CornerstoneDad Dinner Table Topic of the Day

CSD Dinner Table Topic – What’s For Dinner? Betcha Verizon Will Know Because Your DVR Is Telling Them

Posted on by Cool Pappa

BBrother

Perhaps you want to go back and check out these posts on CSD before reading the article from PCMag.com below:

http://cornerstonedad.com/2011/12/29/xbox-kinect-and-privacy/

http://cornerstonedad.com/2012/10/03/privacy-watch-xbox-your-data-sorry-sir-youre-too-fat-to-order-the-meat-lovers-pizza-and-all-you-do-is-play-video-games/

So if you thought ole Cool Pappa just had his black suit, tin foil hat and DVD’s of Doomsday Preppers loaded in my BOB, you’re right! I knew this was coming.

If human beings can, they will.

Companies will do whatever they can to maximize profits, if that gain outweighs whatever consumers will just “get over” in two weeks (because you know, we’d rather hear about pregnant royalty in the “Motherland”).

Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP

Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP

Keep your eye on this story.

If not, don’t worry, because they’ll be keeping an eye on you!

CSD

Verizon Patent Covers DVR That Knows What You’re Saying, Doing

Your cable box is listening. And judging. Yes, that set-top box has become self aware and will be listening to your fights, phone calls, and pillow talk in order to serve up targeted ads.

Well, not quite. But it might one day become a reality, according to patent application from Verizon Patent and Licensing, Inc. that was recently made public. It covers a system that displays ads based on the “ambient action of a user.”

As noted by sourcefednews.com, the patent describes a “detection zone” whereby your set-top box (or any media “processing device”) will pick up on “ambient action” and play ads that relate to your activity at commercial breaks.

An ambient action could include eating, exercising, laughing, reading, sleeping, talking, singing, humming, cleaning, and playing a musical instrument. Specifically, the patent cites “cuddling, fighting, participating in a game or sporting event, and talking.” So, if you’re fighting, ads for anger management, and condom ads for times when you’re cuddling?

The patent also notes that ads could be directed to a mobile device.

“Traditional targeted advertising systems and methods fail to account for one or more ambient actions of a user while the user is experiencing media content using a media content access device,” the patent reads. “For example, if a user is watching a television program, a traditional targeted advertising system fails to account for what the user is doing (e.g., eating, interacting with another user, sleeping, etc.) while the user is watching the television program. This limits the effectiveness, personalization, and/or adaptability of the targeted advertising.”

This, of course, could either be terrifying or intriguing. If I’m chatting with someone about possible vacation spots, go ahead and serve up possible hotels and flights. But if I’m on ice cream sandwich No. 3 for the night, will my TV show me Weight Watchers ads? Or Match.com if I’m home on a Saturday night. Ouch.

I can also already hear privacy advocates having a collective seizure. They are already concerned with computer programs that serve up targeted ads based on computer searches and Web activity. A device that listens to your conversations and monitors your activity? Can’t wait for the congressional hearing on that one.

Of course, many patents either go nowhere or take years to implement. Apple, for example, has a patent for “5D” technology. This might all sound very Big Brother in 2012, but who knows what type of technology we’ll have in five or 10 years? The patent holders are likely thinking ahead to what could be – and how it can make some good money on patent licensing deals.

“Verizon has a well-established track record of respecting its customers’ privacy and protecting their personal information. As a company that prizes innovation, Verizon takes pride in its innovators whose work is represented in our patents and patent applications,” a Verizon spokesman said in a statement. “While we do not comment on pending patent applications, such futuristic patent filings by innovators are routine. This is also highly speculative and whatever we might do in the future would be in line with our well-established track record of respecting our customers’ privacy and protecting their personal information.”

Editors’ Note: This story was updated Thursday with comment from Verizon and to clarify that the patent has not officially been granted.

For more from Chloe, follow her on Twitter @ChloeAlbanesius.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2412896,00.asp

CSD Dinner Table Topic of the Day – Dad, Which Would You Prefer?

Posted on by Cool Pappa

…for your son to come home and tell you that he cashed in his student loan check or maxed out his new credit card (because you know, you gotta establish your credit right?) on this:

 

OR

For your daughter to come home for dinner with her new boyfriend and when he takes off his coat, you see this:

Discuss!

 

CSD

So…Exactly What IS Mitt Romney’s Position On Abortion?

