instead started from a mother, a teacher, or a caregiver? We might be forced to conclude that the real business of human life is not contributing toward something called "the economy" (a concept that didn't even exist three hundred years ago), but the fact that we are all, and have always been, projects of mutual creation.
At the moment, probably the most pressing need is simply to slow down the engines of productivity. This might seem a strange thing to say—our knee-jerk reaction to every crisis is to assume the solution is for everyone to work even more, though of course, this kind of reaction is really precisely the problem—but if you consider the overall state of the world, the conclusion becomes obvious. We seem to be facing two insoluble problems. On the one hand, we have witnessed an endless series of global debt crises, which have grown only more and more severe since the seventies, to the point where the overall burden of debt—sovereign, municipal, corporate, personal—is obviously unsustainable. On the other, we have an ecological crisis, a galloping process of climate change that is threatening to throw the entire planet into drought, floods, chaos, starvation, and war. The two might seem unrelated. But ultimately they are the same. What is debt, after all, but the promise of future productivity? Saying that global debt levels keep rising is simply another way of saying that, as a collectivity, human beings are promising each other to produce an even greater volume of goods and services in the future than they are creating now. But even current levels are clearly unsustainable. They are precisely what's destroying the planet, at an ever-increasing pace.
Very simple love that believes in words, since I cannot do what I want to do, can neither hug nor kiss you, my pleasure lies in my words and when I can I speak to you of love. So, sitting with a drink in front of me, the place filled with people, if your forehead quickly creases in the heat of the moment I speak too loudly and you never say don't be so loud, let them think whatever they want I draw closer melting with languor and your eyes are so sweetly veiled I don't reach for you, no, not even the softest touch but in your body I feel I am swimming, and the couch in the bar's lounge when we get up looks like an unmade bed.
The advocates of microeconomic reform have had no new ideas for decades. Rather talk of a new reform agenda inevitably ends up scraping the barrel for items of unfinished business left over from the agenda of the 1980s.
The biggest item of unfinished business is industrial relations. Although unions have been greatly weakened, and security of employment greatly eroded, the failure and repeal of the Howard government's WorkChoices policies has left Australian workers in a stronger position than their counterparts in most English-speaking countries.
Ordinary Australians understand this. As then BCA chairman Graham Bradley lamented in 2012, Australians assume that "when business leaders talk about productivity growth what they really want is for employees to work harder, for longer hours and lower wages". A striking illustration of this took place in 2011, when treasury secretary Martin Parkinson gave a speech on productivity. Although Parkinson did not mention work intensity, his speech was reported by two different news organisations under the headline "Australians must work harder".
[…]
Throughout this, the advocates of the productivity agenda rejected the idea that productivity growth was simply code for working harder. But finally, they have begun to admit this. In evidence before the Senate standing committee on economics in 2012, the Commission conceded that work intensity (also described as "cutting the fat of organisations") is an unmeasured source of productivity growth, and stated that the debate "was settled in the mid-2000s".
The problem is, as the experience of the last 20 years has shown, that productivity gains achieved by driving workers harder are not sustainable, except in recession conditions like those of the 1990s. As soon as the labor market recovers, overworked employees will either quit to look for new jobs, or find unofficial and unsanctioned ways of restoring work-life balance.
Genuine long-term improvements in the productivity of the economy can be gained only through educating the workforce to take account of improvements in technology (only a small proportion of which are generated domestically) and through macroeconomic and labour market policies that avoid wasting human potential through unemployment and other forms of social exclusion. It's time to focus on these issues and bury the zombie agenda of the 1980s once and for all.
Quiggin points out that when the Australian Productivity Commission states that "productivity needs to pick up" that's just code for driving employees to work harder for no extra pay. But that's the subtext of nearly all mealy-mouthed discussions of increased productivity in the workplace.
It reminds me of the scene in Ben Hur when the Roman Consul, Quintus Arrius, played by Jack Hawkins, says to the galley slaves chained to the oars on his trireme,
Now listen to me, all of you. You are all condemned men. We keep you alive to serve this ship. So row well, and live.
