Beacon Power Corp

Second Energy Department-backed company goes bankrupt

A Massachusetts company that received a $43 million Energy Department loan guarantee last year filed for bankruptcy Sunday, a step certain to fuel criticism of federal green energy financing in the wake of the solar company Solyndra’s collapse.  Beacon Power Corp., which develops energy storage systems, filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.

Beacon Power had received a federal loan guarantee to help build an energy storage plant in Stephentown, N.Y., that began operating in January. The Treasury Department’s Federal Financing Bank provided the loan. Beacon sought bankruptcy protection two days after the White House ordered an independent 60-day evaluation of the Energy Department's loan programs aimed at ensuring effective management and monitoring.

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Brophy | Monday 31 October 2011 - 1:01 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

MOUNT RUSHMORE FROM CANADIAN VIEW

MOUNT RUSHMORE FROM CANADIAN VIEW

Brophy | Monday 31 October 2011 - 12:41 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

HOW WE THINK, BIAS, BLINDNESS

Bias, Blindness and How We Truly Think (Part 1): Daniel Kahneman

Rolling the Dice

I

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Brophy | Sunday 30 October 2011 - 5:51 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Steve Jobs in Heaven



10 years ago the USA had Steve Jobs, Bob Hope and Johnny Cash.

Now they have no Jobs, no Hope and no Cash. 

Brophy | Sunday 30 October 2011 - 5:37 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Steve Jobs in Heaven



10 years ago the USA had Steve Jobs, Bob Hope and Johnny Cash.

Now they have no Jobs, no Hope and no Cash. 

Brophy | Sunday 30 October 2011 - 5:37 pm | |

1950s version of an E-Mail

1950s version of an E-Mail

I have no idea who put this together, but it is wonderful!!

Long ago and far away, in a land that time forgot,
Before the days of Dylan, or the dawn of Camelot.
There lived a race of innocents, and they were you and me,
 

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RiCK | Tuesday 25 October 2011 - 5:18 pm | | Brophy Blog | Two comments
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Obit in London Times

An Obituary printed in the London Times.....

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

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Brophy | Monday 24 October 2011 - 2:57 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Voters say US is in decline

The Hill Poll: Voters say US is in decline

By Mike Lillis - 10/24/11 05:00 AM ET

More than two-thirds of voters say the United States is declining, and a clear majority think the next generation will be worse off than this one, according to the results of a new poll commissioned by The Hill.

A resounding 69 percent of respondents said the country is “in decline,” the survey found, while 57 percent predict today’s kids won’t live better lives than their parents. Additionally, 83 percent of voters indicated they’re either very or somewhat worried about the future of the nation, with 49 percent saying they’re “very worried.”

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Brophy | Monday 24 October 2011 - 2:07 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

VATICAN WORLD BANK

UPDATE 2-Vatican urges economic reforms, condemns collective greed

* Document also calls for "Central World Bank"

* Condemns "idolatry of the market"

* Urges Wall Street to examine its impact on humanity

* Says reform should start under U.N. auspices (Recasts, adds more on document encouraging reform movements)

By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY, Oct 24 (Reuters) - - The Vatican called on Monday for sweeping reforms of the world economy and the creation of a ethical, global authority to regulate financial markets as demonstrations against corporate greed continued to spring up in major cities across the globe.

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Brophy | Monday 24 October 2011 - 10:06 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Can Obama govern?

Can Obama govern? He needs Republican help but is avoiding any chances of it

Ruminations, October 23, 2011

Can Obama govern?

The reason a person is elected to be president is that the majority of the populace want to see that person enact programs and govern. A president is not elected to make excuses as to why he cannot govern or blame the opposition for his/her failures – and yet, that seems to be just what President Barack Obama is doing.

Consider President Bill Clinton’s record. He achieved bipartisan support for the North American Free Trade Agreement, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (welfare reform), Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999, and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Clinton’s fiscal program, with help from congressional Republicans, also produced a surplus.

President George W. Bush sought and received bipartisan support for Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (Bush tax cuts), No Child Left Behind, the PATRIOT Act, the Medicare prescription benefits, and the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002.

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Brophy | Monday 24 October 2011 - 04:33 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

occupy wall street - greed

hey want $lice of the occu-pie

500G fight at Zuccotti

Even in Zuccotti Park, greed is good.

Occupy Wall Street’s Finance Committee has nearly $500,000 in the bank, and donations continue to pour in -- but its reluctance to share the wealth with other protesters is fraying tempers.

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Brophy | Sunday 23 October 2011 - 10:26 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

steve job's bio - review

Steve Jobs 'received a late night phone call from Bill Clinton asking how to handle the Monica Lewinsky scandal'

  • Advised the former president 'to tell the country'
  • Biographer also revealed Jobs thought Mick Jagger 'was on drugs'
  • Came up with the name Apple while on a fruit-only diet
  • On Bill Gates: 'He'd be a broader guy if he had taken acid'
  • Also revealed he regretted decision to delay cancer surgery

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Brophy | Saturday 22 October 2011 - 11:53 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Bridgewater Founder - Ray Dalio


Ray Dalio

Bridgewater Hedge Fund Founder

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Brophy | Saturday 22 October 2011 - 01:44 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Obama's foreign policy success

Analysis: Will Obama's foreign policy success help?