Posted on by Cool Pappa

Taken at: Creation Museum

Allow me to be political for a moment.

I remember in high school having serious debates over abortion back in 1984. Now it is 2012 and the abortion argument is still alive and well and rightfully so, for we are talking about the life of another human being.

A life…so why is this issue not at the front of Mitt Romney’s mind?

“Dannenfelser said she thinks Romney’s comment to the editorial board was nothing more than a slip — that he just has too much else on his mind to keep issues like abortion front and center.

“I think the simple truth of the matter is his head is in jobs and the economy almost all day long, almost every single day,” she said. “And of course we want at least a third of his focus to be on it all the time, but you don’t always get everything that you want.” (Read more below)

I know many Christians that refuse to vote for ANY democratic candidate because of the abortion issue (I can say with some confidence that some use this issue as just a smoke-screen). I certainly respect that decision and even agree with that stance, but my question is, “So what has your undying support for the Republican party really done, as the debate is still the same after 28 years?”

In the last few elections, many in the African-American community have questioned the undying loyalty of other African-Americans to the Democratic party. For many African-American’s, the democratic stance on civil rights is the swing-issue. The question gets raised to them, “So what have they actually done for you? Do they really need to have your interests in mind when they know you will not go and vote for the Republican candidate?”

That’s a good question to ask.

Now, it’s about time Christians start asking this same question of the Republican party.

Candidates seem to get away simply saying, “I’m Pro-Life!”, without any follow-up questions as to what they mean.

So ask Mitt Romney what being “Pro-Life” really means?

Read or listen to the story below and tell me what you think.

It sounds to me like Mr. Romney is a lot closer to the center than many Christians want to admit.

Secondly, what do we do about this statement in the article below,

“…just as it was no accident when Romney said in a CBS evening news interview in August that he supported abortions when the pregnant woman’s health — not just her life — was threatened. That position was also reversed later, quietly, by staff.”

Some have pointed to Romney’s past positions as well. “Running for the U.S. Senate in 1994, Romney insisted that “since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years […] we should sustain and support it.” And again in 2002, running for governor in Massachusetts, Romney insisted that he would “preserve and protect a woman’s right to choose” and vowed to “not change any provisions of Massachusetts’ pro-choice laws.”

(Source: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/08/28/romney-accidentally-says-he-favors-health-exception-for-abortion/)

So as someone who doesn’t have a dog in this race (no pun intended), I must call out the hypocrisy that I see on this all important issue. The double-talk done by the candidate and many of the Christian Pro-Life-is-the-only-issue supporters who will not hold him to task if he gets elected OR pin him down to take a firm position on the sanctity of life.

I listen to many commentators on Christian radio and the line continues to be drawn:

Obama – Baby Killer <————————————————————> Romney – Baby Advocate

I think an argument can be made that neither candidate will do anything to reduce abortion. I do not have the space or the time right now to debate the “except for rape and incest” clause that many Republicans always throw out, but just by adding “health of the mother” should tell us a lot about how he really feels right there.

Why does he view a life differently in his exception clause and exactly what does he mean by, “health”…if that’s what he meant…oh I can’t keep up…

Just like many African-American’s are sheep for the Democratic party, it’s about time Christians admit they are nothing but sheep for the Republican party.

… and the last I checked, God was the only Shepherd that we were commanded to follow.

And in my best Andy Rooney tone, “and I don’t think He is a Republican!”

Hebrews 13:20 Now may the God of peace who by the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus Christ, ©NET

Hear the story here: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/10/10/162667478/romney-causes-yet-another-abortion-stir

“Just how many abortion positions does Mitt Romney have? Once again, that answer is unclear.

This time the confusion began Tuesday, during a meeting with the editorial board of the Des Moines Register.

“There’s no legislation with regards to abortion that I’m familiar with that would become part of my agenda,” Romney said.

He went on to add that he would use an executive order to reinstate the “Mexico City Policy,” which bars U.S. aid to international groups that lobby or pay for abortions.

But the comment about not pushing abortion-restricting legislation surprised those on both sides of the abortion debate.

 

“That’s quite a shock, coming from Mitt Romney, who has consistently called for the overturn of Roe v Wade; who said that he would appoint Supreme Court justices who would do just that; who has an extensive pro-life agenda on his website that anybody can access,” says Beth Shipp, political director of NARAL Pro-Choice America.