My interest in data visualization stems from my wish to convert physically imperceptible phenomena and situations into perceptible ones. As we know, human biology can only perceive certain frequency intervals in nature. So, there is a lot that we cannot perceive around us. One of the reasons that makes data visualization important is because it goes beyond that. Another reason is that it can show us events in an objective way just like looking at a picture as a whole. I think this is very important, because events or situations can be better understood only from a wide perspective. Data visualization is a nice tool for that.
I also have a criticism about data visualization. It is nice to show what exists, but to me, this method is too scientific. At this point, I prefer to present data after I interpret it according to my own viewpoint. I want to add my own input as an artist. It is a delicate matter to balance whether data visualization is more of an art than science.
My research topics and data usually have a vague start. I try to leave it open-ended so that it finds its own form in time rather than determining a goal or theme at the start and go from there. That is to say, my creative process starts without a specific destination, as is the case with an engineer or positivist scientist. First, the language I want to use materializes in my mind. Then, this language generates its own conceptual infrastructure. I see forming the language and then meaning around it as more organic than creating sense first to fit the language later. The vagueness I mentioned earlier involves a lot of subconscious data that I accumulated over time. They exist in a nebula anyway. What I evolve into is determined by my instantaneous choices.
Your work stretches across digital art, animation, performing arts, and motion graphics. What do multi-disciplinary practices add to your work?
One of my priorities is to manipulate people's perception, and produce work that appeals to different ways of perceiving at the same time. Therefore, one of the most important reasons for me to use different disciplines is to be able to address different senses. Just like in synesthesia, I wonder how sound feels as a visual or how a visual can be perceived as the wind. Using different disciplines enables this kind of exploration.
Another reason is that I also wish to remain in the limbo as far as disciplines are concerned. This way, I can make many different disciplines interact with each other, which presents a vital opportunity in my search for a new language. Actually, why I use different disciplines is also related to the times we live in. We live amidst a chaos of very intense information and possibilities. We have a very eclectic lifestyle in our creative processes and our lifestyle. What we basically do is to combine different possibilities to produce mixed varieties, that is to mix or make them up. Now, only our choices, that is, which colors we want to use matter. I don't believe in creating something from scratch. At this point, the fact that contemporary artists use different disciplines is actually quite related to the society and the age we live in.
It caught the attention of many folks around the web. Mine as well. And from a PR agency perspective – let alone a corporate perspective – it is more critical than most of us likely imagine.
For the past three months, I’ve been consumed by my new role – that being to help guide H&K’s digital corporate and public affairs offering across both the US and Canada - commuting 3 days a week to Washington, DC – and learning a lot through exposure to new colleagues and new clients. At the same time, I’ve noticed that some of the same challenges exist that I faced in my Canadian-only role, challenges encapsulated by Adam Tinworth of One Man and His Blogin his October 7 post: “On the web, social media is just media“. In it, he expounds on a recent Tweet where he stated:
Officially bored of the phrase “social media” now. I’m just going to call it “media” and everything else can be “anti-social media”.
An off-the-cuff comment in under 140 characters perhaps. But when viewed through the lens of our industry, the importance of it cannot be understated. The past few years have been tumultuous as consultants and corporations, governments and media attempted to navigate this minefield of new behaviours, expectations and technologies. “Hype” and the myriad missteps along the way could – for the most part – be forgiven.
However, if communications agencies are to survive and thrive in the years ahead, the thinking that social media is something different from what we have traditionally done must be leeched – from corner offices to cubes. We must start thinking of it in the context of “media”… mainstream, social or otherwise. It must be holistic, it must be integrated, and it must be informed. If we don’t, it will remain sidelined, a novelty, the last slide within a deck, the last page within a proposal or RFP, bereft of substance, misinformed by hype, and the realm of junior consultants. As a consequence, our own relevance will likely, and all too soon, be seen as equally “optional” and throw-away.
The “hype” and novelty is over. It is a call-to-action that must now be heeded.
.jpg?1355365637)
.png?1381318148)
As companies mature and gain an installed user base, it can become easy to continue forward with incremental and iterative updates that bring features that improve customer satisfaction, but much more challenging to step outside the comfort zone and try something new. Usually, with rare exceptions, to create a new idea and marketplace, it takes new people and a new company with a new goal.