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama delivered on another foreign policy promise on Friday with plans to pull the last U.S. troops from Iraq. But in a re-election campaign all about the weak U.S. economy, he may not get much credit.

Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, radical Islamic cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi -- these are all dead U.S. opponents that Democrat Obama can claim a measure of credit for getting.

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Brophy | Saturday 22 October 2011 - 01:38 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS


the jesus story just interlocks with the story of the dead sea scrolls; joe


Israel was in a crossroads location

they suffered 500 years of pagan domination; the Babylonian conquest, Persians, Greeks, Polemics, Seleucids and finally the Roman occupation.

their prophecies had to be rethought; "the restoration of David's throne and a time of peace no longer seemed plausible."  the power of foreign empires required a greater counter power.

so prophetic verses were elaborated into apocalyptic verses speaking of cosmic war, divine intervention and the Kingdom of God.  

the dead sea scrolls covered the period 200BCE to about 30CE written by the Essenes.  Jesus was not mentioned in the scrolls but his message was.

apocalyptic messages provided hope and worked well when its realization was in the distant future.  but the roman occupation was seen as a new abomination that makes desolate. and the Essenes believed that the revolt against the romans was imminent, and assisted by the divine intervention of angels, etc.

the Essenes attacked the Romans circa 60 CE and almost won.  But the Essenes were slaughtered.

Pope B16 said:  it appears that not only John the Baptist, but possibly Jesus and his family as well, were close to the Qumran Community (of Essenes).....it is a reasonable hypothesis that John the Baptist lived for some time in this Community and received part of his religious formation from it.

Brophy | Friday 21 October 2011 - 4:47 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Did Apple CEO warn Obama?

Steve Jobs biography: Did Apple CEO warn Obama?

It is interesting to note that Steve Jobs is an extreme liberal, and has always been quick to blame republicans, openly, at shareholder meetings, and product meetings and employee meetings.  Every employer knows that Obama regulation is onerous.  Reducing regulation is a simple, quick, painless way to help improve employment. 

Read later in his bio that he refused surgery early on, but later, when it was too late, regretted.  He felt it was 50-50 that there was a God. 

 
Steve Jobs (left) and Barack Obama are shown in a composite. | AP Photos
According to a new book, Jobs talked with Obama on the phone several times. | AP Photos

Steve Jobs told President Barack Obama he was “headed for a one-term presidency,” citing the U.S.’s competitive disadvantages with China and a “crippled” education system, a new biography of the former Apple CEO indicates.

“You’re headed for a one-term presidency,” Jobs told Obama in a meeting last year where he asserted that the White House needed to be more friendly toward business, according to the Huffington Post, which obtained a copy of Walter Isaacson’s forthcoming book, “Steve Jobs.”


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Brophy | Friday 21 October 2011 - 12:05 pm | | Brophy Blog | No comments

Stop dumping on us; OCCUPY WALL STREET

Stop dumping on us; homeowners complain abut OCCUPY WALL STREET

One of my children works on Wall Street and he says it is difficult to traverse the area near the park because of fenced-off areas.  There is organized food delivery for the protesters

but not organized sanitation facilities; so there is lots of dumping. 

It seems that the beginning of the end of the protest is near.  When the dumps pile up and stench pervades like perfume, then it is time to quit and go home to mama. 

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Brophy | Friday 21 October 2011 - 11:59 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

OCCUPY WALL STREET - protests

Global Jobs Crisis Takes Biggest Toll On Struggling Youth

Occupy Wall Street

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Brophy | Thursday 20 October 2011 - 08:59 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

OCCUPY WALL STREET - protests

Global Jobs Crisis Takes Biggest Toll On Struggling Youth

Occupy Wall Street

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Brophy | Thursday 20 October 2011 - 08:59 am | |

Interesting Advertising on Buses......

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RiCK | Tuesday 18 October 2011 - 11:35 am | | Brophy Blog | Three comments
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And... I Used To Drink Vodka

Who Knew???
 
1. To remove a bandage painlessly,

saturate the bandage with vodka.  
The stuff dissolves adhesive.

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RiCK | Tuesday 18 October 2011 - 11:18 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments
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John Pugh's New Murals


3D murals by John Pugh2 3D murals by John Pugh

Having a cow: Valentine's Day, a mural unveiled during the Global Mural Conference in Twentynine Palms, California

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RiCK | Tuesday 18 October 2011 - 11:06 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments
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Can You Guess What This Is?

I guarantee you won't believe it!

Can you get it on the first picture or second or third or?

Do you have to wait till the fourth??

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RiCK | Tuesday 18 October 2011 - 11:00 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments

The Austerity Myth: Federal Spending Up 5% This Year

The Austerity Myth: Federal Spending Up 5% This Year

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Brophy | Tuesday 18 October 2011 - 02:49 am | | Brophy Blog | No comments