That agenda includes things like defunding Planned Parenthood, which would require legislation. Romney has also endorsed legislation to ban abortions at the point fetuses can theoretically feel pain.

In addition to a terse statement from the campaign vowing that, if elected, Romney would “be a pro-life president,” the candidate himself tried to walk back some of his comments when asked by reporters at a campaign stop Wednesday.

“I think I’ve said time and again, I’m a pro-life candidate. I’ll be a pro-life president,” he said during a rope line in Ohio.

Even before Romney’s walk back, however, he was being defended, if somewhat weakly, by abortion opponents.

“No one likes to be caught flat-footed or see your hero flat-footed. But those moments do come,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List.

Dannenfelser said she thinks Romney’s comment to the editorial board was nothing more than a slip — that he just has too much else on his mind to keep issues like abortion front and center.

“I think the simple truth of the matter is his head is in jobs and the economy almost all day long, almost every single day,” she said. “And of course we want at least a third of his focus to be on it all the time, but you don’t always get everything that you want.”

NARAL’s Shipp, however, thinks it’s anything but an accident — just as it was no accident when Romney said in a CBS evening news interview in August that he supported abortions when the pregnant woman’s health — not just her life — was threatened. That position was also reversed later, quietly, by staff.

“I know Mitt Romney really wants women to vote for him,” Shipp says. But the way that he’s going about this, by lying to people about where he stands on the issues, is not going to serve him well come Nov. 6.”

Still, political scientist John Green of the University of Akron says what Romney is doing isn’t all that unusual.

“There’s a long tradition of candidates adopting one kind of position for a broad audience, maybe on television, then having a different position in direct mail or in smaller venues,” he says.

Green says Romney is running into trouble because in today’s world of Twitter and nonstop cable news, there’s no such thing as being able to deliver different messages to anyone anymore.

“We’ve discovered over the last couple of election cycles, and we’ve seen it in many examples this year, is that it’s hard to keep those different venues separate because of our communication technology today,” Green says.

With an issue as touchy as abortion, that can become even more hazardous, says Green.

“The people who really care about something like abortion, whether they’re in the Republican base or the Democratic base, have very firm convictions on where a candidate should stand,” he says. “And variation on those convictions can create very real problems.”

Those problems include both alienating one’s own voters, and mobilizing those on the other side.

At least for now, however, Romney seems to be making it work. There’s still nearly a month until Election Day, however, and two more debates to go.”

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/10/10/162667478/romney-causes-yet-another-abortion-stir

Privacy Watch: Xbox & Your Data – “Sorry Sir, You’re Too Fat To Order The Meat Lovers Pizza and All You Do Is Play Video Games…”

Posted on by Cool Pappa

As I mentioned on this post, I take privacy a bit more seriously than most people. This is simply because in my Clark Kent life, I know the power of data and how valuable it is. People will pay top dollar for information about you because we live in a society that values the “personal touch”. It’s just not enough to market baseball (shout out to the Oakland A’s as they made the 3rd greatest comeback in MLB history to clinch the AL West!), but they want to market the exact team that we pull for with the exact products we buy at the exact level of our disposable income. At no time in history has this been possible, until now.

So I’m glad to see this video still making the rounds on the internet. I first saw it about 8 years ago, when I was amazed that the pizza place knew who we were when we called to order one Friday night. It was funny then, but it’s becoming more prophetic now. I’ve heard people say, “It doesn’t matter anyway…”, but yes it does if you care about your wallet. It’s not that companies are just making money off your information, but they are charging YOU more money based on the data that they find. Don’t believe me? Okay, skip next month’s electric bill and look at the impact it has on your credit score. Then watch that credit score then impact your insurance premium. If things get really tight, watch that insurance premium impact your employment-eligibility for certain job positions. The dominoes just keep falling and falling…

I may not agree with many positions of the ACLU, but I think they got this one right:

Let me also mention the device that we purchased for our Xbox Kinect. It’s called the Pritect Sensor Cover and it sells online for less than $10! It’s well worth it knowing that Microsoft isn’t using the information (and video!) that it collects while my kids play the Xbox or monitoring the movies we play…Netflix already knows all that.

