think2

Clinton Portis of the Washington Redskins was talking on WAVY-TV, in Virginia about the accusations facing Michael Vick. Here is what the brilliant running back had to say:

"I don't know if he was fighting dogs or not, but it's his property, it's his dog....If that's what he wants to do, do it. I think people should mind their business."

When the road scholar was told that dog fighting is a felony Portis then said this:

"It can't be too bad of a crime."
This is one of the dumbest things I've heard from an athlete. Mr. Portis, dog fighting is a felony; for the intelligent impaired, that means it is "too bad of a crime."

One last thing of note. Check out the lovely individual, Chris Samuels, to the left of Clinton Portis laughing as Portis is running his mouth. Hopefully there is a suspension or a fine for this.

Posted by Brian Kuyper at 3:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Learn any of a number of foreign languages - for free. The US govt. via the Foreign Service Institute has developed a variety of foreign language courses. You can download them at their site and learn at your leisure.

Posted by Brian Kuyper at 1:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I’m here in Portland, OR at their first BarCamp — it’s a great scene, but with a few differences.

First of all, this is the first time a BarCamp has been held specifically in a coworking space — in this case, an expansive collaborative environment called CubeSpace.

Second, Jay Fichialos, the original camphead, is here from Dallas and has transcribed the complete calendar into a great looking Google Spreadsheet.

Third, we’re using Pibb, a new online chat system built by Portland company JanRain, as the event’s channel. It seems to be performing really well for a new product and looks great. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem like there are permalinks available for the transcripts, but I’ve put in a request to the developers who were on-site for such a feature.

Otherwise, Dawn and Raven did a fantastic job putting the event together, there’s been plenty of food, great conversations and an impressive turnout. Oh, and Josh Bancroft’s Wii was definitely a welcome addition (even though Dawn kicked my ass).

Lastly, I’d like to commend BarCampPortland on achieving three to five male to female ratio of organizers… and yes, I mean that there five female planners of a total of eight. Attendance overall was still skewed towards male attendees, but the session that Dawn put on about Collaboration in Communities had a full 10 female participants — and it was one of the best and most interesting sessions I’ve been to. Progress is slow, but with increased awareness, continued vigilance and proactive inclusivity, I do think that the BarCamp community can continue to improve how it promotes, invites and nurtures a wider, more diverse, and more talented, community.

Posted by Brian Kuyper at 6:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)