No Stimulus for You!… and others wait til May

Sadly, if you made less than $3000 in 2007, you will NOT get a dime under the current Stimulus package. These people are too poor to spend this on necessities?

Unemployment benefits that ran out…will stay run out.

Looks like the current version will give a tax Rebate of taxes paid up to $600 for singles now…..but you wont even get stimulated til May or June.

$50 billion in incentives for businesses to buy new equipment… (No, …..you have to put the equipment in a business still located in the US…yeah)

I keep hoping that I misread something on this….
Now it has to go through the House and Senate… Perhaps, some help for those making less than $3000 or with their unemployment depleted…

http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/460097.html

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No Child Left Behind…The Digital Gap/Divide…

I’ve heard the hype about the OLPC (One laptop per child) that Negraponte is heading up. There are others working on low cost laptops allegedly for third world countries and perhaps in the states too… To address the alleged digital gap… O no…

Firstly….
The OLPC looks good in the pics. Fine..
So….the one that the child in the alleged third world country gets ….( I can only speak from experience in rural Peru and Chile….but there’s…umm most of those countries without rural electricity…and sharing a high speed internet link?…you would be lucky in most places even in a city to find a dialup …so..the net sharing thing…like a nancy pelosi idea gone terribly impractical. Hmmm And maybe clean water and sewage trump playing (i mean learning) online?

Secondly…
I’ve have been chewing on the “digital gap/divide” a lot lately though as I see more and more of the US high tech folks on the sidelines working in “service” jobs… and the supposed advanced learning and skills….

To be honest, most of those kids, if they are lucky enough to get a job at all, will need the 3R’s, a clean shower and decent breakfast. The UI on the cash register or kiosk is aimed at the lowest common denominator. There will be a VERY small percentage that will actually end up being techs. In case you all havent noticed…more and more of thats in India or where the lowest cost is…

And just like in the states, if there aren’t many or any good, high paying jobs at the end of this skill building and this kid is still shoveling llama dung….or growing coca plants….Umm yeah.

At that point, they can become bloggers, play WOW and check out some PRON…in a desolate village? Nice.

More on this as I get a chance.

Interesting Site Shows Gas Prices…Nationwide

I saw this while Googling “gas prices” on gasbuddy.com
It shows a big picture view of how varied the gas prices are.

Travellers and daily commuters alike.  Information is power…

http://www.gasbuddy.com/gb_gastemperaturemap.aspx

Virgin (-Atlantic) Airlines, and Virgin Galactic…How cool is that…

Virgin-Atlantic airlines is in the US!!! Sir Richard Branson of the UK has brought us a reasonably priced air carrier and decked out with all the latest technologies.

http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/index.jsp?WT.mc_id=virgin_com1

Add to that the Virgin Galactic SpaceShip One.

http://www.virgingalactic.com/

How cool is that! Welcome to the 21st century and what your grand kids and great grand kids will just take for granted. Yep, going up in space and over to France…for supper…