Uh boy…

Oh yea, don’t believe me on the Xbox Kinect? Take a look at these screen shots I took while changing the settings that are WIDE OPEN BY DEFAULT. Plus, finding your privacy settings isn’t nearly as easy as finding all of the other meaningless items they plaster on the dashboard.

 

CSD

Revenge of the Homeschooling Dad

Posted on by Cool Pappa

I’ve had it. I’m done. I’m tired of the comments.

I will come here to vent, but I may just vent on the people who feel the need to give me their opinion as well.

But if there are any homeschooling parents out there, feel free to chime in with your experiences as well.

I’m about to start a new section called: Revenge of the Homeschooling Dad.

First post:

Why are you asking about my kids socialization when all people complain about is how disrespectful children are these days, how self-centered they are, and how they aren’t learning anything in school…folks keep giving their unsolicited opinion to me, so I’m about to start giving mine….Oh yea, and they are so Biblically illiterate, that Jesus is nothing but a swear word to them, not their Savior.

Yea, it’s on now…if you want my skin to be thick enough for your opinions, I’m sure yours is thick enough to hear mine as well.

After all, I’m sure you went to school, so you know how to interact with various people and respect different views when my kids will not right?

CSD Press Rewind Post: A Living Eulogy For My Mother

Posted on by Cool Pappa

I was going to write something new for Mother’s Day but quite honestly, I think it’s a good time to revisit a post that I made at the beginning of the year. However this time, I want you to deeply consider whether your mom knows how you feel about her?

As men, many think we spend so much time trying to keep emotion inside. This is not entirely true. Our society only considers it okay to express emotion in certain situations such as sports, certain romantic situations or war. Athletes cry over a game that means nothing to the world, a man can cry at a wedding or tears of sorrow can be shed over a fallen comrade, but to cry at any other time is not considered very manly.

So today as you are remembering your mom, I ask that you read my A Living Eulogy for My Mother (click the title) post, and if you have never TOLD your mom how much you appreciate her, I beg that you do so.

As dad’s we are often under-appreciated. So you know how it feels, so please make sure your mom knows how much you appreciate her because no Hallmark card can express the way you feel.

…and

Happy Mother’s Day to MY MOM!!!

http://cornerstonedad.com/2012/01/03/a-living-eulogy-for-my-mother/

Washington Watch Exclusive: The Parents Of Slain Florida Teen Trayvon Martin Speak Out

Posted on by Cool Pappa

I will deal with this story and issue soon. In the meantime, I wanted to post this video from Washington Watch, as it knocks down all the stereotypes that I’m sure people are looking for. Many times people will say, “Well, I’m sure something happened to make that guy act that way” or “Maybe the kid was threatening to the man”.

What saddens me the most is that my son and I were just visiting the Orlando area exactly one month ago. I gave him more freedom while we were away than I normally would at home since his other siblings were not there. My heart rate increases when I ponder on the “what-ifs” like, “What if neighborhood watch would have been following him when he was making the one-mile walk to his cousin’s house?” “What if something would have happened when he was out playing football and on his way home just before dark?”

I think I would be thinking just like Trayvon Martin’s dad said in the above video, he would have been waiting on me to protect him, and I would not have been there.

My mentor Dr. Lyn Lewis used to say something to the affect that black men grow up knowing that they are one step from jail or dead, no matter who they are or what they do in life.

I’ll echo another saying she’d say, that’s some good Sociology right there, because this Trayvon Martin murder proves her point. Good kid, good parents, smart, athlete, but still dead like a L.A. gang member.

Lets keep the heat on this story before it gets swept away by more important things like what the Duchess of Cambridge is wearing or what Peyton Manning is doing.

Photograph: Matt Dunham/AP

Parents protest at school over slave math lesson – Reason 344 for Why You May Want To Consider Homeschooling Your Kids

Posted on by Cool Pappa

You know, one day I’ll do a podcast or article on some of the racist things done at some of my schools when I was growing up.

The worst by far was the Slave-Trade that my high school put on to raise money by auctioning off athletes.

Oh wait, shout out to the NFL and NBA who still do that…

But you know, I can honestly say I’ve never had to take a test like this.

Beaver Ridge Elementary parents held a protest outside their Norcross school Tuesday after a lesson on Frederick Douglass prompted third-grade teachers to use slave beatings to teach math concepts.

One of the questions on the worksheet. A school spokesperson has said the questions were "poorly written."

Channel 2 Action NewsOne of the questions on the worksheet. A school spokesperson has said the questions were “poorly written.”

Another question on the worksheet. Several parents have complained about the assignment.

Another question on the worksheet. Several parents have complained about the assignment.

School officials said that the questions stemmed from an effort to incorporate history into math lessons.

Channel 2 Action NewsSchool officials said that the questions stemmed from an effort to incorporate history into math lessons.

The protest was held as some parents of third-graders who saw the homework assignment met with the school’s principal.

About 60 parents, community activists and church leaders assembled outside the school. A few carried signs that read: “Shame on them” and “The teachers need to be fired.” Some drivers passing by the demonstration honked to show support.

Parent Christopher Braxton, who complained to the district about the slave math questions, said his son’s class was being led by a substitute teacher for the second day in a row as the investigation into the incident continues.

Braxton said Beaver Ridge Principal Jose DeJesus would not elaborate on the status of the probe or his son’s teacher.

“They apologized for the situation and said they could not speak about it further until they finish the investigation,” Braxton said.

Four of the school’s third-grade classrooms received the assignment, which made references to slaves picking oranges and filling baskets with cotton. It also included the question: “If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in one week?”

This is the second time in two years race and ethnicity on a homework assignment sparked complaints at Gwinnett Schools. There was a similar incident in Cobb Schools last fall.

Last school year, third-graders at Gwinnett’s Chesney Elementary were given a reading homework packet that included a story titled “What Is an Illegal Alien?” The assignment, which was copied from the Internet by a new teacher, was not reviewed by the school’s subject area department chair before it was distributed. The math sheet created at Beaver Ridge also failed to undergo a content review, officials said. Under district policy, the worksheet should have been reviewed before being handed out to students, but that process was not followed.

In September, Cobb Schools came under fire for a similar incident, an assignment by a teacher at Campbell Middle School. Students were asked to write on the issue of dress codes and read a fictional two-page letter written by a 20-year-old Saudi Arabian woman. The character wrote approvingly of wearing the Islamic veil — and of her fiance’s multiple wives and the law of Sharia.

Gwinnett Schools human resources officials are investigating the Beaver Ridge incident to decide whether punitive action is necessary. District officials said they would work with math teachers to come up with more appropriate questions.

“These particular questions were an attempt at incorporating some of what students had been discussing in social studies with their math activity,” said Sloan Roach, Gwinnett Schools spokeswoman. “One teacher developed the questions, another made the copies and it was used in four classes.”

Ed DuBose, Georgia NAACP president, had a strong view: “The teachers, the staff responsible for allowing this to go forward should be fired.”

DuBose called off a press conference Tuesday and met with Gwinnett superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks.

One of the teachers involved in the incident is Hispanic, Braxton said. The district would not release the teachers’ names or races. All involved are being questioned about their role and are still employed with the district, Roach said.

School officials said the questions were not intended to be offensive and that copies of the assignment were being pulled so they wouldn’t be circulated.

Copy and paste the link to check out the video of the story:

http://www.ajc.com/news/gwinnett/parents-protest-at-school-1296640.html

CornerstoneDad’s Dinner Table Topic Of The Day: Kids Are Too Expensive

Posted on by Cool Pappa

According to costofwedding.com (http://www.costofwedding.com/):

“On average, US couples spend $26,542 for their wedding. However, the majority of couples spend between $19,907 and $33,178. This does not include cost for a honeymoon or engagement ring.”

According to the Huffingtonpost.com (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-helfend-meyer/second-marriage-for-bette_b_963383.html):

“While about 41 percent of first marriages end in divorce, the picture is even gloomier for second acts where 60 percent of those marriages fail.”

According to Voddie Baucham’s message titled, “What’s More Important Than A Wedding” (http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?sermonID=7241119264910); (http://www.gracefamilybaptist.net/voddie-baucham-ministries/):

“People will spend $30,000 on a wedding, but when you ask them about having children the first thing they will say is, “We can’t afford children.””

Seems like Americans are investing in the wrong area.

I wonder if those who attended those $30,000 weddings and complained about the dress, food, friends/relatives, etc., will take care of the couple when they get older as well.

Believe it or not, there was a time when people didn’t worry about whether they could afford children or not…even when they couldn’t afford much of anything else.